Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #3968 in Computer & Video Games
• Brand: UBI Soft
• Released on: 2003-11-28
• Rating: Parental Guidance
• Platform: PlayStation2
• Number of items: 1

Amazon.co.uk Review
As stylish a game as you'll see, XIII is a virtual testament to why you can have both style and substance under the same roof. Adopting a comic-book style throughout, from the wonderfully compiled cut-scenes through to the cel-shaded in-game graphics, it follows the adventures of agent XIII, finding him initially stranded on a beach with no memory of what went before. As the game progresses, he keeps getting flashbacks to help fill in some of the blanks, no doubt part-inspired by the number of people interested in killing him.

The gameplay itself takes the form of a first-person action-adventure, and a thumping good one at that. There's nothing particularly original about mixing in action, puzzle solving, exploration and stealth, but rarely has it all hung together as well as it does here. Put simply, XIII is a delight to play, with well-thought-through levels, generally fine enemy AI and, when the tempo is racked up, plenty of guns a-blazing and a healthy dose of tension to boot.

On the visual side, we've seen cel-shading as graphical style in games before, more often than that leading to some bland visuals once the novelty has worn off. Not so here. The level of thought and care that has gone into the look and feel of XIII is there for all to see, and for it to be married up to such a compulsively addictive game is just the icing on a really rather delicious cake.

Should you buy it? Most certainly, you should. If you don't, then the next time you lament the lack of care and adventure in your collection of games, then you really will have brought it all upon yourself. --Simon Brew

Play Magazine
"A class act that has some supremely impressive aspects. 84%."

Manufacturer's Description
XIII features a conspiracy of epic proportions, and players will unravel clues behind the story's compelling and mysterious events. The game includes themes of amnesia, in which players must uncover sinister plots against themselves, the US government, and even the president himself. The only clues players have are the roman numerals XIII tattooed on their shoulder and a key to a safe deposit box in a New York bank. A shadow of your former self, you are launched into the evil world of assassination, conspiracy and intrigue. Who are you? All you know is that the president has been shot, you are hunted by a killer, the FBI and the US army... You find out that XIII truly is unlucky for some.

This unique first-person shooter will engage gamers in an epic conspiracy and features cel-shaded graphics and unique flashback visuals. As a completely interactive graphic novel, XIII creates a visually stunning effect unique to the action genre.

Customer Reviews

The good and the bad....
I got this game today and played it for a few hours. This sure is an unusual and challenging game allright, and I loved the comic-book effect too. But even on arcade settings this game isnt easy, and I found myself going back over failed missions time and time again (due also to the lack of auto save, which meant when I switched my ps2 off, I had to start all over again next time).

Conclusion: not a bad game at all, its the PS2 console that holds it back, i.e. all consoles (ps2, xbox-360 etc) pretty much suck at aiming compared to the more stable mouse-based controls of the PC and the Mac etc. This is why I find most console shooters annoying, as its hard to aim smoothly and easily using those awful little thumbpad joysticks on the controllers.
I know I should stick to playing Tiger Woods 2007 on the PS2, but I keep hoping the next shooter will be allright, but it never is.
End of rant :)

Tap Tap Tap
In essence, this is a first person shooter. Thats it. Fun actually but nothing spectacular.

The games is cell shaded so it looks like a cartoon and like the old Batman series has the sounds as words, like tap tap tap for someone walking past.

The game is quite pacey and the levels are not too big with a checkpoint mid way. Criticisms are that the game has a very obscure almost irrelevant story line, is populated with cut scenes that don't make sense and has a cumbersome control system which you get to grips with in time. Also health can be a bit scarce.

Good fun though and a bit unusual.

What a game!! so fun
OMG! there's a lot of things to do on that game like swimming, spying, jumping, climbing up buildings with hooks and shooting which is really my type and the graphics are excellent like everything in that game so I think
those that like xiii must play the new one when it comes out, poetically those that play GTA, Medal of Honour or Call of duty.

And it isn't so expensive like James Bond, so i think it's point-full to use your money
for suck a kind of shooting game like XIII.