Quite how the game will translate to mouse and keyboard is unclear, but the Namco version feels right at home on a console and offers a refreshing take on tactical combat. Despite its obvious status as a Japanese representation of Western armed action (Ace Combat on foot?), the industry must be old enough now not to cringe and simply get on with the game, which, in this particular instance, turns out to be an outstanding affair.

One of the few shooters to successfully work in third-person perspective, Kill.Switch also offers a practical first-person view point using actual rifle sights. Using whatever sighting mechanism your weapon is equipped with, this mode offers some real marksmanship experience. Instructing your character to move quickly via the left analogue stick will automatically bring the camera back behind him and aiming is then continued via the virtual crosshairs of standard shooter fair.

An initial training run puts you through your paces in accurately lobbing grenades, taking cover and using ¡®blindfire¡¯ with your assault rifle to either suppress your enemies or try for a lucky hit without looking.

Control options allow the Y axis control to be inverted and a look sensitivity button has some effect on the response of the analogue control. However, familiarising yourself with the oversensitive controls takes time no matter the setting, just as GoldenEye required console owners before it to get used to the sensitive aim control till they became marksmen worthy of their missions.

Gameplay takes place in urban combat zones around the world, and despite the infiltrate-and-capture story line, Kill.Switch is about killing everyone you see. This is no easy feat, as enemies are aggressive, relentless and lethal. Learning their positions and using cover is a major component of the game, and players will soon find themselves learning to duck out for a quick snipe before the next volley of rounds eats away at your hiding place.

Surround sounds gives excellent clues as to the location of ambushes and snipers from breaking windows and whizzing bullets as well as gunfire and when bullets are getting closer via the center speaker. Even partial exposure will get you shot, and your health meter reflects the initial hit and a slight recovery as well as permanent damage, similar to the system used in Halo.

You can flush out your enemies using grenades ¨C standard or flash ¨C but careless use of the latter will have your own ears ringing and eyes blinded, with excellent effects showing the momentary loss of your senses as you stand exposed to long-range fire. The pressure-sensitive controller buttons determine the velocity of your throw, while the control stick sets the trajectory.

Graphical quality varies from level to level, from a foggy, blocky and monotonous beginning to the highly detailed and lushly textured environments of later sections. But it's the strength of Kill.Switch's gameplay that brings home the reality that the only thing that matters here is what you are doing and how you are going to survive.