Detectivefail
For all intents and purposes, Final Fantasy VII Rebirth AKA part 2 of the FF7 project is an outstanding remake that should be praised, critiqued, and enjoyed by fans of the original and newcomers to any JRPG coming from part 1. And for me I have a Midgar-size to unload. First, I’m no expert in determining if a remake and sequel to the first portion of Final Fantasy VII Remake with a massive AAA budget can succeed in its lofty ambitions or at the very least decisively conclude it is better than the first installment. My criteria differ from everyone’s standards, but I’ll try to fairly judge the awesome substance along with detailing what it could improve.
I do want to state before I start that I'm not a fan of FFVII(1997). Doesn’t mean I hate it or it is automatically bad. I favorably look at aspects they brought to the table by evolving from the past entries. What works, what doesn’t, offer evidence behind claims, critique, move on. The series core has a way of continually shifting and embarking on new journeys than retreading old familiar grounds. Sequels are the exception. For what it's worth, the seventh in the series is firmly within my top ten. And I've played over 23 titles in the IP. So I'm average with the lore, story, characters of the world. Devoured the connecting spin-offs, anime, film, and light novels. Heck, my first unofficial entry to the franchise is via Crisis Core for the planet's sake. As a result, I like quite a fair bit of the universe created. I say this early on to defuse any misconceptions of negativity. I’ll try to keep the following text as spoiler free as possible. Failing that, you have my explicit permission to call upon Ramuh to smite me down. Or Ifrit if you prefer scorched BBQ.
Bear with me as I put my mixed feelings first then move onto the good stuff. Merely concerns I had in varying degrees of quality tilting my head at various moments during my adventure.
I’m disappointed to say those who didn’t like the first entries' linear sections, make a dreaded return here. There’s so much padding nearly everywhere. I’m forced to overcome numerous obstacles through a straight path. Impeding my progress. Blocks on the road where I cannot move at my own pace from A to B. Unless I find a solution to my current barriers. Hurdles of screen of tutorials will display providing information on the unique circumstances to progress. From beginning-middle until endgame. The messages never end in both main and side content. Not all of them are frustrating, but I can’t for the life of me praise at least one during a mandatory plot segment. Use a mako vacuum to overcome an obstacle while walking unbearably slow. Rerouting power via cables, climbing passages galore, sling-like Tarzan with grappling wooden/steel beams. Where my buddies consist of a frowning, no-nonsense mercenary, an endearing flower girl, a thug with a gun on his arm, a bartender/pugilist, and a talking dog who must undergo these mundane annoyances. Don’t get me started with unwilling stealth zones in some mandatory and side stuff as well. Stretching the avenue in mindless work of what would otherwise be a normal route with some leeway to explore in a regular dungeon taking the fun and excitement out of my body. An illusion tricking my mind of the ‘ooohhh’ and ‘ahhhing’ of spectacle.
To be fair, I didn’t mind these obstruction elements early on, but when I'm grumbling to repeat yet another ascending rock, ninja labors, and new tutorials to solve my current dilemma. Though, I won’t call them ‘puzzles’ but more like mindless busywork solvable by process of elimination. In effect halting the pacing and making me groan internally once again. The first had these as well, and for what it is worth it's an improvement from XIII and XV’s iterations from the usual hallway simulators and open-world nature. However, I still didn’t like the beeline routes in the remake. Whereas in the original release. I didn't need to spend hours in a dungeon. For example, in one large layout without saying any spoilers. Took me over five hours to complete. In the initial game, the same dungeon took an hour - <- spoilers for the original game inside link. To complete everything. I checked the reported lengths to complete the game and users online said similar times. Not gonna link due to spoilers, but if you check YouTube on dungeon comparison in walkthroughs. Such as mine taking four to five hours to complete the same place. Likewise, one dungeon near the end feels so forced to play as one character and engage in yet no one's surprise a linear path. Taking the haunting vibes in favor of a frustrating if not cute atmosphere marred by boxes… Just no no no. Not to say every dungeon takes that amount of time, but it is something to note going forward. With that said I feel most of these large dense places need to be cut in my honest opinion. I didn’t come here to play a three-hour chunk to reach the next adventure beat.
Don’t get me wrong, Square Enix’s work on the title has already been shown earlier in the first part to detail not a 1 to 1 retelling of the same game. Kind of a sequel/modern/recreation/re-imagining take to the past FFVII compilation/universe. Designed as a way to give old and new players a fresh, but familiar take of the aforementioned classic from 1997. Rebirth and the preceding title stretch both the material in ways I'm still coming to grips years later for better or worse.
For comparison, I recorded my entire playthrough, dividing the main scenario, optional content, and dungeon sectors and I can only conclude the dungeons will take at minimum depending on how fast and how thorough you are in exploring and battling or running. At least an hour to three hours on average. For each dungeon. Coming from someone like me who likes to explore a lot and attain as much as I can, that's a pretty long time. When put side-by-side with the extra content I devoured against the story-only segments, I emerged with less than fifty hours for the story, and the rest were completing the countless minigames and non-base content. For a total of 88 hours. And honestly I was tired by the end. Partially due to the fact of the repetitive nature. Finishing 95% of total activities except 2 side quests(which requires mini-game completion), replaying the entire length on hard difficulty with post-game challenges as well. How Long to Beat & the trophy guide will show analogous data to attain 100%. Granted times will vary. Don’t take my hours as definitive. Playstyles will differ. In my case, I don’t idle. And I don’t rush. So the numbers given above are raw gameplay completing activities.
Perhaps instead of climbing, stealth, and other hurdles we face on repeat. I would’ve favored these aspects more if the developers Creative Business Unit I(CBUI) introduced new, unfamiliar, and fun obstacles to overcome than recycling and reusing the same old methods. Letting us use an elevator or slide our way to the top somehow. Instead of sneaky mode, implement a dialogue check at different points if they are disguised. There is already a relationship meter atop our characters' heads to reflect their current status to Cloud, changing depending on answers given to the recipient. Thus I can’t imagine it can’t be too hard to inject for one passage. Heck, it's kind of similar to passing the lie/truth side-scenario in the Dust Bowl. Since there is plenty of clambering, why not include an extensive platforming branch or puzzle tomb to get from one starting place up to the treasure room? Traversal and how to get there would’ve been a wonderful inclusion. Think Assassin’s Creed’s Ezio when hunting for relics in tombs, Lara Croft from Tomb Raider or the titular character from Prince of Persia to avoid many traps. Moreover, the man with a machine gun arm could’ve demolished rock obstacles in my way not repetitively, but if I was trapped in a cave with multiple paths. Blasting different boulders atop could help stop a wave of monsters incoming on our positions. The talking dog could be used to enter smaller entryways to unlock a roadway for my allies. I could think of more possible ones, but I don’t want to litter pages here. Instead, this is to display how I could think of alternate suggestions I thought within 10 minutes. Imagine if everyone who played could say different ideas. Says a lot for an over hundred-hour game to constantly recycle the same old methods. Resulting in predictableness and dullness.
Would benefit immensely from a skip minigame option for both the story and optional content. I don't want to go through a boring repeating button segment. Hitting a specific combination on a controller or the same old solution moving a slowpoke of a cart again. Every single time I go and sync with a summon you have to hit a specific order of presses to bond. I have no idea why I have to do this three times on repeat. And there are more than eight in the game… Furthermore, anytime I have to receive regional lore concerning any place I have to press a timed button and again three times for each place. I need to repeat these mind-numbing routines in a handful of regions. A simple shortcut option would work wonderfully instead of forcing the player to engage with the systems. In Marvel’s Spider-Man 2 I was able to skip their contrived restrictions of familiar button minigames with no sweat nor downtime. To the point, I earned a reward for completing the activity!
Final Fantasy VII: Rebirth isn’t just a JRPG it’s a game spliced with Ubisoft Tower DNA. I kid you not I traveled dozens of these in regions to show nearby locations. I don’t have to unlock them, since you can stumble upon them if you stray from your main objective. But I felt I had to experience everything the game had to offer. Not purely for the story. The side content deserves to be experienced. In a YMMV area. And so climbing the tall structures is nearly the same for everyone. Usually with monsters nearby and barely any change in obstacles soaring to the top. Horizon Zero Dawn uses the same Ubisoft formula except with walking dinosaurs and every time you scale their appendages presents a challenge to get onto the robo-dino. I liked it. Was a fresh take on the formula. Part 2, doesn’t mobilize with creativity and at its most basic form clones the same functional schematic. I wish I could snipe it from far away to activate if something is blocking the antenna. Use a thunder spell, or slap fire spell to destroy vines forming an obstacle. One obstacle I liked was flying to my destination. Though, such an example only occurred in one region. Hence, I feel the developers could’ve created innovative endeavors rather than having to resort back to good old recycling. And I’ve played my decent share of Ubisoft tower games being over 12 entries. If players enjoy these types of rising to the top then I salute you. But for me, Square could do better.
This is relative in the world being a checklist and lifeless at times. All regions barely have anyone in their region to converse and interact with when roaming. Most if not all quest givers are located in their respective cities and towns. And yes there are other denizens within the settlements to converse with, but it is all located mostly with other people. This is painful to witness and experience when I am on the road and admiring the landscape and come across new mobs, but see the same types once I travel enough in a region. Expanding on the checklist most if not all side activities boil down to extermination monsters, fetch chores in retrieving an ingredient from the said place or creature, and returning to the employer. Variations will exist sometimes like following a person delving into one more stealth section or traversing on a mount. But most boil down to boring design. Some of which made me excavate using my chocobo’s senses to follow a trail and then dig for the item. One assignment had me use a sort of radar to find the exact location. No arrow at all except a circle pulsing. I think if the world was more populated adding in travelers. Not allocating all job-givers in a single location within settlements and introducing better sidequest implementation. The execution of which leaves a lot to be desired. Better investigations. Reduction in fetches in favor of already having the item in our stock or bartering for it while giving off a lore bit during discussion. Increase variation in fiend secondary objectives than the standard pressure, stagger, and kill everyone. Or remove them entirely. Such a lack of meaningful implementation leaves me filled with busy work and more like a chore than a fulfilling endeavor to look forward to. Leaving me in a state of confusion and bewilderment.
I did not like the restricted freedom in traversal, whether on foot or on mounts. Regions you encounter being large zones to freely travel there’s a steady amount of verticality to head towards whether above or low normal elevation. Nevertheless, I hit multiple invisible walls constantly as I tried to jump from a very tall cliff to the bottom since some places I traversed didn’t land where I was supposed to. I tried jumping off a cliff only to fail, thereby I had to go all the way around before finally landing on my destination. This is infuriating. Why can’t I jump from the tallest point and suffer an HP cost or none? The year is 2024 and I can’t believe I have to say this, but the game has no shortage of invisible walls. Pressing a button on your controller will help speed you down a sharp incline only if there are ‘steps.’ Without these you’re SOL. What’s baffling is two mounts circumventing these issues entirely, but my character, an EX-soldier can’t land from a high elevation? Square Enix please play Xenoblade Chronicles and take notes.
By extension, I don’t like having to manually gather materials anytime on foot or a mount. Yet when I acquired traversal vehicles later on I could gather them automatically. I’m again mystified why I can auto-pick them up through a mount but have to resort to manual pick-ups of materials I may need. The devs clearly knew earlier on. Except I'm forced once again to enlist with tediousness. And trust me the game litters the world with common, uncommon, and rare materials to freely transmute as if I'm some impromptu full metal alchemist. Good luck trying to get the right ones if you can’t find them for some quests requiring key items to be made.
