Anyone who has tuned into Konsole Kontrast over the last couple of weeks will have heard me talking quite excitedly about Bethesda's new offering, Wet, a game that promised something special and promised to set itself apart from all of those other shooters with gameplay gimmicks. And in quite frank terms, it did so and more.

The game sees you playing as Rubi, a gun for hire if you will, sexy, sassy, acrobatic and not entirely looking unlike Cuddy from House, and as Rubi you're charged with the usual run and gun fare with revenge, colourful characters and a hugely infectious soundtrack that seems to power the game along with a style that can only be rivalled by the likes of Grand Theft Auto soundtracks. Just think of it as Quentin Tarantino the Video Game and you wouldn't be far off the mark.

The game opens with the obligatory training mission and showcases the style of the game from the off, pulling no punches and showing you pretty much what you'll be in for. It tells you all about the easy to use and very fluid control system that gels the game together, eventually encouraging you to use all those sliding, jumping and wall running moves that only require one button each while you run around happily filling enemies with bullets and earning style points for combining shooting with all those fancy moves. Now, start thinking Quentin Tarantino and Tony Hawk's love child The Video Game and you're a little closer to that mark.

A game like Wet, which if you didn't know is a metaphor for hands being “wet” with blood isn't just about the running and gunning. There is a lot more to it including an exciting thrill a minute car chase sequence where Rubi is bouncing between cars shooting the bad guys and performing acrobatics and stunts to make any stuntman blush. This sequence is basically a fancy FMV with a huge reliance on QTE but it is a lot of fun and will probably leave you giggling with glee and make you feel like you've just been watching an interactive version of a scene from Crank.

Add to that a level inspired by the opening to PSX classic MDK where you fall from an aeroplane shooting all and sundry whilst dodging bits of burning aircraft, this game really does get the adrenaline pumping and gives you the same feel-good feeling that so few games are capable of doing these days. Also, training modes around Rubi's junkyard hide out are fun and spaced out quite nicely not only training you in new weapons but also adding a few challenges for beating previous scores around various assault courses by shaving those precious few seconds from previous times by shooting targets.

One other thing that makes this game so special is the presentation, it's presented like a B-Movie in all the best ways, with film grain embedded into the graphics, obvious shaky reel changes within FMV's and even worsening film quality when close to death, borrowing quite heavily from near death scenes in newer offerings from the Call of Duty franchise. Even little snippets like adverts for hotdogs and other cinema treats done in 1950's style really add to the effect and start to make you feel like you really are part of a seedy cinematic experience. Or even better that you really are Machete from the mock advert at the beginning of Planet Terror. Bearing this in mind, calling the game style over substance wouldn't be exactly wrong but when the style is this good and actually adds to the whole experience not only making the game a cinematic joy it also makes for a pretty solid and highly enjoyable game with a lot of substance to go with that style.

One other thing about Wet that commands attention is the soundtrack, violently swinging from Psycho Billy bands like The Arkhams and funky Lo-Fi hip hop like Notorious MSG as well as quite a lot of punk and other Tarantino-esque rock based music this game is not only stylish and cinematic it is also very rock n roll. With a soundtrack like this, the game really wants everything turned up to 11 and played as loudly as possible and I think it really wants to say “fuck you” to every game ever made before. It's sheer unadulterated sleazy rock n roll and proud of that.

The game does have it's slight niggle which is some imprecise platform elements which are pretty unforgiving but mostly they just waste a few seconds rather than unfairly kill your character at nasty moments, so these aren't exactly unforgivable, and although the presentation is second to none there are a few clipping issues now and again and some character models aren't as polished as the style would suggest. But when you play this game all of this seems to matter less and less once you get sucked into the storyline and sheer action of the game.

All in all Bethesda have done themselves proud here, a solid and mostly competent game that is a lot of fun and borrows a lot from a lot. It has it's CoD elements, Tarantino elements, even it's Tony Hawk elements for it's combos and is a great antithesis to the recent Batman Arkham asylum (also more than worth playing) and makes a refreshing change to the usual bullet-time and other flashy gimmicks that every other game seems to be pushing. Add to that a great sense of style and a rock n roll soundtrack that will keep you coming back for more, you really can't ask for much else, OK maybe you could expect monkeys with cymbals, but there are those too.