“Lost Planet” may leave gamers in the cold

Hello gamers, I’m glad you’ve decided to come back and join me for another round of Grizzly Gaming. Now that the Xbox 360 has been around for the better part of a year, developers can now start to fully harness the power that lies under the 360’s hood – and one game which easily demonstrates this claim is “Lost Planet: Extreme Condition”.

Taking place on an icy, snow covered world named E.D.N. III, much of the story in “Lost Planet” centers around a young man named Wayne who has been stricken with a most unfortunate case of amnesia. Not remembering anything about his past other than his name, his ability to fight, and the memory of his father being killed by a giant Akrid called “Green Eye”. Now just what in the heck is an “Akrid” you ask? Why they’re the native species on E.D.N. III and not only are they incredibly hostile towards humans, but they come in a variety of shapes and sizes – ranging from no bigger than Wayne himself, to absolutely dwarfing our hero. Given how incredibly large some of the Akrid are, expect some epic boss battles.

The story of Wayne taking revenge on an overgrown space bug isn’t the entirety of “Lost Planet’s” plot – even though it might as well be. The rest of the story about snow pirates and a shadowy, evil corporation called “NEVEC” is so convoluted and, quite frankly, boring that following the storyline is almost more trouble than it’s worth. Good thing for “Lost Planet” that the game play more than makes up for the forgettable storyline.

In “Lost Planet”, there are two main enemies – rival snow pirates and the Akrid. But the most constant enemy in “Lost Planet” is an unseen one. The planet of E.D.N. III is primarily covered in snow and ice. The unyielding cold constantly drains Wayne’s T-Energy and eventually his health. T-Energy, or thermal energy, is vital to Wayne’s survival. A special device Wayne wears on his arm, called a harmonizer, converts T-Energy into health and also energy used to power certain weapons which Wayne uses as well as power mech-like Vital Suits, or VS’. T-Energy can be collected from killing enemies as well as found by securing data posts, which are scattered all about levels and serve as way-points to tell Wayne where to go next.

An interesting feature of “Lost Planet’s” game play is the ability to use VS weapons while on foot. Wayne can only carry two weapons at once, storing one on his back while the other is in use. The ability to use VS weapons helps greatly when the protection of a VS is no where to be found.

But perhaps the most intriguing part of “Lost Planet” is the grappling hook that Wayne has at his disposal. A gadget very reminiscent of “Bionic Commando” for the NES, the grappling hook allows Wayne to reach heights he wouldn’t be able to without the help of a VS.

While many games today seem to be trying to achieve the highest level of realism from next-gen systems as possible, developer Capcom has packed “Lost Planet” with so much over-the-top, non-stop, don’t stop shooting ‘til everything’s dead action that you’ll hardly be able to put the controller down. The graphics in “Lost Planet” are also a huge draw for this game. The environments, character models, enemies and especially the explosions and smoke effects contained in “Lost Planet” are without a doubt some of the sickest but at the same time most beautiful graphics I’ve ever seen. Even the Akrid monsters look so amazing, you’ll almost feel bad about sending them to an icy grave.

Though “Lost Planet” packs a graphical wallop, this game is not without a myriad of problems, quirks, and “Wha..?” inspiring features. For instance, was it really necessary to include big, bright weak spots/ bullseye’s on each Akrid enemy? Did Capcom suspect that gamers wouldn’t be able to figure out how to kill enemies without these giant, glowing beacons on each enemy? Another strange quirk is noticed when using the grappling hook. The hook is very helpful in accessing un-reachable areas, but players can only use the grappling hook when they are planted firmly on the ground. Wayne also seems to suffer from sort of strange neck injury, since he is unable to look up and down past a certain point. This can get quite annoying when battling enemies who are able to fly overhead and damage Wayne and the only thing Wayne can do is physically move to be able to get an appropriate angle on his enemy. “Lost Planet” also makes use of practically every button on the 360 controller – which is both a blessing and a curse. The controls take a little too long to get acquainted with (for instance using the left and right shoulder buttons to make quick, 90 degree turns), but give the player a great deal of control over Wayne once they are mastered.

The argument can be made that even the game play in “Lost Planet” gets repetitive too quickly, and it is easy to see why. Normally the game follows as such – Wayne gets a mission, he goes out and kills everything in his path, perhaps fights a boss, and the mission’s over.

“Lost Planet” multiplayer features four different game types, the ability to gain levels, and compete over Xbox Live. Multiplayer will keep your attention for a while, but in the end it is simply not as much fun as other games that are Live compatible, such as “Gears of War”.

It is unfortunate that “Lost Planet” suffers from so many small problems, because “Lost Planet” could’ve truly been one of the next big franchises for the 360. As it stands now, though, “Lost Planet” is only another in the long line of graphical endowed, but substance lacking 360 games to come out recently. For those who enjoy mindless action and insane explosions, “Lost Planet” is absolutely worth renting. But for those expecting a deep story and challenging game play, “Lost Planet” will surely disappoint.