I had the opportunity to test out Deus Ex: Invisible War on the Xbox tonight, and so far, so good. I got myself killed and forgot to save, thus some backtracking will be required the next time I fire it up - and usually that would put me right off (I hate wasting time when I'm playing games, even when it's "my fault"), but I don't really mind, which is a testament to how engrossed I was.

It feels like a PC game. In fact, it feels very much like the first Deus Ex, only a bit prettier (the visuals are, for the most part, pretty good - some dodgy animations, a choppy framerate, and the environments aren't particularly varied, but it's more than serviceable), and it's got a well-designed opening sequence where you have to escape from a building that's under attack. Shame about the lifeless voice-overs, however, and Upper Seattle (which is as far as I've gotten) doesn't really look or feel like a city (where are all the people?), but the game is set in an engaging, complex, and coherent world, and that's commendable. I'm looking forward to spending more time with the game...when I get a chance.

Next up is Beyond Good & Evil, which I have to admit looks absolutely fantastic. Love the look, love the lead character, Jade, love the music, love the controls, love the originality of it all (aside from the pig. Why the pig? I mean, really?) - and, hopefully, it'll turn out to be a good game as well. Most of all I love the fact that you get to play a photographer - not an archaeologist or a secret agent or some orphaned peasant girl destined to save the world. It's very refreshing. I also see a bunch of similarities to TLJ-Next (notice how quickly I've discarded the 'Static' name and come up with a codename?), so I intend to spend quite a bit of time with this game.  ¶ 01:06