"Combat choreography unfolds with dance-like precision as Kain engages armies of demons and humans alike. "

That statement is utter rubbish. It could only be true if the dancer in question was a blind, one legged sumo wrestler who'd just suffered a stroke. This is the games most important element and its greatest failing. Combat is dull, miserably repetitive and requires no finesse or skill. You hold the right trigger to lock onto an opponent that has the side effect of reducing your 'super human' speed to that of an old lady. You can only attack whilst locked on which equates to slowly walking up to your foe and tapping the attack button or squeezing the block button. Being a vampire means you can drink the blood of anyone you kill, thus replenishing any lost energy. For every encounter you may lose a little energy but you will regain it immediately making the whole exercise one of stubborn perseverance rather than ability. You walk up to an opponent, attack-attack-attack, block-block-block, attack-attack-attack, drink-some-blood, lather-rinse-repeat. Once you’ve learned the system that is it, there is nothing to master. As an example of how bad the combat is you will never engage more than one foe at a time. No matter how big the 'armies of demons' may be only one will attack while the rest stand around waiting for their turn, like a bad kung-fu movie. The combat system is simply not sufficiently dynamic enough for you to be able to fight more than one enemy at a time. The weapons and fury meter alter the damage you inflict a fraction, but the combat remains the same and these additions strangely add nothing to the flawed, inadequate and repetitious game play.

"The comprehensive menu of unstoppable attacks, nimble combos, and special moves will satiate even the hardened of fighting game fans. "

Riiiigght! I believe they are referring to the menu containing your dark powers but it is hard to see clearly amidst the bullcrap. As you play through the game you gain certain dark powers that you can call upon should the game designer warrant it. Part of the problem with the powers is you are very constrained in their use. You can become invisible but only if there is mist on the ground, so the game features paths of mist in the middle of buildings because you have to sneak past a gate. Or a switch (which will look remarkably similar to the thousand other switches) that you can’t reach but wouldn’t you know it, a man stands idly by waiting for you to unleash your mind control power. Which is fun for fives more seconds. As your powers grow, instead of gaining more freedom you feel like shackles are being added to the chain of contrived puzzles that will slow you down even more.

"The most beautiful graphics seen on a console to date! The world that Kain moves through is a lushly detailed, blood-chilling gothic environment that is not only gorgeous to the eye, but also alive with the soon to be dead."

It is an exaggeration to suggest that they are the best graphics to grace the but they are actually pretty good. The different settings are well visualized with nice texturing and decent lighting. There is a bit of slowdown in places but on the whole nice and smooth. The graphical quality thus makes the lack of gameplay that much more of a shame.

"With intuitive AI behavioral response, watch peasants and enemy characters flee, call to arms or remain unaware as Kain moves stealthily through crowds or charges sword raised into open areas."

I’ve already mentioned that you will engage opponents one at a time, which negates the need for characters to display any interesting behavior…and they don’t. There is no particular achievement in AI to laud in this title.

"The combination of a dynamic game with the dark mood and atmosphere make for an intense and cinematic gaming experience."

"Cinematic"...translation..."you can’t skip the cut scenes". Now I don’t know who gets to make these kinds of decisions but surely someone, somewhere must have suggested that it would be nice to be able to skip the cut scenes, particularly when they are so vapid as they are here. I find it incredulous that such an improvement to the finished product is still beyond the reach of so many developers.

It is hard to see whom this title would appeal to. The extremely simplistic nature of the title might appeal to young children but it is too bloody and violent to be suitable. While you may see the final mark as overly harsh for a game that is technically proficient, I would ask would you give a film a good rating merely for being in focus? This is a poor game and it hasn’t become any better in the move to the GameCube. While titles may be a bit thin on the ground for Nintendo’s machine, there are certainly far better offerings to be found.

- If you bought this game in the try returning it under the Sale of Goods act which gives you basic statutory rights for all products. Such as the goods should match the description given in any of the seller's verbal or written description and packaging descriptions must be accurate.

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By Richard Clifford