RAGE

With its lineage proudly displayed on the box, id Software's new first-person shooter promises to deliver on the developer's industry defining history. Quake and Doom are tough acts to follow though, and first impressions might leave you thinking that with RAGE, Carmack and crew have abandoned the safe ground of corridor shooters in favour of an open world epic in an attempt to create something distinctly new.

Fortunately, it's a good one. The game offers outstanding, albeit completely linear level design, keen artificial intelligence and excellently balanced weapons. Unfortunately, the story leaves a lot to be desired, and there's too much back tracking in the latter half. You'll also have to contend with the disappointment of realising that this isn't a genuine competitor to Fallout, and be aggravated by the blatant technical issues. However, the core gameplay is engaging and fun, making it difficult to stay in a bad mood with RAGE. It just isn't quite the new classic I was hoping for. [Martin Perry]