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TimeShift

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8.0 User Score:

Mixed or average reviews

Based on 58 critic reviews
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Based on 43 votes
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Game Info

Publisher: Vivendi Universal

Developer: Saber Interactive

Genre(s): First-Person Shooter, Action

Players: 16

ESRB Rating: M (Mature)

Release Date: October 30, 2007

Summary

TimeShift challenges players to use their minds along with their weapons to battle enemies and solve complex gameplay puzzles. TimeShift changes the fundamental way gamers think about first-person shooters by using the fourth dimension: time itself. TimeShift empowers players with the gift of time manipulation, including the ability to slow down, stop and rewind the world around them, allowing them to move freely while opponents and game objects are frozen in time. TimeShift feature mores than 30 combat missions, each showcasing time control elements and challenges that players must solve using both their extraordinary capabilities and combat expertise. An array of devastating and unique weaponry from the world's alternate timeline is at the player's disposal, including bizarre incarnations of traditional sniper guns, machine guns, pistols and more, as well as never-before-imagined armaments from an era humanity has never seen.

Cheat Codes & Hints: Cheat Code Central GameFAQs

Also On The Web: Official Website

What The Critics Said

All critic scores are converted to a 100-point scale. If a critic does not indicate a score, we assign a score based on the general impression given by the text of the review. Learn more...

GameTrailers

The time-stopping fun is handled really well, too. It’s especially fun to see individual raindrops freeze as you slow time down and run about disarming a whole group of enemies. In general, the game is as interesting to look at as it is to play.

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GameZone

The time elements are very well done, giving you a true sense of power and time manipulation. However, there are some balancing issues with the weaponry, and an overly linear feeling throughout.

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360 Gamer Magazine UK

With a satisfying campaign, backed up with a truly unique multiplayer experience, TimeShift certainly isn’t a run-of-the-mill title anymore, and for sci-fi fans this may be one of your most rewarding titles this year.

Kombo

What Half-Life2 did for physics, TimeShift attempts to do with time. By and large, TimeShift succeeds where many have failed.

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Boomtown

A great game, perhaps unfortunately overshadowed by the number of higher profile FPSs being released around this time, and let down only by an overly confusing plot.

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X360 Magazine UK

A hugely enjoyable shooter. Ignore at your expense. [Issue 27, p.92]

Pelit (Finland)

Basically it's a well done shooter with time twisting gimmick. Obvious puzzles and stupid AI makes things too easy even on elite-level. Fiddling with time is fun although the game does not use all of its potential. [Dec 2007]

Gaming Target

TimeShift is an entertaining shooter with a different take on the tried and true bullet-time mechanic, but feels like there were a lot of golden opportunities lost. Still, you won’t regret your time spent in TimeShift.

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Team Xbox

The combat is a blast (literally!), particularly when you use your time powers effectively. Unfortunately, the puzzles are far too simple.

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Game Informer

While it may not approach the craftsmanship or innovation of a "Half-Life 2," TimeShift introduces enough interesting elements to its derivative gameplay to make this game worth a look.

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Games Master UK

Not perfect, but TimeShift is a satisfying and empowering FPS, guaranteed to entertain. [Christmas 2007, p.83]

Planet Xbox 360

An uneven hit or miss proposition that relies heavily on elements borrowed from shooters that came before it, but managed to deliver on the innovative feature it brings to the table.

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Console Monster

TimeShift would be a pretty average game if it wasn't for the time manipulating abilities.

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XboxAddict

Entertaining, visually clean, but not enough to set it apart.

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Jolt Online Gaming UK

The greatest shame is that developer Saber Interactive wasn’t bold or ambitious enough to really capitalise on the one or two good ideas they actually had, and that’s ultimately the difference between a game that is just good and a game that is great.

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Gamers' Temple

TimeShift has its moments, but you'll wish that you could rewind time and re-release the game with more imaginative level design and smarter AI.

