XIII can be described as a first-person shooter set in a comic book, because its cel-shaded art style really makes it look like one. It's fun to look around and see what's there, since it really does appear to be set in some sort of hand-drawn story. It's really neat when you kill someone too, as text such as "ARGH" or "AHHH" will be "said" by them as they go down.

For control, the analog sticks can be set to Goldeneye or Turok style, whichever you prefer. The A button is the action button, and is very important to how the game works. The cursor on-screen changes to a hand when something is to be picked up, a keyring when you need to get a key out, or a fist when you want to move a dead enemy's body to another location. This method works just fine most of the time, but there are times when it makes no sense, such as needing to be focused on a door (as opposed to a door's broken window) to open it up.

The game seems to play much more slowly than conventional FPS games do. It's not going to wow you with lighting-fast gameplay, but instead impresses with its style. It does things that other FPS games do, sure, but it does some other things that work rather well, including the focus on items.

Picking things up is vital throughout the game, but it's of particular importance when it's your job to get out of a bar room. You're going to need to pick up bottles, barstools, pool cues and more to bash over the heads of those looking to take you out. (You could also use your fists, but they don't do nearly as much damage.) Picking something up in a hurry is surprisingly easy to do, which is good, because you'll be picking every item up, including guns, ammo, and medikits.

XIII seems to have the potential to be a hit once it's all done. The GC version was listed at 60% complete, but it appears to be much further along than that. Look for it soon.