The Old West, a coarse and gruesome place in time. At least that’s how it is depicted in Activision’s newest action-adventure game, “Gun.” The developer, Neversoft, of the famed Tony Hawk series, took a major 180 when making this game.

“Gun” tells the story of Colton White, a man hardened by growing up as a hunter on the Ol’ Mississip’ with his father Ned, expertly voice-acted by Kris Kristofferson.

The game opens up with a basic tutorial level in which you shoot game and fight wolves.

A normal transaction of fur trade with a steamboat ends in disaster when a creepy preacher kills a saloon girl. The preacher then orders an army of white savages to attack the boat in order to capture a hidden relic.

Colton is left passed out on a beach with only the guns on his hips and the burning desire of revenge. After that you better hold on to your saddle, partner, the rest of this game is in a hurry.

“Gun” is a very solid third-person shooter with little to no flaws in the combat system, save the fact that at points it became unnecessarily gruesome.

I’m used to the spaghetti westerns where a man got shot and fell over clutching his gut uttering his death cry, but in “Gun” the game seemed as if it was just being violent for the sake of violence. In addition to the simple gut shot, there was also dismemberment, scalping and head explosions depending on the weapon used and the area shot. Parts of this game just seemed too gory for no reason.

However, the “quick draw” system of slowing down time after you draw your trusty six shooter enabled for very interesting shootouts; bursting into a room and sending six bandits to boot hill while they still reach for their guns, to shooting incoming arrows out of the sky.

The horse combat was satisfactory. A beginner could pick up how to ride and shoot from his horse very quickly and easily.

One problem was that horses were not that special in this game. All the horses were exactly the same except for color pattern. A player could also find one anywhere and simply take it without any consequences.

In the west, a cowboy was only as good as his horse. Colton should have had a trusty steed to see him through his adventures, not numerous unimportant animals.

However, where this game excels in game play it falls short on story. While the plot itself is interesting and intriguing, it’s far too short.

At one point in the game Colton becomes the deputy of a large town, easily a place for the developers to throw in a couple of missions to lengthen the game. Instead, one mission later, you’ve shot your deputies for murdering a harmless farm family and are going back to the city to throw your badge in the crooked mayor’s face.

The whole plot feels horribly rushed and, consequently, the game play is incredibly short. Players can easily beat the game in one sitting. There are side missions, but they are repetitive shootouts that end quickly, adding very little to the game.

While “Gun” supports a large world to roam, there is little incentive to explore. No secret areas or missions are awarded to the adventurous explorer, only countless empty fields. The replay value on this game is also very poor, with nothing new or exciting for the repeated player to be rewarded with.

With all its downsides, “Gun” is still a fun game to play. Its fast pace and gripping combat system will leave you wishing you lived in a time where your best friend was the iron at your side. While “Gun” does not make a smart purchase, it is an excellent rental. So saddle up cowboy, there are bandits afoot.

FINAL SCORE: 6.5/10