Since Streets of Rage on the Megadrive back in the early nineties, gamers worldwide have craved for more games that are relaxed in their approach yet very tense in their application. The break in 21st century gaming saw the likes of Devil May Cry and Gun Valkyrie go back to old school shoot 'em ups where a quick trigger and a fast mind aid your success. Back in 2001, Rockstar decided to revolutionise gaming with another rendition of the GTA series and ever since then gamers haven't looked back. After getting a taste for the crime genre, gamers wanted more and the pressure was on Rockstar to deliver the goods. Their new release was State of Emergency and although it was originally PS2 exclusive, thankfully Rockstar games have now released it on Xbox.

State of Emergency is a beat-em-up with a difference as for the first time gamers have been given the chance to play on screen with over 50 non-player characters - and the results are mouth watering. It was clear from the outset that State of Emergency is a game focused on gameplay and enjoyment over anything else.

There are two game modes to choose from: Chaos and Revolution. Chaos allows the gamer to load up a new game using the levels unlocked from the Revolution game. At the start of Chaos you are given the Capitol City Mall to fight your way through but as you progress more levels become available. Chaos is basically an excuse to massacre as many people as you can whilst meeting the targets set in each area. It's been a long time since I have had so much fun with a video game in a mode that isn't the main focus of the game. During Chaos you have access to all the weapons you would find in Revolution but in this mode you can use them whenever you want, and boy are there a lot of them. By eliminating rival gangs you will build up your score, however because Rockstar care so much about the general public you will lose points for killing civilians. There are missions to complete in between the Chaos mode but they are mainly all elimination, which ties in perfectly with the aim of this mode. Chaos will keep you occupied for months on end and with up to four players taking part at once the game really is revolutionary.

Which leads me to the other game mode on offer, Revolution. This acts as the story mode for the game and this is where all of the mission-based events occur. You start off with the Capitol City Mall as your only place for missions and until you have completed this area the other areas remain locked. The missions include elimination, rescue, destroy, protect and escort, but there are variations between each mode and although there are multiple elimination missions, they all involve different styles and skills in order to successfully complete them. The lifespan of Revolution is huge and it simply isn't possible to finish it in a week.

The controls are fairly easy to get to grips with and once you have learnt them they don't take long to master completely. I would say that Chaos mode is probably too fast for first time players, however the Revolution mode gently eases new players into the game before letting them rip on the general public. There are 5 characters to choose from but only 2 of them are available from the start; successfully completing areas in the Revolution mode unlocks the extra characters. The same rule applies to the levels. At first you have access to the mall but successfully completing various missions gives you access to extra areas. The gameplay can become a bit repetitive at times but the beauty of the game is how easy it is to put down and pick it up right where you left off. The gameplay possibilities are endless and with the addition of the 4-player Chaos mode this will remain a firm favourite and one you come back to again and again.

With so many characters on screen at once, the actual textures of the game suffer a little and the graphics could be summed up in one word: good. The frame rate is superb, which is something that's required to keep a game that is this fast moving smoothly. Even with explosions, over 50 NPCs and moving objects on screen simultaneously, the game manages to keep going at a steady 60 FPS, which is very impressive for a game of this nature, even on Xbox. The characters themselves are made up of a steady amount of polygons, which don't push the graphical limits of the Xbox but at the same time don't drop below a respectable level. The graphics do the job and are quite stylish, suiting the gameplay very well and as far as I'm concerned I'd much rather have slightly simplistic graphics and super smooth gameplay than beautiful, but jerky, graphics.

The environments are really big and that's a good thing as in this game size matters! You can't enter any of the shops but when you have a weapon equipped you can break the shop windows. The shards of shattered glass are basic compared to games like Halo and Splinter Cell and when the glass is smashed the resulting pieces disappear. The same thing happens when many people are killed on screen at any one time; If you kill 10 people then their bodies will stay there, however going on a rampage and killing 50 or more will only leave the last 10 to 20 bodies displayed. The character designs are fairly limited for a game of this nature and although they wear different clothes, if you look closely the character design and movements are similar to someone else in the same area.

Dolby Digital 5.1, customisable soundtracks and some nice explosion effects can all be found within State of Emergency. There are 3 main sound effects within the game. Firstly you have the explosion effect, which uses full speaker direction to coincide with the explosion on screen. Secondly you have the screaming, which also uses speaker-to-speaker transfer. Thirdly you have the alarms and extra weapon noises, which seem to come mainly from the 2 front speakers, but I have heard one or two gunshots from the surround speakers on occasion. The customisable soundtrack is a superb idea because at times you can be fighting in the same area for longer than an album's worth of music, so it is a nice addition to the game. Also you can choose the music that you like to riot to the most! It would have been nice to see the sub woofer used a bit more for the explosions as that effect really does create a feeling of panic and chaos. For a game of this nature the developers couldn't really aim to create anything other than complete chaos and one thing I can definitely make clear is that this game will have your head spinning with effects and music. Chaos? This is war!

Usually I take games rather seriously and thus the enjoyment level isn't always what it should be. At times I blame the developers for this, because the action is often very intense and you can't take your eye off the screen for one second without something happening. This isn't the case with State of Emergency, take your eye off the screen and you will miss out but due to the quality of the gameplay, the atmosphere is both relaxed and chaotic. This may sound contradictory but the contrasts work very well with each other. Combining a solid fighting engine with steady graphics and some decent sound, Rockstar have produced a classic. State of Emergency manages to recreate the old skool gaming feel that could only be previously found in the classic Streets of Rage. For both short and long periods of play, State of Emergency manages to deliver superb gameplay elements that will keep you playing for months on end.

Reviewed by AceGamez (All Rights Reserved).