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| | Title:
Frame City Killer
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System:
Xbox 360
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Genre:
Action
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Publisher:
Namco
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Developer:
Namco
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Release:
2/7/2006
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Online:
Yes
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ESRB:
Rating Pending
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No one likes to hear when a game is delayed. It's a doubled edged sword with people getting hurt on both sides. Sure, we want the game to come out. But we don’t want it to stink because the company rushed it out. Numerous titles have fallen to this unfortunate dilemna, and Frame City Killer is one of the latest. Moved from the November launch window to sometime in February, Frame City Killer is receiving the extra attention it needs to become a stellar game.
Despite Namco’s reluctance to release information about Frame City Killer, there has been enough available to get a pretty good picture on how the game is going to play. Frame City Killer is a third person action stealth game with most of the emphasis on the action. This is not Namco’s answer to the Splinter Cell series. Instead, one should look at Frame City Killer as a combination of various elements from other games with the overall goal to create a unique experience on the Xbox 360.
Players take the role of Crow, who is a hitman with a very busy schedule ahead of him. It seems a drug lord by the name of Khan has risen into power and needs to be “removed.” Crow is the man chosen for this daunting task. Problem for Crow is he can’t waltz right up to Khan. First, he must make his way through Khan’s various contacts until finally pinning down the man himself. While this does seem like a very tedious way to extend gameplay time, Namco plans to make the experience worthwhile.
The setting of Frame City Killer is going to play a big role in how taking out the targets in handled. Taking a page from GTA’s success book, Frame City Killer is going to include a totally free-roaming city. Players will have the ability to do whatever they wish in what can best be described as a futuristic city. It is in this city that Crow will have to locate and then kill off the targets. He must eliminate the targets in such a way that he draws the least amount of attention to himself. This is where the “stealth” comes into play. Players may have to trail a target for an entire day, and only after understanding the target’s schedule be able to effectively take him or her out. The game switches from day to night with both giving unique advantages and disadvantages to Crow.
Crow will be able to shoot firearms and participate in hand-to-hand combat. No information on how Namco is making this unique to the Xbox 360 has been released. The game overall is going to look and sound amazing thanks to the Unreal 3.0 Engine. Bump mapping and amazing lighting are only two of the multitude of visual eye candy Namco is pouring into this game.
Overall, despite the lack of information Frame City Killer looks like it will be a great game for the Xbox 360. It will be one of the first to offer a completely open city environment displayed on the next-gen hardware, which for some will be more than enough reason to buy it. Look for it sometime in February of 2006.
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