Lode Runner is a remake of a classic 80's game which is part platformer and part puzzler. Created by the talented Southend Interactive of Riddick and the brilliant Deathrow fame, this version of Load Runner is available through the Xbox Live Marketplace for the moderately pricy sum of 1,200 MS Points. Lode Runner may be full of platforms and have you collecting gold and avoiding monsters, but it is not a traditional platform game.

Gameplay is focused around a series of simple constraints. You character cannot jump (breaks the platformer golden rule right there) but he can fall without dying. He has a gun but cannot shoot anyone with it. He can shoot and destroy blocks but only the block immediately to his below left or below right and only if nothing is resting on them at the time. Some blocks are indestructible and those that can be destroyed, respawn after a short period of time. If a block respawns with you in it, you yourself respawn and the level begins again. Enemies will hunt you down taking the shortest possible route and if they touch you, it is back to the beginning for you again. You can however touch the top of an enemies head without dying so that means that you can trap one in a hole and run across it or ride one as it free falls. Finally, the name of the game is collecting gold and you cannot progress to the next level until all of the gold in the current level is collected.

Once you come to grips with these unique gameplay constraints, you learn to appreciate Lode Runner for what it is and not criticise it for what it is not. As mentioned before, there is no jump button (which takes some getting used to) and your gun does only very specific damage. There are so few controls that multiple buttons all do the same thing. The Left Trigger or Bumper or A-Button all fire down and to the left of the player whilst the Right Trigger, Bumper or B-Button fire on the opposite side. The Thumbsicks control your movement and the Y-Button restarts the level. From time to time you can pick up bombs which can be dropped by pressing the X-Button.

Graphically the game reminded me of Little Big Planet with its 2D gameplay in a 3D world. Strategically placed foreground and background objects inject a sense of depth into the visuals and the overall effect is clean and pleasant looking. Levels are essentially created with various ‘blocks' with five environmental ‘pallets' namely, Frozen, Mines, Ruins, Volcanic and Mechanical. Each type of environment has its own unique details such as the extra strong carved blocks in the Ruins levels or the hidden traps in the Mechanical levels. Speaking of levels, there are shit-lodes (excuse the pun).

The single-player game is broken into Practice, Journey (think 80 consecutive story-mode levels without the story), Hang On (8 frantic time-attack challenges), Puzzle (50 increasingly difficult levels) and My Levels (user created content). The main game mode is Journey and this is where the game came unstuck for me. The game becomes relentlessly difficult rather quickly and I found myself becoming increasingly frustrated rather than challenged by the game design. It doesn't help that everything happens at a blistering pace and that there is a noticable delay between pulling a trigger and your gun actually firing. I had to stop playing Journey mode on numerous occasions because my brain was about to explode with frustration. In my opinion it definitely misses the mark as far as fun factor goes, but other more masochistic gamers may embrace the pain, so to speak.

The saving grace for me was the Puzzle mode with 50 challenging puzzles minus the relentless onslaught of enemies to worry about. Puzzle levels present players with a gold filled level that has to be completed in a certain order to pass. If you do not plan your moves you may find yourself stuck at the bottom of the level with an unreachable piece of gold higher up. If this does happen you can reset your progress and have another crack. I really enjoyed this mode as it felt more like a challenge of wits rather than a test of twitch reflexes and patience.

Both local and Xbox Live multi-player is on offer in Lode Runner but you better hope you have some friends with the game as ever time I searched for a game online I could not find one...in any game mode! I guess this is to be expected with a game that will probably ship relatively small numbers and is more likely to be played in short bursts than long extended sessions. If you do find a game, modes on offer include a unique cooperative Journey mode plus Hang On or up to four-player competitive Last Man in which eliminated players become enemies. Considering that there are 48 levels unique to the cooperative Journey mode, you will miss a significant chuck of the game if you cannot find anyone to play with you. As I discovered, your chances of a local cooperative game may be far higher than finding a game online.

Sonically Load Runner performs poorly. The music is incredibly repetitive and very annoying. I had muted the game very early on, as even pausing the game does not cease the mind-numbing music. That is not that much of an issue as this particular game does not really require sound to be playable. But you are much better off just putting some music on the stereo before starting up the game on mute.

For those budding game designers, Load Runner includes a straightforward level editor which allows players to create and share their own levels. Game levels are made up of five layers from back to front with the middle layer being the one where the player runs around in. This allows the designer to throw in props behind and in front of the action to enhance the sense of depth. The editor is easy to use and with the investment of enough time you should be able to make levels just like any created by the game's designers.