24 reviews liked by CCarney
Road 96: Mile 0
2023
Almost awful gameplay accompanied by a less than interesting narrative that makes the first game look like an undisputed masterpiece. While I had my issues with Road 96, I overly enjoyed it's narrative, concept and atmosphere, which this game almost completely takes a giant dump on.
I think the conceptual approach is what really breaks this game. The first wasn't that heavy in the gameplay department, whilst taking place mostly in it, it was the almost episodic feel of each new and different adventure that made it feel refreshing and didn't overstay it's welcome. Road 96: Mile 0 completely looses that substance and feels like a single journey stretched out for 7 hours too long. Digixart tries something almost drastically different with tedious platforming that does not bode well for the game overall and serves as an episodic ending to the structure that is not that satisfying at all, hence the tediousness.
Narratively, it didn't gripe me as much as the first at all. What sold me on the original game was the intrigue of mystery, which is obviously completely lost here. If I cared about Zoe in the first game, maybe I would have cared about the narrative here, but Zoe kind of annoyed me initially and annoyed be doubly so here. As for Kaito, I am not familiar with this character at all so there wasn't much to work with. Adam unironically was my favourite character throughout the whole thing, that was how dull everyone else felt to me.
A definite fall from grace, even if the first game wasn't the best either. I honestly have a newfound appreciation for Road 96, though, so I guess this game had at least one positive thing to say about it.
I think the conceptual approach is what really breaks this game. The first wasn't that heavy in the gameplay department, whilst taking place mostly in it, it was the almost episodic feel of each new and different adventure that made it feel refreshing and didn't overstay it's welcome. Road 96: Mile 0 completely looses that substance and feels like a single journey stretched out for 7 hours too long. Digixart tries something almost drastically different with tedious platforming that does not bode well for the game overall and serves as an episodic ending to the structure that is not that satisfying at all, hence the tediousness.
Narratively, it didn't gripe me as much as the first at all. What sold me on the original game was the intrigue of mystery, which is obviously completely lost here. If I cared about Zoe in the first game, maybe I would have cared about the narrative here, but Zoe kind of annoyed me initially and annoyed be doubly so here. As for Kaito, I am not familiar with this character at all so there wasn't much to work with. Adam unironically was my favourite character throughout the whole thing, that was how dull everyone else felt to me.
A definite fall from grace, even if the first game wasn't the best either. I honestly have a newfound appreciation for Road 96, though, so I guess this game had at least one positive thing to say about it.
Silent Hill
1999
In a 1999 developer interview. Keiichiro Toyama says “What is it that sets Silent Hill apart from other games? If I had to answer that question in a nutshell, it would be the atmosphere, which I suppose is vague and ambiguous. However, if you play the game, I think you will understand. Silent Hill is an orthodox game with no outlandish or innovative gameplay mechanics, but it is suffused with a unique atmosphere and mood, not only in its appearance but also in the story and sound.” - Director of Silent Hill 1(SH1).
I couldn’t help but come to the same conclusion as Toyama’s answer of ‘atmosphere’ as the final credits rolled in my blind playthrough of Silent Hill 1. The atmosphere permeates throughout my time running through the titular town full of dense fog. As I controlled the main character. Harry Mason. An everyman who has no special titles, or special powers, is neither rich nor an individual who has super connections of note. He is simply a regular dad desperately searching every house and street for any clue, to recover his missing daughter Cheryl after a car crash gone wrong. And so begins our journey, as he battles/evades otherworldly creatures all while unknowingly trying to survive in this horror-filled place.
Storywise, I found his journey to be a cross between safe storytelling mixed with a jigsaw puzzle. Looking back I can construct how the narrative is achieved by effectively omitting key details. By the time I had all the pieces, I could complete the ‘puzzle’ so to speak. In doing so I was treated to a relatively safe journey in regards to not throwing my suspension of disbelief into smithereens while spreading the plot breadcrumbs interesting enough to lure me further into the mystery. In spite of the slow threads in the beginning. Be that as it may, once I hit my stride in schools and hospitals my will to continue deepened further. Enabling me to question everything and everyone within the bounds of not delving too outside the box to conjure. The regular who, what, where, when, why whodunit. Kept my brain tingling for morsels of information to seek the answer to my relentless inquiries. And thankfully the ending I received satisfied me to a measure I cannot help but applaud for. Well at least for receiving the ‘G+’ ending. And while there are other endings I’ve seen on YouTube. The overarching narrative felt uncommonly used amongst the other horror games I've played thus far. I wish I could give more concrete examples, but that would inadvertently lose the magic and surprise.
The atmosphere toes the line between the unknown and frightening to an absurd, but realistic degree. As I traveled deeper into the mist surrounding the locations of Silent Hill. Taking inspiration from Stephen King's The Mist among other influences. And to its credit, the close draw distance to maximize fog nearly in our faces works cleverly to hide the technical limitations of the PS1 era. The missing inhabitants while replicating a small town out in the country oozes with mystery in a sort of “Will there be something?” is teased mercilessly. I enjoyed exploring to my delight and wasn’t scared too much despite the oppressive silence and lack of inhabitants. Instead, I found otherworldly creatures prowling the dead of the day. Hairless malformed dogs prowling the streets, as winged creatures fly indiscriminately above Mason’s head to claw at him. To the nurses and doctors who are out of their freaking mind looking like a zombie at times. I admit to being scared and simply ran away from these ghastly enemies. The dense fog adds to the intrigue with incessant questions in the back of my mind. “What's happening? Where is Cheryl? What should I do? Why is this happening? How can I survive? Am I dreaming? Is this real?” These questions and more will inevitably pop up as you stumble & struggle.
The struggle is real. As I cautiously checked for enemies in rotten corridors, clean hallways, and entering empty rooms splitting the real and unreal. Confusing me, yet a handy map can be found nearby upon entering a new location. Making backtracking painless. Allowing me to easily strengthen my will, admire the presentation and reference what I had already been to. The map updates as you explore making it a vital tool to utilize. Reinforced by how simple the mechanics are. Mason can run, walk, use guns, and melee weapons, and interact with objects in the environment. The radio too helps as a sort of sound radar for nearby enemies. Helping us to prepare for what's to come. As a result, no gimmicks or very innovative systems at work as Toyama stated above. Focusing on other elements brings the core strengths to the front and center for players to devour. Grayish mist compliments well with the dead air of the soundtrack while feeding breadcrumbs to the player early on to piece and make their deductions. It is fascinating if not slightly stressful since I am playing a survival horror game. Yet I wasn’t all too bothered by the gameplay formula.
Puzzles felt adequate without being too complex. The simple systems lend themselves again and again. Becoming cyclical as you progress further in new buildings without feeling like a drag. Encounter a mysterious item? Maybe we can use this later to open a door or slot into a mechanism to open a path. Hmm, bottle? Must be some liquid I need. Keys? Oh, a locked door I couldn’t enter before surely will this time. Every puzzle I found difficult had a nearby solution to help players give off clues to solve their current dilemma. And usually, they may connect to another component, solving a dilemma could be a key to finally removing an obstacle. Out of all the puzzles I encountered. Only one of them is incredibly difficult. This was the only time I felt compelled to check a walkthrough and once I found the solution I couldn’t help but smack myself silly. So here’s a helpful tip. Check your surroundings to make sure of any missing pieces, having a separate monitor or paper on hand to visualize text hints can offer a different point of view. There are puzzles here without a hint so visuals and any patterns as delicately as I can vaguely say will prove invaluable to the naked eye. Don’t overthink, sometimes the easiest and most gut feeling may prove to be the right one.
Combat I wasn't fighting every step of the way like tank controls. Instead I embraced the simple fighting system and abused them to my advantage. Harry can equip one weapon at a time. Utilizes a multitude of melee and ranged weaponry. From pipes to knives to a pistol, shotguns, etc. The armaments helped tremendously like a hammer and the shooting mechanics aren’t all too complicated due to the absence of a reticle. As long as you focus in the direction of the enemy. You can shoot them with extreme prejudice. And man does it feel good to lay them out on the floor and kick em when they're down. Go close to an enemy? Eat a full round from my shotgun. Enemy closing in? NOPE. Time to run in a zigzag and not look back. Dying in about one blow? Excuse me while I chug a kit and some bottles without a required animation to take effect. See several mobs? Yeah forget that, Ima run past them. Pick your battles, don’t fight everything, to conserve ammo.
Felt the resource collection and using my stockpile satisfactory. Supplies are spread throughout the town so you’ll have to do some exploring off the beaten path to see any health kits or bottles to replenish your vitality. I had a surplus of bullets and avoided combat where I could to save ammo. Didn’t need to heal every time, only when I needed to. I wasn’t hindered by any inventory limit, nor was there any sort of stamina meter. He does have a health meter once you enter the menu with a press of the button. Making the lack of any real user interface where you would traditionally see one noticeable, albeit not necessary to see. I didn’t find any major issues with finding resources.
I’ll talk more about this later, but for now, I'll praise the tank controls. The mechanic where you move the player is similar to the process of how a tank moves. And this is a process you’ll need to contend with throughout the entirety of a playthrough. Nevertheless, as I became more familiar with tank life(This was my first time experiencing the phenomenon.) I found it weirdly satisfying to look at the element from a different angle. The controls accentuate certain camera angles to invoke a sense of anxiety and unease. The combat adds to this which I didn’t mind at all considering the game doesn’t shout to the high heavens to play for the fighting module. This in turn creates anticipation and tension adding to the already unsettling atmosphere. So I like it. For adding depth to the combat and fleeing.
Honestly, this emphasizes cutscenes when they play by displaying different camera angles while the dialogue occurs. And boy do I have some good news. I’m surprised by how little text there is in the conversations. Thereby not slobbering players with text logs or lore logs. Though as a lore nut, I firmly believe as long as you have enough relative lore in hand it could prove beneficial. But that is neither here nor there. Words and phrases are used sparingly as if to uphold a sacred tenet that fewer words equals good. SH1 for example follows this rule to a T. I did not see any wasted text. Puzzles and hints are included. It's like a subtly minimalist Chekhov's gun here. And oddly enough I am praising the usage of short conversations between Harry and whoever is speaking to him to excellent effect. Why? This adds mystery and intrigue to the central locations while increasing tension, fear, etc. Reinforcing the enigmatic atmosphere Toyama envisions. Seriously this is great stuff preserving minimal, but essential text to have players piece their own conclusions. Showing us, but not telling us.
