BASED on the popular television series Alias, gamers control CIA Agent Sydney Bristow.

Alias tries to convince gamers that it is a stealth game. You can hide from enemies behind crates, perform stealth kills MGS style and sneak in shadows to avoid the attention of lurking guards.

The problem is that, despite initially appearing to be a stealth game, it is not. If an alarm is alerted gamers can still quite safely complete the mission as only a few guards will appear and they are easy to fend off or coast through.

This is a major flaw in the game as it means gamers can complete mission after mission simply through running away.

Although this may be deemed as defeating the whole concept of the game the actual combat is limited in terms of enjoyment. Admittedly it is fun at first but when there's no blood and only a small amount of moves to perform, the gameplay soon becomes tiresome.

Alias isn't a particularly bad game it's just very mediocre and simplistic in structure.

Sydney is constantly being aided by her comrades, leaving little opportunity to explore freely and independently solve puzzles. Graphics and sound are also very middle of the road.

Alias may be worth renting for fans of the television series but, for everybody else, this is a very average stealth game that offers nothing new or innovative to the genre.

Michael Wilson

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