Definitely a more solid, well-rounded, and comprehendible experience than the first, Marathon 2: Durandal is just a really nice game to play. Graphics, sounds, and general gameplay feel are a huge notch-up over the first but damn the lack of music feels like there's something missing.
Story feels a lot more cohesive and better paced too, with a lot fewer major plot twists unceremoniously dropped on you like the first game. Instead, we get a really nice character study of, well, Durandal and how he's dealing with a lot of the internal strife after the events of the first game. It's easy to feel like the terminal method of storytelling here battles against a lot of the usual conventions of narrative, but it ends up creating something pretty bloody compelling.
I'll admit, I went a-hunting for some of the more obscure terminals to try and get a more clear picture of exactly what the S'pht were, alongside the myriad of peculiar civilisations and creatures they're surrounded by.
4/5 - still waiting for Durandal to admit his love to the Security Guard.
Story feels a lot more cohesive and better paced too, with a lot fewer major plot twists unceremoniously dropped on you like the first game. Instead, we get a really nice character study of, well, Durandal and how he's dealing with a lot of the internal strife after the events of the first game. It's easy to feel like the terminal method of storytelling here battles against a lot of the usual conventions of narrative, but it ends up creating something pretty bloody compelling.
I'll admit, I went a-hunting for some of the more obscure terminals to try and get a more clear picture of exactly what the S'pht were, alongside the myriad of peculiar civilisations and creatures they're surrounded by.
4/5 - still waiting for Durandal to admit his love to the Security Guard.