In a 2015 interview from Factmag Akira Yamaoka(composer of a majority of the Silent Hill series) talks about the franchise's soundtracks and why it continues to be as influential as ever. “One of the greatest ways that Yamaoka enhanced Silent Hill’s fear building is by using music and effects in ways that run against what you’re expecting. “I wanted it to be unpredictable: maybe during a big scare I cut everything out, and maybe if nothing was happening at all there would be a lot of sound.” You have an empty hallway? Layer a few sirens and mix it in the red. You have an establishing moment with a villain or environment? Use only the sound of a sharpening knife.”
This unpredictability by Yamaoka works to an impressive degree throughout the entire soundscape. Where I felt the absence of regular conventional instruments in favor of creepy silence, air vibrations, the beating of unconventional items like banging of doors, the scrapping of blades, and the heart-pumping scratches and fluctuating radio frequencies awakens dread. Some examples I’ll pull from the OST have silence integrated well such as: ‘Downtime, never end, never end, never end, alive, nothing else, justice for you, heaven give me say, far.’ These tracks accompany many of the gameplay segments and cutscenes in a congenial manner yet interlaced wonderfully facilitating differences from the usual effects we often hear. Creating an unsettling tone to repeat for days on end as you boot up the game. Not to the point of over-use since a lot of tracks differ in tempo, rhythm, and how untraditional sound works. Seriously listen to any of those tracks and see how it differs from classical instruments. The names of these tracks also share similar connotations. Giving off a break if you will. Or time of rest. By comparison, there is another layer. And that is the panic tracks. Imagine low drums combined with a background of haunting wails or cries of ghastly echoes.
While the foreground is immersed with a layer of banging utensils harshly being hit on steel walls in a pattern that evokes slow encroaching terror. Yeah, terrifying isn’t it? Try listening to these tracks: Die, ain't gonna rain, half day, dead end, ill kill you, bitter season, don’t cry, for all, devil’s lyric, over, until death. I had to stomach through the OST again and it is incredible if not spooky. Yet thankfully enough here’s a secret to lessen the tension and anxiety. Lower the volume, no shame in doing so. I admit to doing so! The naming sense also is interesting to note again, with most of the tracks I chose from a small sample conveying notions of death, threats, and bittersweetness. I could’ve added more, but you can see the rest here and suit the tracks in other patterns. Regardless, I want to focus on a pattern. The silence tracks and panic tracks from the ones I listed earlier follow a theme, eh? The former inhabits an eerie vibe throughout yet doesn’t go to the steep lengths of making the player run to the hills. In my ears, I felt they were used to excellent effect, conveying a tingle of mystery as I ran to new rooms and buildings. By comparison. The latter displays the rush, the unbearing suspense mixed with a persistent rhythm forming an incessant need to get out. Run faster and get the hell out of traps and dead-ends. As a result, the panic tracks I think work in its favor and complement the silence to a proportion, I find myself fascinated by the two accompanying themes.
However, a third and smaller portion of tracks not of the two kinds emerges. And this brings to the forefront the classical tracks to a shotgun-filled bar full of emotions and relief. These tracks finally make use of classical instruments like the guitar strings. For example in the track ‘She’ I felt they provide a profound degree of closure. Some may see this as an abrupt slap of whiplash, on the other hand, I found it comforting. In the near silence and panic-filled corridors of ambiance. I found at the end of my main character’s journey and to my great satisfaction a longing feeling of contentment and tranquility. It is apt and so powerful to hear classical instruments shine so bloody hard. I am amazed how different Yamaoka's style conveys so uniquely and so beautifully to listen to. Granted, the effects on the unused may be perceived as annoying to hear repetitive noise effects. Although, I think it works to its benefit. Complementing the game to magically transport the player into the Yamaoka’s soundscape. Like a puppet master controlling how we feel. Just wow. Very different from other Japanese composers I'm familiar with listening such as Nobou Uematsu, Keiichi Okabe, Yasunori Mitsuda, Yoko Shimomura, Hitoshi Sakimoto, Masashi Hamauzu, Masayoshi Soken, Keiki Kobayashi, Kota Hoshino, Falcom Sound Team jdk, and Xenoblade composers. The OST manages to ride the fine line of not being either bombastic or slamming us with gentility. Filling the player with enough suspense to not overflow in sheer terror while giving enough intrigue to the limit of genuine courage. It is as Yamaoka talks about earlier. Unpredictable in building fear.
As much as I could continue praising and analyzing every morsel. I must talk about my mixed feelings. These are neither positive nor negative, but simply some things that gave me pause, could be better and perhaps a hot take down below.
First tank controls for the unused can make it difficult to achieve the right balance in the beginning. When Harry moves in a single direction, turning becomes difficult. So you’ll have to swerve to the right or left before coming around. Takes some getting used to. I was never familiar with these types of old movements and considering it was my first foray into it. My first 15 minutes were clashing onto walls. I understand it's a product of its time. And while some may say it adds tension and anxiety, which I agree to a certain extent. More often than not I crashed into walls and wished it controlled better. Could be a dealbreaker for some. I’ve heard the newest entries after the first have better controls. Though for a first entry, it's not something I'll judge too harshly. Once an hour passed by I became used to them. To help, quick-turn using L1+R1. Helped immensely for my playthrough and thankfully the game’s runtime isn’t too long or medium to deal with. HLTB estimates put this at a short length.
Second, this might be a hot take. But I think going into the game blind completely would be a mistake. I tried playing blind for 95% of my experience and while I did have a good time, once I removed some tips to know beforehand along with some of my friend's advice I would’ve unknowingly struggled. Please check out some tips. I'll put some links further below to help newcomers. Therefore to prevent further suffering. Not required, but it doesn’t hurt to know ya know? For example, Running away from enemy mobs in the streets to conserve ammo. Quickturn if you hit a dead-end and I abused the hell out of that to counter the rough tank controls. Furthermore, going blind may inadvertently cause players more trouble when trying to achieve certain endings. They can be strict. Without going into concrete details of spoiler territory. To get the G+ ending, players need to somehow pick up a liquid in a hospital and use it in a boss fight. Not the last one. There’s a bit more, but I'll let Before I play handle that. Highly recommend referencing that in hand while you play. I hope that’s vague enough to say. I am not advocating for everyone to achieve that outcome, rather I think it would help in the long run when thinking about the game as a whole. It is simply a suggestion.
Third, boss fights I think could’ve been improved a little more to induce more puzzley in design without reverting into too gimmicky territory. As vaguely as I can say. I usually evaded their attacks, then shot bullets during appropriate moments. I’m torn on this point since I think this ties into the combat not being a true highlight to look forward to. I didn’t come to SH1 to be amazed by fighting. Yet unironically Toyama in another interview back in 1999 echoes similar sentiments by saying how “The action part of the game is really just something to create the horror.” A medium to enhance the horror if you will. Although, I still can’t help but add my suggestions on how this could be remedied to make boss fights more horrory. Off the top of my head: More on escaping, instead of traditional fights. Destroying objects in surrounding environments then switching to a different weapon like melee. Surprise me with dialogue maybe and if I answer wrong, game over. Taunt me while chasing me. I wouldn’t say they're bad by any means. The first, second to last boss and final boss do a decent job.
Fourth, I wish there was more interaction in the environment instead of literal observations anyone can make. When exploring anything of relative interest in his surroundings. Harry will make a direct, blunt phrase. “No useful books.” “Nothing unusual.” “Drugs? Better leave it.” “Just a wall.” Granted, there are plenty of notes, diaries, letters, and documents to give some relevant lore or plot hooks so it’s not all bad. Feels weird though. Why not have him say different lines like “Cheryl would’ve loved this book.” or “Ah I remember this drug from long ago my wife used to use.” See how those suggestions would’ve changed some of the stale observations? Makes me wonder if the other installments made some changes to his inspection.
Ultimately I found Silent Hill 1 to be largely a leap of faith as one Ubisoft franchise likes to say. While it does have some dated mechanics like the tank controls which may vary from person to person. And the story may not resonate with everyone. Along with my other mixed feelings. In the end, hidden beneath these varying qualities I found the everyman plot to be equally as satisfying as my time in Signalis. I can only leave pretty positive after my ten hour playthrough. And oddly enough, I regret not playing this title back then in my childhood. Never played any other entries in the series either. And yet for a PSX title released in 1999, I am pretty impressed how much it holds up. Stands tall amongst the other horror games I played. Sure the title doesn’t boast the Lovecraftian edge Bloodborne grasps. The excellent pacing of The Last of Us. Great lessons from Omori or hitting the fine balance of horror and action in the Evil Within series and Metro 2033. Nor does it provide richly diverse cast to the gills like Shadow Heart and Koudelka.
Rather, Harry Mason’s troubled venture to recover his daughter is a powerful incentive to keep in mind. And the feelings of “annoyance, anger and incredible kind of powerlessness” evoked by the protaganists voice actor Michael Guinn moved me enough to see what happens in the end. Strong to witness amongst the clever backtracking, colliding with interesting and well-thought-out puzzles. Constant showing, not telling, and remarkable use of minimal dialogue I found in contrast to Parasite Eve. Demonstrating how much this little gem can achieve in a concise manner without padding. I wasn’t bombarded by useless cutscenes or tearing my suspension of disbelief a new one. Beyond the palpable unique atmosphere, intriguing everyman story and excellent sound design lies something special to anyone who has never played Silent Hill 1. I’d even go as far as to say the game has made me appreciate horror much more than I thought.
8.5/10
References & Additional Material:
1st interview - Shmuplations translated the 1999 interview with Toyama and others
Wiki links - Everyman - Inspirational works of Silent Hill - Tank Controls - Chekhov’s Gun - SH1 OST - Soundscape
2nd interview - Akira Yamaoka interview
3rd interview - Another interview with Toyama back in 1999. Different from 1st.
4th interview - a 2018 interview with none other than the original Silent Hill voice actor for Harry Mason. Michael Guinn. Fair warning does contain spoilers for SH1 & SH3. I only read the SH1 portions.
Silent Hill 1 Before I Play Tips
Silent Hill 1 manual
A short history article on the origin of Tank Controls - Cool TIL tidbits.