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IGN

A great deal of work was done to bring the look and feel of TimeShift up to date, though an equal amount of time should have been spent on the design and presentation.

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GamerNode

TimeShift doesn't do a lot of innovative things, but it's still fun.

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GamePro

The time travel themed story is ineffectively told and the enemy AI is rather brain-dead. You'll also face overwhelming numbers during most battles but the good thing is that your time powers provide a nice edge.

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Gaming Age

TimeShift does some interesting things with the idea of using time control. It's a little familiar to anyone who's played games with bullet time, like Max Payne, but it's original enough to not be called a copycat. But it's not challenging unless you decide to make it so, and the puzzle portions of the game are just silly.

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IC-Games

Over-all while there are better FPS titles now available with Call of Duty 4 and others setting the grade, there is a place for TimeShift in the grouping.

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Armchair Empire

With TimeShift, the price of admission gets you a very challenging shooter with a lot of fantastic special effects and excellent graphics, but not much else.

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Xbox360Achievements

Brilliant use of time powers which means it fulfills it primary purpose, misses out on reaching its full potential though as the puzzles and game are made far too easy.

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Play.tm

A solid shooter in many ways and has the seeds of success sown into it, there are simply too many undercooked elements peppered throughout the experience for it to ably thrust forward from the shadow of much bigger and much better FPS entrants that have graced 2007 with genuine 'Game of the Year' wow factor.

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Xbox World 360 Magazine UK

Although we've been here many times before, Timeshift is still a slick shooter with some neat ideas. [Christmas 2007, p.83]

Official Xbox Magazine

With your $60 on the line, however, it's only multiplayer that rescues TimeShift from the throes of average-dom. [Holiday 2007, p.74]

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Console Gameworld

An average shooter that has the ability to be great, but misses out by not using its namesake correctly.

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Game Over Online

While TimeShift is perfectly adequate for killing a few hours, as a rental perhaps, it never elevates itself from merely okay, and if you only buy one shooter for the holidays you can do much better than this.

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Play Magazine

It's a decent game that feels ultimately out of its league. [Dec 2007, p.62]

Talk Xbox

Although TimeShift brings a neat gimmick to the table, that's about all it brings.

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Gamer's Hell

In conclusion, Timeshift is a decent game worthy of a weekend rental. If you enjoy FPS’s like FEAR and are not concerned with story, you may enjoy this game.

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Games Radar (in-house)

If it had been released in 2004, TimeShift probably would've been the bee's knees. In 2007, though, it's merely a one-hit wonder in a sea of timeless gaming anthems.

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Total Video Games

A drawn out and largely mediocre experience that's perhaps to be expected given TimeShift's difficult gestation, Saber Interactive's shooter nonetheless has some bright moments - but they're too little few and far between.

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Official Xbox Magazine UK

Breaking no moulds, but good solid fun. [Christmas 2007, p.90]

AceGamez

Time shifting is a good example of innovation within the first person genre, but TimeShift fails to really make good use of it.

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DarkStation

Overall a good game, but not something that is going to make it out of the shadows of the other big blockbusters on the market, even if it can control time.

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Xbox World Australia

Timeshift is a simplistic and vaguely enjoyable shooter with an unfortunately scheduled release. It's a shame about the other shortcomings Timeshift brings to the table, otherwise it could have been a sleeper classic.

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Maxi Consolas (Portugal)

We might say that this game was a bit “unlucky” with its release date, because it can’t measure up with some of the FPS that came out this year. The truth is, although the time controls are a fun idea, everything else is a carbon copy of every other generic shooter out there. [Dec 2007]

Destructoid

The game is a solid, creative FPS that brings a lot of new ideas to the genre, despite its minor flaws. Unfortunately, due to the short story, and multiplayer overshadowed by better games, spending more than you'd need to to rent this thing from Blockbuster would just be a waste of money that you'll probably need to purchase food, or paper towels for some reason.

