3. Visuals
Probably the most consistent element running through these games is their stunning visual style; the production quality of these games never seems to waver, always feeling like a solid-gold AAA blockbuster that can match the scale and epic style of any summer movie. The Santa Monica developers continue that tradition in Ascension; as you can expect, it's the best looking game yet, boasting absolutely stunning animation which allows all that frantic button bashing to pay-off into something that looks gloriously brutal. Combat is appropriately manic, with blood festooning the screen (and the environments), but for me, it's the overall scale - the mountainous backgrounds, and the battles against the game's larger enemies - that really show off the best of what this game has to offer. Though it falls short in some other areas, this certainly is not one of them.