Without saying spoilers. A new addition to the remake is Interlude sequences. These consist of playable sections using a certain character I won’t name. But suffice it to say I feel their global inclusion needs to be overhauled. Similar, but different from ones like FFVIII. There we could battle, earn experience, change our equipment, interact, talk to both the citizenry, and volunteer in fun activities. Here we barely interact with the world and are stuck in a linear pattern to complete before we're back on the main content. And this is a mandatory story. So you can’t bypass it. It is like teasing older veterans on you know what, but you actually can’t do much of anything. A missed opportunity to interest both old and new in the figure which I like quite a fair bit. Remember what I said previously about padding? We could use the AAA budget in the interlude, please. Not less than ten minute moments.
I feel the pacing and major villain suffer in consistency as I absorbed and devoured as much of the game. The former(pacing) is tangled in a web of Ubisoft towers with poor sidequest implementation coupled with an absence of quality of life regarding countless button assignments leaves me fatigued despite resting on days to embrace a slow-burn plot that doesn’t hit their strides until later on. The latter(villain) and extends to minor antagonists feel like someone teasing me from far away. As if “Na na na you can’t get me.” Accurate from the original yet becomes more infuriating with the lack of any real achievement upon fighting them. By achievement, only a small modicum of advancement, fluff, and perchance a bit of drama details emerge to move the group along and ascertain with one another “ All right so what have we learned, and what can we do better?” Reusing the same old trick again when moving on. Although, some segments do spice up the encounters to be different and unique. The fact I only saw their interactions change and the climax propelling faster near the endgame. And not in the middle of the game’s story. There’s a lot of focus on padding unnecessary content without giving proper characterization. One chapter takes place in a cave and after voice lines are given from an enemy encounter, I have control of my members only to realize they barely engage in banter. Calling out their moves sure and mottos yes. But nothing to extend their relationship further with bonds. Maddening to witness going through multiple sections with nothing but silence as my companion. While in reverse when finishing some side activities I am treated to some pure development straight from the heart. And here I am left wondering what in the gates hell is going on with my non-existent friendly banter. Did they run out of expenses for more voice lines? Or was it all used for Chadley's (a friendly NPC from the preceding entry) budget because his face is the most I’ve seen whenever I initiate any side activity… wish some of the money went into a M&*(New NPC) budget.
Perhaps the biggest offender to me is the motivation to complete the main story. Any game worth their salt needs to have a compelling plot. We can reduce this simple notion to some regular examples. Revenge, stop ‘x’ person, find out why I have missing memories, find a method for ‘y’ idea. Etc etc. Within the 2024 title, our task is to stop someone who-I-shall-not-name but you can probably figure out who. Along with the goal of saving the planet is sorely lacking. The turtle pace narrative walks instead of blazes. Out of the total 14 chapters, only the chapter [blank] finally moved the glaciers out of my way in my opinion. Some of which were merely a warm-up. By the end, I didn’t feel like I reached a definitive answer to my motivation at the start and was left helpless, confused, and horribly misled.
Lastly, maybe a hot take, I couldn’t help but feel a decent amount of camera work stayed too far on certain antagonists as if to give importance or impending doom. The former of which I don’t need to know the layout of a room before hitting the dude's clothing drip or his lips. The latter of which relates to my point on the villain as if poking at the player to remember they are still a grave and present threat looming over their heads. And the ‘headaches’ we receive frequently to distort our reality into a green filter television flashback in ala schizophrenia leaves me groaning every time I see it. I know the man is in pain. I know he is suffering. Yes, I will expect another occurrence again in the following cutscene. With minor variations in between. Makes me think of splendor shots as if the cutscene director wants their audience to embrace the spectacle. And to its credit, some very impressive moments took my breath away. However, not every shot or angle is up to par and I’m sad to report the camera work at times feels excessive to the point of unnecessary.
I hope my mixed feelings aren't a turnoff. Think of them as major concerns that severely impacted my overall experience. Merely trying to say the above text could be better and improved from what didn’t work out for me. Not to be taken as the ultimate egregious stain upon the landscape of gaming or JRPGs in general. And if some take that to heart well you have my permission to send Bahamut to obliterate me. Besides, the game could be far worse… like full of microtransactions, bugs, and crashes, improper balancing, nonsensical narrative, boring characters, a weak villain, etc. Yet I'm glad to report the game is nothing like those horrible examples. Anyway, now is the time for the awesome stuff. With our party exiting Midgar and embracing the wild wilderness outside the yoke of Shinra’s capital. To find answers and well hunt someone-who-I-again-shall-not-name.
Rebirth is faithful and bold. Excelling in recreating some of my favorite spots back in the original and enhancing nearly everything from combat, music, cutscenes, bonds between friends, etc. I could imagine. The over-and-beyond soundtrack and great range in the countless voice actors to the satisfying combat are nearly the same as the first installment but the addition of synergy skills adds a new tactical layer of syncing up with my ally and delivering punishing blows. And the pleasing visual aesthetic of seeing Kalm, the first town you visit is breathtaking, but more so for every city/town you visit as well. Like by the lifestream seeing Junon with a big freaking cannon jutting out into the ocean still gives me shivers. Cosmo Canyon, a place if anyone ever visited the Grand Canyon in America is of a comparable breadth and scale except steampunked and teeming with monsters, but futuristic with windmills and strapped to the rocky cliffside and denizens living freely without the yoke of oppression from Shinra. Without a doubt, the locations are given maxed attention in both scale and exploration to freely travel between several layers of a city. Don’t get me started on the jungles of Gongaga. I embraced my inner gaga over there.
Characters by far receive adequate characterization and some of their development is hidden in their sidequests. The quality of which is just as satisfying to witness once you earn the end of a side objective. My man with a machine gun easily hits powerful lines almost every time he reflects or delivers passionate speeches. Played by John Eric Bentley, he delivers words like a critical point past midpoint and hidden within a cutscene delving deep into his past providing not only proper development but nuance in his self-reflections concerning others. Most of all he’s not afraid to say it and I deeply admire him. Making his actions later on with his comrades heartwarming. Briana White who voices Aerith equally delivers an emotional range from funny and wholesome to genuinely gripping me with her performances. I saw neither cringe nor an inadequacy of tone in any of my allies in general and as a result, the cutscenes pertaining to each of my comrades' screen time were enjoyable. Heck, the talking dog rises past mountains and bites the cosmos zenith delivering one of the funniest scenes in the game. To the point, I prefer this version’s take than the old one haha. And the sheer range they undergo, once I learn new facets of their personality, is both amusing and shocking. I also feel there’s a greater emotional spectrum at play here concerning the main cast. Tifa and Aerith’s budding friendship is heartening to observe as are the darker feelings my cabal undergoes when the narrative dips back into the dark hold of Shinra’s all-encompassing reach over the planet. For every nice moment my group encounters a looming shadow is stalking them. And I like how not all is fine and dilly dally. Makes the cast relatable and human. Although, I wish Cloud would emote a bit. His facial expression is too stoic at times, but when he does delve into more emotions oh it is a sight…
The cinematography is oh my lord exceptionally well done. I know I groaned about the slow burn early on, and some camera work being excessive but goodness, when you cross after the midpoint. The story cutscenes set the tone right - Clean sequences, no hard cuts constantly to confuse the viewer on the action moments and landing the poignant spots when needed. With the voice actors enhancing these scenes to the limit. Various points during the endgame were magical and beautiful. The flow of which offers a nice break from the usual humor and fluff from the side scenarios reeling back the curtain of the main adventure. But I must say, one long sidequest chain being proto-relics regarding the super boss is pretty sick and the attention to detail and care is lovingly crafted. Fans of the series will take special gratification in experiencing all their quirks and epicness.
No copy-paste for enemies and most environments. By the end of my journey I found a total of 230 unique enemies. No different colored variations or slight increases in HP and power differences either. These mobs will chew and spit you out if you’re not careful. On normal difficulty I found the balance to be justtttt right. Didn’t find battles too easy or too insurmountable. Environments for the most part didn’t repeat as if the 3D artists got lazy. Every area you visit, be it a city/town or a hidden place tucked away reveals something beautiful and mesmerizing. I can’t count the number of times I admired the land and embraced the call of nature. Screw the main assignment and subsidiary content. I’m becoming a photographer! Heck check out some of these shots.
No complaints whatsoever for part 2 shatters the limit break on soundscape design. I would equate it similarly to how FFXVI composition goes but differently. I can’t help but notice whenever I gather new intel the music would dynamically change. Specifically towers. Vocals and instrumentals are more fleshed out as you embrace more intel and my god almighty I'm reminded of whenever FFXIV introduces a new trailer for their expansion you don’t get the full trailer, instead you get a teaser before getting the full course meal. Essentially we listen to an adequate sampler then upon reward hear a better-improved version as I progressed in each region is incredible. And good lord almighty Masashi Hamauzu and Mitsuto Suzuki the composers hit the baseball flying into a homerun reaching outer space. It's phenomenal. No copy-paste and recycling of old tracks. You will undoubtedly hear new remixes, arrangements, instrumentals, vocals and so much more while playing. Shifting and changing as I played more and more. Battles, sidejobs, new areas, main story, and cutscenes all have their unique flair of variety. Resonating with my ears. By the time I entered one weird region called Gongaga, I put my controller down and had my hands over my eyes. Silently listening to powerful emotional moments brought by flute wind and percussion instruments among others I can’t for the life of me identify due to screaming internally how a track touches my heart. For those who played a certain title in the FF7 compilation I 100% felt one person's spirit manifested and oh so pure. The feeling is Indescribable. And then I'm treated to a bow wow wow as if I'm suddenly transported onto a jolly happy place filled with children chorusing a heartwarming rendition to give me enough incentive to conquer anything and everyone in my path. Move over final boss. Once I’m listening to the beat of the bow wow I am unstoppable!
Pivoting to minigames, some of which are truly enjoyable to the extent I kept coming back. Out of more than a dozen to play around with. Without any contest. I must say Queen’s Blood(QB) reigns supreme. Fans of the series know about the Triple Triad, a 3x3 grid where you and one other player duke it out card style to win. QB is similar except we have a bigger grid to manage along with more cards to fiddle around with. Up to fifteen. I won’t go into explaining the mechanics, rather I want to say how satisfying it is to go through the side content and challenge QB players who have a passion for the cards. Bonus points for the team to cheekily take great notes from The Witcher 3’s Gwent pre-match camera angles cause man Cloud and whoever he faces offers a mean frowning “Come and get some!” face-off before entering the battle stage. And thankfully enough the difficulty is balanced I would say. There’s an interesting questline integrated into beating new and experienced veterans only to secure the thrilling conclusion near the end. Such care and thought only deserve every ounce of praise in my eyes. Rules feel fair, thankfully not overly complex. Large assortment of cards to collect and over thirty people to challenge and partake in special survival and puzzle matches too! Seriously makes me wonder if we'll face off a new big bad villain with a card game in the next installment. I can't wait! I need this version in FFXIV please!
Anyway, here are other fantastic ones to try. Leapfrog aka Frogger is a nice way to avoid the spinning beams. Fort Condor goes all out on low poly tower defense. Running Wild is like Rocket League, except with animals. 3D-Brawler is an awesome boxing game using poly characters of our members vs poly enemies. Galactic Saviors is an on-rail shooter ala star-fox kind. Can’t forget a full course Chocobo racing with separate tournaments to enter. Honestly, that one feels like its own game with different races to enter. Heck, there’s even a Wall-E-like Tower defense, but you can input your gambits. I could list extra, but I’ll refrain.
