Time Cops

Time Cops – You’ll be doing time!

Hands up if you remember the slightly cheesy Jean-Claude van Damme movie Time Cop? Well if so you’ll probably be thinking something along the lines of ‘why on earth is someone making a game of the same name?’ Fortunately, this game really doesn’t pull its punches and will keep you totally glued to the screen for several hours.

You control a top agent whose mission is simply to seek and destroy, oh, and if you find the odd item along the way to pick it up as it will probably come in handy. Fortunately the game’s retro title hints at the very retro looking style of the game itself. And yes, if you’re a platform gamer or retro fan, then this game will totally entertain you.

The controls are simple to get used to, through using the keypad or d-pad in the direction you wish to go i.e. left/right, jump and duck and pressing the OK or 5 buttons will cause you to fire.

This is a free-roaming platformer, which ensures you can progress as fast or as slow and steady as you feel comfortable. The trick I found was that as the screen is set in quite a panoramic view, you can inch forward and as soon as you see a henchman or other form of enemy, you can simply open fire and normally this will mean they don’t retaliate or if they do, you have enough time to find cover. Alternatively, if you wish to race from the start, you can rush through the levels and shoot away to your heart’s content.

A neat trick I like in this game is that your agent automatically ducks when he’s beside a crate or object which can withstand bullets. By pressing the fire button your agent will stand up to take the shot before ducking back down again. The only issue I had with this slick touch was sometimes I’d have to remember to duck when in the open.

The vast majority of the opponents are swift to die (taking only two shots), and similarly, they aren’t the brightest of opponents, usually standing there taking the flak and remaining relatively still. However, there are plenty of opponents and a variety of them with different weapons and skills to keep you entertained and challenged in equal measure.

Another good thing about this game is that there are quite a large amount of levels for you to clear. This will ensure that you will remain busy for several hours and whether you’ve got a few minutes to play in or want an epic gaming experience, this game will certainly put a big tick in either boxes.

Rating 85%

Positives

Retro style platformer

Good graphics

Smooth controls

Good humour and action throughout

Negatives

Many of the enemy you encounter are really simple to defeat

The game hung between loading from one stage to the other