Introduction:Dead Man's Hand is an old west game with a Kill Bill storyline and Hitman game physics. It brings the sites sounds and feel of the old west into the home of the xbox owner.

The Game:Dead mans hand is a story of revenge, going across America and killing the ones who betrayed you. You are the character El Tejon, a peeved off Mexican who was betrayed by his gang "the nine", and left for dead. You start the game breaking out of jail where your half dead body was left to rot, and travel from city to city destroying everyone who gets in the way of the 8 men your out to kill. And with rag doll physics, that can be unbelievably fun.

You also get to shoot random objects, from cans to vases to moonshine stills (even the birds in the air), all of which fill up your power bar that allows you to use your second function on your guns. You have 9 guns to choose from, some you don't get right away. Your total arsonal includes: 9 guns, 3 pistols, 3 rifles, and 3 shotguns. Each with different traits, strengths and secondy functions. There are also other weapons, the knife that you always have, the dynamite you pick up, which can be thrown at enemies, but be sure to light it first. And whiskey bombs aka Molotov cocktails, which can be thrown at enemies as well. Also throught the game you will find stationary chaingun turrets and cannons.

Through out the game you are awarded bonus points for shooting someone's hat off, killing many people one after another, shooting thrown objects out of the air or fallen enemies, crushing them with something, blowing them up, and killing people with your knife. Bonus points that also fill up your power bar. The amount of ways to kill people is the greatest part; you can shoot the support beam of the balcony someone is standing on to cause it to crash down. Or you can shoot the man to see him stumble over or through the balcony to fall to his death in a classic western way. There are times when you can shoot a wagon of explosions to cause it to roll into a group of men, setting you up for a few easy kills. Although there have been many time where I have blown up a small shack to have the roof land on me.

Every other level or so you have to fight a boss, one (or two, in the case of the twins) of the people who betrayed you. Each boss has a different weakness' and ways to kill them. From cornering them, to throwing Dynamite at them. And you're usually fighting off other goons as well. The game is in no way monotonous, its very hard to get tired of a game that allows you to do so much, and the levels are so different. You fight inside, outside, in sewers, on horseback, on trains, in mines, on a boat. There are even a couple bonus missions for fun.

The A.I. in the game are smart but not genius, they will hide behind objects, but will run in front of you to do it. But they still duck behind things to stop you from having a good shot, which leads you to duck behind something as well, which leads to a good ol fashion gun fight, yeehaw.

The game can be quite humorous at times as well, from running into drunk enemies mumbling about whatever, to the names of the levels "house of the rising gun" "stinking badges" and my favorite "Bednobs and boomsticks" which lead the player to laugh and notice the creativity that went into this game.

This game is also xbox live enabled, so you can blast away varmints from around the world. If I can give anyone a tip when playing it, its kill or be killed. There are some fast shooters you have to kill! This is not Rainbow Six's "find a sniper spot..wait for the guy and make a strategic shot" game. You run around and shoot when you see someone, then turn around and make sure someone's not targeting you. Very fast paced, many times I get killed just to see the killer get killed. No one is safe.

Graphics & Sound:This game is great in both, with graphics I was surprised to see the mouths move to the person talking quite well (voice actors are pretty good too, no robot talking) the game runs smoothly, no frame skips, every object looks as it should, very few things purposely squared off. And of course the rag doll physics just sweeten the deal.

As for the sound, everything sounds how it should when it should. If your tired of that saloon music, shoot the pianist, it will stop. And the background music of some of the levels are unbelievably catchy tunes I would buy in a store if I could, but fitting for a western game as well. It really s! ets the tone without being country or yodeling.

Innovation:I'd have to say once again the Rag doll physics, it's a rare thing to have in a console game, only a select few have it (Hitman, Max Payne 2 and maybe a few others..) and it really brings the game to life. Also the online feature is fast paced and with very little lags leads to some pretty chaotic gunfights.

Mojo:This is so stuffed full of mojo its oozing it. Shooting hats off heads, lobbing dynamite at a drunk, blowing people away with a buffalo rifle, I can TASTE the mojo. This game is more than just a shoot em up game, it puts most fps to shame when it comes to storyline characters and makes "sunset riders" (classic SNES western game) look like a pile of manure.

Lowdown: Dead Mans Hand is a solid FPS with a great story and setting. Its no Halo, but its definitely well made. It's addictive, creative and fun. Its not long but its not short. I don't suggest you go out and buy this right away, but I recommend you rent it. The game is great but if it wasn't for the Rag doll physics and the cool ol' west style it would just be another FPS.

Gameplay: 6, Graphics/Sound: 7, Innovation: 7, Mojo: 7. Final: 7