As mentioned before, the horrendous controls are going to be one of the first things any gamer notices, and will likely turn many people off from Turok altogether. In a very questionable move, the developers decided to forego any sort of aiming assist. For PC gamers it’s not a big deal, but for console gamers this is a serious issue. Lacking the accuracy of a keyboard and mouse combination, console gamers have come to rely on a bit of assistance in aiming. The learning curve for getting the feel of Turok is steep but manageable, yet will be tremendously off-putting to the overwhelming majority of gamers. When fighting packs of dinosaurs, I found it easier to put the gun away and use a knife and careful timing to subdue these fast moving creatures. Why frustrate yourself trying to aim at several raptors that move twice as fast as you can aim when you can score a kill with one good stab of the knife? If you can get past the controls, you’ll find that Turok’s weapons can be changed quickly with the D-pad. From the bow, to the knife to dual wielding both your ballistic weapons, everything is managed quickly and effectively on the D-pad.
Turok effectively balances brute force combat with stealth kills. Joseph Turok can silently dispatch enemies from a distance with the Tek Bow or take down a foe from behind with his knife without alerting the enemy. In a bit of showmanship, silent knife kills are the preferred kill method online for many players. Turok does not sneak around like you might find in stealth based games such as Metal Gear Solid or Splinter Cell, as he seems to make as much noise running as he does crouching. Often it seems that the enemy will be oblivious to your presence unless you enter their line of sight. Stealth kills are an important feature within the game, but there is no substitute for the standard fare of weapons, including an assault rifle, a shotgun, a chain gun, a sniper rifle and a grenade launcher.
The campaign mode runs approximately 12 hours, which is comparable to most modern shooters. Though the story is far from engrossing, it does a decent enough job of tying the action sequences together and pacing the game play. Enemy AI is fairly impressive when compared to other shooters. Dinosaurs will attempt to encircle the gamer and Wolf Pack fighters will try to flank. Enemy soldiers will seek out cover, but comically they will often hide in plain sight. Though you don’t encounter many, snipers generally find great places to conceal themselves. Initially there are two difficulty levels, with the “Inhumane” level unlocked after completion of the campaign. Some levels are frustratingly dark by design, and leave the gamer stumbling in the dark looking for the next passage. I found this to be quite annoying and I longed for more of the beautiful outdoor scenes from other points in the game. Those that covet achievements and gamerscore, but not online play will be disappointed to learn that the bulk of the achievements are earned on Xbox Live.
Multiplayer features standard FPS game play modes such as Free For All, Team Deathmatch and Capture the Flag. The playlists are further segregated by small (8 player) and large (16 player) games. Turok also supports co-op play, but the games are separately designed levels that are independent of the story mode. The matchmaking process is among the slowest of any game currently supported on Xbox Live, and could perhaps be due to a lack of players. Games that dump all players back into the lobby after the completion of a non-ranked match are a pet peeve of mine. Once I’ve found a group of players to game with, I’d like to have several sessions with them, rather than go through the 2-minute matchmaking process again. Pronounced lag was evident in every online session I played, and almost invariably at least one person was dumped from the game for timing out. There’s talk of a patch in the works to address some of these issues, but until it comes to fruition, Turok on Xbox Live is a sketchy proposition.
