It's often been lamented in recent days that, of the multitude of genres crying out for a videogame interpretation, the most beloved subject of countless novels and movies - the Wild West - has been largely ignored. There have been a few small efforts such as GUN and Red Dead Revolver (the latter of which is due for a sequel soon) and, going back further, the highly regrettable Custer's Revenge (regarded by many as the worst game ever), but it wasn't until the original Call of Juarez was released onto PC and Xbox 360 that people really started to take note of this hugely under-represented sub-genre.

Despite being a noble effort in terms of storytelling and visual presentation, Call of Juarez failed to kickstart a Western resurgence. Some blamed the dodgy controls while others were quick to criticise its jack-of-all trades gameplay style, and while it featured a number of entertaining innovations, it led to a somewhat disjointed experience that was never quite sure what it was or where it wanted to take you. Well, three years later, publishers Ubisoft and developers Techland have unveiled their latest sojourn into the hostile plains of post-Civil War America and are hoping to bring back the quick-shootin', hard-drinkin' adventures of the Ol' West.

The premise of Call of Juarez: Bound in Blood fits into the rare category of the desirable prequel. Set around twenty years before the events of Call of Juarez, you find yourself stepping into the boots of Ray and Thomas McCall before they both settled down to preach the word of God and raise a family, respectively. Over the course of the story you learn just what prompted Ray's transformation from sinner to shepherd and how Thomas, ever the wanderer, eventually settled down to raise a family. As before, the game's narrative is one of its strongest points. The story is a compelling yarn, borrowing heavily from classic Western tales but still managing to mark itself as a unique adventure. Combined with wonderfully well-written dialogue, perfect pacing and a dramatic climax, it's enough to help you overlook the game's relative shortness - it's only six hours long on an average play through, but enough is packed into the experience to leave you totally satisfied.

Cinematic writing requires equally professional visual production values and Bound in Blood is good enough to serve as the perfect benchmark for future titles. The expansive world is wonderfully realised and with staggering attention to detail. As Ray and Thomas, you'll drag your boots through dusty open plains, lush forests, muddy trenches and dark, foreboding mine shafts. Being set in the mostly desolate southwestern states, you often find yourself in vast, arid landscapes under an impossibly bright sun. There are still plenty of impressive visuals to feast your eyes upon however, as dust devils whip up around you, shimmering heat distorts the air and the sun causes the occasional blinding lens-flare. There's maybe a little too much bloom - anyone wearing a white shirt becomes an unnatural shining beacon in the noonday light - but it doesn't detract from the rest of the spectacle.

All of this can take its toll on even a powerful computer and draw distances are often affected as the game struggles to keep up with itself while you move through the world. Screen tearing is also an issue that is close to unforgivable in any modern game. One of the benefits of playing on a PC is the extra control over the level of graphical detail, but the inexplicable lack of any vertical sync option in the game makes the juddering rips as you turn to look around especially infuriating.

Most of these problems arise during the game's open world exploration instances and, thankfully, such graphical issues aren't as prevalent in the levels of the main campaign. Techland have also worked hard to provide some unique touches to Bound in Blood that really pay off. In homage to the theatrical cinematography that made Westerns so popular on the silver screen, the game is filled with beautiful camerawork and great care has been taken to provide a rich and immersive experience. As well as the now standard lens flare and dust/water on the camera effects, Bound in Blood's first person perspective is further enriched through the use of variable depth of field, pulling the object of your attention into focus and blurring out everything beyond its range. This is a breathtaking trick the first time you encounter it but it never becomes too distracting and the camera's auto-focus is generally intuitive enough to pick out what you need to see clearly, making aiming down the barrel of a rifle authentically exciting.

Complementing the stunning visual presentation, the music and sound effects are of the typically high standards that Ubisoft demands from its developers. The voice acting does justice to the fantastic script, making each character a convincing individual with whom you can sympathise. Still, I do wish that they'd spent a little less money on the actors and writers and a bit more on the sound equipment, as the production quality of the speech in-game and during cut scenes is terrible. Raised voices often clip and distort and the overall experience is greatly diminished as you are made very aware that the characters before you are merely digitised puppets, voiced by actors in a booth somewhere far from the dusty plains across which you roam. Even the highest quality speakers and headphones all fail to reduce the high-pitched buzz that accompanies everything that's said. It's enough to set your teeth on edge and, after extended sessions, it's all too tempting to turn the sound off and rely on subtitles to avoid the inevitable migraine.

