Game: Full Auto :: Wessex Scene Online

Game: Full Auto

6th April 2006

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Most previews have readily described ‘Full Auto’ on the Xbox 360 as ‘Burnout with guns’, however ‘Burnout’ is all about speed while ‘Full Auto’ is about pure destruction. Each of the 25 cars carries a range of weapons from rocket launchers and minelayers to machine guns and homing missiles. Although this game does not display truly next-generation graphics, they are much better than the current generation. Where the game truly excels is in the particle effects, nearly everything on the 30+ tracks can be destroyed or damaged in some way - statues can be sent toppling to the ground, and traffic can be sent flying into buildings with a well placed rocket.

Another unique addition to ‘Full Auto’ is the Unwreck feature, that lets you rewind up to 20 seconds of game time. Missed that great jump? Collided into a column instead of sliding past it? Then simply rewind time and give it another go. You gain unwreck time by doing as much damage as possible. All this leads to a very enjoyable arcade racer, however while this is the game’s greatest strength, it is also its greatest weakness.

The basic gameplay is very shallow, as after a while wreaking destruction gets a touch repetitive, especially while completing the "story" mode. Also this is definitely an arcade racer, there’s none of the subtle nuances found in ‘Project Gotham Racing 3’. There’s no need to carefully break and hit the apex of the corner when you can slide through a storefront spraying machine gun fire into the masonry.

While this makes single player a short-lived experience, multiplayer is where you’ll be spending most of your time. Both split-screen and Xbox Live play are well-constructed and excellent fun. There is no Unwreck feature in multiplayer, leading to a much more frantic style of gameplay. The soundtrack of the game is comprised of electronic and rock tones; it’s not bad, but then again it’s nothing special and in no time you’ll want to be putting your own custom soundtrack on. This leads to another minus point of the game, there’s a bug that means that every time you hit a loading screen it reverts to the in-game music.

All in all ‘Full Auto’ is not a realistic game; it doesn’t have depth and doesn’t reinvent the gaming world. What it does have is something that a lot of games lack - fun factor. It’s a great game to have when you want a quick blast with your mates. 8/10 - Daniel Illingsworth

Game: ‘Full Auto’
Publisher: Sega of Europe
Developer: Pseudo Interactive
Format: Xbox 360