It's kind of strange putting Marc Ecko's Getting Up: Contents Under Pressure into a descriptive category. I mean, obviously, it's an action/adventure game that puts you in the shoes of a rebellious young man looking to "take over" the city with the power of his graffiti, but trying to compare it to something else on the market is a task with some slight difficulty to it. Sure, it has elements of Urban Reign thrown in where you fight off punks and other wanna-bes getting in your way of glory, but it also has segments that remind us of the old Jet Set Radio games from Sega, which revolutionized graffiti-spraying to begin with. If that's not enough, the game also has segments right out of the playbook of Prince of Persia, where you have to make your way around a level grabbing onto ledges and avoiding pratfalls that would otherwise slow your progress.

In the game, you take control of Trane, who's out to show the world just what he's made of as he sprays his artwork throughout the city of New Radius. But things are not easy in the city, as a corrupt government is keeping close watch on his activities, led by a bothersome mayor who's going for a squeaky clean image. Meanwhile, Trane also has to deal with the Vandals of New Radius, a rival gang that will do anything to keep their turf from falling in the wrong hands. So between the gang and the mayor's special Conduct Keepers force, there's a lot to avoid. But Trane's got his motivation dialed, and he intends to keep it.

The gameplay has a lot going for it. The first part you'll notice is the adventure elements, as Trane makes his way across beams, climbing hand-over-hand or taking a chance and walking the beam while trying to maintain his balance and avoid being seen by either side of the law that's watching out for him. This makes for a nice touch in a game such as this, which is usually limited to something along the lines of beat-em-up or something even more restricted in terms of enjoyment. (Crime Life: Gang Wars ring a bell? Gah, the horror.) This also means you'll have to use your mind at times to set off certain things to get ahead in a level, like a switch or a path that wasn't there before.

The fighting still needs a little bit of work, even though Trane packs a good arsenal of moves to keep his competition at bay. He doesn't swing fists like a soldier should, but he does have some moves that come in handy. However, I felt the fighting controls still needed a bit of a touch-up, especially when you find yourself faced against multiple enemies. Good thing there's weapons around to keep the advantage in your favor. I also like the "insult moves", where you can humiliate an opponent once you've got them in your grasp. The final product should offer something substantial, if The Collective can clean up the small issues.

But the real fun comes with the "tagging", in which you're able to spread your graffiti goodness at certain points in the city. Spraying isn't just "hit a button" and you're done, no no. You've actually got control over your spraying and have to do it just right, or else you'll spray a spot a bit too much and leave your graffiti looking like a horrid Andy Warhol nightmare. It's got puzzle elements to it that add to the overall experience.

As far as presentation, the graphics are looking pretty nice so far, with an urban environment to explore and lots of lighting tricks to give the city a bit of life. I haven't had a chance to check out the sound yet, which is set to feature a large soundtrack as well as voice acting featuring the likes of Sin City alum Brittany Murphy and Rosario Dawson, but it should be good. Besides, the game's got Adam West in it. Adam West! Nobody disses Adam!

Marc Ecko's Getting Up: Contents Under Pressure is set to make its debut next month, and should be a pretty good game for Atari as long as they play their cards right and don't try to rush certain aspects of the game. We'll be back with a full review, just as soon as we're done spray painting Mario logos on the boss' new Honda Civic. Er, did I say we? I meant...Buffa. Yeah, he spray painted it. Punish him!