"The Red Star"

Based on the critically acclaimed graphic comic from Christian Gossett, "The Red Star" combines fighting and shooting for a run-and-gun style of gameplay.

"The Red Star" tells the story of an alternate Russia, the URRS, where massive technology and futuristic weapons are wielded by The Red Fleet army. Essentially, you act as the resistance force against an evil tyrant, Troika, and attempt to save the day.

You start out by selecting one of three main characters, Makita, Kyuzo and Maya. Maya is not available at the beginning of the game but can be unlocked later. Each legendary warrior has a unique skill set. For example, Makita is an agile warrior, and Kyuzo has the ability to inflect heavy damage with strong attacks, and Maya can fight longer than others. As far as weapons go, you get a standard set of futuristic space-like guns that get an unlimited amount of ammunition.

The only drawback to unlimited ammo is the heat meter. If you fire for too long you have to wait for your weapon to cool down. As the levels go on, you can upgrade your main weapon. In addition to the weapon, your warrior can also utilize the melee attack. As you progress throughout the game you can gain special attack combos such as pressing the square button three times to unleash a three-hit combo. To defend yourself, the X button provides your warrior with a shield to deflect enemy projectiles.

The game is predominantly side-scrolling although there are some vertical portions. Throughout certain levels you face a seemingly endless amount of enemies to battle. The game's controls are fairly easy and anyone should be able to pick up the game and play. One extremely frustrating feature of the game is the lack of an auto save or checkpoints feature. If you are near the end of a level and die you have to start all over again, which happened a few times while I was on the initial level.

Even though the graphics are not super spectacular, "The Red Star" is a great title for some quick action. Gamers can also benefit from the two-player cooperative game mode. For more information visit the official site or visit www.xsgames.biz.

"The Red Star" is rated "T" for Teen (Content suitable for ages 13 or older) and is available for the PlayStation 2.