Despite what I said earlier about the padding of both story and optional content. To play devil's advocate against myself I do think on the flip side. The result of engaging with the subsidiary content reveals vital characterization for your companions. I touched on the notion with a machine gun guy. But to expand further without getting into the nitty gritty. If a player finishes all the main story content before moving into a new region and decides to complete remaining the side missions within the area. They are treated to an aftermath of story events prior about my friends. Mostly at the conclusion. Sometimes calling back to familiar NPCs we met and knew about in the past game. Making their presence feel more alive in developing their interpersonal relationships. We also get payoffs on some unanswered inquiries regarding our side-cast in the midpoint. Reveal startling lore bombs on what we know of the planet and as you dove deeper reveal further details. By endgame, I ultimately liked the ambition and deviations shifting outside the norm conceptually and with respect to certain areas to old material in a modern form. But can’t help but think their execution needs work to make it fun and gratifying. If I am treated to a tedious quest design only to reveal a paragraph of lines of development from the main cast to the side cast or vice-versa within the entire product to give me joy. Then I think something needs to change to make the long-term experience enjoyable and not half-and-half.
A triple ‘A’ JRPG remake of this caliber is a sight to behold. However, in my honest opinion, it could be improved a lot. Despite the praise I stated previously, it is not without imperfections. My numerous mixed feelings severely impacted my overall experience to the point I found underneath the splendor lies a stern absence of respecting the player’s time and freedom to participate in its padded nature. A shortage of quality-of-life features like a simple skip minigame(than a reduction in difficulty, from the latest patch) or lessening the involuntary barriers during linear slices. Would’ve done wonders to not forcibly engage with the long dungeons included thereby halting the pacing and breaking the momentum of the plot beats. And an ending I'm frankly disappointed at which I’ll explain more in a separate spoiler link regarding a breakdown why. Though I am glad many enjoyed this title greatly, I can't help but feel wary if I constantly fill the Square Enix’s CBUI heads with clouds of praise without fair critique. That is why I find this title enormously troublesome to rate fairly. After spending weeks bashing my head back and forth, plus reading what my friends had to say and reading those on the other side praising/enjoying/loving everything Rebirth has to offer. I am still shaking my head in distress. Furthermore, I don’t like being baited or teased endlessly, and inside the 2024 title clearly showed plenty. If you’re onboard with that and more such as exploding your suspension of disbelief at times then you will have no problem turning off your brain here. I’m still kinda looking forward to the last entry, but the bigger question I’ve been asking myself is if this remake/re-imagining is something all other companies will take heavy inspiration from and I believe they should for the right reasons. Left unsaid I hope my overall conclusion doesn’t deter the game from prospective buyers. My intention is never to be harsh on a game from which fans adore everything the remake offers. But to inform with evidence what worked well and what didn’t for me. And pray the information helps someone.
5.7/10
Additional Material:
FFVII - Rebirth Ending Analysis - good defense on why this works - ending spoilers
My spoiler thoughts on FFVII Rebirth. Every chapter breakdown - same warning as above
I do want to state before I start that I'm not a fan of FFVII(1997). Doesn’t mean I hate it or it is automatically bad. I favorably look at aspects they brought to the table by evolving from the past entries. What works, what doesn’t, offer evidence behind claims, critique, move on. The series core has a way of continually shifting and embarking on new journeys than retreading old familiar grounds. Sequels are the exception. For what it's worth, the seventh in the series is firmly within my top ten. And I've played over 23 titles in the IP. So I'm average with the lore, story, characters of the world. Devoured the connecting spin-offs, anime, film, and light novels. Heck, my first unofficial entry to the franchise is via Crisis Core for the planet's sake. As a result, I like quite a fair bit of the universe created. I say this early on to defuse any misconceptions of negativity. I’ll try to keep the following text as spoiler free as possible. Failing that, you have my explicit permission to call upon Ramuh to smite me down. Or Ifrit if you prefer scorched BBQ.
Bear with me as I put my mixed feelings first then move onto the good stuff. Merely concerns I had in varying degrees of quality tilting my head at various moments during my adventure.
I’m disappointed to say those who didn’t like the first entries' linear sections, make a dreaded return here. There’s so much padding nearly everywhere. I’m forced to overcome numerous obstacles through a straight path. Impeding my progress. Blocks on the road where I cannot move at my own pace from A to B. Unless I find a solution to my current barriers. Hurdles of screen of tutorials will display providing information on the unique circumstances to progress. From beginning-middle until endgame. The messages never end in both main and side content. Not all of them are frustrating, but I can’t for the life of me praise at least one during a mandatory plot segment. Use a mako vacuum to overcome an obstacle while walking unbearably slow. Rerouting power via cables, climbing passages galore, sling-like Tarzan with grappling wooden/steel beams. Where my buddies consist of a frowning, no-nonsense mercenary, an endearing flower girl, a thug with a gun on his arm, a bartender/pugilist, and a talking dog who must undergo these mundane annoyances. Don’t get me started with unwilling stealth zones in some mandatory and side stuff as well. Stretching the avenue in mindless work of what would otherwise be a normal route with some leeway to explore in a regular dungeon taking the fun and excitement out of my body. An illusion tricking my mind of the ‘ooohhh’ and ‘ahhhing’ of spectacle.
To be fair, I didn’t mind these obstruction elements early on, but when I'm grumbling to repeat yet another ascending rock, ninja labors, and new tutorials to solve my current dilemma. Though, I won’t call them ‘puzzles’ but more like mindless busywork solvable by process of elimination. In effect halting the pacing and making me groan internally once again. The first had these as well, and for what it is worth it's an improvement from XIII and XV’s iterations from the usual hallway simulators and open-world nature. However, I still didn’t like the beeline routes in the remake. Whereas in the original release. I didn't need to spend hours in a dungeon. For example, in one large layout without saying any spoilers. Took me over five hours to complete. In the initial game, the same dungeon took an hour - <- spoilers for the original game inside link. To complete everything. I checked the reported lengths to complete the game and users online said similar times. Not gonna link due to spoilers, but if you check YouTube on dungeon comparison in walkthroughs. Such as mine taking four to five hours to complete the same place. Likewise, one dungeon near the end feels so forced to play as one character and engage in yet no one's surprise a linear path. Taking the haunting vibes in favor of a frustrating if not cute atmosphere marred by boxes… Just no no no. Not to say every dungeon takes that amount of time, but it is something to note going forward. With that said I feel most of these large dense places need to be cut in my honest opinion. I didn’t come here to play a three-hour chunk to reach the next adventure beat.
Don’t get me wrong, Square Enix’s work on the title has already been shown earlier in the first part to detail not a 1 to 1 retelling of the same game. Kind of a sequel/modern/recreation/re-imagining take to the past FFVII compilation/universe. Designed as a way to give old and new players a fresh, but familiar take of the aforementioned classic from 1997. Rebirth and the preceding title stretch both the material in ways I'm still coming to grips years later for better or worse.
For comparison, I recorded my entire playthrough, dividing the main scenario, optional content, and dungeon sectors and I can only conclude the dungeons will take at minimum depending on how fast and how thorough you are in exploring and battling or running. At least an hour to three hours on average. For each dungeon. Coming from someone like me who likes to explore a lot and attain as much as I can, that's a pretty long time. When put side-by-side with the extra content I devoured against the story-only segments, I emerged with less than fifty hours for the story, and the rest were completing the countless minigames and non-base content. For a total of 88 hours. And honestly I was tired by the end. Partially due to the fact of the repetitive nature. Finishing 95% of total activities except 2 side quests(which requires mini-game completion), replaying the entire length on hard difficulty with post-game challenges as well. How Long to Beat & the trophy guide will show analogous data to attain 100%. Granted times will vary. Don’t take my hours as definitive. Playstyles will differ. In my case, I don’t idle. And I don’t rush. So the numbers given above are raw gameplay completing activities.
Perhaps instead of climbing, stealth, and other hurdles we face on repeat. I would’ve favored these aspects more if the developers Creative Business Unit I(CBUI) introduced new, unfamiliar, and fun obstacles to overcome than recycling and reusing the same old methods. Letting us use an elevator or slide our way to the top somehow. Instead of sneaky mode, implement a dialogue check at different points if they are disguised. There is already a relationship meter atop our characters' heads to reflect their current status to Cloud, changing depending on answers given to the recipient. Thus I can’t imagine it can’t be too hard to inject for one passage. Heck, it's kind of similar to passing the lie/truth side-scenario in the Dust Bowl. Since there is plenty of clambering, why not include an extensive platforming branch or puzzle tomb to get from one starting place up to the treasure room? Traversal and how to get there would’ve been a wonderful inclusion. Think Assassin’s Creed’s Ezio when hunting for relics in tombs, Lara Croft from Tomb Raider or the titular character from Prince of Persia to avoid many traps. Moreover, the man with a machine gun arm could’ve demolished rock obstacles in my way not repetitively, but if I was trapped in a cave with multiple paths. Blasting different boulders atop could help stop a wave of monsters incoming on our positions. The talking dog could be used to enter smaller entryways to unlock a roadway for my allies. I could think of more possible ones, but I don’t want to litter pages here. Instead, this is to display how I could think of alternate suggestions I thought within 10 minutes. Imagine if everyone who played could say different ideas. Says a lot for an over hundred-hour game to constantly recycle the same old methods. Resulting in predictableness and dullness.
Would benefit immensely from a skip minigame option for both the story and optional content. I don't want to go through a boring repeating button segment. Hitting a specific combination on a controller or the same old solution moving a slowpoke of a cart again. Every single time I go and sync with a summon you have to hit a specific order of presses to bond. I have no idea why I have to do this three times on repeat. And there are more than eight in the game… Furthermore, anytime I have to receive regional lore concerning any place I have to press a timed button and again three times for each place. I need to repeat these mind-numbing routines in a handful of regions. A simple shortcut option would work wonderfully instead of forcing the player to engage with the systems. In Marvel’s Spider-Man 2 I was able to skip their contrived restrictions of familiar button minigames with no sweat nor downtime. To the point, I earned a reward for completing the activity!
Final Fantasy VII: Rebirth isn’t just a JRPG it’s a game spliced with Ubisoft Tower DNA. I kid you not I traveled dozens of these in regions to show nearby locations. I don’t have to unlock them, since you can stumble upon them if you stray from your main objective. But I felt I had to experience everything the game had to offer. Not purely for the story. The side content deserves to be experienced. In a YMMV area. And so climbing the tall structures is nearly the same for everyone. Usually with monsters nearby and barely any change in obstacles soaring to the top. Horizon Zero Dawn uses the same Ubisoft formula except with walking dinosaurs and every time you scale their appendages presents a challenge to get onto the robo-dino. I liked it. Was a fresh take on the formula. Part 2, doesn’t mobilize with creativity and at its most basic form clones the same functional schematic. I wish I could snipe it from far away to activate if something is blocking the antenna. Use a thunder spell, or slap fire spell to destroy vines forming an obstacle. One obstacle I liked was flying to my destination. Though, such an example only occurred in one region. Hence, I feel the developers could’ve created innovative endeavors rather than having to resort back to good old recycling. And I’ve played my decent share of Ubisoft tower games being over 12 entries. If players enjoy these types of rising to the top then I salute you. But for me, Square could do better.