While these flaws sound significant, they aren't enough to spoil the overall experience. It's always satisfying to see a studio learning from its mistakes and Techland have obviously taken all of their original effort's criticisms as constructive. The split storylines involving multiple playable characters make a return but the mechanic has evolved into a much more organic system. At the beginning of each mission you must choose between the McCalls; you can play either as the agile Thomas who, while the weaker of the two, is deadly with ranged weapons and able to reach areas that his brother cannot, or the hardy Ray, who can wield heavy weapons and explosives as well as two revolvers at once (at the cost of speed and stealth). The levels, while fairly linear, all have multiple paths with some only accessible by one brother, which opens up a wide range of options and strategy as you are given the choice to either go in guns blazing as Ray or hang behind, protecting your hot-headed sibling from hidden vantage points as Thomas.

While the enemies you face are a little on the stupid side (probably due to a lack of schooling and too much moonshine), the AI that takes control of the other brother is eerily smart and able to follow your lead without getting in the way. In situations where enemies are attacking from multiple angles, it's reassuring to know that there's someone reliable watching your back. There's also some great banter between the brothers as they admire each other's shooting prowess and bicker and tease like all brothers are prone to do.

No matter who you choose, each mission follows roughly the same formula. Being a pair of miscreants, the McCalls inevitably get themselves into some sort of scrap and, rather than sitting down to discuss their problems over a nice cup of tea, deal with their disputes down the barrel of a gun. The gunfights are spectacular, chaotic affairs and, with no life bars, bullets are as deadly to you as they are to your enemies, making each battle a tense and closely fought struggle that drags you into the danger in a way that very few games have managed before.

Once the last hombre bites the dust, it's usually time for a showdown with the leader of whatever particular group you've been tasked with slaughtering, which initiates one of the best boss battle mechanics I'm yet to see in a game. Rather than facing a seemingly superhuman opponent, requiring ruthless strategy or sheer overwhelming firepower to defeat, you settle your differences like men did back then - by seeing who is the fastest gun in town. Squaring off against your adversary, you need to keep them in view by moving from side to side while also keeping your attention on your gun hand. You need to be able to slap leather as soon as the bell tolls in order to drop the other guy before he has a chance to gun you down. While this is one of the most polished gameplay elements in Bound in Blood (and it really does a great job of emulating the tension of the situation), it can also be one of the most frustrating, because if your timing is off by the tiniest amount, you die. If you do manage to get your gun out first then you have to accept that the only way to win is to unceremoniously blast your enemy in the groin, because waiting for the reticle to find a more dignified spot like their chest (forget about their head - you'd never make it) gives them enough time to shoot you first. This is great for comedy value but spoils the mood, especially when you dispatch your mortal enemy with a bullet to the balls.

Testicular trauma aside, Bound in Blood has successfully distanced itself from the scatterbrained nature of its predecessor. Even the quick draw and auto-aiming has been rejuvenated and slowing down time to give yourself some breathing space in gunfights feels much more organic and intuitive; you have to earn it now by dispatching enough enemies and each brother has a different system to suit their style - Ray can select up to twelve targets before letting loose and hoping, while Thomas zooms in on one at a time, guaranteeing a kill.

Exploration is encouraged in between missions and gives you a chance to complete simple side quests such as protecting farmsteads and bounty hunting in order to earn the cash required to upgrade your guns and equipment. The playing area is huge and there is plenty going on within it to make it feel like a real and dynamic environment. On your travels you encounter bandit-plagued convoys, violent natives and the odd friendly caravan, which breaks up the long travels perfectly, avoiding the problems encountered in games like No More Heroes that attempted to shoehorn in elements of exploration.

As I've mentioned, the main campaign is a little on the short side, but Bound in Blood manages to make up for it with its open world segments and a competent if not revolutionary multiplayer game that lets you battle it out in famous locations such as the O.K Corral. There is a range of unlockable classes and the weapons are authentic, if limited. The game types are standard fare with one exception - the mission-based Wild West Legends. Spanning a raid and escape from a town guarded by the opposing team, Legends is the most entertaining and challenging way of earning the cash required to purchase new characters and guns. After seeing how well this works, it's even more disappointing that there is no co-op option for the main campaign. Come on Ubisoft, this is what Bound in Blood was made for!

While there is still some room for improvement, Call of Juarez: Bound in Blood is a prime example of what can be achieved with enough care, attention and (dare I say it) love for a shamefully under-appreciated genre. The scope of this game is phenomenal and nothing feels superfluous to the experience. Techland may still be considered a fledgling developer with only a few solid titles under their belt but they have put many larger studios to shame with Bound in Blood; packed with original features neatly brought together by writing and visuals worthy of Hollywood, it's the perfect remedy for anyone tired of the same old sci-fi or World War II premises. Yee haw!

Reviewed by Henry Osadzinski for AceGamez (All Rights Reserved).