Wanted has been a comic book, a movie, and now a video game. Movie-based video games have a reputation (rightly so) of being less than stellar. Most have shoehorned scenes to fit with the movie's storyline, some poor acting, or lacklustre action that falls on the side of needless. And yet, on the other hand, from my initial impressions, Wanted seems to do right.

I was shown a run-through of a level that takes place inside of an airplane, mid-flight. Details were vague, but considering the number of men with guns running around and the number of dead people lying around, I assumed some bad things had happened. In this level Wesley was the playable character (there are multiple characters that you can take control of) as he fought his way throughout the chaotic airplane.

Wanted is a third-person shooter with some differences that heavily affect gameplay. The first is something you'll remember from the movie, even the trailers: bullet-curving. Wesley's innate ability allows him to curve bullets around corners, a tactically useful move that can bring enemies out from behind cover or take them out entirely. Cover is a very important part of the game, one that both you and the enemies use. In the demo, you used the airline food carts as cover, pushing them down the hallway before diving behind some chairs.

The presenter also emphasized the use of the interactive environments in the game. In the airplane, you could shoot the fire extinguishers to distract some enemies or shoot the plane's doors out, causing a depressurization that shot the bad guys into the friendly skies.

There's also something of a bullet-time feature in the game, though not as arbitrarily available as in most other titles. As Wesley fights smarter, using cover and taking out enemies from behind (the AI could be fooled into believing you were somewhere else while you snuck around and took them from the sides), your tension built up. As it built, you could slow down time and start picking targets off at your leisure. Or you could use your knife, even being able to take down targets behind corners with a vicious stab.

The story begins right after the movie ends, so you don't feel like you're simply playing through the movie's plot. I was told it involves Wesley searching for the truth behind his mother and who she was. How Wesley gets on an airplane under siege, I have no idea, but it certainly looks like something I'd like to find out. The presenter promised an experience as exciting as the movie itself, but I suppose that has yet to be seen.

Wanted looks pretty good. Instead of trying to fit a game into a movie, the game looks more like the movie's story and characters were applied to an already functioning game (this is a good thing). When it comes out in late December, you can make the choice for yourselves, but those enjoying a good third-person shooter look like they might have some fun with this one.

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