As stylish a game as you'll see, XIII is a virtual testament to why you can have both style and substance under the same roof. Adopting a comic-book style throughout, from the wonderfully compiled cut-scenes through to the cel-shaded in-game graphics, it follows the adventures of agent XIII, finding him initially stranded on a beach with no memory of what went before. As the game progresses, he keeps getting flashbacks to help fill in some of the blanks, no doubt part-inspired by the number of people interested in killing him.

The gameplay itself takes the form of a first-person action-adventure, and a thumping good one at that. There's nothing particularly original about mixing in action, puzzle solving, exploration and stealth, but rarely has it all hung together as well as it does here. Put simply, XIII is a delight to play, with well-thought-through levels, generally fine enemy AI and, when the tempo is racked up, plenty of guns a-blazing and a healthy dose of tension to boot.

On the visual side, we've seen cel-shading as graphical style in games before, more often than that leading to some bland visuals once the novelty has worn off. Not so here. The level of thought and care that has gone into the look and feel of XIII is there for all to see, and for it to be married up to such a compulsively addictive game is just the icing on a really rather delicious cake.

Should you buy it? Most certainly, you should. If you don't, then the next time you lament the lack of care and adventure in your collection of games, then you really will have brought it all upon yourself. --Simon Brew

i think that the fact that this game was styled as a comic is a brilliant original idea.
the gameplay itself is fun, not to hard and a good choice of weapons.
the ending is fantastic and the game is best to play as if you're reading a book: play 1 chapter, then the next day play another.
i like how the game shows that the bad guys have no mercy and the beginning shows that a hot bikini dressed woman who finds a man who cant remember anything about his previous life can be a good samaritan. and a babe.

cell-shaded graphics, role-playing, great comic style, it's all here! Here's the general info. You're XIII, part of a conspiracy, and you suffer from amnesia(memory loss). You are attempting to discover your true id, and your past, and to uncover the conspiracy of the murder of william sherridon. will you succeed? thats up to you.
The game, at first, is novice and great, then as you progress through the game, it becomes more fustrating and hard, even if the skill level is set on easy. But then you get the hang of it, and realize things, which then the game is much easier to handle(yay!).
Here are my comments. GREAT GREAT GREAT GREAT! ! ! !! ! ! ! !!

Having recently replaced my busted gamecube for an Xbox i decided to buy this game, as i had previously owned it on GC, and what a difference the Xbox makes!

The controls are so much easier, and you can really tell the power of the Xbox is there. It has an excellent plot and a refreshing take on graphics, that should keep you immersed until you complete the game.

The ONLY minor fault this game has are the stealth missions, especially later on, where a seconds is all a guard needs to make you fail a level.

Oh and the Multiplayer in my view is fantastic. Team Deathmatch in Bristol Suites is bliss. I have to admit a couple of the maps are a bit too ordinary.

Anywhoo, i completely recommend you buy this outstanding game if you own an Xbox, it really is worth it.

From the opening scene , where you find yourself , an amnesiac , stranded on a beach when you suddenly get attacked , through to the ending ( no - I won't give it away ! ) , there is much here to admire .

The graphics are detailed , and designed in the style of a comic ( albeit a very violent one ! ) , which can initially be unnerving until you become totally immersed in the conspiracy-filled plotline .

The game plays out fairly straightforwardly as a first person shooter , with a nice mix of weapons and set pieces . There is also an Xbox live mode for those who are subscribers .

The game itself lasted approximately 10 or so hours , and was enjoyable , although I have not felt compelled to replay it .

I don't see much wrong with the game, I have played far worse games. I think its really cool; just use the checkpoints or you start from scratch everytime.