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PALGN

TimeShift is a good game that could have been considered great if it was released earlier. Placed against the current competition though, most of the experience feels generic in execution. Only worth purchasing if you've already played through every other recent shooter out there.

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Worth Playing

TimeShift frequently faced me with challenges that were initially incomprehensible, and then too easy to overcome once I had some idea of what the hell I was supposed to do.

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GamingExcellence

Timeshift starts off with a bang, with impressive visuals and God-like powers at your fingertips. The bang, however, fails to last throughout the game, and you’ll constantly find it harder and harder to keep going.

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Game Almighty

The controls are solid enough, but there have been so many other stellar shooters over this holiday season, I can’t see why anybody would choose this game.

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Gamer 2.0

TimeShift's appeal and lasting value are directly proportional to what you're in it for and what you're willing to put up with. The single-player campaign is justifiably criticized with being overtly derivative, but the time shifting component makes it just fresh enough to be worth a look.

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GameShark

What we are left with is a really good shooter that is somewhat hindered by bad AI, a bad storyline and tedious objectives toward the end. The sum total of the whole game still comes out being a pretty good one even with those problems.

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Cheat Code Central

The time manipulation gimmick makes TimeShift an enjoyable if forgettable experience.

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GameSpot

An interesting time-shifting mechanic and fun-to-shoot weapons can't make up for the rest of TimeShift's run-of-the-mill first-person shooter gameplay.

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Gaming Nexus

TimeShift has a great concept that should have added something new and original to the crowded first-person shooter genre. Unfortunately Sierra's newest action game is marred by a boring story, an easy difficulty and time shifting abilities that aren't nearly as much fun as they should have been.

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VideoGamer

If you're somehow done with all the big FPS releases of the year then TimeShift isn't a bad option, it's just not a game that will get a second look by most gamers gorging themselves on the likes of Halo 3 and Call of Duty 4.

Eurogamer

The things it does are rife with potential it doesn't really exploit, and the result is adequate but nothing more - worth picking up in the January sales when you've overdosed on the competition, perhaps, but otherwise unremarkable.

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GameTap

The clunky puzzles and mechanics often overwhelm any sort of enjoyment you might get out of confronting large squads of enemies, especially when the overall formula for the game follows a typical solve-the-puzzle-and-fight-wave-of-enemies-and-repeat design.

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Gamestyle

Basically, Timeshift is a decent game marred by a massive amount of already used ideas and not enough unique appeal, even with its time travelling mechanics. Customers who see this on a shelf, which also contains the likes of Halo 3, The Orange Box, and Call of Duty 4, will probably leave the game out in the cold this winter.

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Edge Magazine

It may have few aspirations beyond being a dumb FPS, but it never fails to make the most of its limited talents. [Christmas 2007, p.97]

Thunderbolt

Gamers looking for a solid shooter on the next gen consoles could do a lot worse than Timeshift, but as cruel as it may be, Timeshift will simply not be remembered in any way shape or form in the not so distant future.

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Electronic Gaming Monthly

TimeShift definitely looks a lot prettier than it did the first go-round, but once again it finds itself behind the times. [Holiday 2007, p.80]

1UP

A little Crysis here, a little Half-Life 2 there, TimeShift's patchwork construction definitely shows. What you wind up with is a standard shooter where you blast away until things go sideways, and then it's time to mash the "easy" button.

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Game Revolution

Hopscotching its way from borrowed concept to borrowed concept, TimeShift is substantially less than the sum of its all-too-obvious parts.

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games(TM)

Only the mere prospect of reversing a grenade, or shooting a missile in slo-mo will save the gamer from feeling completely brain-dead at the end of the game. [Dec 2007, p.102]

What Our Users Said

The average user rating for this game is 8.0 (out of 10) based on 43 User Votes

Note: User votes are NOT included in the Metascore calculation.