My spoiler thoughts on Silent Hill 1 - Heavy spoilers from beginning to end of the game
I couldn’t help but come to the same conclusion as Toyama’s answer of ‘atmosphere’ as the final credits rolled in my blind playthrough of Silent Hill 1. The atmosphere permeates throughout my time running through the titular town full of dense fog. As I controlled the main character. Harry Mason. An everyman who has no special titles, or special powers, is neither rich nor an individual who has super connections of note. He is simply a regular dad desperately searching every house and street for any clue, to recover his missing daughter Cheryl after a car crash gone wrong. And so begins our journey, as he battles/evades otherworldly creatures all while unknowingly trying to survive in this horror-filled place.
Storywise, I found his journey to be a cross between safe storytelling mixed with a jigsaw puzzle. Looking back I can construct how the narrative is achieved by effectively omitting key details. By the time I had all the pieces, I could complete the ‘puzzle’ so to speak. In doing so I was treated to a relatively safe journey in regards to not throwing my suspension of disbelief into smithereens while spreading the plot breadcrumbs interesting enough to lure me further into the mystery. In spite of the slow threads in the beginning. Be that as it may, once I hit my stride in schools and hospitals my will to continue deepened further. Enabling me to question everything and everyone within the bounds of not delving too outside the box to conjure. The regular who, what, where, when, why whodunit. Kept my brain tingling for morsels of information to seek the answer to my relentless inquiries. And thankfully the ending I received satisfied me to a measure I cannot help but applaud for. Well at least for receiving the ‘G+’ ending. And while there are other endings I’ve seen on YouTube. The overarching narrative felt uncommonly used amongst the other horror games I've played thus far. I wish I could give more concrete examples, but that would inadvertently lose the magic and surprise.
The atmosphere toes the line between the unknown and frightening to an absurd, but realistic degree. As I traveled deeper into the mist surrounding the locations of Silent Hill. Taking inspiration from Stephen King's The Mist among other influences. And to its credit, the close draw distance to maximize fog nearly in our faces works cleverly to hide the technical limitations of the PS1 era. The missing inhabitants while replicating a small town out in the country oozes with mystery in a sort of “Will there be something?” is teased mercilessly. I enjoyed exploring to my delight and wasn’t scared too much despite the oppressive silence and lack of inhabitants. Instead, I found otherworldly creatures prowling the dead of the day. Hairless malformed dogs prowling the streets, as winged creatures fly indiscriminately above Mason’s head to claw at him. To the nurses and doctors who are out of their freaking mind looking like a zombie at times. I admit to being scared and simply ran away from these ghastly enemies. The dense fog adds to the intrigue with incessant questions in the back of my mind. “What's happening? Where is Cheryl? What should I do? Why is this happening? How can I survive? Am I dreaming? Is this real?” These questions and more will inevitably pop up as you stumble & struggle.
The struggle is real. As I cautiously checked for enemies in rotten corridors, clean hallways, and entering empty rooms splitting the real and unreal. Confusing me, yet a handy map can be found nearby upon entering a new location. Making backtracking painless. Allowing me to easily strengthen my will, admire the presentation and reference what I had already been to. The map updates as you explore making it a vital tool to utilize. Reinforced by how simple the mechanics are. Mason can run, walk, use guns, and melee weapons, and interact with objects in the environment. The radio too helps as a sort of sound radar for nearby enemies. Helping us to prepare for what's to come. As a result, no gimmicks or very innovative systems at work as Toyama stated above. Focusing on other elements brings the core strengths to the front and center for players to devour. Grayish mist compliments well with the dead air of the soundtrack while feeding breadcrumbs to the player early on to piece and make their deductions. It is fascinating if not slightly stressful since I am playing a survival horror game. Yet I wasn’t all too bothered by the gameplay formula.
Puzzles felt adequate without being too complex. The simple systems lend themselves again and again. Becoming cyclical as you progress further in new buildings without feeling like a drag. Encounter a mysterious item? Maybe we can use this later to open a door or slot into a mechanism to open a path. Hmm, bottle? Must be some liquid I need. Keys? Oh, a locked door I couldn’t enter before surely will this time. Every puzzle I found difficult had a nearby solution to help players give off clues to solve their current dilemma. And usually, they may connect to another component, solving a dilemma could be a key to finally removing an obstacle. Out of all the puzzles I encountered. Only one of them is incredibly difficult. This was the only time I felt compelled to check a walkthrough and once I found the solution I couldn’t help but smack myself silly. So here’s a helpful tip. Check your surroundings to make sure of any missing pieces, having a separate monitor or paper on hand to visualize text hints can offer a different point of view. There are puzzles here without a hint so visuals and any patterns as delicately as I can vaguely say will prove invaluable to the naked eye. Don’t overthink, sometimes the easiest and most gut feeling may prove to be the right one.
Combat I wasn't fighting every step of the way like tank controls. Instead I embraced the simple fighting system and abused them to my advantage. Harry can equip one weapon at a time. Utilizes a multitude of melee and ranged weaponry. From pipes to knives to a pistol, shotguns, etc. The armaments helped tremendously like a hammer and the shooting mechanics aren’t all too complicated due to the absence of a reticle. As long as you focus in the direction of the enemy. You can shoot them with extreme prejudice. And man does it feel good to lay them out on the floor and kick em when they're down. Go close to an enemy? Eat a full round from my shotgun. Enemy closing in? NOPE. Time to run in a zigzag and not look back. Dying in about one blow? Excuse me while I chug a kit and some bottles without a required animation to take effect. See several mobs? Yeah forget that, Ima run past them. Pick your battles, don’t fight everything, to conserve ammo.
Felt the resource collection and using my stockpile satisfactory. Supplies are spread throughout the town so you’ll have to do some exploring off the beaten path to see any health kits or bottles to replenish your vitality. I had a surplus of bullets and avoided combat where I could to save ammo. Didn’t need to heal every time, only when I needed to. I wasn’t hindered by any inventory limit, nor was there any sort of stamina meter. He does have a health meter once you enter the menu with a press of the button. Making the lack of any real user interface where you would traditionally see one noticeable, albeit not necessary to see. I didn’t find any major issues with finding resources.
I’ll talk more about this later, but for now, I'll praise the tank controls. The mechanic where you move the player is similar to the process of how a tank moves. And this is a process you’ll need to contend with throughout the entirety of a playthrough. Nevertheless, as I became more familiar with tank life(This was my first time experiencing the phenomenon.) I found it weirdly satisfying to look at the element from a different angle. The controls accentuate certain camera angles to invoke a sense of anxiety and unease. The combat adds to this which I didn’t mind at all considering the game doesn’t shout to the high heavens to play for the fighting module. This in turn creates anticipation and tension adding to the already unsettling atmosphere. So I like it. For adding depth to the combat and fleeing.
Honestly, this emphasizes cutscenes when they play by displaying different camera angles while the dialogue occurs. And boy do I have some good news. I’m surprised by how little text there is in the conversations. Thereby not slobbering players with text logs or lore logs. Though as a lore nut, I firmly believe as long as you have enough relative lore in hand it could prove beneficial. But that is neither here nor there. Words and phrases are used sparingly as if to uphold a sacred tenet that fewer words equals good. SH1 for example follows this rule to a T. I did not see any wasted text. Puzzles and hints are included. It's like a subtly minimalist Chekhov's gun here. And oddly enough I am praising the usage of short conversations between Harry and whoever is speaking to him to excellent effect. Why? This adds mystery and intrigue to the central locations while increasing tension, fear, etc. Reinforcing the enigmatic atmosphere Toyama envisions. Seriously this is great stuff preserving minimal, but essential text to have players piece their own conclusions. Showing us, but not telling us.
In a 2015 interview from Factmag Akira Yamaoka(composer of a majority of the Silent Hill series) talks about the franchise's soundtracks and why it continues to be as influential as ever. “One of the greatest ways that Yamaoka enhanced Silent Hill’s fear building is by using music and effects in ways that run against what you’re expecting. “I wanted it to be unpredictable: maybe during a big scare I cut everything out, and maybe if nothing was happening at all there would be a lot of sound.” You have an empty hallway? Layer a few sirens and mix it in the red. You have an establishing moment with a villain or environment? Use only the sound of a sharpening knife.”
This unpredictability by Yamaoka works to an impressive degree throughout the entire soundscape. Where I felt the absence of regular conventional instruments in favor of creepy silence, air vibrations, the beating of unconventional items like banging of doors, the scrapping of blades, and the heart-pumping scratches and fluctuating radio frequencies awakens dread. Some examples I’ll pull from the OST have silence integrated well such as: ‘Downtime, never end, never end, never end, alive, nothing else, justice for you, heaven give me say, far.’ These tracks accompany many of the gameplay segments and cutscenes in a congenial manner yet interlaced wonderfully facilitating differences from the usual effects we often hear. Creating an unsettling tone to repeat for days on end as you boot up the game. Not to the point of over-use since a lot of tracks differ in tempo, rhythm, and how untraditional sound works. Seriously listen to any of those tracks and see how it differs from classical instruments. The names of these tracks also share similar connotations. Giving off a break if you will. Or time of rest. By comparison, there is another layer. And that is the panic tracks. Imagine low drums combined with a background of haunting wails or cries of ghastly echoes.
While the foreground is immersed with a layer of banging utensils harshly being hit on steel walls in a pattern that evokes slow encroaching terror. Yeah, terrifying isn’t it? Try listening to these tracks: Die, ain't gonna rain, half day, dead end, ill kill you, bitter season, don’t cry, for all, devil’s lyric, over, until death. I had to stomach through the OST again and it is incredible if not spooky. Yet thankfully enough here’s a secret to lessen the tension and anxiety. Lower the volume, no shame in doing so. I admit to doing so! The naming sense also is interesting to note again, with most of the tracks I chose from a small sample conveying notions of death, threats, and bittersweetness. I could’ve added more, but you can see the rest here and suit the tracks in other patterns. Regardless, I want to focus on a pattern. The silence tracks and panic tracks from the ones I listed earlier follow a theme, eh? The former inhabits an eerie vibe throughout yet doesn’t go to the steep lengths of making the player run to the hills. In my ears, I felt they were used to excellent effect, conveying a tingle of mystery as I ran to new rooms and buildings. By comparison. The latter displays the rush, the unbearing suspense mixed with a persistent rhythm forming an incessant need to get out. Run faster and get the hell out of traps and dead-ends. As a result, the panic tracks I think work in its favor and complement the silence to a proportion, I find myself fascinated by the two accompanying themes.
