Beyond concerns about compatibility, the only other real beef I have with the game is the lack of a singleplayer storyline. Yes, the hide-and-seek multiplayer gameplay is alluring and incredibly immersive thanks to the graphics and well-done audio presentation, but the amount of effort put into detailing the game's back story and the 'briefing' for each level makes me feel a plot-driven singleplayer component would have been well justified.

I get the impression FutureMark may just be waiting to see how this multiplayer offering does before getting into something more in-depth, but this means there's greater potential for lost sales from gamers who aren't really into the multiplayer scene, in addition to those who can't pass muster on the game's minimum requirements - but I'm admittedly also one of those gamers who tends to get a bit fatigued at playing the same kind of deathmatch sessions over the same maps over and over again, and would much rather have an engaging plot to sink my teeth into.

In the mean time, Shattered Horizon does serve as an excellent proof of concept that FutureMark can do more than create attractive benchmarking demos; I just hope it crank up the ambition level a bit more in the future. Once it does, who knows where the company’s obvious talent will take it?