Quake Wars

Xbox 360, also PS3 and PC.
Clone Wars
Spawned from the daddies of the FPS genre (id), Quake has always been a title synonymous with innovation and fast paced, purist gameplay. Quake III Arena took the series to it's streamlined conclusion, ditching plot for people in one of gaming's greatest online shooters (and coming to a web browser near you soon). Quake Wars attempts to expand on that ideal, switching the twitch gaming deathmatches for massive battles, team work and grittier graphics.
Originally a PC game, Quake Wars has been ported to consoles, bringing its sci-fi take on the Battlefield series to the comfort of the living room sofa. Aside from the branding you've basically got an online FPS that sticks to the formula of differing soldier classes, massive battlefields and vehicular combat.
The difference is in the technology at your disposal and the objectives on the map, be you the plucky human marines or Borg-a-like Strogg. Humans have the usual array of guns, with each class having different tastes in lead poisoning and a varying array of skills such as snipers complementing their camping skills with radar dishes. The Strogg are a tad more interesting with their alien technologies, jet packs and taste in body modification.
As with any Battlefield clone, learning the different classes is key to success, particularly with Quake Wars' multiple objectives. Introducing a twist to the epic battles, each map has different goals such as building a bridge or destroying a reactor, with the opposing team stalling these objectives at all costs. Once complete a new goal kicks in and the focus of the game moves forward. This brings a fresh angle to the usual node capturing of Battlefield, and with each map offering different goals there's plenty of variety on offer.
All of this sounds good of course but Quake Wars struggles to really gel together on the 360. The Benny Hill-ish run speeds sit at odds with the realism and the art direction is devoid of any imagination, or colour.
The one vital flaw however is the fact that only two months after its release there are very few people playing it online. For an online-centric game that's a killer indictment and a real shame considering its many charms.
7/10