However, a third and smaller portion of tracks not of the two kinds emerges. And this brings to the forefront the classical tracks to a shotgun-filled bar full of emotions and relief. These tracks finally make use of classical instruments like the guitar strings. For example in the track ‘She’ I felt they provide a profound degree of closure. Some may see this as an abrupt slap of whiplash, on the other hand, I found it comforting. In the near silence and panic-filled corridors of ambiance. I found at the end of my main character’s journey and to my great satisfaction a longing feeling of contentment and tranquility. It is apt and so powerful to hear classical instruments shine so bloody hard. I am amazed how different Yamaoka's style conveys so uniquely and so beautifully to listen to. Granted, the effects on the unused may be perceived as annoying to hear repetitive noise effects. Although, I think it works to its benefit. Complementing the game to magically transport the player into the Yamaoka’s soundscape. Like a puppet master controlling how we feel. Just wow. Very different from other Japanese composers I'm familiar with listening such as Nobou Uematsu, Keiichi Okabe, Yasunori Mitsuda, Yoko Shimomura, Hitoshi Sakimoto, Masashi Hamauzu, Masayoshi Soken, Keiki Kobayashi, Kota Hoshino, Falcom Sound Team jdk, and Xenoblade composers. The OST manages to ride the fine line of not being either bombastic or slamming us with gentility. Filling the player with enough suspense to not overflow in sheer terror while giving enough intrigue to the limit of genuine courage. It is as Yamaoka talks about earlier. Unpredictable in building fear.
As much as I could continue praising and analyzing every morsel. I must talk about my mixed feelings. These are neither positive nor negative, but simply some things that gave me pause, could be better and perhaps a hot take down below.
First tank controls for the unused can make it difficult to achieve the right balance in the beginning. When Harry moves in a single direction, turning becomes difficult. So you’ll have to swerve to the right or left before coming around. Takes some getting used to. I was never familiar with these types of old movements and considering it was my first foray into it. My first 15 minutes were clashing onto walls. I understand it's a product of its time. And while some may say it adds tension and anxiety, which I agree to a certain extent. More often than not I crashed into walls and wished it controlled better. Could be a dealbreaker for some. I’ve heard the newest entries after the first have better controls. Though for a first entry, it's not something I'll judge too harshly. Once an hour passed by I became used to them. To help, quick-turn using L1+R1. Helped immensely for my playthrough and thankfully the game’s runtime isn’t too long or medium to deal with. HLTB estimates put this at a short length.
Second, this might be a hot take. But I think going into the game blind completely would be a mistake. I tried playing blind for 95% of my experience and while I did have a good time, once I removed some tips to know beforehand along with some of my friend's advice I would’ve unknowingly struggled. Please check out some tips. I'll put some links further below to help newcomers. Therefore to prevent further suffering. Not required, but it doesn’t hurt to know ya know? For example, Running away from enemy mobs in the streets to conserve ammo. Quickturn if you hit a dead-end and I abused the hell out of that to counter the rough tank controls. Furthermore, going blind may inadvertently cause players more trouble when trying to achieve certain endings. They can be strict. Without going into concrete details of spoiler territory. To get the G+ ending, players need to somehow pick up a liquid in a hospital and use it in a boss fight. Not the last one. There’s a bit more, but I'll let Before I play handle that. Highly recommend referencing that in hand while you play. I hope that’s vague enough to say. I am not advocating for everyone to achieve that outcome, rather I think it would help in the long run when thinking about the game as a whole. It is simply a suggestion.
Third, boss fights I think could’ve been improved a little more to induce more puzzley in design without reverting into too gimmicky territory. As vaguely as I can say. I usually evaded their attacks, then shot bullets during appropriate moments. I’m torn on this point since I think this ties into the combat not being a true highlight to look forward to. I didn’t come to SH1 to be amazed by fighting. Yet unironically Toyama in another interview back in 1999 echoes similar sentiments by saying how “The action part of the game is really just something to create the horror.” A medium to enhance the horror if you will. Although, I still can’t help but add my suggestions on how this could be remedied to make boss fights more horrory. Off the top of my head: More on escaping, instead of traditional fights. Destroying objects in surrounding environments then switching to a different weapon like melee. Surprise me with dialogue maybe and if I answer wrong, game over. Taunt me while chasing me. I wouldn’t say they're bad by any means. The first, second to last boss and final boss do a decent job.
Fourth, I wish there was more interaction in the environment instead of literal observations anyone can make. When exploring anything of relative interest in his surroundings. Harry will make a direct, blunt phrase. “No useful books.” “Nothing unusual.” “Drugs? Better leave it.” “Just a wall.” Granted, there are plenty of notes, diaries, letters, and documents to give some relevant lore or plot hooks so it’s not all bad. Feels weird though. Why not have him say different lines like “Cheryl would’ve loved this book.” or “Ah I remember this drug from long ago my wife used to use.” See how those suggestions would’ve changed some of the stale observations? Makes me wonder if the other installments made some changes to his inspection.
Ultimately I found Silent Hill 1 to be largely a leap of faith as one Ubisoft franchise likes to say. While it does have some dated mechanics like the tank controls which may vary from person to person. And the story may not resonate with everyone. Along with my other mixed feelings. In the end, hidden beneath these varying qualities I found the everyman plot to be equally as satisfying as my time in Signalis. I can only leave pretty positive after my ten hour playthrough. And oddly enough, I regret not playing this title back then in my childhood. Never played any other entries in the series either. And yet for a PSX title released in 1999, I am pretty impressed how much it holds up. Stands tall amongst the other horror games I played. Sure the title doesn’t boast the Lovecraftian edge Bloodborne grasps. The excellent pacing of The Last of Us. Great lessons from Omori or hitting the fine balance of horror and action in the Evil Within series and Metro 2033. Nor does it provide richly diverse cast to the gills like Shadow Heart and Koudelka.
Rather, Harry Mason’s troubled venture to recover his daughter is a powerful incentive to keep in mind. And the feelings of “annoyance, anger and incredible kind of powerlessness” evoked by the protaganists voice actor Michael Guinn moved me enough to see what happens in the end. Strong to witness amongst the clever backtracking, colliding with interesting and well-thought-out puzzles. Constant showing, not telling, and remarkable use of minimal dialogue I found in contrast to Parasite Eve. Demonstrating how much this little gem can achieve in a concise manner without padding. I wasn’t bombarded by useless cutscenes or tearing my suspension of disbelief a new one. Beyond the palpable unique atmosphere, intriguing everyman story and excellent sound design lies something special to anyone who has never played Silent Hill 1. I’d even go as far as to say the game has made me appreciate horror much more than I thought.
8.5/10
References & Additional Material:
1st interview - Shmuplations translated the 1999 interview with Toyama and others
Wiki links - Everyman - Inspirational works of Silent Hill - Tank Controls - Chekhov’s Gun - SH1 OST - Soundscape
2nd interview - Akira Yamaoka interview
3rd interview - Another interview with Toyama back in 1999. Different from 1st.
4th interview - a 2018 interview with none other than the original Silent Hill voice actor for Harry Mason. Michael Guinn. Fair warning does contain spoilers for SH1 & SH3. I only read the SH1 portions.
Silent Hill 1 Before I Play Tips
Silent Hill 1 manual
A short history article on the origin of Tank Controls - Cool TIL tidbits.
My spoiler thoughts on Silent Hill 1 - Heavy spoilers from beginning to end of the game
The beginning of the Kain series started with a bang in 1996. So there shouldn’t be a problem with a sequel right? Oh, I wish. Turns out Silicon Knights(SK) who owned the IP filed a injunction against Crystal Dynamics(CD). We don’t need to get into the nitty gritty here, except to know they were able to make a sequel to Blood Omen(BO). This is important since Amy Hennig made her directorial debut here when previously she worked on BO. For those unfamiliar, she would go off to work on the Uncharted franchise later on. And she is crucial to understand, when I talk about the underlying problems I had with Soul Reaver(SR).
Moving forward in time to 2022. Square Enix(who acquired CD later on) sold their western studios. Eidos, Crystal Dynamics, and Square Enix Montreal for money. Among the plethora of IPs gathered. Two come to mind. Legacy of Kain and Soul Reaver. To none other than the Embracer company. Who has been laying off and closing down their recently bought studios as of late. So I'm here with a heavy heart to tell you guys if we don't see a remake/remaster officially, I will gently point you all towards an excellent Raina Audron’s HD Remaster for the Flycast Dreamcast emulator. Faithfully redone with higher quality textures as an appropriate unofficial alternative instead of waiting for one that may never come. Despite rumors of one in development.
And while there is a PC version on Steam. You cannot currently buy. And the sketchy PC mod doesn’t help matters which GOG is a part of as well. Excusing all those matters. I'll focus purely on the base game. Thankfully, you don’t need to play the previous entry to know what happens. They summarize the events that occurred before. Play it if you wish. I recommend it only for those seeking out why Kain acts the way he does in a Legend of Zelda spliced with a bloodsucker’s tale. The sequel continues the dark gothic storytelling fans have been waiting for. With a return to Nosgoth.
The supernatural setting we start our journey once more. Thousands of years after the events of the first. In the beginning cutscene. We see Raziel, a vampire lieutenant of Kain’s forces who has served him for a millennium. Who after receiving new wings in a fit of transformation. Kain inspects the new appendages while admiring them. Unfortunately, the new attachments did not endear him at all to his boss. Abruptly and forcefully rips the wings and orders his other lieutenants to cast him down into the abyss. An eternity passes and a mysterious voice resurrects our titular protagonist to become his ‘Soul Reaver.’ with a dreadfully cool new look and powers he’s off on a quest for vengeance against his former boss.
Will we face him in the end? Good question. Not sure. We’ll have to traverse through a 3D Metroidvania in a 3rd person perspective with no loading screens before we find our answers. And boy oh boy was this a welcome surprise. The gameplay has shifted in a whole new direction from the top-down perspective of the first installment. Overhauled to the teeth, maximizing numerous advantages of the 3D era. Our hero can move in any direction, jump higher than his base vault, glide in the air, hack and slash enemies. Hold any manner of weaponry without being subject to the gods of durability and throw them at any time. Capable of using mystical abilities like glyphs. The eldritch energy pertains to each element. Sparingly used, they provide a massive advantage against mobs of enemies. Heck one glyph can stop time for everyone excluding our dude! One innate ability is the power to shift between the material world into the spectral world and vice-versa. This sole skill changed the whole gameplay formula. And made my playthrough fascinating to test.
