Gunman Chronicles started as a “total modification” of Half-Life. Rewolf Software, a small independent development house, made it big by getting a commercial contract and becoming an officially endorsed and Valve sponsored stand alone game. And for their first “official” product, they’ve done a great job.

You take on the role of one of the Gunmen, who are basically well-armed sheriff dudes. Five years earlier, you and a group of gunmen were called in to investigate a missing group of scientists. During your investigation, the crap quickly hits the fan and fortunately, you and a few of the other gunmen are able to escape. Since then, the galaxy has become infected by a bunch of aliens called Xenomes. It’s now up to you to try to bring peace back to the galaxy, one dead alien at a time. The job will not be easy though, as there are countless nasty aliens in your way. 

Although Gunman doesn’t break any new ground in the graphics department, Rewolf has done a good job of keeping the graphics up to date.  They have done this by making several improvements and enhancements to the graphics engine. Rewolf has created a wealth of new textures that provide unique new settings in several different environments, all of which are very pleasing to the eye. The level design is excellent, each planet has a distinct “feel” to it and although the graphics aren’t as flashy as Quake III, they work. This game runs really well, even when the action increases to a frenzied pace.

Also adding to the immersive environments are the frightening sound effects.  Rewolf has done such a good job with sound, ambient in particular, that there were several times during the game that I almost crapped myself.  Noises of beasts come from all around you, forcing you to look ever which way in search of your next victim (our your current stalker).  Gunman Chronicles also offers several enhancements to your typical stereo sound such as: hardware accelerated EAX and A3D, both of which help even further to immerse you into the game.

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