The worst thing a game can be is unimaginative and bland. I'd rather play 'Blacksite: Area 51' than play 'Generic action game with cover system 5'.

Which means I approached 'Section 8' with my guard raised.

Now, I'm a sucker for any kind of space sci-fi and seeing the intro video, while not mind-blowing, got me amped to play 'Section 8'. I was intrigued by the premise of 'burning-in' - being dropped from 15 000 feet in a capsule - with some degree of control over where you land. This brings to mind the parachute aspect of 'Medal of Honour: Airborne'. Thankfully, this feature is far more interesting and functional than 'Airborne's' effort, though you can't land at the far end of a map - but more on that later.

Graphically, the 'next-gen' filter has been used to great effect, resulting in the visuals having a brown look to them with character models being very shiny ? almost as if all the troops had been coated with oil.

But it all ends up looking very bland, with the game doing nothing to stand out graphically. In fact, the game ends up looking like a poor-man's version of 'Halo', but without the colour, flora and draw distances you'd associate with Bungie's effort.

Gameplay-wise, 'Section 8' is clearly a multiplayer-orientated effort, with multiplayer being the first option from the main menu. The other options are instant action, in which you choose your map, options etc and get right into it in a manner reminiscent of 'Unreal Tournament 3'. And then there's the campaign mode.

The campaign mode is a fun diversion from the main game, featuring many of the weapons and tools you'd use in multiplayer. Cut-scenes are also utilised in this mode, and they don't look half bad thanks to the good facial animations. The maps are large, but not so large that running about feels like a chore.

'Burning-in' features quite prominently in the game, with no respawn points as in normal games. Instead, when you die, you go back to the 'burning-in' process ? though the enemy can shoot you down with anti-aircraft artillery. This often made for fun moments when respawning, as you can land on almost any structure ? such as when I landed on a gargantuan, albeit destroyed, star ship and proceeded to take pot shots at hapless enemies below.

The gameplay itself is pretty standard fare ? a mish-mash of last generation and current gen technology and ideas. It borrows the regenerating shield concept seen in many games these days as well as the rag-doll effects seen in last gen games. But the main inspiration for 'Section 8' would seem to come from the space marine setting and jet packs of the 'Tribes' series of shooters.

Gunplay is fun, albeit generic, though you can't go in guns blazing all the time. The nature of the game means that very often you will have to work together in order to take down enemies or take over an objective.

Speaking of objectives, they usually consist of holding a base/generator/computer, taking out the enemy, planting bombs, etc. All in all, there is enough variation to keep the single-player campaign going.

The campaign is short though, and can be completed in a day if you really get into it, so the online multiplayer is where the action is ? with games constantly being played.

Surprisingly enough, there are no local split-screen multiplayer options, with system link and online multiplayer being your only ways to get your multiplayer game on.

For those in need of a great online multiplayer fix, 'Section 8' will have you occupied for quite some time, but for those just wanting to satisfy their addiction to virtually killing, I suggest you rent this one.

6.3/10

Buy this game: Xbox 360 | PC