Plane shifting has massive benefits. For one. He has two health bars. As his health slowly depletes in the physical realm. He can apparate to the spectral realm and recover his health there. Incurring no HP penalty either. Dude can literally suck the souls from defeated enemies in either realm to restore his vitality. But that’s not all. Oh no. Both levels distort in weird ways. If he is in the physical domain and encounters an obstacle. All he has to do is switch to the other domain and voila! The path is open! I encountered multiple obstacles like jumping across chasms and unlocking a new path where previously a dead-end was in sight. Additionally, the ability allows one to go underwater without any penalty. Whereas going back to the real world causes Raziel to immediately transition to the other field. The mechanic works seamlessly when encountering puzzles. Usually, physical box placement is designed with several to a dozen steps or more to solve. Sometimes, CD will throw in a handful of switches and levers for good measure. For anyone who played Vagrant Story. The block elements are similar here. Where you’ll have to move them to open a new path or slot them in various places according to the imagery on the walls. Completing the art so to speak. Switches can run on timers, so phase-shifting to another dimension stops time. Making it instrumental if low on time. I didn’t have too much trouble with the puzzles. Controlling how to manage box placement was a bigger issue early on. Solvable once I read the manual. Perhaps one or two overstayed their welcome in a certain region. But the rest from then on felt balanced. A nice change of pace from the constant exploring.
Aside from the freedom to explore in any direction within reason. The boss encounters operate much like their predecessor. Being designed Legend of Zelda-like. As I defeated Raz's old brethren in various arenas I was struck once again by how I had to utilize the environment to my advantage and any tricks I learned prior. Picking up a weapon and slamming it at the boss once all appendages were gone. Use my plane-shifting powers to recuperate and find weaknesses and in some cases lure my opponent away like a rod and carrot stick for bait. They were fun to tackle and a nice reprieve from the Metroidvania world through Nosgoth’s moody areas. Gifting our main protagonist with new abilities. Thereby allowing the player to overcome obstacles with ease. Adding a gratifying reward upon completing a ‘dungeon’ before moving on to the next. And honestly? My motivation to exact retribution on Kain was still at an all-time high as I progressed through each boss encounter. I mean who wouldn’t if your past employer betrayed you in a heinous manner? Look at Raziel waving a “Me!” flag.
Before our hero kicks off a rant on vengeance I must talk about the world. Nosgoth has radically changed. Where previously it was teeming with life. Now it is a world of fear and decay. Gone are the bustling settlements of humans with a manic hatred for all things vampiric in nature. Iconic locations I sought with a wanderlust fervor, have withered away. Now nothing more than fables in the wind and myths of werewolves, ghosts, and ghouls have been reduced to fairy tales. Nosgoth of today. I dread walking and breathing these unfamiliar locales resembling more of a dark moody post-apocalypse as if someone sucked the very life from the land. Vampire creatures reign supreme. Each one is distinct from others based on their biome and clan affiliation. If you thought regular bloodsuckers were a threat. Wait till you see spider and water variants! EW! Humans are near extinct. With pockets of resistance thriving in some far-off places. However, entering such a place seems ill-advised since wide-open fields full of life are a very rare sight nowadays. Replaced with a foreboding harsh atmosphere accompanied by maze-like passages and decent platformer segments. I passed through empty caverns and short corridors while solving puzzle rooms to gain access to new glyph spells or by once defeating a boss in a main area am I endowed with a new traversal ability. Allowing one to venture onwards to new roads less traveled and hidden detours and shortcuts. Although, a new power doesn’t solve all my dilemmas. The spectral dimension is haunting, filled with a ghastly atmosphere that is both depressing and gloomy. A different color palette is injected every time Raziel shifts and with it, new ghostly enemies are summoned. To harm him like wraiths and bloodsucking dementor-like beings. Shudders. The territory makes the real and unreal more pronounced where things become larger or smaller as they appear. So have courage. To embrace the unfamiliar expanse whenever plane-shifting occurs.
The sound design is dynamic. Where a large chunk of my feelings is borderline dislike, except there's another big side of appreciating the technical achievement. The former is vexing and disconnecting in the soundscape. Feels largely oppressing in the foreground with low drums hitting a hypnotic rhythm as a faint choir chants in the background in intervals to imply the divine and further adds to the depressing, lonely, unsettling, creepy ambiance. In a dying world, I was fraught with anxiety wrapped in a tight ball around myself. Reminded me a bit of the soundscape of Silent Hill. However, this one felt less insidious and far more bearable in certain respects. Some select tracks are triumphant and give off a feeling of bravery in spite of the encompassing tracks displaying dread. Not a negative at all. I find it hard to say I like a majority of tracks while playing. On the other hand, I'm amazed by technological advancement. Looking at each piece. I’m amazed how the composer Kurt Harland from Information Society managed to create a vast library of tunes to work on and multiple variations. Whereas in the predecessor there were only nineteen tracks. Here we have one hundred eighty-one. That’s an insane improvement. And a new composer to boot! After listening to the entire game's soundtrack, I found it similar to how the works of Keichi Okabe and his studio band Monaca techniques in the franchise for Nier. From Okabe, the sound design when the soundtrack was ripped. Had dynamic, medium, quiet, no vocals, 8-bit versions for each location and iconic event. Not all of them, but I would say a good size. Allowing the player to smoothly segue into the following track. While not as seamless as Nier: Automata Harland's implementation in Soul Reaver, works similarly. Special thanks go out to Raina Audron who recorded and assembled the full depth of the OST in full so we can see how far Harland worked on composing 11 hours of music. From what Audron states. Each piece " indoors/outdoors (normal+suspenseful), puzzle, danger, and combat... changes dynamically according to the situation on the screen." Meaning we have a similar occurrence here with Okabe in creating multiple variations of a track. That is fascinating and honestly incredible to hear to this extent for a PSX title! As an example you can see most of the track listings here on YouTube. I am deeply amazed, surprised how largely unnoticed and underrated the sheer sound design permeates throughout. One largely not analyzed to an extent I’ve seen online. Curious if other IPs during the fifth-generation console era made comparable strides such as Harland and Okabe on impressive soundscape achievements.
As much as I love everything that Soul Reaver elevated from Blood Omen I do have some mixed feelings. And this isn’t a positive or a negative. Simply concerns I had during my playthrough that others may find useful to hear beyond the praise I sprouted above.
First, the story is a bit of a letdown. But narratively an improvement beyond BO's narrative. We don’t receive as many voiced monologues as the previous game. Telling a subtly compelling character development from the beginning to the very end, where we see Kain shift from a human into something far more sinister. Here we don’t get that as much. Missing lore drips. Voiced monologues of Raziel poetically waxing his thoughts both internally or externally to the player could've been far more utilized here than the sense of silence covering a large amount of distance. And this I feel is a missed opportunity to call back to the series' roots by detailing the story-telling through a voiced narrative. In the previous installment, Kain would narrate about items he finds and narrate their description to you upon cursor highlight. Effectively luring me further into the worldbuilding and NPCs. Speaking of NPCs, there's almost no one. Aside from one NPC and your new boss. Who will chime in at times to have a chat like a god speaking to his new disciple. Much like how the parasite speaks to Eddie Brock from the Venom(2018) film. Except the mysterious being isn't exactly within our titular guy. Somehow always with him, yet not physically.
Granted, he still opens their mouth at critical moments, usually during plot beats of cutscenes and during intro-boss battles. And to our new hero's credit, I resonated far more with him than his former employer. Pretty likable guy I initially thought would be far more angsty, moody full of hate. Far from it! The dude was focused and sought reason without letting his emotions boil over his spirit. Regardless of his dour appearance, Michael Bell's voice lends a unique cadence to bringing our wraith's character to life. Making my overall experience not so isolating. His actions mirror my incentive to push forward. In the face of desiring to know more about what happened to Kain. Anything deeper between their relationship? Were there any more reasons why he ripped the wings? Why has the world suffered like this further and why have clans of vampires which have risen to prominence and discussed a fair amount, thrown to the curbside? Speaking of being thrown onto the curb. The ending without going into spoilers feels unfulfilling a tad.
And this makes sense. According to Amy Hennig, SR1 suffered development troubles due to the injunction. Recent news started to arise about the edits of an unfinished product. Hennig set the record straight by stating in April of 2000. “...We simply just felt that we were compromising Kain's epic story by trying to cram too many major events into the last 10% of Soul Reaver.” - If I were in her position I would divide the game into two. She called this a “blessing in disguise” allowing the ideas, cut content, and story to flourish here rather than cramming everything and delaying. Her response felt appropriate and validated a lot of my disconcerting thoughts on the shortcomings I gathered upon finishing. And to be fair as a whole, I think the game is still fine for what her team tried to achieve. I'm grateful for what is already here and not rushed, broken, or horribly missing plot details I think were vital to know. A safe product at the end of the day without being too ambitious.
Second, loading any save file or dying. Has the player start from the 1st zone. This results in kinda of tedious backtracking for the unaware. You’ll need to use gates that act as a fast travel system to head to your next destination. Sadly they're only denoted by a symbol. And no menu is available or font to visualize where the path leads unless I walk through. Reminds me of Stargate. Lacking the wormhole loading. Rather you move forward without any delay or transition to another screen to load the new area. Pretty much an uninterrupted travel system. Thankfully, more often than not the waypoints are spread a decent amount from before entering a dungeon and before a boss encounter. I suggest copying the image and putting the pic on a Google Doc or notepad for reference. You can go traditional and draw the piece on paper to help! Vital to recall where I had already trodden. Should be noted dying in both dimensions returns the player to the start. Felt this wasn’t too punishing. Since you have plenty of time to recover vitality in either realm. Wasn't a drag either, I was able to adjust to the flow quickly.
Third, in a minor way, a hurdle may occur for the camera. It can take some getting used to. Though thankfully not a major hassle and you will fight it sometimes when fighting enemies and checking your surroundings. And I didn’t realize until midway I could quick turn by hitting the directional pad on the left or right and transitioning to first-person point of view mode to check my surroundings by hitting both L2 and R2 buttons. Useful to see the verticality in level design and any secrets tucked away.
