Introduction

There are generally two types of first-person shooter fans: those that like to blast their way through a storyline and those that just want to frag their friends. As of late, the focus of the genre has been on multiplayer with the release of titles like Battlefield Vietnam and Unreal Tournament 2004. Even the upcoming DOOM 3, once solely a single player game, seems as though it will include a robust multiplayer component.

Still, there is room for shooters that take pride in their narrative, characters, and detailed settings, and Chrome is one of those titles. Glancing at the box, one would think its multiplayer modes, promising up to 32 players and a nice lot of drivable vehicles, is a strong incentive to buy the game. Surprisingly, that's not the case. I'll explain fully, but be aware that Chrome is to be judged by its single player adventure.

Presentation and Plot

Chrome's plot revolves around Bolt Logan, who, based on his name, was destined to be an action hero-it was either that or adult entertainment. The basic scenario is that he is a freelance mercenary who has been betrayed by a close associate. He soon makes a new friend and partner-a buxom blonde who is as quick to accept a job as the main character is cautious. Whilst scouring the galaxy for profitable jobs, they quickly become involved in corporate conspiracies, nanoviruses, and other sci-fi plot points.

While the overall plot is pretty cliché, Chrome's environments are its saving grace. Most of the game's sixteen levels take place in sprawling landscapes. It seems reasonable that if humanity's future is one of interplanetary travel and lawlessness, that a bounty hunter quarry is going to be located on backwater planets that offer plenty of room to hide. Chrome makes good use of this theory, and while the game never reaches classic status, some moments are as impressive as any shooter out there.

Installation, Technical Issues & Documentation

Chrome's system requirements are just about the norm for most modern first-person shooters. It requires about 1.7 gigs of free space, and at least a Pentium III to run at a good frame-rate. While Chrome's graphics are not the most advanced, large outdoor environments have caused many a PC to chug along. Despite Chrome centering around such environments the game ran at a high, consistent frame-rate on my machine, with next to no slowdown when changing to indoor environments. In addition, there are no in-game loads, so traveling around the game world is seamless.

Overall, Chrome has nothing to worry about from a technical standpoint. I did not encounter any bugs or strange engine behavior. My only complaint is the load times when initially starting a level, as they are bordering on obscene; the type of load times that inspires one to keep a book on hand to pass the time. I really hope this is addressed in a future patch. Luckily, loading saved games is very fast or it could have literally ruined the experience.

Chrome's documentation is more than adequate in terms of information presented. There are descriptions of the various weapons and vehicles that serve to flesh out Chrome's "historical" background. There are, however, some small elements that differ from typical first-person shooters and Chrome's manual covers these succinctly, but efficiently.