This is relative in the world being a checklist and lifeless at times. All regions barely have anyone in their region to converse and interact with when roaming. Most if not all quest givers are located in their respective cities and towns. And yes there are other denizens within the settlements to converse with, but it is all located mostly with other people. This is painful to witness and experience when I am on the road and admiring the landscape and come across new mobs, but see the same types once I travel enough in a region. Expanding on the checklist most if not all side activities boil down to extermination monsters, fetch chores in retrieving an ingredient from the said place or creature, and returning to the employer. Variations will exist sometimes like following a person delving into one more stealth section or traversing on a mount. But most boil down to boring design. Some of which made me excavate using my chocobo’s senses to follow a trail and then dig for the item. One assignment had me use a sort of radar to find the exact location. No arrow at all except a circle pulsing. I think if the world was more populated adding in travelers. Not allocating all job-givers in a single location within settlements and introducing better sidequest implementation. The execution of which leaves a lot to be desired. Better investigations. Reduction in fetches in favor of already having the item in our stock or bartering for it while giving off a lore bit during discussion. Increase variation in fiend secondary objectives than the standard pressure, stagger, and kill everyone. Or remove them entirely. Such a lack of meaningful implementation leaves me filled with busy work and more like a chore than a fulfilling endeavor to look forward to. Leaving me in a state of confusion and bewilderment.
I did not like the restricted freedom in traversal, whether on foot or on mounts. Regions you encounter being large zones to freely travel there’s a steady amount of verticality to head towards whether above or low normal elevation. Nevertheless, I hit multiple invisible walls constantly as I tried to jump from a very tall cliff to the bottom since some places I traversed didn’t land where I was supposed to. I tried jumping off a cliff only to fail, thereby I had to go all the way around before finally landing on my destination. This is infuriating. Why can’t I jump from the tallest point and suffer an HP cost or none? The year is 2024 and I can’t believe I have to say this, but the game has no shortage of invisible walls. Pressing a button on your controller will help speed you down a sharp incline only if there are ‘steps.’ Without these you’re SOL. What’s baffling is two mounts circumventing these issues entirely, but my character, an EX-soldier can’t land from a high elevation? Square Enix please play Xenoblade Chronicles and take notes.
By extension, I don’t like having to manually gather materials anytime on foot or a mount. Yet when I acquired traversal vehicles later on I could gather them automatically. I’m again mystified why I can auto-pick them up through a mount but have to resort to manual pick-ups of materials I may need. The devs clearly knew earlier on. Except I'm forced once again to enlist with tediousness. And trust me the game litters the world with common, uncommon, and rare materials to freely transmute as if I'm some impromptu full metal alchemist. Good luck trying to get the right ones if you can’t find them for some quests requiring key items to be made.
Without saying spoilers. A new addition to the remake is Interlude sequences. These consist of playable sections using a certain character I won’t name. But suffice it to say I feel their global inclusion needs to be overhauled. Similar, but different from ones like FFVIII. There we could battle, earn experience, change our equipment, interact, talk to both the citizenry, and volunteer in fun activities. Here we barely interact with the world and are stuck in a linear pattern to complete before we're back on the main content. And this is a mandatory story. So you can’t bypass it. It is like teasing older veterans on you know what, but you actually can’t do much of anything. A missed opportunity to interest both old and new in the figure which I like quite a fair bit. Remember what I said previously about padding? We could use the AAA budget in the interlude, please. Not less than ten minute moments.
I feel the pacing and major villain suffer in consistency as I absorbed and devoured as much of the game. The former(pacing) is tangled in a web of Ubisoft towers with poor sidequest implementation coupled with an absence of quality of life regarding countless button assignments leaves me fatigued despite resting on days to embrace a slow-burn plot that doesn’t hit their strides until later on. The latter(villain) and extends to minor antagonists feel like someone teasing me from far away. As if “Na na na you can’t get me.” Accurate from the original yet becomes more infuriating with the lack of any real achievement upon fighting them. By achievement, only a small modicum of advancement, fluff, and perchance a bit of drama details emerge to move the group along and ascertain with one another “ All right so what have we learned, and what can we do better?” Reusing the same old trick again when moving on. Although, some segments do spice up the encounters to be different and unique. The fact I only saw their interactions change and the climax propelling faster near the endgame. And not in the middle of the game’s story. There’s a lot of focus on padding unnecessary content without giving proper characterization. One chapter takes place in a cave and after voice lines are given from an enemy encounter, I have control of my members only to realize they barely engage in banter. Calling out their moves sure and mottos yes. But nothing to extend their relationship further with bonds. Maddening to witness going through multiple sections with nothing but silence as my companion. While in reverse when finishing some side activities I am treated to some pure development straight from the heart. And here I am left wondering what in the gates hell is going on with my non-existent friendly banter. Did they run out of expenses for more voice lines? Or was it all used for Chadley's (a friendly NPC from the preceding entry) budget because his face is the most I’ve seen whenever I initiate any side activity… wish some of the money went into a M&*(New NPC) budget.
Perhaps the biggest offender to me is the motivation to complete the main story. Any game worth their salt needs to have a compelling plot. We can reduce this simple notion to some regular examples. Revenge, stop ‘x’ person, find out why I have missing memories, find a method for ‘y’ idea. Etc etc. Within the 2024 title, our task is to stop someone who-I-shall-not-name but you can probably figure out who. Along with the goal of saving the planet is sorely lacking. The turtle pace narrative walks instead of blazes. Out of the total 14 chapters, only the chapter [blank] finally moved the glaciers out of my way in my opinion. Some of which were merely a warm-up. By the end, I didn’t feel like I reached a definitive answer to my motivation at the start and was left helpless, confused, and horribly misled.
Lastly, maybe a hot take, I couldn’t help but feel a decent amount of camera work stayed too far on certain antagonists as if to give importance or impending doom. The former of which I don’t need to know the layout of a room before hitting the dude's clothing drip or his lips. The latter of which relates to my point on the villain as if poking at the player to remember they are still a grave and present threat looming over their heads. And the ‘headaches’ we receive frequently to distort our reality into a green filter television flashback in ala schizophrenia leaves me groaning every time I see it. I know the man is in pain. I know he is suffering. Yes, I will expect another occurrence again in the following cutscene. With minor variations in between. Makes me think of splendor shots as if the cutscene director wants their audience to embrace the spectacle. And to its credit, some very impressive moments took my breath away. However, not every shot or angle is up to par and I’m sad to report the camera work at times feels excessive to the point of unnecessary.
I hope my mixed feelings aren't a turnoff. Think of them as major concerns that severely impacted my overall experience. Merely trying to say the above text could be better and improved from what didn’t work out for me. Not to be taken as the ultimate egregious stain upon the landscape of gaming or JRPGs in general. And if some take that to heart well you have my permission to send Bahamut to obliterate me. Besides, the game could be far worse… like full of microtransactions, bugs, and crashes, improper balancing, nonsensical narrative, boring characters, a weak villain, etc. Yet I'm glad to report the game is nothing like those horrible examples. Anyway, now is the time for the awesome stuff. With our party exiting Midgar and embracing the wild wilderness outside the yoke of Shinra’s capital. To find answers and well hunt someone-who-I-again-shall-not-name.
Rebirth is faithful and bold. Excelling in recreating some of my favorite spots back in the original and enhancing nearly everything from combat, music, cutscenes, bonds between friends, etc. I could imagine. The over-and-beyond soundtrack and great range in the countless voice actors to the satisfying combat are nearly the same as the first installment but the addition of synergy skills adds a new tactical layer of syncing up with my ally and delivering punishing blows. And the pleasing visual aesthetic of seeing Kalm, the first town you visit is breathtaking, but more so for every city/town you visit as well. Like by the lifestream seeing Junon with a big freaking cannon jutting out into the ocean still gives me shivers. Cosmo Canyon, a place if anyone ever visited the Grand Canyon in America is of a comparable breadth and scale except steampunked and teeming with monsters, but futuristic with windmills and strapped to the rocky cliffside and denizens living freely without the yoke of oppression from Shinra. Without a doubt, the locations are given maxed attention in both scale and exploration to freely travel between several layers of a city. Don’t get me started on the jungles of Gongaga. I embraced my inner gaga over there.
Characters by far receive adequate characterization and some of their development is hidden in their sidequests. The quality of which is just as satisfying to witness once you earn the end of a side objective. My man with a machine gun easily hits powerful lines almost every time he reflects or delivers passionate speeches. Played by John Eric Bentley, he delivers words like a critical point past midpoint and hidden within a cutscene delving deep into his past providing not only proper development but nuance in his self-reflections concerning others. Most of all he’s not afraid to say it and I deeply admire him. Making his actions later on with his comrades heartwarming. Briana White who voices Aerith equally delivers an emotional range from funny and wholesome to genuinely gripping me with her performances. I saw neither cringe nor an inadequacy of tone in any of my allies in general and as a result, the cutscenes pertaining to each of my comrades' screen time were enjoyable. Heck, the talking dog rises past mountains and bites the cosmos zenith delivering one of the funniest scenes in the game. To the point, I prefer this version’s take than the old one haha. And the sheer range they undergo, once I learn new facets of their personality, is both amusing and shocking. I also feel there’s a greater emotional spectrum at play here concerning the main cast. Tifa and Aerith’s budding friendship is heartening to observe as are the darker feelings my cabal undergoes when the narrative dips back into the dark hold of Shinra’s all-encompassing reach over the planet. For every nice moment my group encounters a looming shadow is stalking them. And I like how not all is fine and dilly dally. Makes the cast relatable and human. Although, I wish Cloud would emote a bit. His facial expression is too stoic at times, but when he does delve into more emotions oh it is a sight…
The cinematography is oh my lord exceptionally well done. I know I groaned about the slow burn early on, and some camera work being excessive but goodness, when you cross after the midpoint. The story cutscenes set the tone right - Clean sequences, no hard cuts constantly to confuse the viewer on the action moments and landing the poignant spots when needed. With the voice actors enhancing these scenes to the limit. Various points during the endgame were magical and beautiful. The flow of which offers a nice break from the usual humor and fluff from the side scenarios reeling back the curtain of the main adventure. But I must say, one long sidequest chain being proto-relics regarding the super boss is pretty sick and the attention to detail and care is lovingly crafted. Fans of the series will take special gratification in experiencing all their quirks and epicness.
No copy-paste for enemies and most environments. By the end of my journey I found a total of 230 unique enemies. No different colored variations or slight increases in HP and power differences either. These mobs will chew and spit you out if you’re not careful. On normal difficulty I found the balance to be justtttt right. Didn’t find battles too easy or too insurmountable. Environments for the most part didn’t repeat as if the 3D artists got lazy. Every area you visit, be it a city/town or a hidden place tucked away reveals something beautiful and mesmerizing. I can’t count the number of times I admired the land and embraced the call of nature. Screw the main assignment and subsidiary content. I’m becoming a photographer! Heck check out some of these shots.