Fourth, aside from no title markers when using gates to fast travel. or a hints menu. Hand-holding here is very minimal. Therefore, players must be aware of their sense of location. Keeping a map of Nosgoth helped tremendously and I'll post a link below to help newcomers. Didn't use it until I reached the 70% mark and after exhausting as much backtracking as I could without help. Keeping these details in mind, I think are crucial to progress further. One could speak to your new boss and another being you'll meet later on and apprise Raziel on his next objective. And that's the only gentle reminder of where to head out. Good idea to check again if you’re lost and need a gentle nudge. Though be warned, you may need to decipher the Shakespearean-like dialogue when given. Not a big deal, since they’ll reference past locations. And for a Metroidvania, I think they do a serviceable job toeing the line on not being too cryptic and not too easy, I need a journalist mode to persevere. Most if not all of my frustration was a consequence of rushing without thinking. I advise taking a step to re-collect your thoughts. Patiently recalling prior distinct areas visited to arrive at a sensibly achievable goal.
More than two decades ago, I had the pleasure of playing the title when I was a kid. Never finished it since I was very confused about my true objective. And I vividly remember my first impressions. Badass FMV in the beginning, hot meh on nearly everything else. Confusing passages, dull color palettes, and a combat system that felt clunky. Now as an adult revisiting. I'm on the opposite spectrum for my first impressions. Where now I think its not meh. The confusion is still there, though tempered with patience and a drive to explore the gloomy post-apocalyptic world with some platforming segments. Nosgoth’s murky setting is a stark contrast to the lively world from before. Adding incentive to my vengeful goal of what happened here. A decent combat system that can take some getting used to along with the camera still left me completely enthralled in the presentation. The voiced narrative continues to be strong although lessened by switching to a new protagonist, but is equally as fascinating to learn about. The solid writing continues to leave me hungry to know more about the underlying narrative. Satisfying and self-contained to an extent like the Trails or Xenoblade games. The first delved into a nuance-filled story about a human who becomes a vampire and struggles with darker impulses. A shadowy tale in a dimly lit fantasy environment. SR meanwhile flips the scripts and asks the confused avenger Raziel to embark on a quest for vengeance. And understandably so! Man was betrayed by his employer after faithfully serving him for a millennium. Only to be betrayed because he had wings and Kain did not?! WELL SEE HER- Coughs. Anyway, I think the Dreamcast remaster is a great way for anyone looking to dive into the series nowadays rather than resorting to a sketchy PC mod. Emulation or playing via console are also fine choices. While I did have some mixed feelings, muddling my final thoughts. Ultimately they're not as egregious as my time in Blood Omen. Thus Soul Reaver is a worthy gateway to try for folks interested in a seamless 3D metroidvania with a rare shifting mechanic followed by an uncommonly gothic story in the Legacy of Kain saga.
8/10
References and additional material:
1998 - Knights fight for Kain article - injunction
2022 - Square Enix sells off IPs and studios
2023 - Embracer & layoffs throughout the year
Dreamcast remaster of Soul Reaver 1
Rumors for an official remaster
Sketchy Soul Reaver PC mod
Raina Audron's work on Soul Reaver 1. Quote is from a readme
2000 - Soul Reaver Response - Amy Hennig responds to reports about the game being unfinished.
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Helpful Links - Map of Nosgoth - Incomplete OST - Setting summary of Nosgoth - Spoiler-free SR1 walkthrough - Before I play tips on SR1 - There was no section previously. So I submitted my own tips. Hope this helps any newcomers!
Who owns the Legacy of Kain IP?
Moving forward in time to 2022. Square Enix(who acquired CD later on) sold their western studios. Eidos, Crystal Dynamics, and Square Enix Montreal for money. Among the plethora of IPs gathered. Two come to mind. Legacy of Kain and Soul Reaver. To none other than the Embracer company. Who has been laying off and closing down their recently bought studios as of late. So I'm here with a heavy heart to tell you guys if we don't see a remake/remaster officially, I will gently point you all towards an excellent Raina Audron’s HD Remaster for the Flycast Dreamcast emulator. Faithfully redone with higher quality textures as an appropriate unofficial alternative instead of waiting for one that may never come. Despite rumors of one in development.
And while there is a PC version on Steam. You cannot currently buy. And the sketchy PC mod doesn’t help matters which GOG is a part of as well. Excusing all those matters. I'll focus purely on the base game. Thankfully, you don’t need to play the previous entry to know what happens. They summarize the events that occurred before. Play it if you wish. I recommend it only for those seeking out why Kain acts the way he does in a Legend of Zelda spliced with a bloodsucker’s tale. The sequel continues the dark gothic storytelling fans have been waiting for. With a return to Nosgoth.
The supernatural setting we start our journey once more. Thousands of years after the events of the first. In the beginning cutscene. We see Raziel, a vampire lieutenant of Kain’s forces who has served him for a millennium. Who after receiving new wings in a fit of transformation. Kain inspects the new appendages while admiring them. Unfortunately, the new attachments did not endear him at all to his boss. Abruptly and forcefully rips the wings and orders his other lieutenants to cast him down into the abyss. An eternity passes and a mysterious voice resurrects our titular protagonist to become his ‘Soul Reaver.’ with a dreadfully cool new look and powers he’s off on a quest for vengeance against his former boss.
Will we face him in the end? Good question. Not sure. We’ll have to traverse through a 3D Metroidvania in a 3rd person perspective with no loading screens before we find our answers. And boy oh boy was this a welcome surprise. The gameplay has shifted in a whole new direction from the top-down perspective of the first installment. Overhauled to the teeth, maximizing numerous advantages of the 3D era. Our hero can move in any direction, jump higher than his base vault, glide in the air, hack and slash enemies. Hold any manner of weaponry without being subject to the gods of durability and throw them at any time. Capable of using mystical abilities like glyphs. The eldritch energy pertains to each element. Sparingly used, they provide a massive advantage against mobs of enemies. Heck one glyph can stop time for everyone excluding our dude! One innate ability is the power to shift between the material world into the spectral world and vice-versa. This sole skill changed the whole gameplay formula. And made my playthrough fascinating to test.
Plane shifting has massive benefits. For one. He has two health bars. As his health slowly depletes in the physical realm. He can apparate to the spectral realm and recover his health there. Incurring no HP penalty either. Dude can literally suck the souls from defeated enemies in either realm to restore his vitality. But that’s not all. Oh no. Both levels distort in weird ways. If he is in the physical domain and encounters an obstacle. All he has to do is switch to the other domain and voila! The path is open! I encountered multiple obstacles like jumping across chasms and unlocking a new path where previously a dead-end was in sight. Additionally, the ability allows one to go underwater without any penalty. Whereas going back to the real world causes Raziel to immediately transition to the other field. The mechanic works seamlessly when encountering puzzles. Usually, physical box placement is designed with several to a dozen steps or more to solve. Sometimes, CD will throw in a handful of switches and levers for good measure. For anyone who played Vagrant Story. The block elements are similar here. Where you’ll have to move them to open a new path or slot them in various places according to the imagery on the walls. Completing the art so to speak. Switches can run on timers, so phase-shifting to another dimension stops time. Making it instrumental if low on time. I didn’t have too much trouble with the puzzles. Controlling how to manage box placement was a bigger issue early on. Solvable once I read the manual. Perhaps one or two overstayed their welcome in a certain region. But the rest from then on felt balanced. A nice change of pace from the constant exploring.
Aside from the freedom to explore in any direction within reason. The boss encounters operate much like their predecessor. Being designed Legend of Zelda-like. As I defeated Raz's old brethren in various arenas I was struck once again by how I had to utilize the environment to my advantage and any tricks I learned prior. Picking up a weapon and slamming it at the boss once all appendages were gone. Use my plane-shifting powers to recuperate and find weaknesses and in some cases lure my opponent away like a rod and carrot stick for bait. They were fun to tackle and a nice reprieve from the Metroidvania world through Nosgoth’s moody areas. Gifting our main protagonist with new abilities. Thereby allowing the player to overcome obstacles with ease. Adding a gratifying reward upon completing a ‘dungeon’ before moving on to the next. And honestly? My motivation to exact retribution on Kain was still at an all-time high as I progressed through each boss encounter. I mean who wouldn’t if your past employer betrayed you in a heinous manner? Look at Raziel waving a “Me!” flag.
Before our hero kicks off a rant on vengeance I must talk about the world. Nosgoth has radically changed. Where previously it was teeming with life. Now it is a world of fear and decay. Gone are the bustling settlements of humans with a manic hatred for all things vampiric in nature. Iconic locations I sought with a wanderlust fervor, have withered away. Now nothing more than fables in the wind and myths of werewolves, ghosts, and ghouls have been reduced to fairy tales. Nosgoth of today. I dread walking and breathing these unfamiliar locales resembling more of a dark moody post-apocalypse as if someone sucked the very life from the land. Vampire creatures reign supreme. Each one is distinct from others based on their biome and clan affiliation. If you thought regular bloodsuckers were a threat. Wait till you see spider and water variants! EW! Humans are near extinct. With pockets of resistance thriving in some far-off places. However, entering such a place seems ill-advised since wide-open fields full of life are a very rare sight nowadays. Replaced with a foreboding harsh atmosphere accompanied by maze-like passages and decent platformer segments. I passed through empty caverns and short corridors while solving puzzle rooms to gain access to new glyph spells or by once defeating a boss in a main area am I endowed with a new traversal ability. Allowing one to venture onwards to new roads less traveled and hidden detours and shortcuts. Although, a new power doesn’t solve all my dilemmas. The spectral dimension is haunting, filled with a ghastly atmosphere that is both depressing and gloomy. A different color palette is injected every time Raziel shifts and with it, new ghostly enemies are summoned. To harm him like wraiths and bloodsucking dementor-like beings. Shudders. The territory makes the real and unreal more pronounced where things become larger or smaller as they appear. So have courage. To embrace the unfamiliar expanse whenever plane-shifting occurs.
