Eidetic

According to ESRB, this game contains: Animated Blood, Animated Violence

The original Syphon Filter was an all out mission-based action title that had a lot going for it to separate it from the pack. Using an over-the-shoulder perspective, it placed you in the role of Gabriel Logan (Gabe to his friends) as he chases after members of a terrorist group and tried to prevent them from destroying the city. Plus, while hes at it, he had to capture a top-secret biological agent called the Syphon Filter. The game hinged on me completing a series of main objectives (one per level), but in order to meet those objectives I had to complete smaller, more specific tasks in a predetermined order. These tasks ranged from hostage rescues to bomb defusals and, to 989 Studios' credit, they were meshed seamlessly into the overall storyline of the game.

My experience with the original Syphon Filter was limited to the extremely brief demo that came with my PlayStation. On that basis, I somehow concluded that the game was a cheap Metal Gear Solid ripoff (at the time, I was utterly engrossed in the Hideo Kojima masterpiece and didn't want to be bothered). Now that I've played Syphon Filter 2, I not only realize that my skepticism of the first game was unfounded and ridiculous, but that I also may have missed out on a pretty good 3-D action game.

Game Description: In the game, players assume the roles of secret agents Gabriel Logan and Lian Xing. Framed for a crime they did not commit, the two must race against the clock in order to prevent the sale of the Syphon Filter virus to a terrorist nation. Played from a third-person point of view, the story takes gamers from the streets of Moscow to the Agency's secret Syphon Filter lab. Such a dangerous mission requires effective weapons and gadgets; naturally, the agency provides an arsenal of more than 25 enemy-stoppers, including a cross bow, a sniper rifle with a night-vision scope, tear gas, binoculars, and other goodies. New to the series is a two-player, split-screen mode featuring fast head-to-head combat action in 20 arenas.