For a game that's been in development for so long (around five years), Galleon looks surprisingly fresh-faced. Captain Rhama Sabrier and his crew aren't the only distinctive part of the game - the uniqueness extends to level design, control and just about everything else.

Age might be one of the reasons why the developer has taken a different route to just about every other Xbox action adventure. It's still a mixture of fighting and platform jumping, but the way Rhama moves and controls is something else. Instead of being forced down a certain route, Rhama's superhuman abilities mean that the whole environment is your playground. Scaling cliff faces, walking tightropes and leaping great distances are all encouraged, and to some extent made easy by the game engine.

The first things you'll notice about the controls are the two running speeds. Moving the Left thumbstick a little makes you move in 'cautious mode'. Falling off a ledge or narrow catwalk is impossible at this pace because Rhama is locked onto the ground in front. On the other hand, pushing the thumbstick at full tilt makes you run at a speed even Sonic would be proud of - especially useful when you need to build up momentum for a stupendous jump.

Unfortunately, most other platformers have a lot more subtlety when it comes to analogue control. Pushing the stick even a fraction too hard causes Rhama to burst forward, often off the edge of a cliff you've spent 20 minutes climbing. You could put it down to player error, but falls like this would be arguably far less frequent with full analogue control.

Climbing isn't affected by this problem, because as long as the Right trigger is held down, you're glued to the wall. As long as there's a craggy rock face, you can clamber up it and even hang upside down over bottomless canyons. This isn't second nature though, because climbing has a disorientating effect.

Despite a 3D compass appearing around Rhama, losing your way is a common occurrence. The camera zooms in so close that your view of the cliff face is mostly obscured. Of all the control features, jumping works best. An auto-correct function makes it possible to spring over a vast canyon and land on a vertical pole with almost effortless accuracy. It's only when you try to jump too far that you'll end up plummeting.

At least if you do fall, there's a lot to see on the way down. Each of the seven islands of mystery is a massive open-ended environment, often scaling such heights that you can't actually see the top. Impressively, there's no loading at all between sea level and the summit, and no pop-up or fogging either.

Level design is also very clever. There's a solid balance between platforming, puzzle-solving and searching for hidden treasures and power-ups. Sometimes the scale of each island makes it difficult to tell where to go next, but exploration is an essential part of the game.

The puzzles are reminiscent of Tomb Raider (on which Confounding Factor's Toby Gard was lead designer). Huge doors and inaccessible bridges are opened up with the usual lever-pulling and hieroglyph-deciphering brainteasers. They're not original, but they are fun, and really hold the game together... unlike the fighting.

Galleon's combat is weak, to say the least. There are plenty of combos to learn but the auto lock-on means that avoiding damage is almost impossible when surrounded by enemies. Evil pirates attack in groups of five or six, while you can only attack one at a time. Irritatingly, some attacks send you flying, often over a precipice. The timing-based combo system encourages button-bashing too.

Boss battles fare better, not least because the monsters are so huge. One of our favourite levels sees Rhama using a monster like a climbing frame. It's moments like this, where platforming, puzzle-solving and combat unite, that the game's brilliance shines through, especially when it's wrapped up in such a beautiful graphical package. Sadly, the outdated two-grade analogue control is a huge downer, transforming straightforward tasks into life-threatening hazards. But there's much to enjoy, if you have the patience.

1. Energetic jumping and climbing
2. Freedom to explore
3. Clever puzzles

1. Co-operation between characters
2. Fiddly analogue control
3. Terrible combat

Power
Graphically very good. Framerate's smooth and you can see for miles. Character animation is also great.

Style
Details you expect in an Xbox title, like shadows and real-time lighting are absent. Excellent level design.

Immersion
Superhuman abilities offer plenty of freedom; the fiddly analogue controls are a frustrating hindrance.

Lifespan
Roughly 20 hours of play but it take some serious patience to finish the game 100 per cent.

Summary
Not terrible but nowhere near as polished as adventures like VexX or Prince Of Persia. Still better than Tomb Raider 5!