Rage Preview

Extending the similarities with Borderlands, RAGE has both driving and vehicle combat. Tim jumps into the "Buggy" - the player's first ride - and speeds off towards Wellspring, a town that serves as the main hub for the first half of the game. While driving, he runs over countless mutants and shoots down structures with twin mounted machine guns. There is an impressive sense of speed, and the game runs as smoothly as it did when Tim was simply admiring the view. RAGE, Tim says, will run at 60 frames per second at all times.

Wellspring, so named because of the well it's built on, reminds us of Fallout 3's Megaton. But where Megaton was bland and dour - deliberately so - Wellspring is alive with colour. Superbly animated people potter about, getting on with their day to day activities. Each room and wall and ceiling tells its own story: small cracks in ageing brick; smoke from a cigarette; an open comic book; torn posters; flickering neon lights; "NO PARKING" signs amended to read "No PEEING"; dust balls; Kola-Kong vending machines; blood and guts; audio advertisements; health warnings and two locals slagging off The Authority in the bar. Wellspring is one of the most captivating video game environments I've ever seen. I can almost reach out and touch it.

Clearly, RAGE looks incredible. But, as we all know, great graphics do not always make for a great game. So, the question remains: just how will RAGE feel to play? What kind of shooter is it? Does it innovate the genre in areas other than visuals? What about plot and characters – aspects that are hardly id's traditional strong areas?

For the first half of the game, Wellspring is your home. At Rusty's Auto Parts you'll buy upgraded armour and weapons. At Mick's Garage you'll repair and upgrade your vehicle. At the bar you'll pick up odd jobs. At the Outfitters you'll sell unwanted items picked up while adventuring in the Wasteland. Then there's the Wellspring Speedway, for racing, the Major's office, the Sheriff's Office and loads more.

Tim is stopped by a woman who comments on the fact that you're wearing an Ark suit. Time for some exposition: Before the great asteroid hit the earth, the governments of the world buried hundreds of Arks. You were part of the program. Now, years later, you emerge from your Ark still wearing an Ark suit. The problem is, The Authority, an omnipresent evil group, is out looking for Ark survivors for God knows what. Under the circumstances, the woman's words are actually a veiled warning. Change your get up, and change it quick.