No complaints whatsoever for part 2 shatters the limit break on soundscape design. I would equate it similarly to how FFXVI composition goes but differently. I can’t help but notice whenever I gather new intel the music would dynamically change. Specifically towers. Vocals and instrumentals are more fleshed out as you embrace more intel and my god almighty I'm reminded of whenever FFXIV introduces a new trailer for their expansion you don’t get the full trailer, instead you get a teaser before getting the full course meal. Essentially we listen to an adequate sampler then upon reward hear a better-improved version as I progressed in each region is incredible. And good lord almighty Masashi Hamauzu and Mitsuto Suzuki the composers hit the baseball flying into a homerun reaching outer space. It's phenomenal. No copy-paste and recycling of old tracks. You will undoubtedly hear new remixes, arrangements, instrumentals, vocals and so much more while playing. Shifting and changing as I played more and more. Battles, sidejobs, new areas, main story, and cutscenes all have their unique flair of variety. Resonating with my ears. By the time I entered one weird region called Gongaga, I put my controller down and had my hands over my eyes. Silently listening to powerful emotional moments brought by flute wind and percussion instruments among others I can’t for the life of me identify due to screaming internally how a track touches my heart. For those who played a certain title in the FF7 compilation I 100% felt one person's spirit manifested and oh so pure. The feeling is Indescribable. And then I'm treated to a bow wow wow as if I'm suddenly transported onto a jolly happy place filled with children chorusing a heartwarming rendition to give me enough incentive to conquer anything and everyone in my path. Move over final boss. Once I’m listening to the beat of the bow wow I am unstoppable!
Pivoting to minigames, some of which are truly enjoyable to the extent I kept coming back. Out of more than a dozen to play around with. Without any contest. I must say Queen’s Blood(QB) reigns supreme. Fans of the series know about the Triple Triad, a 3x3 grid where you and one other player duke it out card style to win. QB is similar except we have a bigger grid to manage along with more cards to fiddle around with. Up to fifteen. I won’t go into explaining the mechanics, rather I want to say how satisfying it is to go through the side content and challenge QB players who have a passion for the cards. Bonus points for the team to cheekily take great notes from The Witcher 3’s Gwent pre-match camera angles cause man Cloud and whoever he faces offers a mean frowning “Come and get some!” face-off before entering the battle stage. And thankfully enough the difficulty is balanced I would say. There’s an interesting questline integrated into beating new and experienced veterans only to secure the thrilling conclusion near the end. Such care and thought only deserve every ounce of praise in my eyes. Rules feel fair, thankfully not overly complex. Large assortment of cards to collect and over thirty people to challenge and partake in special survival and puzzle matches too! Seriously makes me wonder if we'll face off a new big bad villain with a card game in the next installment. I can't wait! I need this version in FFXIV please!
Anyway, here are other fantastic ones to try. Leapfrog aka Frogger is a nice way to avoid the spinning beams. Fort Condor goes all out on low poly tower defense. Running Wild is like Rocket League, except with animals. 3D-Brawler is an awesome boxing game using poly characters of our members vs poly enemies. Galactic Saviors is an on-rail shooter ala star-fox kind. Can’t forget a full course Chocobo racing with separate tournaments to enter. Honestly, that one feels like its own game with different races to enter. Heck, there’s even a Wall-E-like Tower defense, but you can input your gambits. I could list extra, but I’ll refrain.
Despite what I said earlier about the padding of both story and optional content. To play devil's advocate against myself I do think on the flip side. The result of engaging with the subsidiary content reveals vital characterization for your companions. I touched on the notion with a machine gun guy. But to expand further without getting into the nitty gritty. If a player finishes all the main story content before moving into a new region and decides to complete remaining the side missions within the area. They are treated to an aftermath of story events prior about my friends. Mostly at the conclusion. Sometimes calling back to familiar NPCs we met and knew about in the past game. Making their presence feel more alive in developing their interpersonal relationships. We also get payoffs on some unanswered inquiries regarding our side-cast in the midpoint. Reveal startling lore bombs on what we know of the planet and as you dove deeper reveal further details. By endgame, I ultimately liked the ambition and deviations shifting outside the norm conceptually and with respect to certain areas to old material in a modern form. But can’t help but think their execution needs work to make it fun and gratifying. If I am treated to a tedious quest design only to reveal a paragraph of lines of development from the main cast to the side cast or vice-versa within the entire product to give me joy. Then I think something needs to change to make the long-term experience enjoyable and not half-and-half.
A triple ‘A’ JRPG remake of this caliber is a sight to behold. However, in my honest opinion, it could be improved a lot. Despite the praise I stated previously, it is not without imperfections. My numerous mixed feelings severely impacted my overall experience to the point I found underneath the splendor lies a stern absence of respecting the player’s time and freedom to participate in its padded nature. A shortage of quality-of-life features like a simple skip minigame(than a reduction in difficulty, from the latest patch) or lessening the involuntary barriers during linear slices. Would’ve done wonders to not forcibly engage with the long dungeons included thereby halting the pacing and breaking the momentum of the plot beats. And an ending I'm frankly disappointed at which I’ll explain more in a separate spoiler link regarding a breakdown why. Though I am glad many enjoyed this title greatly, I can't help but feel wary if I constantly fill the Square Enix’s CBUI heads with clouds of praise without fair critique. That is why I find this title enormously troublesome to rate fairly. After spending weeks bashing my head back and forth, plus reading what my friends had to say and reading those on the other side praising/enjoying/loving everything Rebirth has to offer. I am still shaking my head in distress. Furthermore, I don’t like being baited or teased endlessly, and inside the 2024 title clearly showed plenty. If you’re onboard with that and more such as exploding your suspension of disbelief at times then you will have no problem turning off your brain here. I’m still kinda looking forward to the last entry, but the bigger question I’ve been asking myself is if this remake/re-imagining is something all other companies will take heavy inspiration from and I believe they should for the right reasons. Left unsaid I hope my overall conclusion doesn’t deter the game from prospective buyers. My intention is never to be harsh on a game from which fans adore everything the remake offers. But to inform with evidence what worked well and what didn’t for me. And pray the information helps someone.
5.7/10
Additional Material:
FFVII - Rebirth Ending Analysis - good defense on why this works - ending spoilers
My spoiler thoughts on FFVII Rebirth. Every chapter breakdown - same warning as above
When looking at the lenses of remakes, remasters, re-imaginings, reboots, definitive editions, ports, and plenty by the library classifications. It is important to understand where and what kind of vision the original and new are undertaking. Are companies such as Bluepoint trying to faithfully rework a game 1:1 without specific egregious artistic or personal changes in the first's tone and music? Do the budget remakes of Front Mission create a definitive edition? Can both the initial version and separate remakes such as Resident Evil stand side by side with one another? These are difficult questions to ask and honestly, I've seen many arguments for, against and nuance takes in the middle. Depending on the experience of the individual and the context from which is given in claims. The evidence and therefore the response may vary. To this end, I would posit a question. What is Final Fantasy VII Remake(FFVIIR)? Sounds like a dumb question, albeit questioning sprouts and fans, the answer may surprise you. In my eyes, the question is only a part of the whole pie I've been struggling to eat since completing the 2nd installment of the 2024 title called Rebirth. And in pursuit of such answers, I decided to replay FFVII Remake once more. Marking this as my third finished playthrough. I will state beforehand I’m not skilled enough to determine a decisive reply. Rather I've submitted 7 mixed feelings along with 7 praises. To demonstrate why I’m struggling and dearly pray the information presented will help a soul in a similar position. Forgive me if I offend anyone who holds the title near and dear to their hearts. That is not my intent. My troublesome concerns in the following text are not meant to be scathing nor as a rant. And are simply my observations on what could be improved. Followed by what I believe the team does well. With no spoilers as much as possible. Failing that, if at any point I’ve resorted heavily negatively or failing the above. Then you have my express permission to summon a big meteor and channel your energy to land on me and thus yeet me into the lifestream.
First - Faithful to the original, yet evokes new material. Over simply designating it as a remake. The official name should've been called a re-imagining. From the playstation store the description states "... is a reimagining of the iconic original with unforgettable characters, a mind-blowing story, and epic battles." For those confused on the word 'reimagine,' the definition according to merriam webster says "to imagine again or anew, or recreate." A remake by definition is "make anew or in a different form. - Remade." To explain in simpler terms. I perceive the definition to be a higher quality recreating the foremost vision with higher fidelity and optimizing whatever is lacking to a certain extent. A reimagining of this caliber goes beyond the constraints the previous presented to offer something unique and old. Straightaway, please erase notions of 1:1 you will find semblances and fresh adjustments present everywhere. I admit I am poorly ignorant of what the definition in the landscape of video games entailed and expected a remake before a reimagining. A gentle reminder to keep your expectations in check. Funnily enough, If you had talked to my 2020 self he would've given you a frowning face with a "What you talkin bout fool!?" while explaining why this is faithful. Man. Believe me, it is another instance of me desiring to go back in time to slap my past self silly. Regardless, a vital question comes to mind for fresh souls and veterans. Do I need to know the pioneers or titles from the compilation? The short response is no. For unfamiliar dudes. Don't worry this isn't me trying to scare prospective souls for the 2020 JRPG. Context is important, and sure you can gain a great deal more from playing the premier and other connected mediums within the universe. However, leave that to the fans who want something different. As someone who isn't a fan of the earliest yet devoured everything in the compilation minus Dirge. I sound hypocritical. Although I hold the seventh entry in the series in my top ten for the franchise. Don't get me wrong, this isn't me being an arbiter of who and what you can play. Eventually, it is your decision to decide. I love to inform/educate others for those not in the know or out of the loop. The long retort is a 'yes' and 'maybe' for fans and those somewhat familiar with the FF7 universe. Why? Well in a 2020 VG247 interview with the producer Yoshinori Kitase(Who directed the initial version) stated "...all of the lore from the works created after the original, the Compilation of Final Fantasy 7, that's all very much in the base of the canon for the remake, and going forward it will be too." The response was due to a question on how significant the "compilation ideas," will be brought to the table. What does this mean for the modern FF7 project split three ways? Well. in my eyes. They're moving outside a 're-imagining'. delving into territories of the 'reboot' and 'sequel' combination. Smashing like playdoh three qualities to present exciting and bold overhauls with the aged guards in the developer team and fresh blood behind the 1997 release. And does it stick to the landing? Hmm, I don't think I can state it definitively did, but my 2020 aging self and multiple friends, peers, and others dearly enjoy the remake. In that sense, I must articulate that's perfectly valid. But 2024 me posits an uncomfortable realization upon replaying before arriving at my conclusion. And that is...
Second - The linear sections need to take a backseat. A conclusion I reached since I've taken the liberty of recording my whole replay. For transparency, this means I played on classic difficulty and solely focused on the main narrative. Excluding the side-content because I already completed them in 2020. Where I finished a hard mode replay upon polishing off normal mode. I found dissecting the gameplay bits. 10+ linear sections in eighteen total chapters. Meaning player agency to move in an environment usually in a guided manner. Not bad by either means, however, these segments offer a repetitive structure of mandatory fights with some leeway to run past. Instead of opting for a free-form combat encounter at your leisure at any time. A famous example is Chrono Trigger where you had a bunch of areas to opt out of required battles by fleeing and running around mobs. Here we don't get that unless we run a sufficient distance or until each enemies are wiped out. Thereby, stalling players and a focus on rinse-and-repeat combat engagements. To drive the claim deeper these sectors take up 'xx' minutes. Ranging in my experience 20-50 min. Varying depending on the length: short, medium, and long. Includes watching cutscenes interlaced as you progress further in a route. Not noticeable if you partake in the voluntary areas and stop to take a break. An un-fun endeavor in dealing with yet a familiar path to tread and battle. Cutscenes and voiced commentary can only do so much if I'm forced to brawl with mob #1 and mob #2. Taking out the surprise and inducing...
