Coming from the creators of Tony Hawk, Gun's premise is essentially far more entertaining to read about than to play
Gun’s story is essentially a massive epic packed into a mere 10-hour game that leaves you wanting more. Not more of the story, however. To put it plainly, a more interesting story. You play Colton White, the classic western hero dressed like an Indian version of Rambo. After the murder of his father, Colton has nothing but vengeance on his mind and a rather bizarre twist to uncover. The turn of events involve special powers and the like are certainly not memorable, but should be noted as a bold attempt at making something out of an already dying genre. The story is presented with some of the most impressively animated cut-scenes, well cast voice actors and some of the most enjoyable acts of violence that make forcing the ‘M’ rating worthwhile. Without the extensive development put into producing a cinematic story, however, the story itself could not support most gamers’ interest past the second hour.
Nevertheless, Gun’s original gameplay reveals a system that not only holds one’s interest, but also has more depth than it deserves. Gun, although somewhat shocking, is really all about guns. Through a system of buying and upgrading, the game finds ways to make guns the prime aspect at all times. At any point during a battle, a variety of weapons are available to accommodate the situation: shotguns, rifles, pistols, cavalry swords and even a dynamite-launching bow and arrow. Weapons can be purchased from either shopkeepers in towns or oddly placed Indian traders amidst the plains. Guns can be upgraded to increase reload time, firepower and extend the limit of Gun’s version of the “bullet time” tradition. How is it a game that lacks any real depth can simultaneously have an extensive and well-structured weapon system? One might expect that it would be essential in supporting a highly entertaining combat system. Unfortunately, Gun is flat out bland in that category.
When you are put into the shoes of a gritty cowboy, you expect to be treated like one. Instead, the experience dealt by Gun is no more than that of a standard third-person adventure experience with nothing distinctively defining it as a western game. No shootouts at town hall or flashy Max Payne-like gunfights. Only pixel bullets taking down avaricious villains as an extensive gun system hides quietly beneath it all. A game that fails to appeal to emotion and imagination has ultimately failed on quite a few levels.
Luckily, after the abrupt story’s reins are pulled and all quiets down, the Grand Theft Auto world opens up and allows you to explore as you wish. Mounting a random horse and riding off into the deep desert can be a temporarily exhilarating scene. The bright sun burns down upon the sand as you ride your horse past the shimmering lakes and wide landscapes, until suddenly a bandit attack interrupts it all and reminds you of the game’s faults. Every side-mission that can be found later on consists of mundane tasks with no real purpose or value. Some may find enjoyment in the game’s Texas Holdem mini-game or roaming the lands mining goal or hunting wanted men (both meaningless tasks that lack any interest when combined with the gameplay). The world after the game’s story finishes resembles a world filled with much to do but no reason to do it. Grand Theft Auto succeeds at this because it is able to open up a massively scaled world where there is much to do and a generally entertaining reason to want to do it.
Gun would have been Neversoft’s first ultimate failure had they not put the time into making Gun visually appealing. The XBOX 360 produces the fastest rendering and most high quality presentation, but the current-generation consoles can hold their own as well. Traveling within the Gun world is by far the most rewarding experience the game has to offer, and thanks to its ability to present a world of blazing heat and beautiful scenery, the game is certainly not a complete failure and nor it should be the last that gamers ever see of it.
Gun represents a revival of the western genre in a medium where it had almost been entirely forgotten. Neversoft executes at certain moments brilliantly, but waiting for such occurrences should not be the job of the gamer. Abandoning gamers after 10 hours of play and then expecting them to find mundane forms of enjoyment is not the job of the developer either. Declaring Gun an ideal rental game may be giving it more credit than it deserves. Anyone obsessed with westerns looking for a bizarre story combined with standard gameplay may find it a worthwhile rental. Everyone still reading had best wait for Neversoft’s inevitable conversion of a game into a series act and prepare for a more polished sequel and hopefully a far more entertaining take on the western genre.