At last, a decent wild west game. The first Call of Juarez was okay, but nothing special.
This on the other hand is one of the most beautiful looking 360 games you will see in along time, it plays pretty well too. There is a small amount of 'pop up' in the scrolling and moving aspect of game, but it does not detract from the game itself.
You again have two characters at your disposal. ray mccall and his younger brother thomas, ray is stonger, takes more hits to kill, and is a goos close range fighter who can wield dynamite. Thomas is faster, can climb and jump higher, can use a bow, and is a better ranged fighter, particularly with a rifle.
The game has some fantastic shoot outs and 'cowboy' set pieces along the main storyline, and you have the chance to play some free roaming side missions too. The game features a 'concentration' system similar to the first game, where you can shoot a large number of enemies in one move, this is timed however, and you have 60 seconds to use it, and you must kill a certain number of bad guys to charge it.
The storyline is pretty good, with fine voice acting from the main actors, wild west cliches apply of course, but on the whole, is very good and quite absorbing.
There are a few niggles, it's quite a challenge, this is due not to it being a hard game, but to enemiies being very difficult to spot against certain backdrops. This can involve you being shot or blown up up and thinking 'where did that come from?', also some may fine the on screen pointer system a bit confusing, a small star will show the way to your mission location, and a small cowboy hat the location of your AI partner, they are small and lost in the scenery at times.
The multiplayer is very good also, lots of familiar modes and player classes, but its a shame there is no co-op in the main story.
All in all its a good package that first person shooter fans will enjoy. A solid effort that may make you want to check out the first game, but be aware that this game is a prequel to that game, this game explains how ray becomes the slightly mad preacher you meet in the original call of juarez.
Well done all involved in this game, its a lot of fun, and a very pretty and decent shooter.