Third - A rampant formulaic structure in abundance on the far side of the spectacle and splendor of the dystopian cyberpunk metropolis of Midgar. The place where the bulk takes place. Before I slash on ahead I must enunciate you control a character initially. Cloud Strife. Mercenary & EX-Soldier. Armed with a hulking greatsword busting from his back, he embarks on a dangerous job with eco-terrorists to stop a megacorporation from harnessing the planet's precious finite resource mako. An eyebrow-raising premise and I'll detail more later. Continuing from my claim earlier. The former is true. And though I'm no expert designer I don't like predictable sequences. The first offered short linear zones capable of completing in achingly fewer occasions than what my results found. Sharing authentic surprises making full use of the shift into 3D. By contrast, I found the measure of guided linear padding districts a chore than a fun participation. To be fair this is looking through the eyes of a replayer, yet for those newcomers this is probably fine. Although coming from Rebirth, I found the developers didn't learn their lesson and continued the practice to disastrous effects. Sure there are moments interspersed where we deal with minor obstacles in the way: switches, pulleys, levers, buttons, time limits and split parties, stealth, and walking passages. Creating opportunities to diversify the run then face another foe formula. Realistic to the point of unnecessary for the sake of immersiveness. Doesn’t make sense to hold a button to stress the act of pushing stuff such as hard levers. Hence, still not sufficient to make me jump in joy saying "GUYS THIS IS AWESOME!" Reality isn't the same as the expectations as I failed earlier above in my 1st point. Cut these chunks 50% to 100% in my opinion. Don't delay my gratification further to catch the next plot scene. Apply enjoyable no obstacles in overcoming or keep them extremely short. And to be frank we do distinguish semblances of these later on: trains, grappling hooks, and controlling big o'l arms, but their exposure is still too long for my tastes. Even slicing extended verticality would've helped in the level designs, slapping a sidequest abruptly can provide benefits.
Fourth - Thus padding becomes a constant companion of mine. From the FFVII Remake Ultimania book. An interview revealed "...in the original game, it takes about 7 hours to go through the Midgar section. In the Remake, the map would need to be in 3D, so there would be much more information to account for as well as minutes pass. To go from one point to another, and all that adds up. Since we knew that we would have to add scenarios to the story too, I knew that the overall gameplay of the Remake would be well enough to cover a whole game." - Tetsuya Nomura(co-director) said. Expanding the JRPG from 7 hours into a AAA term is unprecedented. Can you imagine if Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time was cut 1/3 and the 1/3 was blown into a full $70 price tag? The number of resources, man-hours, and sheer effort along with the Square Enix budget + marketing. Of one of the most recognized JRPG brands on Earth and selling millions to this day, with medals of commercial and critical success in the tail-end of 1997 is double eye-brow raising past my hairline. My times in 2020 were 76 hours to 100%, 45hr on a first playthrough plus completing the entire sidequests and 19 for my replay. Close to the submitted averages from How long to beat data. Therefore it is inconceivable for me to imagine entirely the work involved has non-existent padding. The opposite is true adding filler during unnecessary sections. Not bringing out various spoilers, but I dissected the chapters, discovering multiple instances of stretching the seven hours. I've already talked above about the linear pieces, but certain cutscenes need not be extended. I don't want to watch a mysterious guy with cat-like eyes gradually gazing at me, walking slowly and spontaneously whispering in my ear. Appearing as a ghost when you least expect it and serving as a major means to tease the audience. Extra examples inside. Such as a roach add forced skirmishes with a guy who isn't really a friend, but hold up maybe he is because we escaped? But the dude has no depth whatsoever beyond flamboyant actions and liberally using the word 'nakama' as if it's going out of style. Villain points of view in a corporate office were also forced, displayed no nuance, and hit the predictability counter. A single egregious instance is a bald disgusting filthy excuse of a being hungering for the female body was equally disturbing and felt excruciatingly too lengthy. I wanted to gag and run out of the room looking at the poor excuse of a 'man,' constantly as the camera shifted to him.
Fifth - Modifications aren't always better in the plot. Again no spoilers, but I can count on one hand some important moments I feel shouldn't have been revised. The absence of blood, replaced with a [redacted] trail takes out the fear and horror replaced with a sense of befuddlement. And this confusion is greatly enhanced immediately upon our [censored] shifts from their initial personality into apathy. Followed by a sense of bewilderment as continued plotbeats hammer our vision punching a sort of psychosis-like of what is real and unreal into our eyeballs. Lingering repeatedly as the camera oh so slowly focuses on them repeatedly. As a consequence, a major character's presence is overhauled due to the additional scenes pandering to their figure instead of using imagination, stories told by word of mouth to take hold of our party. I understand why these adjustments were made, and it is not horrible to the extent I'm moaning so loudly. Merely closing my eyelids and hmming while simultaneously imagining what is going on in the writer's head. Kazushige Nojima and Motomu Toriyama specifically. Because actively adding and revising these elements felt weaker. Teasing and baiting without explaining concretely. A more isn't always a better case.
Sixth - Extends to the unfamiliar content. Namely Whispers. No softly saying words to my ears kind. Rather, mysterious entities will show up occasionally. Not a spoiler because these are shown in the official trailer. Without stating too much, the entities follow an old, repetitive pattern. I'm sure you heard it already, but it is a formulaic response once again to obstruct our party. Why? points gently at the wide and above points I've said so far. In essence, these felt needless, fueling countless theory-crafting and driving discussions. Which by itself isn't bad. I love a good talk with possible outcomes and what-ifs. But after finishing Rebirth and replaying, I still cannot find solid reasons for their existence to entice freshbloods into a JRPG. I've come to note their existence as a red-stop light. Stopping my vehicle motion until a certain amount of minutes have passed before I can move forward. Their intervention in most aspects worsens instead of alluring the audience. Removing their presence entirely and organically adding an easier, less complicated-to-understand presence would've been a better solution in my honest opinion. The closest example I could consider is the film Arrival(2016). Again no major beats will be spoiled from the film. But within the cast is introduced to [blank]. We, both the cast and audience try to understand what this [blank] is. By the credits rolling, I came out with a pensive, but nodding my head action. As vaguely as I can put it. I understood the whole picture. Whispers don't give you the tools to understand. Merely dangling a carrot atop your head while you flop around illustrating a starving bunny failing to reach the juicy treat. And as someone who loves lore and connects it to the plot. The single aspect infuriated me and shot my suspension into a black hole.
Seventh - The sidequests offer little to decent value. Ultimately granting a reprieve in the narrative. Looking back on my notes I wondered why I didn't utter exceptional stuff on the optional matter. After reviewing the list and rewards from a guide I realized why. Serving as a means to take a break. And offer chore missions to perform. From my findings, plus five fetch objectives, 10+ extermination assignments, several minigames, missable missions if you fail to carry out preceding jobs beforehand, and requirements. For instance, completing a couple of them in full unlock a party member cutscene with our protagonist. Playing devil's advocate, these operations do serve a purpose. Helping the people in Midgar, specifically the individuals in the slums who are in dire need of their tasks. Not a bad thing. However, the design implementation of fetching materials, and items, and finding stuff becomes boring. fighting unique variants of creatures fought in the plot and never-seen monsters is a nice touch, but consummate rewards can be lacking. They consist of items and equipment of above-average quality with several weapons exclusively gained. To be fair, not all quests suck. I'd bark a handful off the top of my head is notable in the sense of me giving a single thumbs up. Wish they resonated far higher with deep lore connections and barely superficial relationships. Extending to the NPCs you meet as well. Remove missable errands, interject our party members asking Cloud for help, abrupt errands popping up, surprising injecting urgency, followed by relief. Simple tasks removing debris or gently carrying an injured person while slowly commentating juicy gossip would've elevated the non-essential areas into a must-play. Now I'm shaking my head, grimacing to speak anything nice.
Bonus for the Intermission DLC - I'll be blunt I don't enjoy the intermission Yuffie episode. Offered with a pricetag to consumers following the launch months down the line. The cost I paid was $20. I didn't feel it was worth to play. For those not in the know. Here's a description of what it entails in the store page.. "Play as Yuffie after she arrives in Midgar. There, she and another Wutaian operative are to rendezvous with Avalanche HQ, infiltrate the Shinra Building, and steal the conglomerate's most powerful materia. This DLC unfolds over two chapters that are separate from the main narrative, and also adds a combat simulator fight against Weiss to the PlayStation®5 version." I like Yuffie, she offers a naive optimistic view marred by her grudge in a harsh world ruled by a megacorporation. Has clear goals and her infectious go-to attitude hardly fails to bring a grin on my face. However, playing as her I realized the pitfalls specifically the linearity added nothing satisfying. Launching my big ninja shuriken to hit objects in the environment and climbing and overcoming obstacles from battling leaves me a bitter taste I find in wasabi. Outside of a handful of cutscenes with her Wutaian operative who is handsome and cool. Conveying the strange if not interesting dynamic the duo share. And that was easily the strongest aspect displayed along with a lesser extent a tower defense minigame called Fort Condor. What grinds my gears paying $20 is how little the main plot moves. Two plus chapters and a combat simulator I have no interest in. The former is heavily lacking despite trying to intersperse the duo's movements while the main story progresses back in the base FF7 crew. As a consequence, very little I enjoyed besides learning background about her once her mission finishes. A modicum of context for her soon-to-be joining with the main cast in Rebirth. And why she's acting in a certain manner. A lack of meaningful content I paid a substantial amount leaves me full of regret. I wish I had the foresight to travel in time and watch a Let's Play instead. There goes my five hours never returning. For those who adore the fullest extent granted I salute you.
Phew. With utterly nasty stuff out of the way. I can now focus on the best parts. And it's funny, I started my replay in search for validation of my troubled thoughts and came out picking spare facets I revel in.
I - Body gestures, facial expressions, and voice acting beautifully translate the 1997 3D era into the modern enriching our beloved party. The 2020 title wonderfully demonstrates this. The guy with a machine gun arm(Voiced by John Eric Bentley) is easily my favorite dude. Charismatic, body of action, gung-ho yet deep within his tough, gruff exterior lies a loving family dude. His speeches and comradery brighten my days whenever he's on screen. A female martial artist/bartender(Voiced by Britt Baron) is soft-spoken but belays a deep love for her friends. Giving a helping hand to whoever her companions are. Yet her eyeballs and facial expressions along with a fraction of timidness tell a deeper story. She doesn't display her emotions a lot, from her face, but generally her body motions. Baron's voice lends a hidden quality I found myself talking internally "Oh these cheeky buggers." That's the max I'll pass to stop myself from blurting a cool detail. Perhaps the most striking and given the maximum enhanced flair is the flower girl(played by Briana White) our merc meets later on. Wearing fully her emotions on her sleeve, she charges ahead, setting the stage yet doesn't outshine her fellow members. Trying different things and is unafraid to speak her mind with gestures and emoting so gracefully but not to the extent of over-dramatic illustrating Nicholas Cageness as some haters love to slap on him. She exudes a gentle, caring personality in contrast to the people you witness. Endearingly loveable. Complementing their physical presence is a flirty, but kind female, a not-Rambo-like dude, except very friendly and thinks with backups. An affectionate and true-to-heart guy who loves a tasty meal. And last but not least the guy with a huge buster sword on his back who I'll continue to give the benefit of the doubt behind his no-nonsense values but continues to help his comrades for a solid price. The villains to keep things short. I hate them substantially. Good job fellas.
