Many will find it difficult to answer when someone asks you what your favourite game of all time is. This is because many gamers of experience have been occupied by this addictive hobby for many years and in my case, decades. There are literally thousands of titles over the course of the several generations in gaming history you could pluck a particular experience from. I can answer it immediately though and it is a game that I have so many fond memories of and still hold to this very day. That game is Timesplitters Future Perfect.
There were three titles in the Timesplitters series, Timesplitters, Timesplitters 2 and Timesplitters Future Perfect. Now don’t get me wrong I adored the trio of games and played them to death. Blasting through the campaign on the first couple of games and then arcade matches against bots along with some amazingly fun modes in the mix, the games were rich with unique characters and endless fun. These games came thick and fast over a six-year period and they all scored exceptionally well with none of them dipping under 81 on Metacritic. After the third instalment in 2005 though, the game enjoyed great success and that is where the Timesplitters era abruptly finished. So what happened and why have we seen no more from gun-wielding monkeys and witty lines from Sargeant Cortez?
Let’s Take It Back To The Very Beginning!
Timesplitters blossomed almost 22 years ago now in October 2000 alongside the launch of the Playstation 2. What I found extremely unique about the game at the time was the level design took place across several eras, past, present and future. Many back then compared the game to the incredibly well-known Goldeneye and Perfect Dark and they would be spot on, there was some clear inspiration there. That is because the employees who designed those titles left Rare and formed their very own team called Free Radical Design.
They formed this group of talented developers and managed to work on and publish the game within sixteen months with a budget of around half a million pounds. These timeframes and budgets are unheard of in 2022 where huge AAA games take five years to a decade to complete. So it was a magnificent feat for these lads and lasses to smash out an established IP in such a short period of time. They absolutely nailed the first game with familiar but well-evolved mechanics into a simple premise with mind-bending time travel story elements with a plethora of male and female protagonists. This paved the way for a brief but outstanding time for the brand.
Time Moves Forwards!
After the success of the very first instalment, the team branched out into constructing the sequel for Xbox and Nintendo Gamecube alongside the Playstation 2 release. Timesplitters 2 came two years later at the back end of 2002. It came back bigger and better in all ways and provided support for many more players across split-screen play and even i.Link or LAN play. The game received incredible reception with an 88 on Metacritic for both Gamecube and Xbox whilst it scored 90 on Playstation 2.
Of course, we were back in the days then of dial-up internet and consoles were still in the early phases of being adapted for online play. If I remember rightly Tony Hawk’s Pro Skater 3 was the very first game on console to provide the ability to play with real-world players in 2001 and even then, this was an early testing phase for gaming. That early that you had to buy a separate adaptor for the Playstation 2 to cater for an ethernet cable and screw it in with a coin. Timesplitters 2 missed the boat for the online experience and fans would have to wait around 2 and a half years for the opportunity.
Future Perfect – A Whole New Playground
In March 2005 the third and final title in the series arrived for Playstation 2, Xbox and Nintendo Gamecube. Winner of IGN’s best first-person shooter award in 2005, this was the one I was most hyped about. I remember the time well as I’d just moved house and has just subscribed to broadband for the first time with a speedy 512kbps connection! Yes, this is how slow the internet was back then. I had to endure playing the game offline for a few weeks and would often jump into the arcade mode and play matches against bots. With no online experience with video games whatsoever, I thought I was going to rule the world at this point as I’d smash through the AI with ease.
The Moment That Changed My Gaming Life
My broadband connection was now active, the network adaptor was purchased and screwed in with a two-pence piece and the ethernet cable was now plugged in. I recall powering on the Playstation 2 console and hearing those memorable chimes. I fire up the game and in a flash, this was where gaming was taken to a new level to me. Being able to play video games online when I had only ever experienced them alone was absolutely mind-blowing to my 20-year-old brain. Back then I was in a world with next to no responsibilities, no children, no mortgage and still living with my parents.
I discovered a playground of unlimited gameplay on a game with huge longevity and replayability. The beauty of Timesplitters is through the plethora of maps, modes and characters there were no two matches that ever felt the same. I was submerged into a world that I could only have ever dreamt of before, amongst an unknown community that I quickly became an important part of.
Top 10 In The World – A Personal Obsession!
I don’t have many claims to fame but the one thing I do have was that I was a top 10 player in the world on Timesplitters Future Perfect on the Playstation 2. This was down to several factors. I played the game for around eight to twelve hours a day when I wasn’t working, sounds sad but I was literally captivated and obsessed. Aside from the length of time I lovingly poured into the game I’d also become naturally great at it. I don’t blow on my own trumpet very often but it was something I was proud of at the time and I was at the pinnacle of some of the most incredible people and players around on the most popular shooter of that era.
When I look back on things now it maybe did look like a severely unhealthy addiction. I was at the point where I would stay up till the early hours and try and force myself awake after a few hours to get as much time as possible with the game. Whilst I still had a social and work-life balance away from the machine, every ounce of spare time was hooked on this endless drug of a game. Yes, it hampered moments in a past relationship and I am not ashamed to admit it, at the time I would rather spend time with virtual friends across the globe than spend money in a fancy restaurant. Do I regret any of it? Absolutely not, I loved every single second and I was immensely happy and I was young, living the moment.
