Panzer Dragoon Orta

Would you like to panzer some Dragoons with Bennett Ring? You really orta.

The original Panzer Dragoon was one of those games that snuck up quietly behind you grabbed you by the gonads and wouldn't let go until you'd experienced all it had to offer.

While it didn't really do anything new as a game, being a simple rail-based shooter, its production values were stratospheric, and it was a game that was just plain fun. The sequel to this, Panzer Dragoon Zwei, also turned out to be a bit of a corker, so you can see why gamers are excited about the latest incarnation of the series, Panzer Dragoon Orta.

For those of you who missed out on the previous versions, here's a brief rundown of the gameplay mechanism. You fly on a whopping big mutant dragon, which automatically flies down a predetermined course. It appears that these massive winged reptiles have very small brains, and thus can only fly in one direction. A small amount of control over the dragon is allowed, enabling you to dodge missiles and veer off onto new paths that open up along the way. The cool thing is that enemies can approach from any direction, and you can rotate on your mount to cover your three, six and nine o'clock positions. A small radar lets you know when to start looking around. Sure, it's not rocket science, but blasting away hundreds of enemies per minute while swooping around on the back of a giant dragon is tres cool.

One of the biggest draw cards of the previous Panzer Dragoon games were visuals that put those found on bigger, badder platforms to shame. Well, they've done it again. Orta could well be one of the most attractive games ever made. Yes, that includes PC games.

For starters, the dragon is both highly detailed and fluidly animated. You can almost feel the breeze from its swooshing wings. Place this dragon inside spectacular, massive and heavily animated levels, cram in hordes of highly detailed baddies, and you end up with a game that is nothing short of a visual orgasm. Oh yeah, there are also some very cool special effects that make full use of the pixel shaders within the Xbox. Nice.

Sweet graphics aren't all that's needed to make a great game, so you'll be pleased to hear the gameplay within is just as tight. It's still the same rail-based shooter, but with a couple of tweaks that help avoid the dreaded boredom which sets in around the seventeenth time you try to complete a level.

While there are only ten levels within the game, each of these has many sub-routes that can be selected. It's usually a case of hitting a fork in the track, and flying towards the one that you feel like pounding into submission. Each level can have up to seven or eight other sub-routes, which is a good thing when you consider that the game can be completed in a few hours on the lowest two difficulty settings. Unfortunately these sub-routes still don't quite balance out the fact the game is very short, which is the largest, and perhaps only, complaint. After receiving a lot of flak regarding the length of the previous titles, you'd think the developer would focus on making this a lengthy game... apparently the Sega didn't agree.

One of the cooler features in Orta is the ability for your Dragoon to change form, of which there are three in total. The standard shape is the medium strength Dragoon - fairly manoeuvrable, armed with decent weaponry and able to take a bit of punishment. Next up is the uber mega bad boy Dragoon, which flies like a sloth on tranquilisers but can both receive and deal the hurt better than any other form. Finally there is the wiener Dragoon, the most manoeuvrable but puniest of the lot. Choosing which form to take can make all the difference between coming out on top and ending up in a pile of smoking flesh and bone.

Like the two preceding games, the production values within Orta are hard to fault. An intriguing and unique storyline will captivate you to the point where you won't be satisfied until you've seen the final scene. Being a very Japanese game, it's a bizarre storyline that of course has references to shagging, but not to the point where it will alienate Western gamers.

If it wasn't for the short length of the game, Orta could have been the perfect action shooter, with its great gameplay, stunning visuals and an enthralling storyline. While it's quite short, it is still an excellent title, but many gamers will find that when they've completed the storyline once they probably won't touch it again.