Despite the conspicious likeness with other well-known FPS, TimeShift stands for it`s own.
The plot is... well, it is. And it`s not that bad as GameSpot says. In loading screens there sometimes appears - "You are a higly respected physicist with a dark past, who is brought to a secret time traveling project." or something like that. Another guy, Krone, who is working with you, steals one of the time suits and goes back to 1939. Instead of winning every Nobel prize for the next 60 years, he becomes the dictator of humanity and meets resistance from armed individuals, called the Occupants. Of course our alter ego tries to stop him, at the same time making us wonder - what he hell is going on in here? This all is showed in in-game cutscenes and surprisingly high quality CG movies. Also there is a possible sequel spoiler (I`ll ruin the surprise - our hero has done something wrong and screwed the time stream).
Not only movies have inspired folks from Saber Interactive - you will definitely have deja vu feeling while playing TimeShift. Half - Life is the most obvious reference - weapons, plot, suit that talks instead of you, tough the voice is not as half as sexual as Dr. Freeman`s battle mate. Despite all this, TimeShift is an awesome and incredibly fun shooter.
The gameplay`s most important part - time shifting - is fulfilled. We can stop, slow (a la bullet time) and rewind time. And this feature stays important and necessary when there comes the shooting part. Oh yes, awesome action and time shifting goes well together and when get used to this symbiosis, you want more, more and more.
As for the graphics - they`re great and don`t require any other commentaries. Sound is decent, the music has some good moments, but not all the time. Also I have to mention the lazy and unimaginative design. People, we want something new, alright?
If you see TimeShift on a shelf, don`t hesitate - it`ll be worth your time, especially if you`re a shooter fan.