Happy Memories & Lifelong Friends
I think there is one thing we can all agree on when it comes to gaming and that’s the connections it gives you. Whether it’s with friends, family or someone you have never met on the other side of the world, it is an escape from reality. I absolutely believe that gaming keeps my mental health in tune and without it, I would struggle with some of the daily challenges that life throws our way.
Timesplitters Future Perfect provided me with some incredible memories of time spent with individuals I’ll never ever meet. Some of them are now lost contacts that I can’t reconnect with again. Playstation 2 back then didn’t have friends lists and messaging functions, you were reliant on people just being in matches. What I am thankful for though is some lifelong friends that I still game and converse with today, some I’ve even had the pleasure of meeting in person. The leap into the online gaming environment was a powerful and fulfilling one and something I’ve engaged in consistently ever since these early moments.
Why Did It All End?
No one really knows the answer to why the Timesplitters franchise ground to a sudden halt but Free Radical Design going into administration in the early phases of development of Timesplitters 4 seems like this is the reason. After struggling to get a publisher on board for the next project, they ran out of options and the studio folded. Free Radical was then purchased by Crytek which rebranded as Crytek UK shortly after the acquisition. Sadly nothing was done with the IP since then and Crytek as we knew them then also crumbled. With this happening in 2014 many including myself thought that this was the nail in the coffin and we would never see a Splitters game ever again.
Timesplitters Rewind Fan Project
Before Crytek shut shop in 2014, there was a petition to bring back the trio of games under an HD remaster blanket. This gained traction and enough signatures for them to listen in and hand over permission for a fan-made project using Timesplitters assets and more under the Cryengine blanket. This was way back in 2012 and whilst there has been significant progress for the project in recent years, it still hasn’t come to fruition to the public yet. This is hardly surprising since there was no funding and people were using their time voluntarily for the cause. This may still come to screens sometime in the near future, but in what capacity is unknown. Several videos showing the work done have been revealed over the past couple of years. Anyone wanting to volunteer their expertise can do so by linking up in the project Discord server HERE.
Hope Is Restored!
In 2018 it was announced that Koch Media had obtained the IP and also the publishing rights to the Timesplitters brand with the intention of publishing future games in the series via their Deep Silver publishing organisation. In 2019 it was unveiled that Steve Ellis was drafted in to help plot the future for the franchise. Slowly but surely news and rumours were trickling through and the carrot was dangling and fans were frothing at the mouth for any glimmer of information, then one explosion happened in 2021 which pulled the rug from under everyone’s feet.
Timesplitters Is Returning!
May 20th 2021 was a very special moment in gaming history for me because it was the very day when it was announced that Timesplitters is officially coming back. In a tweet from Deep Silver gamers across the globe received some very special news. This was something I’d been awaiting sixteen whole years for!
“You asked and we listened. We have been working on plans to bring the Timesplitters franchise back to life, and are pleased to let you know that we are setting up a new Deep Silver development studio to do just that. Free Radical Design is reforming and will be headed up by industry and Timesplitters veterans, Steve Ellis and David Doak”
“This is an exciting first step in the process; development on a new game has not yet started and we will update you when we have more news to share”
Now as someone who is a huge fan of the franchise, this brought a lot of excitement and emotion to me in a split second. As someone who is obsessed with this collection of games which are now several generations old, I had given up hope of ever seeing a new project. Not only do we have a new title in the works, but we also have the same team members on board who made the games so immensely popular all those years ago. Understandably this was eighteen months ago and we haven’t heard anymore, but I’m willing to give them as much breathing space as they need to get the job done!
Final Thoughts
I am a firm believer of sometimes things are better left behind or just end on a high. With Timesplitters though I truly feel that it still has an audience and room in the gaming space. It was an experience that was ahead of the time and is still my favourite multiplayer game of all time. For almost two decades I have worked through countless first-person shooters in an attempt to find something that comes close to the adoration and enjoyment I had with Future Perfect. I can honestly say that nothing has eclipsed how exceptional it was though and you had to be living in the moment to realise it.
It’s a franchise that had it all, intriguing and engaging campaign, split-screen carnage for players at home, offline arcade modes and leagues and online multiplayer with a huge array of modes, weapons and possibilities with over 150 characters and the best soundtrack I’ve ever known for a video game. This sounds really sad but sometimes I fire up the game and sit in the menus and listen to the music and close my eyes, and cast my mind back fifteen years in an attempt to remember it all. It was more than just a game for me, it was a daily part of life and I miss it massively. Now I’m a grown man with responsibilities, I’m unsure if a new one will recreate the magical past, but I am sure it’ll come real close.
One last closing comment. A massive thank you to David Doak, Steve Ellis, Karl Hilton and Graeme Norgate and all the design teams of the past for creating something that meant so much to me and provided endless hours of entertainment and I wish you every success on the new project.