This weird wacky game is probably the strangest thing you'll see this entire year. You start by controlling MECCs, some sort of British-speaking big-eyed, round-headed aliens in space suits. Then you'll move on to Sea Reapers, much of the controversy of this game because they are topless. To reduce such controversy, Giant Moon (the developer) clothed the Sea Reapers for their U.S. debut. Apparently, they are allowed to be topless in Europe because they are not humans but sea reapers with uncanny likeness to humans, except for their face. If you are disappointed that they were censored, fear not fellow gamer. To restore the Sea Reapers to their original topless format, simply delete the ARPFIX.GZP file in the bin directory where Giants was installed. The game finishes with controlling the Kabuto, the giant green creatures this game is known for.

Because the game involves three creatures, it turns out to be a quite unique game. Controlling the MECC is much like any 3d shooter, you fly around with your jet pack, shoot and run. Controlling the Sea Reapers, you get to use spells and dash around with a sword. The Kabuto, the most intriguing and enjoyable aspect, which comes at the end of the game is essentially just a big green giant that can eat things and send out Kabuto hatchlings.

This game seems at first glance to be a 3d shooter, but it's really more of a strategy game. Somewhat like Sacrifice in its style, but unique in many aspects. The standard set up base, defend and attack missions are here, along with a more interesting variety of find and save missions, as well as total annhilation, and so forth.

There is no save feature, which is a good and bad thing. I find some of this game just agonizingly annoying at times, especially the 2nd level jetpack mission. Flying around is frustrating enough I think, saving Smarties from falling of the edge of cliffs and into piranha-infested waters is worse. Without a save feature, you just can't get to the next level until you get used to the controls. If you have low-spec system you can forget it. Clipping screens and flying will drive you utterly nuts. Go play Starcraft instead.

After the initial learning curve, the game however becomes more natural, and user can enjoy the game. Giants has excellent graphics that utilize GeForce cards wonderfully.
Sunlight, fog, water effects all turn out pretty impressive throughout the game.

One great aspect is that after a level is loaded and you die, the game does not load the level again, as seen in many 3d games, such as Deus Ex's painful load time, and No One Lives Forever's consistent load time after every death. You won't find that in this game, you can immediately start the level over after you die.

There are sometimes buggy quirks to the game, such as clipping after 5 minutes of gameplay, which can be remedied by starting the game over. Sometimes there are slowdowns, especially in older systems. The game requires some pretty high specifications to run smoothly, I would suggest a 650 mhz processor, 128 MB RAM, and a GeForce card of some sort to even begin considering getting this game.

The plot is very silly, and the scenes are often a thrill. The cut-scenes, rendered in real time are very funny. The intro involves on of the MECCs falling off the plane, and then planting a British flag victoriously on an island only to have a bird snatch it away. It's all very quirky humor, which can't really be explained, only experienced. If you have any doubts, get the demo, although it is a very big download.

My Score - 9.2 out of 10.0

An excellent game, very original but slightly frustrating. If you enjoyed Sacrifice and a number of 3d-shooter/strategy games this game will probably be enjoyable to you. Having the patience or simply the skill to control characters in 3d is necessary for this game to be totally fun. If you find yourself frustrated at 3d-shooters in general, NOLF, Deus-Ex, Half-life, avoid this game.



Recommended: Yes