Aaron B. gave it a9:
I was put off initially with some of the reviews. I really like FPS though, so I gave it a chance. Its a bit strange getting used to pausing time etc which threw me off at the start (too many enemies and only a handful of hits kills you, so knowing which time power suits the situation your in helps. Had that sussed out in a couple of hours though)and I also started on Hard setting which didn't help. Its SUPERB. Cross between Halo3/Half Life2/FEAR. Plays better than all three in my opinion. Weapons are solid, as are the graphics, sound, and online is excellent fun. Definitely an underrated game and is well worth the purchase. I really am getting sick and tired of some of the game websites out there. Clive Barker's Jericho is another underrated shooter which I almost didn't get due to some of the reviews it received.Thanks Sierra......try not to take 5 years for a sequel though.

Craig gave it a9:
This game did not deserve the bad reviews it got, it is a great game and the Timeshifting abilities are as good as I was hoping. Some reviews complain about the game being too easy but, playing it on the second out of 3 difficulty levels I find it as challenging as anyone could want without being frustratingly hard. The graphics are beautiful, the story starts slow but develops and there are certainly games with worse stories. I give this game a 9 as oppose to a 10 for the simple reason that there is a lot of stiff competition. However if you like this type of game or you see it at a discounted price I would go as far as to call this a must buy.

Leland F. gave it an8:
I really like this game. I have an HDTV and the graphics are beautiful. The game plays well and is a lot of fun. The story unfolds slowly and is very good. I don't understand how people can slam this game.

John N. gave it a10:
Honestly, I am guessing the bad reviewers here only played the game for a couple of hours tops. This game starts slow and gets REALLY, REALLY GOOD. By the end I was loving it. Once you get the hang of the time pause (which you get quickly) and figure out what your favorite weapons are, this game flies. Giving it a 50 is absurd. Who knows, maybe the reviewers feel like they really "know games" or something. This was fun. The outdoor levels were beautiful. 70 overall is very misleading.

Apocalypse Brown gave it a4:
Waited four years and two platforms to play this, and I am very upset out it turned out. Three years ago, it would have been excellent, now its very out of date and very out of touch with todays shooters. But its still always fun to crank that time button and blast foes to an early grave. But thats wears thin when all else is rubbish! Barely a rental game.

Loay A. gave it a10:
I have no idea why it got bad reviews ! This game is very impressive ! Both, online and offline gaming ! There is nothing better than getting frozen in a time bubble to be blown up when the bubble bursts !

Wyatt G. gave it a7:
I bet the developers of TimeShift wish they could use the reverse time function of their game to rewind 1 year so that they could release the game in the lead up to Christmas 2006 when there was not much in the way of quality shooters available on the 360. Instead they are faced with stiff competition from the likes of Halo3 and COD4, and when compared to these games, unfortunately TimeShift is left behind. That's not to say that there is anything especially wrong with the game, infact if you play it, you will most likely enjoy it. It's just that when you finish the campaign you are unlikely to feel a need to play it again; and the multiplayer is worth spending a bit of your time on, but once again, compared to the multiplayer of Team Fortress2, Halo3 or COD4 you will feel somewhat let down. The unique feature of this game is the ability to reverse, pause or slow time. Most of the game this works well and does add a level of interest to what would otherwise be a pretty standard first person shooter. My 2 main problems with it is that 95% of the time you willl find yourself pausing time, taking out some bad guys, then run and hide until your timeshift meter recharges, then do the same again.....good at first, but boring by the end. The other problem is that you are required to use the time functions to solve some puzzles (eg : pull a lever to open a door, which you need to pause time so that you can get through the door before it closes). These puzzles could have been a real challenge except for the fact that the game tells you which time power (ie reverse, pause or slow) to use to solve it ! Makes you wonder why the puzzles are even included. If I was you, I would either avoid this game and save your money for the other quality shooters available or wait until it is in the budget price bin and buy it for some cheap thrills.

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