II - Worldbuilding is satisfying to learn. The key to a decent to quality worldbuilding in my opinion is if the player connects to the lore, the relationships individuals have with NPCs, antagonists, and surrounding rules, laws, religion, beliefs, and values, presented in an effective way grabbing hold the audience, never breaking apart, fastening a desire to learn further. Here I had a deeper love for the universe entailed. Misinformation and propaganda became easily digestible and prevalent sifting through what is true and false information. I love the added depth in the NPCs. We behold how they act, their gripes given freely, their daily lives in the slums, what assistance they need, and who is perpetrating the evils nearby causing a disturbance. Adjusting their dialogue as the world moves forward. The cause and effect our colleagues undergo as beats pass. Witnessing the consequences of our actions. Enriching my proficiency. I grasped fear at the sheer scale of devastation. Helpless in my struggle to conjure meaningful methods of assistance. Warmly embraced the power of friendship. Lending a hand to those in need while meeting an angel. And helped a poor guy who seemed to have enough bad luck etched onto his soul.
III - Guided experience of linearity. Didn't mind the linearity at every opportunity. I mentioned before the linear sections needed to take a backseat and it's true. However, I appreciate the decent length and restraint of levels to hold being a maze-esque or overstaying their welcome. Grateful, exploration isn't filled to the brim with useless collectibles, an excess of loot, and a tedious length. Feels just right to be led to my next storybeat without a major hang-up stalling me. Consequently guiding me into a satisfactory mood. The commentary members' sprouts occasionally aid in removing the dullness permeating. Reminds me of FFXIII. This comes as no surprise since the director Motomu Toriyama resides with the FF7 crew. For what it's worth, it is an improvement from the hallway nature prior. Though to be frank I didn't mind them considering it was my official gateway into the franchise heh.
IV - Supplementary characterization made me smile a lot. I remember key specifics from FF7 and to behold my beloved characters now provides increased background, insight into their interpersonal relationships and human characteristics in expanded detail is one of the strongest I adore. Every person receives a modest to larger-than-life expansion for the better I reckon. A flirty armor girl surprised me. In her hidden motivations concerning family and her previous background. A splinter cell obtained considerable screentime that I previously forgot. Wedge endeared me for his loveable nature extending beyond his friends namely cats and tasty meals. Biggs worries a lot and is unable to stop overthinking things. Yet has a heart of gold. I can go on, but I believe the interesting conversations spoken out of fights and during walks heighten the sense of camaraderie and friendship blooming. Heartwarming to witness first impressions mellow out, distrust and suspicions thawing in the face of a common enemy. Giving out a helping hand, handshakes, high-fives with a motion to stand by fellow companions instead of walking away is a powerful show, don't tell. Precious bonds are forging and solidifying and it is awesome viewing these interactions.
V - The cinematography is breathtaking. I vividly remember iconic moments in the past. Thus perceiving them recreated in magnificent care is a sight to behold. Fluid animations, on-the-spot lip-sync, no out-of-character or sharp cuts. Action sequences offer an intense rush following combat during an encounter or moving along the plot. The camera is the star and I am on the edge of my seat looking forward to the next cutscene coming alive. I adore catching my beloved group shine. Panning the screen exhibits landscape shots to breathe in both the sheer beauty of the world and horror. Equally represented. I am thankful the camera doesn't move too fatal parading useless shots. I figure 90%+ of the whole work done by the cinematics is rendering shock and awe. From the biggest to smallest moments. I cannot for the life of me complain about the artistic vision. Pleased to note everything from monsters to humans, made with painstaking clarity and life. Conversations between allies are not too long or too short. Employing no waste. Made me appreciate discussions and commentary in and outside of battles. Body gestures, facial expressions, and voice acting coalesce achieving realism. Gluing on hidden peculiarities I may have missed. Antagonists also share a respectable amount of screen focus. Feeling far in tune with a darker nature behind fake placid expressions. Honestly, I'm clenching my teeth a bit whenever their presence is displayed. Seriously wish I could sockem into pancakes if I had One-Punch-Man's power. Ughhh.
VI - Combat runs optimally whereas before they staggered and walked tall. As Michael Higham first coined the term. Transforming two plus decades of the Active Time Battle(ATB) system for the 2020s is no small task. Has to be engaging, and tactical, delving into simple to complex maneuvers. FFVIIR succeeds in this aspect allowing gateways and fans a fresh, but familiar way to eliminate foes. FFXIII stagger mechanic is used, intensifying deadly blows on bosses by increasing their percentage. Spells, items, and abilities fluidly intersect. Defending, attacking, and retreating are viable options. Likewise activating a limit break. Ultimate moves by our members display a spectacle flourish as a coup de grace. A battle system worth revisiting and as someone who didn't tire of it on my 3rd run that says a lot on sheer robustness. Hard mode concentrates the finer aspects of fine-tuning equipment, materia(ability/passive modifiers during the flow of skirmishes), and proper item usage to etch a challenging win past a hard-fought match. Forming not an insurmountable cliff to climb. But a gradual incline passes the conventional rinse and repeat tactics of normal mode. Additionally, VR battles and completing optional objectives serve as a nice segway to learning the tricks of the trade. Granting a deeper fulfillment for those hungry for extended bloodthirsty encounters.
VII - New is cool and I don't care about the ancient material. And even if I did care, there is adequate 'new' content giving me a boatload of incentives to look forward to in the future. Hmph! I was imagining for a lengthy period of a scenario where I didn't play the compilation entries, or original and watched the extended media. Concluding, enough enjoyable parts to satisfy anyone(to varying degrees). In spite of my 7 mixed feelings affecting my overall experience. Yes, it is a remake, yes it is a re-imagining but it doesn't discount my mixed feelings and enjoyment. Instead, it brings perspective, reflection, and a culmination of everything I sought and gained in 2020. Everyone who loves it or almost the entire pie, is in for a tasty treat. My past self most certainly would agree. But my 2024 self I'm moving onwards over my honeymoon phase to realize the cracks forming. On the far side of splendor lies a troubled heart. I find myself beset with multiple questions on what constitutes a viable reimagining/remake/reboot. I'll probably ruminate for years to come constantly re-evaluating the ever-eluding dilemma. For now to answer what I said previously what is Final Fantasy VII Remake? It is a serviceable that could be improved remake striving to uphold, surpass, and capture new and youthful veterans. Regardless of reception, they move to the beat of their drum. Varying in results, what matters is what you think of the title. Feelings strong or minor are fair and valid. And it is as the 2015 E3 trailer prophesies.
"...there are now beginnings of a stir. The reunion at hand may bring joy; it may bring fear. But let us embrace whatever it brings..."
7/10
References and Additional Material:
DF’s 2020 Unpublished review + spoiler thoughts
2020 VG247 interview
2020 FFVII Remake Ultimania book. An interview
FF7R List and Rewards from a Guide
Original title by Michael Higham
FF7 Remake Official trailer
2015 Final Fantasy E3 trailer
First - Faithful to the original, yet evokes new material. Over simply designating it as a remake. The official name should've been called a re-imagining. From the playstation store the description states "... is a reimagining of the iconic original with unforgettable characters, a mind-blowing story, and epic battles." For those confused on the word 'reimagine,' the definition according to merriam webster says "to imagine again or anew, or recreate." A remake by definition is "make anew or in a different form. - Remade." To explain in simpler terms. I perceive the definition to be a higher quality recreating the foremost vision with higher fidelity and optimizing whatever is lacking to a certain extent. A reimagining of this caliber goes beyond the constraints the previous presented to offer something unique and old. Straightaway, please erase notions of 1:1 you will find semblances and fresh adjustments present everywhere. I admit I am poorly ignorant of what the definition in the landscape of video games entailed and expected a remake before a reimagining. A gentle reminder to keep your expectations in check. Funnily enough, If you had talked to my 2020 self he would've given you a frowning face with a "What you talkin bout fool!?" while explaining why this is faithful. Man. Believe me, it is another instance of me desiring to go back in time to slap my past self silly. Regardless, a vital question comes to mind for fresh souls and veterans. Do I need to know the pioneers or titles from the compilation? The short response is no. For unfamiliar dudes. Don't worry this isn't me trying to scare prospective souls for the 2020 JRPG. Context is important, and sure you can gain a great deal more from playing the premier and other connected mediums within the universe. However, leave that to the fans who want something different. As someone who isn't a fan of the earliest yet devoured everything in the compilation minus Dirge. I sound hypocritical. Although I hold the seventh entry in the series in my top ten for the franchise. Don't get me wrong, this isn't me being an arbiter of who and what you can play. Eventually, it is your decision to decide. I love to inform/educate others for those not in the know or out of the loop. The long retort is a 'yes' and 'maybe' for fans and those somewhat familiar with the FF7 universe. Why? Well in a 2020 VG247 interview with the producer Yoshinori Kitase(Who directed the initial version) stated "...all of the lore from the works created after the original, the Compilation of Final Fantasy 7, that's all very much in the base of the canon for the remake, and going forward it will be too." The response was due to a question on how significant the "compilation ideas," will be brought to the table. What does this mean for the modern FF7 project split three ways? Well. in my eyes. They're moving outside a 're-imagining'. delving into territories of the 'reboot' and 'sequel' combination. Smashing like playdoh three qualities to present exciting and bold overhauls with the aged guards in the developer team and fresh blood behind the 1997 release. And does it stick to the landing? Hmm, I don't think I can state it definitively did, but my 2020 aging self and multiple friends, peers, and others dearly enjoy the remake. In that sense, I must articulate that's perfectly valid. But 2024 me posits an uncomfortable realization upon replaying before arriving at my conclusion. And that is...
Second - The linear sections need to take a backseat. A conclusion I reached since I've taken the liberty of recording my whole replay. For transparency, this means I played on classic difficulty and solely focused on the main narrative. Excluding the side-content because I already completed them in 2020. Where I finished a hard mode replay upon polishing off normal mode. I found dissecting the gameplay bits. 10+ linear sections in eighteen total chapters. Meaning player agency to move in an environment usually in a guided manner. Not bad by either means, however, these segments offer a repetitive structure of mandatory fights with some leeway to run past. Instead of opting for a free-form combat encounter at your leisure at any time. A famous example is Chrono Trigger where you had a bunch of areas to opt out of required battles by fleeing and running around mobs. Here we don't get that unless we run a sufficient distance or until each enemies are wiped out. Thereby, stalling players and a focus on rinse-and-repeat combat engagements. To drive the claim deeper these sectors take up 'xx' minutes. Ranging in my experience 20-50 min. Varying depending on the length: short, medium, and long. Includes watching cutscenes interlaced as you progress further in a route. Not noticeable if you partake in the voluntary areas and stop to take a break. An un-fun endeavor in dealing with yet a familiar path to tread and battle. Cutscenes and voiced commentary can only do so much if I'm forced to brawl with mob #1 and mob #2. Taking out the surprise and inducing...
