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I'll start this review with a summary of sorts. When I first purchased my Xbox 360 a year ago, the second game I bought for myself was "Turok." If anyone reading this is familiar with this game, they are probably chuckling to themselves as they read. You see, I was a PC gamer for a good number of years and had become well-adjusted to the mouse-and-keyboard combination as opposed to the more simplistic 360 controller.

With that said, allow me to freely state that "Turok" has one of the most unwieldy aiming mechanics I have ever witnessed in a console shooter. There is absolutely no aim-assist and the thumbstick sensitivity is ferocious. Keep in mind that the most time I had spent with a 360 game before purchasing my own system was on a friend's machine for a mere 15 minutes playing the "Stranglehold" demo. Oh, and did I mention "Turok's" maddening difficulty and its uncanny ability to actually grab console newbies, shove them into its virtual mouth, roll them around in its rock-hard teeth, and spit them right back out? No kidding.

As far as the game itself is concerned, you may remember a series of similar-sounding titles dating way back to the late '90s. Acclaim once owned the rights to the franchise - themselves based on a series of comic books - and released a slew of games for the Nintendo 64 (among other systems) with the first two being the most favored amongst critics. Later sequels failed to impress and, after Acclaim folded, Disney Interactive eventually acquired the rights to the franchise and left this reboot in the hands of first-time developers Propaganda Games.

"Turok" reeks of "rookie developers’ syndrome” in many respects and not only with its infuriating right thumbstick sensitivity and total lack of aim-assist. Incredible difficulty spikes aside, "Turok" can't decide what it wants to do or be. As an example, the developers caution in the Tips portion of the loading screen to "run away" from dinos as Turok is meat and dinos eat meat, naturally. But if the opportunity should arise to run, these carnivorous lizards always manage to catch up with you and knock you off your feet immediately. Fighting is a must at all times despite Propaganda's advice to do otherwise.

Further game play innovations do prove fruitful. Using the ORO Shotgun's flare launcher and luring in dinosaurs to human opposition is always a blast; it successfully evens out the playing field, in fact. But when it comes time for the poorly programmed stealth portions of the game - which are presented to you as an option instead of a necessity - they never seem to pan out as I believe they were intended. Instead of being able to silently eliminate most of the human enemy presence, you'll be lucky to bring down three of them before you are spotted... each and every time.

Knifing dinos OR humans is an undeniable high point of the game and it would have been nicer if the aforementioned stealth segments were better implemented. The gun battles are satisfying thanks to incredible sound design and heavy controller vibration when firing any of the game's guns. "Twitch" gamers will certainly dislike the way in which they will have to play "Turok," though; running and gunning is not recommended. Distance fighting and cover is a must in order to keep yourself alive. Most of the game's really intense moments come from the epic boss battles (Mother Superior is a definite highlight), as do most of its aggravating ones (Sea Beast... that's all I'll say).

Graphically, "Turok" was a looker a year ago and it still holds up well today considering the stiff competition. It is notable that the cut-scenes, which are powered by UnrealEngine3, tend to look better than the in-game visuals that are powered by the very same engine. Character models look great - specifically the various dinosaurs that inhabit the planet Turok and his accompanying squad have crash-landed on - and the jungle environments are lush and finely detailed. Some of the texture work looks rather rustic, however, character movements seem canned at best, and dimly lit areas are flat-out unsightly. But walking through dense jungles and watching the brush sway beneath your torso is a sight second-to-none.

Again, the cinematics are flawless despite some of my small discrepancies with the movement of character models. Cut-scenes are wonderfully ambient, that due in no small part to an excellent voice cast that includes the likes of Ron Perlman, Powers Boothe, Timothy Olyphant, Donnie Wahlberg, and William Fichtner. Despite excellent voice-acting and vivid cut-scenes, it's ironic that "Turok's" story is ultimately forgettable. The 6-8 hours you'll spend with the game will actually be time spent playing it instead of watching it. That does, however, hurt the overall experience as I believe too much time is spent repeteadly shooting soldiers and knifing dinos as opposed to developing an involving plot & characters, as well as drawing distinct lines between good guys and bad guys; a must for any first-person shooter calling itself an "epic."

May I recommend right now that if you are a gamer who typically prefers first-person shooters and has just bought a 360, skip over this game until you better learn the controls and have played a good number of other, perhaps easier, FPS's available for the system. This little disclaimer may seem a bit out of place, but "Turok" was one of the few games that I literally gave up on for weeks at a time because of its all-too-unforgiving difficulty. Not only is simply aiming your gun problematic, but the disorientation that comes from being knocked around by raptors or blown back from a grenade a flaw that is not only irritating, but also one that can warrant some serious frustration.

Not to worry though, because as hard as "Turok" can be it still comes recommended by me. With excellent combat, a memorable hero, two fantastic final boss fights, and intense melee combat (i.e. the knife) that never wears thin, it's easy to shake off the game's rather glaring shortcomings and just go along for the ride. Despite the negative press and a handful of bizarrely difficult scenarios, "Turok" is one of the more unique first-person shooters you will find available for the 360. Just make sure you are up to the task.

7/10