The sound design is dynamic. Where a large chunk of my feelings is borderline dislike, except there's another big side of appreciating the technical achievement. The former is vexing and disconnecting in the soundscape. Feels largely oppressing in the foreground with low drums hitting a hypnotic rhythm as a faint choir chants in the background in intervals to imply the divine and further adds to the depressing, lonely, unsettling, creepy ambiance. In a dying world, I was fraught with anxiety wrapped in a tight ball around myself. Reminded me a bit of the soundscape of Silent Hill. However, this one felt less insidious and far more bearable in certain respects. Some select tracks are triumphant and give off a feeling of bravery in spite of the encompassing tracks displaying dread. Not a negative at all. I find it hard to say I like a majority of tracks while playing. On the other hand, I'm amazed by technological advancement. Looking at each piece. I’m amazed how the composer Kurt Harland from Information Society managed to create a vast library of tunes to work on and multiple variations. Whereas in the predecessor there were only nineteen tracks. Here we have one hundred eighty-one. That’s an insane improvement. And a new composer to boot! After listening to the entire game's soundtrack, I found it similar to how the works of Keichi Okabe and his studio band Monaca techniques in the franchise for Nier. From Okabe, the sound design when the soundtrack was ripped. Had dynamic, medium, quiet, no vocals, 8-bit versions for each location and iconic event. Not all of them, but I would say a good size. Allowing the player to smoothly segue into the following track. While not as seamless as Nier: Automata Harland's implementation in Soul Reaver, works similarly. Special thanks go out to Raina Audron who recorded and assembled the full depth of the OST in full so we can see how far Harland worked on composing 11 hours of music. From what Audron states. Each piece " indoors/outdoors (normal+suspenseful), puzzle, danger, and combat... changes dynamically according to the situation on the screen." Meaning we have a similar occurrence here with Okabe in creating multiple variations of a track. That is fascinating and honestly incredible to hear to this extent for a PSX title! As an example you can see most of the track listings here on YouTube. I am deeply amazed, surprised how largely unnoticed and underrated the sheer sound design permeates throughout. One largely not analyzed to an extent I’ve seen online. Curious if other IPs during the fifth-generation console era made comparable strides such as Harland and Okabe on impressive soundscape achievements.
As much as I love everything that Soul Reaver elevated from Blood Omen I do have some mixed feelings. And this isn’t a positive or a negative. Simply concerns I had during my playthrough that others may find useful to hear beyond the praise I sprouted above.
First, the story is a bit of a letdown. But narratively an improvement beyond BO's narrative. We don’t receive as many voiced monologues as the previous game. Telling a subtly compelling character development from the beginning to the very end, where we see Kain shift from a human into something far more sinister. Here we don’t get that as much. Missing lore drips. Voiced monologues of Raziel poetically waxing his thoughts both internally or externally to the player could've been far more utilized here than the sense of silence covering a large amount of distance. And this I feel is a missed opportunity to call back to the series' roots by detailing the story-telling through a voiced narrative. In the previous installment, Kain would narrate about items he finds and narrate their description to you upon cursor highlight. Effectively luring me further into the worldbuilding and NPCs. Speaking of NPCs, there's almost no one. Aside from one NPC and your new boss. Who will chime in at times to have a chat like a god speaking to his new disciple. Much like how the parasite speaks to Eddie Brock from the Venom(2018) film. Except the mysterious being isn't exactly within our titular guy. Somehow always with him, yet not physically.
Granted, he still opens their mouth at critical moments, usually during plot beats of cutscenes and during intro-boss battles. And to our new hero's credit, I resonated far more with him than his former employer. Pretty likable guy I initially thought would be far more angsty, moody full of hate. Far from it! The dude was focused and sought reason without letting his emotions boil over his spirit. Regardless of his dour appearance, Michael Bell's voice lends a unique cadence to bringing our wraith's character to life. Making my overall experience not so isolating. His actions mirror my incentive to push forward. In the face of desiring to know more about what happened to Kain. Anything deeper between their relationship? Were there any more reasons why he ripped the wings? Why has the world suffered like this further and why have clans of vampires which have risen to prominence and discussed a fair amount, thrown to the curbside? Speaking of being thrown onto the curb. The ending without going into spoilers feels unfulfilling a tad.
And this makes sense. According to Amy Hennig, SR1 suffered development troubles due to the injunction. Recent news started to arise about the edits of an unfinished product. Hennig set the record straight by stating in April of 2000. “...We simply just felt that we were compromising Kain's epic story by trying to cram too many major events into the last 10% of Soul Reaver.” - If I were in her position I would divide the game into two. She called this a “blessing in disguise” allowing the ideas, cut content, and story to flourish here rather than cramming everything and delaying. Her response felt appropriate and validated a lot of my disconcerting thoughts on the shortcomings I gathered upon finishing. And to be fair as a whole, I think the game is still fine for what her team tried to achieve. I'm grateful for what is already here and not rushed, broken, or horribly missing plot details I think were vital to know. A safe product at the end of the day without being too ambitious.
Second, loading any save file or dying. Has the player start from the 1st zone. This results in kinda of tedious backtracking for the unaware. You’ll need to use gates that act as a fast travel system to head to your next destination. Sadly they're only denoted by a symbol. And no menu is available or font to visualize where the path leads unless I walk through. Reminds me of Stargate. Lacking the wormhole loading. Rather you move forward without any delay or transition to another screen to load the new area. Pretty much an uninterrupted travel system. Thankfully, more often than not the waypoints are spread a decent amount from before entering a dungeon and before a boss encounter. I suggest copying the image and putting the pic on a Google Doc or notepad for reference. You can go traditional and draw the piece on paper to help! Vital to recall where I had already trodden. Should be noted dying in both dimensions returns the player to the start. Felt this wasn’t too punishing. Since you have plenty of time to recover vitality in either realm. Wasn't a drag either, I was able to adjust to the flow quickly.
Third, in a minor way, a hurdle may occur for the camera. It can take some getting used to. Though thankfully not a major hassle and you will fight it sometimes when fighting enemies and checking your surroundings. And I didn’t realize until midway I could quick turn by hitting the directional pad on the left or right and transitioning to first-person point of view mode to check my surroundings by hitting both L2 and R2 buttons. Useful to see the verticality in level design and any secrets tucked away.
Fourth, aside from no title markers when using gates to fast travel. or a hints menu. Hand-holding here is very minimal. Therefore, players must be aware of their sense of location. Keeping a map of Nosgoth helped tremendously and I'll post a link below to help newcomers. Didn't use it until I reached the 70% mark and after exhausting as much backtracking as I could without help. Keeping these details in mind, I think are crucial to progress further. One could speak to your new boss and another being you'll meet later on and apprise Raziel on his next objective. And that's the only gentle reminder of where to head out. Good idea to check again if you’re lost and need a gentle nudge. Though be warned, you may need to decipher the Shakespearean-like dialogue when given. Not a big deal, since they’ll reference past locations. And for a Metroidvania, I think they do a serviceable job toeing the line on not being too cryptic and not too easy, I need a journalist mode to persevere. Most if not all of my frustration was a consequence of rushing without thinking. I advise taking a step to re-collect your thoughts. Patiently recalling prior distinct areas visited to arrive at a sensibly achievable goal.
More than two decades ago, I had the pleasure of playing the title when I was a kid. Never finished it since I was very confused about my true objective. And I vividly remember my first impressions. Badass FMV in the beginning, hot meh on nearly everything else. Confusing passages, dull color palettes, and a combat system that felt clunky. Now as an adult revisiting. I'm on the opposite spectrum for my first impressions. Where now I think its not meh. The confusion is still there, though tempered with patience and a drive to explore the gloomy post-apocalyptic world with some platforming segments. Nosgoth’s murky setting is a stark contrast to the lively world from before. Adding incentive to my vengeful goal of what happened here. A decent combat system that can take some getting used to along with the camera still left me completely enthralled in the presentation. The voiced narrative continues to be strong although lessened by switching to a new protagonist, but is equally as fascinating to learn about. The solid writing continues to leave me hungry to know more about the underlying narrative. Satisfying and self-contained to an extent like the Trails or Xenoblade games. The first delved into a nuance-filled story about a human who becomes a vampire and struggles with darker impulses. A shadowy tale in a dimly lit fantasy environment. SR meanwhile flips the scripts and asks the confused avenger Raziel to embark on a quest for vengeance. And understandably so! Man was betrayed by his employer after faithfully serving him for a millennium. Only to be betrayed because he had wings and Kain did not?! WELL SEE HER- Coughs. Anyway, I think the Dreamcast remaster is a great way for anyone looking to dive into the series nowadays rather than resorting to a sketchy PC mod. Emulation or playing via console are also fine choices. While I did have some mixed feelings, muddling my final thoughts. Ultimately they're not as egregious as my time in Blood Omen. Thus Soul Reaver is a worthy gateway to try for folks interested in a seamless 3D metroidvania with a rare shifting mechanic followed by an uncommonly gothic story in the Legacy of Kain saga.
8/10
References and additional material:
1998 - Knights fight for Kain article - injunction
2022 - Square Enix sells off IPs and studios
2023 - Embracer & layoffs throughout the year
Dreamcast remaster of Soul Reaver 1
Rumors for an official remaster
Sketchy Soul Reaver PC mod
Raina Audron's work on Soul Reaver 1. Quote is from a readme
2000 - Soul Reaver Response - Amy Hennig responds to reports about the game being unfinished.
—
Helpful Links - Map of Nosgoth - Incomplete OST - Setting summary of Nosgoth - Spoiler-free SR1 walkthrough - Before I play tips on SR1 - There was no section previously. So I submitted my own tips. Hope this helps any newcomers!
Who owns the Legacy of Kain IP?
Alien Shooter
2003
rememeber downloading this on a 2012 youtube pc low requirement games video,scary af but fun
Peak DLC, my introduction to rougelikes that makes me want to explore more of them and it's free. Surprisingly some pretty in-depth and rich storytelling for a free DLC of this caliber, too, and a pretty lengthy one that doesn't overstay it's welcome. It is an exceptional trip down memory lane, revisiting Kratos' youth and sort of feels like a teaser for a remaster? remake? of the original series, which would be super fucking cool if so.
The combat isn't too different from the base game, but it reminded me how intense and amazing it felt to fuck shit up as Kratos, even more so here with the constraints and unlimited variety of skills that made it feel more like a sandbox of experimentation for the combat especially with the arenas too.
The combat isn't too different from the base game, but it reminded me how intense and amazing it felt to fuck shit up as Kratos, even more so here with the constraints and unlimited variety of skills that made it feel more like a sandbox of experimentation for the combat especially with the arenas too.
Prodeus
2020
Doom
WWE 2K15
2014
Um retrocesso a toda franquia.
