IN LINE skating is becoming increasingly popular, so it's of no surprise to see game makers responding to fans of the sport with this offering. What do these people want to do after a hard day skating the streets? Activision, the people responsible, would like them to get back on their skates - virtually at least - and here, unlike the real thing, no matter what antics you get up to there's no risk to life or limb.
But there is, more to HyperBlade than just skating. You control a team consisting of three players (including a goalkeeper) in a dome like Arena that is littered with pitfalls and power ups. The object of the game is to score the most goals using the "Rok". When the opposing team has the "Rok" you have to skate after them like crazy and then try and beat them into letting it go.
The pitfalls in the arena are scary enough: one is a turnstile with razor sharp blades and another is just a brick wall waiting for you to skate into if you're not careful. To give you the edge over your opponents, mines and anti personnel projectiles can be picked up during the game.
But all of this means nothing, as HyperBlade is almost impossible to play. You never know where the "Rok" is anyway, you don't have a clue where your team mate is, and when you do manage to pass the "Rok" around, the camera angle switches are terribly disorienting.
One often complains about lack of imagination in games because a lot of them are just old recipes spruced up to look a little better. Hyberblade can't be accused of this despite the obvious ice hockey links, it seems the makers have genuinely tried to "invent" a new game and for that reason deserve some credit for their bravery. But I think it's back to the drawing board with this one.
* Graphics: 80%
* Sound: 80%
* Gameplay: 31%