Temperature related gameplay
Thankfully, there are plenty of chances to refill the thermal energy timer, with the most frequent option being to pick up the orange squidgy spores that drop from any Akrid that you kill; the bigger the Akrid, the bigger the thermal spore and the more seconds that will add to the meter.
This temperature-related gameplay is an excellent addition to the genre, effectively adding to the intensity of the game as you dash around looking for thermal spores to replenish your health. The timer means that you'll actually want to kill more creatures because it acts as a reward; the more beasts you kill, the longer youï'll survive (as if the creatures lurking on this creepy planet weren't anxiety-inducing enough!)
Lost Planet: Extreme Condition's strength lies in the frantic combat, innovative thermal energy timer, the creature animations and the impact the vile Akrid have on your nervous system. The story-line didn't really do anything for us and although the mission maps were extremely linear in nature we were surprisingly stuck with nowhere to go on more than one occasion; a more obvious map would be a great addition. Nevertheless, we don't think that should put you off this explosive shooter; expect a bug-induced action-packed, chilly ride when Lost Planet: Extreme Condition scuttles into shops on the 12th January.
Click for larger imageThe multiplayer demo that we played didn't really live up to the single player campaign, but we understand Capcom have been ironing out the problems so we're looking forward to testing out the multiplayer over the next week more news shortly.
UPDATE: We've now completed Lost Planet and the issue we had with finding our way around the environment isn't really a problem at all. The data posts, once activated, point you in the right direction.
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