TimeShift review

Rewinding to 2004

Why you can trust GamesRadar+ Our experts review games, movies and tech over countless hours, so you can choose the best for you. Find out more about our reviews policy.

The core gameplay is satisfying at first. You can slow, stop, or rewind time in small chunks, and the otherwise basic combat is enhanced because of it. Catching bad guys sitting in their chairs at evil work, then pausing time, putting two pistol bullets in the back of their heads, and resuming time only to see them drop dead instantaneously is a sadistic treat.

The fast recharging times on your suit also do a good job of encouraging frequent use of your abilities, and the basic puzzles pop up often enough to actually force you to go 4D. Unfortunately, both the time powers and puzzles are lacking in variety. Most involve pausing time to sneak through spinning fan blades that would otherwise tear you to bits or one of a couple other basic formulas, and they never challenge you to incorporate more than one time element.

TimeShift is also guilty of being all-too-formulaic. You'll run into your standard vehicle and gun-turret levels in the middle areas of the game, which do serve to break up the action, but not in a way that's more fun than what you were already doing.

More info

GenreShooter
DescriptionThis future-shooter is aiming to turn bullet-time from a cool gimmick into a crucial gameplay element.
Platform"PC","Xbox 360","PS3","Xbox"
US censor rating"Mature","Mature","Mature","Mature"
UK censor rating"","","",""
Release date1 January 1970 (US), 1 January 1970 (UK)
Less
Eric Bratcher
I was the founding Executive Editor/Editor in Chief here at GR, charged with making sure we published great stories every day without burning down the building or getting sued. Which isn't nearly as easy as you might imagine. I don't work for GR any longer, but I still come here - why wouldn't I? It's awesome. I'm a fairly average person who has nursed an above average love of video games since I first played Pong just over 30 years ago. I entered the games journalism world as a freelancer and have since been on staff at the magazines Next Generation and PSM before coming over to GamesRadar. Outside of gaming, I also love music (especially classic metal and hard rock), my lovely wife, my pet pig Bacon, Japanese monster movies, and my dented, now dearly departed '89 Ranger pickup truck. I pray sincerely. I cheer for the Bears, Bulls, and White Sox. And behind Tyler Nagata, I am probably the GR staffer least likely to get arrested... again.