Just like in Mercenaries and Just Cause, Alex can commandeer vehicles by latching on to them, but he also has to complete RE4 -style rhythm action sequences. Keep following the prompts and he'll run up a tank's barrel, pry open the hatch, jump inside, slice the driver to bits and take the helm. Same for a copter, only he crawls under the side, yanks out both pilots with his mutated arm and enters the cockpit. So no longer do you have to try and destroy the egg with melee attacks; you can batter it with a payload of hellfire missiles or some well-aimed tank shells. In one scene, you run up the side of a skyscraper, flip backwards and steal a chopper all in one move. It's mental.

You can also steal people. Remember earlier we mentioned absorbing DNA? Well, here's how it works. Murder someone - an innocent bystander or an enemy - and you'll see their body turn liquid-like and slide up your leg. This means you now have their data stored and can basically transform into them at any time. This can be used tactically, for instance taking over the body of an army commander and ordering his troops to help you in battle. You can also use it to sneak into enemy bases, blend in with crowds and dozens of other uses, depending on your objectives.

Prototype will be largely free-roaming. Missions can be selected as and when you like and there are side-quests to distract you from the main story mode, which only actually makes up a limited portion of the game. Radical's last two games are some of the best "open world" titles around - Hulk: Ultimate Destruction and Scarface - and their expertise in creating believable, populated sandboxes makes their new game's play-space vast, detailed and crammed with things to do.

There's nothing else like Prototype on PS3 on 360. It steals elements from almost every game imaginable, but they way it puts them together makes it unique. It has the acrobatics of Prince of Persia, the immense world of GTA, the destruction of Hulk and the disguise system of Destroy All Humans. It's as amorphous as its lead character and one of the most exciting, original games we've seen in ages.