It's no secret that I spent the last couple of days on the website being a nut about Shattered Horizon. The game just left that big of an impression on me. 32-player deathmatches in zero gravity? Yes, please.

The one thing that bothered me about it was the fact that it needs an OS with DirectX 10 support to function. I'm an avid XP user with an intense dislike for Vista, so naturally I'm a bit reluctant about switching to other operating systems. But this had to be done, I went for Windows 7 and... Oh my god, this is amazing. I think Shattered Horizon made me see the light.

Now if the game could only be as awesome as I think it is, then this would be a win-win situation.

Shattered Horizon is a multiplayer first-person shooter developed by Futuremark Games. Set 40 years from now after a cataclysm on the Moon, the game pits two factions against each other, namely the Moon Mining Corporation (MMC) and the International Space Agency (ISA), in a fight for control over what's called the 'Arc', or simply chunks of the Moon roaming the near-Earth space. As we all know, space is a place where things can only float*, and that is what puts the average FPS player in a bit of an awkward situation. Being able to turn in every possible direction is disorienting at first, especially since one never knows the difference between top and bottom, but once mastered, manouevring with the rocket pack can be really fun. Honestly, they could have made the game like Endless Ocean and I still would have played it just to float around on debris and be amazed at the beautiful shots of the Earth and the shocking depictions of the scarred Moon.

On a related note, I'm quite sure that Shattered Horizon's visuals can cure cancer. The game itself could easily be one of Futuremark's many benchmarks. The detailed objects and player models really show that a lot of effort went into the game, as well as the mind-blowing scenery that not only takes breaths away, but possibly even collapses people's lungs. But the impeccable lighting is what drops the jaw. It manages to create an amazing atmosphere, with the debris often casting these huge cold shadows that make one think "Hey, it's a bit chilly up here." This play on light and dark is what helps be the silent killer rather than Arnold Schwarzenegger in Predator.

The following isn't really a problem, but more of an observation: the recommended hardware requirements can and will take a big chunk out of your wallet if you plan on upgrading your machine for the sake of the game. Then again, I can't say that one could expect anything less from a company that develops benchmarking software. Nevertheless, it should be noted that Shattered Horizon seems to be optimised well as my poor rustbucket, which lacks in processing power in comparision with the minimum hardware requirements, ran the game with little or no FPS drops.

Futuremark Games obviously payed a lot of attention to detail**, as if they knew that LorD was going to be picky about it. The astronaut's suit, for example, 'emulates' the audio of the environment around him because, let's face it, a game without sound is no fun at all. This leads us to the 'silent running' game mechanic. To 'run silent' is to power down the suit's electronics. This means a loss of HUD, sound and rocket pack functionality. In essence, you sacrifice your eyes, ears and, by extension, a leg to be less noticeable to the enemy. It isn't as bad as I make it out be, it's actually pretty helpful for sneaking up on people and melee-ing them, but ending up as target practice is easy if you don't know what you're doing.

The suit is also capable of landing onto any surface, allowing you to walk on walls if you wish to do so. Being 'grounded' improves your aim, especially when it comes to sniping, but reduces manoeuvrability. This also adds an element of surprise since it allows you to come at your enemy from any possible direction. And isn't that what fighting in zero-gravity is all about?

Shattered Horizon offers three game modes, all of which support a maximum of 32 players. These modes are 'battle', 'assault' and 'skirmish'. 'Battle' and 'assault' are generally the same, the two factions fight over control points to dominate the map. The only real difference between them is that 'assault' offers you no chance at retreiving lost control points, while you can and must defend them in the 'battle' mode if you want to win. The third mode, 'skirmish', is a take on regular team deatmatches, with the winning team being the one with the highest score at the end of a round.

'Assault' and 'battle' have to be the game modes that use Shattered Horizon's 'perks' the best. It's not unusual to find someone waiting to stab you with his suit powered down behind a chunk of rock while you're capturing a point. These two modes will definitely be favourites for clan matches and similar events.

Shattered Horizon ships (or rather, downloads) with four maps, each providing a different zero gravity experience. Sometimes, it is key to remain behind the cover of the debris, while at other times one has to move through what once was the mining complex in order to outsmart the enemy. The level design, in simpler terms, either provides a great amount of cover or helps streamline the firefights to the right spots.

The game's arsenal really holds true to the saying 'quality over quantity', with the only weapons being a 'multifunctional assault rifle' and a 'lethal melee attack'. The assault rifle is the 'jack of all trades', functioning well in both medium and long-rage combat scenarios, especially when using the scope. The melee attack is a one-hit kill weapon, perfect for close combat and designed for the skilled player who prefers to sneak rather than go in with guns blazing.

The assault rifle is also equipped with four grenades which can switch between three types: ICE, EMP and MPR.

- ICE grenades release a cloud of ice crystals whick block both sight and radar. Simply put, these are smoke grenades in space. ICE is generally used for creating cover, disorientation or blocking lines of sight.

- EMP grenades are pretty self-explanatory. By unleashing an electromagnetic pulse, EMP grenades knock out an astronaut's suit electronics, forcing it offline into the 'silent running' mode.

- The MPR grenade creates a blast that pushes away objects, dislodges enemies from cover or just generally knocks away anything that's in your path.

The grenades have a certain range or, simply put, it takes some time for them to go off. This can give the player a tactical advantage, because the grenades bounce off of surfaces before their inner timer reaches zero. It's particualrly helpful when clearing rooms and corners, knocking off players who are capturing your point in 'assault' and 'battle' matches or just for messing with enemy snipers.

Shattered Horizon might not be a game for everyone. Some might be bothered by the game's learning curve or 'lack' of firepower, some might find the zero-gravity controls a very disorienting mess and others just might not be able to run it. But those who have the chance to try it out will find that Shattered Horizon is a pretty fun title. It's just not your average video game. Sure, it has its flaws like all games do, most of which are minor nitpicks or a matter of personal taste, but Shattered Horizon is a fun and fresh take on the sci-fi action game genre that everyone deserves to experience.

What I feel Futuremark Games did with Shattered Horizon is push the boundaries of conventional first-person shooters. I like to think that Futuremark laid some sort of foundation for a new generation of shooters with this title, a whole new series of games that will expand on the idea of zero-gravity combat, and I also sincerely hope that both Futuremark and other developers will continue building on that foundation.

Because you can never get enough of bodies doing a pirouette into sun.

Shattered Horizon releases November 4th and is available for pre-order right now. UFO Gamers is also giving away a copy of Shattered Horizon. If you want to try your luck, check our forums.

* Your dictionary and other dictionaries in a similar price range might disagree.

** LorD seems to be really bothered about the fact that the game includes flaming explosions in the vacuum of space, and that rocket packs, erm, 'expel' little flames when used. Since Futuremark did their homework and made the effort to explain why sound is possible in space, it just confused him and me, to some extent that the flame thing wasn't addressed. And I think that everyone who played with us yesterday afternoon, including the game's lead designer, knows how he feels about the issue.