Ok, so the game is beautiful looking, and to listen to, but it will always be judged by how well it plays and although this does not quite live up to the supreme overall presentation it still proves enjoyable.

 

 

The Saboteur has a well structured mission lay out with regular checkpoints meaning that it is fairly easy to progress through the game which will still take a fair while to complete and the variety of missions adds enough variety to stop the action from becoming too repetitive.

 

The actual action is a real mix of many styles of games. Firstly the story requires vehicle sections which do work well and mirror those found in Grand Theft Auto 4 along with the now customary vehicle theft. There is also plenty of free climbing similar to Assassins Creed only not as impressive with the emphasis less on the Parkour (or free running) angle however this too proves essential to progression. Also included is the option to use stealth to kill opponents which again is nothing new although a welcome inclusion along with the customary shooting and hand to hand combat sections.

 

To add something further are the various perks which Devlin gains for successfully achieving tasks and these can give the character more skills and abilities to make tasks easier and give you the opportunity to progress higher in the resistance. Whilst these character upgrades may have been seen in numerous games you actually feel that those on offer in The Saboteur actually count towards something and that can only be a good thing.

 

The main drawback with the gameplay I found to come from these hand to hand combat sections which require the left trigger to be pressed to enter combat mode before switching to the face buttons for attacks. Whilst this sounds simple it does not flow as well as expected and sometimes leads to frustrating moments as you can find that attacks are not as easy to pull off as they really should be and this can mean that quite often you are on the receiving end of a beating whilst looking to press the relevant attack commands.

 

Shooting sections also are a little hit and miss with the targeting system a little on the fiddly side although this certainly does not spoil the game or prove as frustrating as the hand to hand battles however it is still satisfying to see some of the well animated explosions and character deaths which are almost constant throughout.

 

 

For variety the player has free reign to explore the beautiful Paris setting which can be a welcome distraction from the structured missions and when in this free play this is where some real fun can be had from visiting sleezy topless dance clubs to gambling dens this ensures that the game certainly provides a fair amount of diversity and longevity to the gameplay.

 

Inevitably "The Saboteur" will draw comparisons to Grand Theft Auto 4 and you can see why as there are many similarities, although it would be fair to say that The Saboteur is braver in it’s approach with the amount of different things on offer in the gameplay.

 

Despite it’s faults The Saboteur is a beautifully presented title with an absorbing story which will certainly offer plenty of replay ability. On a personal level I would highly recommend The Saboteur as it has proven to be a surprisingly enjoyable title which I intend to come back to on a regular basis.

 

 

 

 

+ A beautifully presented game
+ A brave attempt to encompass several gameplay styles
+ Good story
+ Game offers good variety and replay ability