Vanquish [SteelBook Edition] - boxed - PS3

Vanquish is a third-person shooter focused on cover-based tactics, similar to Gears of War, but it's also the first game with this mechanic from a Japanese development team. The player controls Sam Gideon, a DARPA agent who fights using the new ARS (Augmented Reaction Suit) combat suit, which grants him incredibly fast reflexes and manoeuvrability, inspired by the 1970s anime TV series Casshern. The story takes place in the future. After the Order of the Russian Star seizes control of the Russian government in a coup, it hijacks an American solar-power space station, uses it to destroy San Francisco, and declares war on the United States. They demand unconditional surrender or they will destroy New York as well. Gideon is sent there to stop them. Throughout the game, Gideon works alongside a military task force led by Robert Burns. The military unit is controlled by the computer AI. They provide support, and Gideon can revive them if they die. Gideon is supported remotely by Elena Ivanova, who tracks the suit and provides information about the surroundings.

Gideon's suit enables extremely fast-paced gameplay. He can boost-slide into new areas that offer cover, and there's a very powerful melee attack. However, the focus is on shooting with ranged weapons. Some of the battles are also shown as in-game cutscenes, showcasing elements of the suit's abilities (such as flying) that aren't available to the player. Health regenerates automatically, but if too much damage is taken, the game switches to an Augmented Reality (AR) mode, in which everything slows down, similar to bullet time. During this brief window, more precise shooting is possible and there's a little time to find cover, but health is in a critical state. AR can also be triggered manually, but this drains the suit's energy. Gideon therefore often needs to find a safe spot to recharge the suit before it overheats.

Weapons include an assault rifle, a heavy machine gun, a disc launcher, a lock-on laser, a sniper rifle, a rocket launcher and an LFE rifle. There are also standard and EMP grenades. All weapons have only a limited amount of ammunition, but there are many pods where new ammo can be found or a weapon can be swapped out. A maximum of four weapons can be carried at any time. Players are encouraged to hold onto their weapons, as they can be upgraded to deal more damage or hold more ammo. Stationary gun turrets can also be commandeered. The enemies consist almost exclusively of robots or mechanised organisms. Alongside regular enemies there are also larger bosses with highlighted weak points that need to be attacked. Regular enemies sometimes have such weak points too, usually on their backs, and targeting them causes them to be killed faster. During the bigger battles there are sometimes smaller quick-time events.

The game is divided into five chapters, each with around seven acts, and cutscenes drive the story forward. Most missions require constant movement and dodging to stay alive. There is also a single stealth mission and a few on-rails segments involving a vehicle. More