Now either I've just accidentally fallen through a time vortex or Infernal really does play like something from ten years ago. I'm a little bemused how a game that has quite obviously been designed to look like it's powered by this generation's powerhouse technology can play with such old and outdated ideas, but here it is - a very pretty shoot em up that has me scouring its linear levels to find a key card that'll open a door and allow me to progress, just like Doom's "collect red key for red door" progression method all over again.

In Infernal you play Ryan Lennox, a parody of a man who embodies just about every overly macho cliché you can think of. He's a fallen angel who now works for the other side as he gets caught up in the continuing fight between good and evil or some such nonsense - to be honest I kind of lost interest five minutes in. Being a convoluted mish mash of schoolyard sci-fi and religion doesn't stop the game trying to make you think its story is attention worthy though; I lost count of the amount of times my actions ground to a halt thanks to the intrusion of yet another cut scene.

I'll give Infernal this much though, there is at least some visual variety amongst Lennox's numerous adversaries, from techno-gun-wielding monks to henchmen wearing bulletproof armour and carrying giant guns, none of it distracting from the fact that they all follow the same predictable routine of being glorified walking targets for you to practice on, and nor does this help to hide that the levels lack the design flair that has been applied to the enemies. The levels are linear to the extreme; forced pathways guide you down funnelled routes that push you to your destination. This in itself isn't much cause for concern - after all, it's not the only action game to use such a method - but in this day and age it's one that really shouldn't be so prevalent and what gets so irksome about the level design is how lazily it's all been cobbled together.

There are some occasions where you'll attempt to interact with the environment only to be met with frustration as you discover that most of what you'd think could be interacted with in some way can't, because it's simply background decoration. Lennox can climb some chain link fences with ease, while others remain as invisible barriers, there are doors plastered all over some levels but there will only ever be one that you'll can actually open and - in one extraordinarily bad design decision - you'll not know which door it is until you are standing in front of it. Then there are the times where your abilities as an otherworldly demonic super soldier fall flat, as although some objects can be trampled with your mighty firepower and supernatural abilities, other times they'll barely cause a scratch. Game shattering dips in continuity aside, the levels simply aren't interesting - catacombs, oil refineries, we've seen it all before, enough times that the sight of yet another long, winding tunnel of bricks and mortar really isn't that fascinating to explore.

As well as having an assortment of firearms at his disposal, Lennox also has an array of special powers that occasionally crop up just in time for the game's weak attempts at a puzzle. The ability to teleport may sound like an intriguing addition to Lennox's arsenal, but it only has a very limited effect and can only be used for a short period of time before it reverts - add to that the tricky and sometimes cumbersome camera to contend with and on occasions it's not uncommon to find yourself accidentally teleporting into a brick wall. Levitation fares better, allowing you to pick up objects and hurl them elsewhere, but it gets decidedly more enjoyable when you use it against the bad guys and throw them around like rag dolls.

For the most part these abilities are seldom ever relied upon, as their overall effects are no greater than that of good old-fashioned brute force. At least as far as brainless senseless carnage goes, Infernal gets a lot of things right; taken as a mindless action game, it's easier to overlook the flaws and enjoy the action that permeates throughout - and there's never any shortage of things to shoot. It all looks rather splendid as well; this may be an old school shooter at heart but it most certainly doesn't look like it's been recycled from ten years ago. Everything looks and moves swiftly and there are some lovely - if not altogether spectacular - lighting effects thrown in for good measure. Seeing that this is also a game that has been designed to make use of the Ageia PhysX physics card (anyone got one? No? Moving on then) there are some rather lovely physics thrown in on top of the relentless carnage. They're nice to have, but a bit system-hungry if you haven't got the £200 technology they've been designed to exploit.

In the end, Infernal is a bit of a strange beast. On the one hand it's an enjoyable enough low rent action arcade game that looks great, and on the other its reliance on old and outdated ideas often remind you what you don't miss about the games of eras past. It's reasonable entertainment, which for some might be enough, but for the others, wait and see what the rest of the year has to offer, as there are far more ambitious shoot em ups on the imminent horizon.

Reviewed by Kieron Giacopazzi for AceGamez (All Rights Reserved).