Once upon a time in a land far, far away, there lived a peaceful folk. These people lived a simple life, at one with nature and the land around them. One day, a fascist/racist army invaded: The Kewletts. Merciless and cruel, they enslaved the population and killed anyone who resisted. Did I mention this army of merciless killers was really really really cute?

Welcome to Raze's Hell.

Its not often a budget title can catch the eye of a practiced gamer. Usually the term "budget title" suggests little value or glitch-filled problems that ruin the game. Not so with Raze's Hell. Not only does it seem like a crew that truly enjoys gaming made it, but also the amount of content stuffed into this little package makes it a Hell of a value for any Xbox owner.

Gameplay:

The Kewletts are cute, seriously. Most of the Kewletts are a cross between a Care Bear and a Snorkel. Others are giant teddy bears, and the leader is a cutesy Princess wearing a pink dress! If it wasn't for their aresenal of weapons of mass destruction, you might even be tempted to hug them... The Cute factor doesn't just extend to the enemies though, but also their weapons. They have a Machine Gun Jack In the Box, which actually plays a snappy tune as it spews lead death at you. The first enemy melee weapon you will encounter is a Lollipop Axe! They even have cute recruiting posters strewn about the levels that have cute slogans like: "Don't Die, Cutefy!" Is it any wonder that Raze must inflict horrible death upon them?

So what is Raze, then? Raze is a monster. That’s right, the hero of the game is actually the vicious horrific monster that spews vengeance upon all that is cute. Literally spews, as what he uses for ammo is living bugs that he sucks up and spits out at enemies... It’s the same concept at Oddworld: Stranger’s Wrath, but far less in depth, as all ammo lives in Pods conveniently laid out in each level. The pods glow with a different color depending on the ammo type, and are not easy to miss. In Wrath, you actually had to use intelligence to find ammo, as it wasn't packed in neat pods for you. Still, there are eight variations of weapons to use to kill the merciless Kewletts, and I haven't found a useless bug yet. Even the Splatter Bug, which is for Multi-player only and covers the target's screen in multi-color paint (no damage, how cute!), is useful in a lot of ways.



Raze himself doesn't move very quickly, so you'll need to sneak and use cover a lot. He does have the ability to curl up into a ball and roll enemies over. However, while it is faster to do this, rolling into enemies hurts Raze as well, so you'll wind up using it to move from one area to another. Raze's left arm has a built in sword, which allows him to slice up Kewletts when he runs low on ammo. It also does some nice stealth kills when crouched, and to chops dead enemies into chewable bits for health. Clicking the left thumbstick allows Raze to suck up ammo and Chunky Kewlett Bits, as well as fire. Nothing says fun like turning Raze into a flamethrower (like all good monsters, Raze is fireproof), and making roast Kewlett for dinner!

Still, you wont be using a lot of it, because despite the outward appearance of the game, trying to run and gun your way through any level is just going to get you killed. Raze is not very hardy, so you have to think your way thru each section. Also, the AI is smart. I mean Halo 2 smart. They flank, use distraction, and they NEVER give up chasing Raze. Trying to run your way thru a level means having an ARMY of Kewletts at your back, shooting the whole time. The main game's difficulty can be lessened if another player joins you, anytime after the first level. This split screen Co-Op mode is great, and adds yet another layer of value to the game. Stealth killing, sniping, and using cover are the only ways to make it thru most of the game, letting some of the more fun ammo types, such as the Smasher (shotgun), go to waste. This also creates a problem when the more useful ammo types, like the Driller, are nowhere to be found. Still, this game is never as hard or cheap as Ninja Gaiden.