Gameplay:
O game fica chato super rápido já que é totalmente desbalanceado (Impossível não passar raiva com o oponente revertendo 500 golpes seguidos). O jogo também traz algumas novidades com 0 sentido na gameplay. Por exemplo o "Chain Wrestling" que, em todo início da luta, ao tentar segurar o seu oponente, um breve mini game, que funciona como pedra, papel ou tesoura, faz com que seu lutador realize uma sequência de chaves (Na teoria isso seria ótimo super realista mas é colocado tão de qualquer jeito no jogo que o negócio fica insuportável rapidamente).
De resto o jogo está literalmente igual as versões anteriores, quer dizer... (Vale ressaltar que é o primeiro game da WWE lançado pra One e PS4).
Literalmente igual não, pois a 2K conseguiu o feito de remover MUITA coisa no game (Desde o detalhado modo de criar lutadores, que era MUITO utilizado pela comunidade, até literalmente modos de luta). A impressão que ficou é a de que a 2K tirou algumas coisas para conseguir enfiar texturas de personagens mais detalhadas (E MESMO ASSIM ELES FALHARAM NISSO!!).
Gráficos:
Como dito anteriormente, WWE 2K15 foi o primeiro jogo da franquia a ser lançado pra PS4 e One. Levando isto em consideração o jogo erra MUITO. Parece que literalmente moldaram alguns lutadores de forma perfeita e alguns outros meio "de qualquer jeito" (Se você olha o John Cena por exemplo ele está perfeito, idêntico. Aí você olha o Batista e o negócio fica esquisito, o lutador todo borrachão das ideias).
Outra coisa patética que se repete nesses jogos dum jeito bizarro é a narração das lutas. Eu juro, parece que desde o Smackdown vs RAW 2010 eles utilizam as mesmas linhas de narração nas lutas, o negócio é de uma repetitividade bizonha (Fazem 10 jogos que o Jerry Lawler continua falando "He’s using his educated feet for good use").
Showcase Mode:
Aqui é o único ponto onde o jogo se sustenta (E mesmo assim não é o suficiente). O modo Showcase do game conta com duas incríveis rivalidades que aconteceram na vida real: CM Punk vs John Cena e Triple H vs Shawn Michaels (Particularmente esse é um modo que agrada muito mais quem já conhece WWE ou está conhecendo recentemente).
My Career Mode:
Aqui é o grande fiasco do jogo. O modo carreira é literalmente igual a qualquer jogo que a 2K faz: você cria um lutador e começa a lutar em divisões menores até atingir o topo e ser o melhor lutador da empresa, PORÉM...
O modo também é feito de qualquer jeito e no fim você fica lutando apenas com o propósito de upar seu lutador. Não existe nenhuma sensação real de evolução ou conquista.
Vale destacar rapidamente o fato de todo o conteúdo de jogo ser desbloqueado apenas jogando, sem nenhuma micro transação ou algo do tipo (Como acontece nos títulos seguintes).
De resto WWE 2K15 é um jogo que consegue ser inferior aos games anteriores, como o excelente WWE ’13 ou até mesmo o WWE 2K14.
PRÓS:
- Conteúdo desbloqueável apenas jogando.
CONTRAS:
- Repetitivo e cansativo.
- Gráfico deixa a desejar.
- CM Punk.
Gameplay:
O game fica chato super rápido já que é totalmente desbalanceado (Impossível não passar raiva com o oponente revertendo 500 golpes seguidos). O jogo também traz algumas novidades com 0 sentido na gameplay. Por exemplo o "Chain Wrestling" que, em todo início da luta, ao tentar segurar o seu oponente, um breve mini game, que funciona como pedra, papel ou tesoura, faz com que seu lutador realize uma sequência de chaves (Na teoria isso seria ótimo super realista mas é colocado tão de qualquer jeito no jogo que o negócio fica insuportável rapidamente).
De resto o jogo está literalmente igual as versões anteriores, quer dizer... (Vale ressaltar que é o primeiro game da WWE lançado pra One e PS4).
Literalmente igual não, pois a 2K conseguiu o feito de remover MUITA coisa no game (Desde o detalhado modo de criar lutadores, que era MUITO utilizado pela comunidade, até literalmente modos de luta). A impressão que ficou é a de que a 2K tirou algumas coisas para conseguir enfiar texturas de personagens mais detalhadas (E MESMO ASSIM ELES FALHARAM NISSO!!).
Gráficos:
Como dito anteriormente, WWE 2K15 foi o primeiro jogo da franquia a ser lançado pra PS4 e One. Levando isto em consideração o jogo erra MUITO. Parece que literalmente moldaram alguns lutadores de forma perfeita e alguns outros meio "de qualquer jeito" (Se você olha o John Cena por exemplo ele está perfeito, idêntico. Aí você olha o Batista e o negócio fica esquisito, o lutador todo borrachão das ideias).
Outra coisa patética que se repete nesses jogos dum jeito bizarro é a narração das lutas. Eu juro, parece que desde o Smackdown vs RAW 2010 eles utilizam as mesmas linhas de narração nas lutas, o negócio é de uma repetitividade bizonha (Fazem 10 jogos que o Jerry Lawler continua falando "He’s using his educated feet for good use").
Showcase Mode:
Aqui é o único ponto onde o jogo se sustenta (E mesmo assim não é o suficiente). O modo Showcase do game conta com duas incríveis rivalidades que aconteceram na vida real: CM Punk vs John Cena e Triple H vs Shawn Michaels (Particularmente esse é um modo que agrada muito mais quem já conhece WWE ou está conhecendo recentemente).
My Career Mode:
Aqui é o grande fiasco do jogo. O modo carreira é literalmente igual a qualquer jogo que a 2K faz: você cria um lutador e começa a lutar em divisões menores até atingir o topo e ser o melhor lutador da empresa, PORÉM...
O modo também é feito de qualquer jeito e no fim você fica lutando apenas com o propósito de upar seu lutador. Não existe nenhuma sensação real de evolução ou conquista.
Vale destacar rapidamente o fato de todo o conteúdo de jogo ser desbloqueado apenas jogando, sem nenhuma micro transação ou algo do tipo (Como acontece nos títulos seguintes).
De resto WWE 2K15 é um jogo que consegue ser inferior aos games anteriores, como o excelente WWE ’13 ou até mesmo o WWE 2K14.
PRÓS:
- Conteúdo desbloqueável apenas jogando.
CONTRAS:
- Repetitivo e cansativo.
- Gráfico deixa a desejar.
- CM Punk.
There are definitely some good, maybe even great, moments in this game even after all these years later but, I still feel like there's a ton holding back from this from being the "undisputed masterpiece" it's fanbase likes to hype it up as.
Gameplay wise, the traversal is fun but has already been outclassed by Miles Morales and the sequel, the same can be said for the combat, which just makes this experience feel much lesser than it ever has before and a lot more easier to pick apart for it's flaws. The open world itself is incredibly repetitive and it's always a more tedious than it is fun grind to get the platinum trophy. The remaster is also buggy as all hell for some reason, tons of instances where enemies clipped into objects or buildings, the latter making it almost impossible to complete a street crime meaning I would have to abandon it all together and try again which is double frustrating when you're grinding to 100% the game. At a certain point, the combat just unclicked for me because I had been doing this for so long it felt repetitive and lost it's substance. There were also bugs relating to button prompts in the same situation requiring the same tedious solution.
Now, when it comes to the narrative, what can I say really... I mean, there's good moments like I mentioned before but I noticed this playthrough a lot of it felt strangely generic, not predictable, but just kinda generic at times. The twists are still pretty good and make the narrative, without the ambitious twists, I think the whole thing could easily fall flat on it's ass. Act 3 was probably the best part of the narrative, mainly the climax because the bits before the Octavious fight felt a bit less themselves too. At the time of first playing, shit hitting the fan, everything happening at once, that was a great experience but, now, it just feels rushed and it probably is. Not enough time to really process everything that's happening or just not enough development at all. I cared less this time than I ever have before, and I've found myself on repeated playthroughs caring less and less, so, maybe it's just that the narrative is more of a first time experience thing.
Overall, it was really solid when it came out, but it's starting to age, it's showing cracks and that is unfortunate. Thankfully, it's successors are proving to scratch that itch this one can no longer achieve.
Gameplay wise, the traversal is fun but has already been outclassed by Miles Morales and the sequel, the same can be said for the combat, which just makes this experience feel much lesser than it ever has before and a lot more easier to pick apart for it's flaws. The open world itself is incredibly repetitive and it's always a more tedious than it is fun grind to get the platinum trophy. The remaster is also buggy as all hell for some reason, tons of instances where enemies clipped into objects or buildings, the latter making it almost impossible to complete a street crime meaning I would have to abandon it all together and try again which is double frustrating when you're grinding to 100% the game. At a certain point, the combat just unclicked for me because I had been doing this for so long it felt repetitive and lost it's substance. There were also bugs relating to button prompts in the same situation requiring the same tedious solution.
Now, when it comes to the narrative, what can I say really... I mean, there's good moments like I mentioned before but I noticed this playthrough a lot of it felt strangely generic, not predictable, but just kinda generic at times. The twists are still pretty good and make the narrative, without the ambitious twists, I think the whole thing could easily fall flat on it's ass. Act 3 was probably the best part of the narrative, mainly the climax because the bits before the Octavious fight felt a bit less themselves too. At the time of first playing, shit hitting the fan, everything happening at once, that was a great experience but, now, it just feels rushed and it probably is. Not enough time to really process everything that's happening or just not enough development at all. I cared less this time than I ever have before, and I've found myself on repeated playthroughs caring less and less, so, maybe it's just that the narrative is more of a first time experience thing.
Overall, it was really solid when it came out, but it's starting to age, it's showing cracks and that is unfortunate. Thankfully, it's successors are proving to scratch that itch this one can no longer achieve.
"If we lived forever, maybe we'd have time to understand things. But as it is, I think the best we can do is try to open our eyes, and appreciate how strange and brief all of this is."
A great game visually and narratively. Insanely unique and heartfelt. Juggles suspense and tension with coziness and sadness extremely well.
I really want to live in that house though.
A great game visually and narratively. Insanely unique and heartfelt. Juggles suspense and tension with coziness and sadness extremely well.
I really want to live in that house though.
WWE 2K19
2018
I mainly only play this for the character customisation, I have no interest in WWE whatsoever, but creating comic book/video game characters and having them fight each other is one of the best things I've done in a 2K or sports based game... well, THE best.