Model Citizen

First to arrive was Peter Chung's groundbreaking animated sci-fi series, a staple on MTV nearly ten years back. Next, we get a major motion picture from Paramount.

Now Majesco Games, publisher of underground favorites like Psychonauts™, and Terminal Reality (creators of BloodRayne™) are bringing you Aeon Flux, meaning that ultimately it's you, the Xbox® owner, who's about to enjoy the best of all worlds, as the future's top secret operative leaps into action.

Lust at first sight.

Fast forward 400 years into the future. City-state Bregna's tyrannical overlords, a group of scientists known as The Breen Council, rule the streets with an iron fist. As part of the Monican rebellion, our heroine— from whose name the adventure's title is derived—must infiltrate their holdings and bring about an uprising from within.

An extraordinary jaunt ... the best-dressed
game of the holiday season.

Standing against her are council Chairman Trevor Goodchild, plus a host of unexpected adversaries whose presence is only made known as you progress through various open-ended 3-D levels from a third-person perspective.

Assuming you can peel your eyes off the protagonist's skintight suit (she's modeled in the likeness of gorgeous actress Charlize Theron, after all), a single glimpse reveals you're in for an extraordinary jaunt. Bear in mind, this isn't your average, everyday run-n-gun romp. Aeon Flux blends turns on the catwalk with stylish sprints up walls and furious firefights against government thugs.

As much about flash and dazzle as substance—witness your ability to execute suave dismounts after rappelling down walls and fashion-conscious in-game moments—this is one interactive tale which dares to be different.

Girls just wanna have guns.

For starters, movement is a little different than you've become accustomed to in the standard action/adventure title. Not only do you leap between poles, dart between rings of fire, and scrabble along the lip of ledges at insane speeds, but you also bend your body in unthinkable ways.

Watch closely as the heroine—dangling over the edge of a chasm—stretches her legs up and flings an enemy standing above out into empty space ... or, for that matter, blasts baddies while spinning around in mid-air as she descends on a thin cable.

This being the case, you're blessed with greater access to acrobatic maneuvers than usual. Roll beneath low openings, evade enemies with a tumble, vault off barriers for sudden height boosts, or block enemies' strikes before exacting retribution via a quick counterattack.

Alternately, during melee encounters, pound away at foes with quick strikes or strong blows, then hold down the attack button to floor them with charged assaults. Once you've managed to whittle their health bar away until it's in the red (danger) zone, feel free to apply super-sexy fatalities.

Hacking turrets—just one of many featured activities.

Weakened adversaries can be dispatched in all sorts of interesting ways. Tap two buttons together to throw them into their associates. Substitute another button instead, and wrap your legs around their neck and wrench, or do a spine-breaking handstand on top of their head.

Mash yet another button, and actually replenish your supply of style points while putting opponents down for the count. Not to mention another move, which sticks a spider-bomb onto your victim before leaping high in the air, while below, they explode into bits …

If the experience sounds a bit bizarre, that's because it is. Rest assured, you'll face all sorts of original challenges while leaping or scuttling through levels such as No Man's Land (an urban wasteland) and Model Behavior (equal parts fashion show and underground lab).

Enter spherical pods and soar through tubular tunnels. Kick levitating bombs known as "hoppers" into glass walls in order to create openings. Dodge gun turrets' incoming fire, then take control of them to clear debris from your path. Follow former partner Sithandra through deadly obstacle courses. Guide remote-controlled droids past roving alarm grids and into high-tech keyholes.

Moviegoers will have to wait until December to see what all the fuss is about, but Xbox owners needn't sit idly by. Score a copy for yourself and find out firsthand why it's sure to be the best-dressed game of the holiday season.

Article by Chris Zimmerman