'Sorry it's taken us so long. We've only been making the largest free content video game ever.' That's the message on the TimeSplitters Rewind website, and when you look at it like that, we can't really blame them!
For those of you who are wondering what TimeSplitters Rewind is, let me explain. It's a fan-made recreation of all three original TimeSplitters games in one release, a complete remake from the ground up with updated gameplay and controls, and a ton of extra content added in for good measure. The devs received the blessing to remake the games from IP holder Crytex, with the agreement that the game would not be made for any form of profit.
I last covered TimeSplitters Rewind back in 2024 when we received an update on the status of the project. It's been in the making since 2013, which means it's been 13 years in total at the time of writing since work began. The devs who have been working on this project have all been volunteers, meaning that this could be one of the most impressive passion projects of all time, made by fans who wanted to keep TimeSplitters alive for future generations.
According to the TimeSplitters Rewind website, around 200 contributors have worked on the project, some hobbyists and some developers from AAA studios, all giving their time to bring this game to life. Rewind holds the 'largest amount of free content that has ever been available in a video game without any monetised elements,' which is wild to think about in a world where we're buying V-Bucks by the bucket load just to grab new emotes and characters.
TimeSplitters Rewind Early Access has the full TimeSplitters 1 storyline with both online and offline co-op. There are:
- 28 maps
- 96 characters
- 41 weapons
- 51 arcade leagues
- 32 challenges
- Multiplayer modes like Team Elimination
The graphics in this collection are unreal. As someone who played the original TimeSplitters games back on the PS2 with friends many times until the early hours of the morning, I'm loving seeing the stunning textures and crisp visuals in Rewind. The fact that you can play online with up to 10 players is amazing too, because it's much harder to 'call round for your mates' these days now that they live all over the country!
It's important to remember that this collection has been remade from the ground up, an impressive feat and one that the Retro Gaming community are all incredibly thankful for. You can read more about the journey to bring TimeSplitters Rewind to life and to download the Early Access from the official project website.
