While the basic gameplay can be boiled down to "BOOM! FIRE! MACHINES MAKE VIOLENCE HAPPEN!" there are countless, subtle touches that make Lost Planet more than just a bug bloodbath. It's the sights, the sounds and the visual effects that bring this game to life - each of the Vital Suits sounds slightly different but all share a common clunky, barely-functioning hum that you'd expect a neglected mech to make. Reloading your machine makes a satisfying click but slamming a new rocket shell into your two-handed launcher delivers a noise that's simultaneously alien and familiar. The audio is so damn accurate you have to wonder if the developers are really manufacturing these things under the radar.

Above: When things hot up, Lost Planet cranks up the disorienting motion blur

Then there are the graphics. An already stunning game, Planet offers one of best action experiences of all time. When a rocket whizzes past your head, you'll flinch in real life. If a Suit comes crashing down on you from above, your body will tumble, flip or lurch in the appropriate way. Toss a grenade into a cluster of snow pirates and they'll soar through the air with realistic heft and flailing. The aforementioned boring stretches of snow and ice do take a while to run through, but they also serve to sell the atmosphere - lifeless husks of aged machinery and rundown buildings suggest a world that's as unforgiving as it is beautiful.