One of the first good transformer games on the market!

When you first start the game, you'll watch a short video clip narrated by either Optimus Prime or Starscream

(depending on the version) that explains how Megatron, the Decepticon leader,

came to Earth 100 years ago searching for something called the "Allspark,"

and how both the Autobots and Decepticons have come to Earth to reclaim the mysterious artifact.

Key events from the recent movie are depicted, but the human point of view is notably absent.

On the Autobots' side, you take orders from Optimus Prime and go out on missions that involve gathering information, escorting human vehicles,

or stopping Decepticon raids. On the Decepticons' side, you'll answer to Starscream and your missions will mainly involve causing public destruction and stealing from fortified military bases.

Both games share three locations in common and have one exclusive location.

In the Autobots War Transformers Attack version, you'll shadow the military's recovery of Megatron from the Arctic.

In the Decepticons version, you'll take part in the Decepticon assault in Qatar. Also, each version has its own, unique ending.

A good way to describe the game is that it's Grand Theft Auto with giant robots instead of mobsters.

As the story unfolds, you'll find yourself in large 3D environments complete with streets, buildings, traffic lights, and innocent car traffic.

You can go anywhere you like on foot or in vehicle form, and you're free to climb up buildings, smash light poles, and throw cars around.

In your vehicle form, nobody will take notice of you.

However, if you roam around on foot or cause enough damage, robots from the other side as well as military vehicles will take notice of you and attack with lasers and armor-piercing bullets.

You can fight back with your robotic fists or dish out the pain from a distance with your own lasers and missiles.

Reducing rival robots to rubble is satisfying, but the combat is also very shallow. You have a few melee and weapon attacks,

you can move out of the way of oncoming fire, and you can jump--that's it.

There aren't any power-up items to speak of either, apart from the health-recovery orbs that exploding objects and robots occasionally leave behind.

CPU-controlled enemies also do a lousy job of avoiding your attacks, although they generally have twice as much armor as you do.

When you get bored of fighting, you can transform into your vehicle form and hide until the alert level goes back to normal.