THE first thing that hits you about Haven: Call of the King is the sheer size of it.

There is a seamless universe to explore and you're able to travel from country to country and planet to planet with almost no loading time holding up proceedings.

Billed as the game to break all genres, Haven is a platformer, shoot-em-up, beat-em-up, character-driven title all-in-one.

Its hero, a slave called Haven, must find the Golden Voice and free his people from the Dark Lord Vetch (no sniggering at the back, please).

The graphics are simply stunning.

From the cut-away scenes to the actual game-play itself, it is clear a lot of time has been spent on attention to detail and this all enhances the game-playing experience.

In a refreshing change, the dialogue in the cut-away scenes is also realistic and humorous, thanks no doubt to British based developers Travellers Tales.

Thrown immediately into the action, equipped with only a laser catapult and forcefield, the learning curve is steep, but worth persisting with because Haven soon picks up weapons, quad racers, water speeders and space fighters as you gradually begin to realise the immense depth of the game.

Not knowing what kind of situation Haven is about to be plunged into means the frustration felt in a conventional first-player game, particularly after being stuck on the same episode for ages, is considerably less, although, at times, it feels as if the different kinds of gameplay are simply thrown together for the sake of it, not really adding anything to the title.

Another irksome feature is control of Haven himself.

Although the graphics are extremely smooth, the character is difficult to control and manoeuvre precisely.

Although visually stunning and highly original, at times you feel Haven is perhaps slightly too ambitious.

Still miles ahead of any other games of its kind released in the past few months though.

Rating: 4/5