It appears the paragraph breaks are not preserved, so this has become a huge block of text. Drat. Having played much of the way through this game, I'd like to add the observation that the production value is right off the chart. Lightning strobes everything into stark, flickering visibility. Rain drops splash wetly, footsteps clang jarringly from within air ducts. The visual cues are fun to read and the overall presentation of an environment the hero can only partially perceive is just brilliant. When a guard is out of our ninja's sight, for example, we get a visual representation of what the ninja hears in the form of noise circles and a ghostly image of where the ninja supposes the guard must be, what he last saw in the form of a hazy frozen sprite, and related visual clues like the beam of a flashlight shining through a crack in the vent. This game is a joy to play, although I have found the controls a bit tricky at times. Chalk it up to my inexperience playing side scrolling games with a thumb stick if you like, but I find my ninja frequently responds to an input I didn't mean to enter. I really wish this were a PS3 game that used the D-pad for character movement. This is the type of game I wish Other M had been - an ultra refined side scrolling platformer built upon decades of experience with such games, not a credible attempt to create a new style of gameplay. I cannot describe the delight it would bring me to hear that these masters were to produce the next Metroid game. But I digest. From the perspective of one who has made it a lifelong point to produce and value great writing, I will say this review was clearly written, totally fair to the game, and unlikely to sail over the head of anyone who could reasonably be expected to read it. I've come to GameSpot first for years because I can count on sophisticated, informed reactions that are presented with a lot more skill than most other web writing. I do not think Mr Johnson was overly florid or oven noticeably less direct than what I've come to expect from GameSpot. Like every game I love, I wish this one were longer, but the price was fair, especially when you factor how carefully polished the entire game is. I hope for more levels in the form of DLC. I would smugly pay $1 per additional level. Matt Minneapolis