Third - A rampant formulaic structure in abundance on the far side of the spectacle and splendor of the dystopian cyberpunk metropolis of Midgar. The place where the bulk takes place. Before I slash on ahead I must enunciate you control a character initially. Cloud Strife. Mercenary & EX-Soldier. Armed with a hulking greatsword busting from his back, he embarks on a dangerous job with eco-terrorists to stop a megacorporation from harnessing the planet's precious finite resource mako. An eyebrow-raising premise and I'll detail more later. Continuing from my claim earlier. The former is true. And though I'm no expert designer I don't like predictable sequences. The first offered short linear zones capable of completing in achingly fewer occasions than what my results found. Sharing authentic surprises making full use of the shift into 3D. By contrast, I found the measure of guided linear padding districts a chore than a fun participation. To be fair this is looking through the eyes of a replayer, yet for those newcomers this is probably fine. Although coming from Rebirth, I found the developers didn't learn their lesson and continued the practice to disastrous effects. Sure there are moments interspersed where we deal with minor obstacles in the way: switches, pulleys, levers, buttons, time limits and split parties, stealth, and walking passages. Creating opportunities to diversify the run then face another foe formula. Realistic to the point of unnecessary for the sake of immersiveness. Doesn’t make sense to hold a button to stress the act of pushing stuff such as hard levers. Hence, still not sufficient to make me jump in joy saying "GUYS THIS IS AWESOME!" Reality isn't the same as the expectations as I failed earlier above in my 1st point. Cut these chunks 50% to 100% in my opinion. Don't delay my gratification further to catch the next plot scene. Apply enjoyable no obstacles in overcoming or keep them extremely short. And to be frank we do distinguish semblances of these later on: trains, grappling hooks, and controlling big o'l arms, but their exposure is still too long for my tastes. Even slicing extended verticality would've helped in the level designs, slapping a sidequest abruptly can provide benefits.
Fourth - Thus padding becomes a constant companion of mine. From the FFVII Remake Ultimania book. An interview revealed "...in the original game, it takes about 7 hours to go through the Midgar section. In the Remake, the map would need to be in 3D, so there would be much more information to account for as well as minutes pass. To go from one point to another, and all that adds up. Since we knew that we would have to add scenarios to the story too, I knew that the overall gameplay of the Remake would be well enough to cover a whole game." - Tetsuya Nomura(co-director) said. Expanding the JRPG from 7 hours into a AAA term is unprecedented. Can you imagine if Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time was cut 1/3 and the 1/3 was blown into a full $70 price tag? The number of resources, man-hours, and sheer effort along with the Square Enix budget + marketing. Of one of the most recognized JRPG brands on Earth and selling millions to this day, with medals of commercial and critical success in the tail-end of 1997 is double eye-brow raising past my hairline. My times in 2020 were 76 hours to 100%, 45hr on a first playthrough plus completing the entire sidequests and 19 for my replay. Close to the submitted averages from How long to beat data. Therefore it is inconceivable for me to imagine entirely the work involved has non-existent padding. The opposite is true adding filler during unnecessary sections. Not bringing out various spoilers, but I dissected the chapters, discovering multiple instances of stretching the seven hours. I've already talked above about the linear pieces, but certain cutscenes need not be extended. I don't want to watch a mysterious guy with cat-like eyes gradually gazing at me, walking slowly and spontaneously whispering in my ear. Appearing as a ghost when you least expect it and serving as a major means to tease the audience. Extra examples inside. Such as a roach add forced skirmishes with a guy who isn't really a friend, but hold up maybe he is because we escaped? But the dude has no depth whatsoever beyond flamboyant actions and liberally using the word 'nakama' as if it's going out of style. Villain points of view in a corporate office were also forced, displayed no nuance, and hit the predictability counter. A single egregious instance is a bald disgusting filthy excuse of a being hungering for the female body was equally disturbing and felt excruciatingly too lengthy. I wanted to gag and run out of the room looking at the poor excuse of a 'man,' constantly as the camera shifted to him.
Fifth - Modifications aren't always better in the plot. Again no spoilers, but I can count on one hand some important moments I feel shouldn't have been revised. The absence of blood, replaced with a [redacted] trail takes out the fear and horror replaced with a sense of befuddlement. And this confusion is greatly enhanced immediately upon our [censored] shifts from their initial personality into apathy. Followed by a sense of bewilderment as continued plotbeats hammer our vision punching a sort of psychosis-like of what is real and unreal into our eyeballs. Lingering repeatedly as the camera oh so slowly focuses on them repeatedly. As a consequence, a major character's presence is overhauled due to the additional scenes pandering to their figure instead of using imagination, stories told by word of mouth to take hold of our party. I understand why these adjustments were made, and it is not horrible to the extent I'm moaning so loudly. Merely closing my eyelids and hmming while simultaneously imagining what is going on in the writer's head. Kazushige Nojima and Motomu Toriyama specifically. Because actively adding and revising these elements felt weaker. Teasing and baiting without explaining concretely. A more isn't always a better case.
Sixth - Extends to the unfamiliar content. Namely Whispers. No softly saying words to my ears kind. Rather, mysterious entities will show up occasionally. Not a spoiler because these are shown in the official trailer. Without stating too much, the entities follow an old, repetitive pattern. I'm sure you heard it already, but it is a formulaic response once again to obstruct our party. Why? points gently at the wide and above points I've said so far. In essence, these felt needless, fueling countless theory-crafting and driving discussions. Which by itself isn't bad. I love a good talk with possible outcomes and what-ifs. But after finishing Rebirth and replaying, I still cannot find solid reasons for their existence to entice freshbloods into a JRPG. I've come to note their existence as a red-stop light. Stopping my vehicle motion until a certain amount of minutes have passed before I can move forward. Their intervention in most aspects worsens instead of alluring the audience. Removing their presence entirely and organically adding an easier, less complicated-to-understand presence would've been a better solution in my honest opinion. The closest example I could consider is the film Arrival(2016). Again no major beats will be spoiled from the film. But within the cast is introduced to [blank]. We, both the cast and audience try to understand what this [blank] is. By the credits rolling, I came out with a pensive, but nodding my head action. As vaguely as I can put it. I understood the whole picture. Whispers don't give you the tools to understand. Merely dangling a carrot atop your head while you flop around illustrating a starving bunny failing to reach the juicy treat. And as someone who loves lore and connects it to the plot. The single aspect infuriated me and shot my suspension into a black hole.
Seventh - The sidequests offer little to decent value. Ultimately granting a reprieve in the narrative. Looking back on my notes I wondered why I didn't utter exceptional stuff on the optional matter. After reviewing the list and rewards from a guide I realized why. Serving as a means to take a break. And offer chore missions to perform. From my findings, plus five fetch objectives, 10+ extermination assignments, several minigames, missable missions if you fail to carry out preceding jobs beforehand, and requirements. For instance, completing a couple of them in full unlock a party member cutscene with our protagonist. Playing devil's advocate, these operations do serve a purpose. Helping the people in Midgar, specifically the individuals in the slums who are in dire need of their tasks. Not a bad thing. However, the design implementation of fetching materials, and items, and finding stuff becomes boring. fighting unique variants of creatures fought in the plot and never-seen monsters is a nice touch, but consummate rewards can be lacking. They consist of items and equipment of above-average quality with several weapons exclusively gained. To be fair, not all quests suck. I'd bark a handful off the top of my head is notable in the sense of me giving a single thumbs up. Wish they resonated far higher with deep lore connections and barely superficial relationships. Extending to the NPCs you meet as well. Remove missable errands, interject our party members asking Cloud for help, abrupt errands popping up, surprising injecting urgency, followed by relief. Simple tasks removing debris or gently carrying an injured person while slowly commentating juicy gossip would've elevated the non-essential areas into a must-play. Now I'm shaking my head, grimacing to speak anything nice.
Bonus for the Intermission DLC - I'll be blunt I don't enjoy the intermission Yuffie episode. Offered with a pricetag to consumers following the launch months down the line. The cost I paid was $20. I didn't feel it was worth to play. For those not in the know. Here's a description of what it entails in the store page.. "Play as Yuffie after she arrives in Midgar. There, she and another Wutaian operative are to rendezvous with Avalanche HQ, infiltrate the Shinra Building, and steal the conglomerate's most powerful materia. This DLC unfolds over two chapters that are separate from the main narrative, and also adds a combat simulator fight against Weiss to the PlayStation®5 version." I like Yuffie, she offers a naive optimistic view marred by her grudge in a harsh world ruled by a megacorporation. Has clear goals and her infectious go-to attitude hardly fails to bring a grin on my face. However, playing as her I realized the pitfalls specifically the linearity added nothing satisfying. Launching my big ninja shuriken to hit objects in the environment and climbing and overcoming obstacles from battling leaves me a bitter taste I find in wasabi. Outside of a handful of cutscenes with her Wutaian operative who is handsome and cool. Conveying the strange if not interesting dynamic the duo share. And that was easily the strongest aspect displayed along with a lesser extent a tower defense minigame called Fort Condor. What grinds my gears paying $20 is how little the main plot moves. Two plus chapters and a combat simulator I have no interest in. The former is heavily lacking despite trying to intersperse the duo's movements while the main story progresses back in the base FF7 crew. As a consequence, very little I enjoyed besides learning background about her once her mission finishes. A modicum of context for her soon-to-be joining with the main cast in Rebirth. And why she's acting in a certain manner. A lack of meaningful content I paid a substantial amount leaves me full of regret. I wish I had the foresight to travel in time and watch a Let's Play instead. There goes my five hours never returning. For those who adore the fullest extent granted I salute you.
Phew. With utterly nasty stuff out of the way. I can now focus on the best parts. And it's funny, I started my replay in search for validation of my troubled thoughts and came out picking spare facets I revel in.
I - Body gestures, facial expressions, and voice acting beautifully translate the 1997 3D era into the modern enriching our beloved party. The 2020 title wonderfully demonstrates this. The guy with a machine gun arm(Voiced by John Eric Bentley) is easily my favorite dude. Charismatic, body of action, gung-ho yet deep within his tough, gruff exterior lies a loving family dude. His speeches and comradery brighten my days whenever he's on screen. A female martial artist/bartender(Voiced by Britt Baron) is soft-spoken but belays a deep love for her friends. Giving a helping hand to whoever her companions are. Yet her eyeballs and facial expressions along with a fraction of timidness tell a deeper story. She doesn't display her emotions a lot, from her face, but generally her body motions. Baron's voice lends a hidden quality I found myself talking internally "Oh these cheeky buggers." That's the max I'll pass to stop myself from blurting a cool detail. Perhaps the most striking and given the maximum enhanced flair is the flower girl(played by Briana White) our merc meets later on. Wearing fully her emotions on her sleeve, she charges ahead, setting the stage yet doesn't outshine her fellow members. Trying different things and is unafraid to speak her mind with gestures and emoting so gracefully but not to the extent of over-dramatic illustrating Nicholas Cageness as some haters love to slap on him. She exudes a gentle, caring personality in contrast to the people you witness. Endearingly loveable. Complementing their physical presence is a flirty, but kind female, a not-Rambo-like dude, except very friendly and thinks with backups. An affectionate and true-to-heart guy who loves a tasty meal. And last but not least the guy with a huge buster sword on his back who I'll continue to give the benefit of the doubt behind his no-nonsense values but continues to help his comrades for a solid price. The villains to keep things short. I hate them substantially. Good job fellas.
II - Worldbuilding is satisfying to learn. The key to a decent to quality worldbuilding in my opinion is if the player connects to the lore, the relationships individuals have with NPCs, antagonists, and surrounding rules, laws, religion, beliefs, and values, presented in an effective way grabbing hold the audience, never breaking apart, fastening a desire to learn further. Here I had a deeper love for the universe entailed. Misinformation and propaganda became easily digestible and prevalent sifting through what is true and false information. I love the added depth in the NPCs. We behold how they act, their gripes given freely, their daily lives in the slums, what assistance they need, and who is perpetrating the evils nearby causing a disturbance. Adjusting their dialogue as the world moves forward. The cause and effect our colleagues undergo as beats pass. Witnessing the consequences of our actions. Enriching my proficiency. I grasped fear at the sheer scale of devastation. Helpless in my struggle to conjure meaningful methods of assistance. Warmly embraced the power of friendship. Lending a hand to those in need while meeting an angel. And helped a poor guy who seemed to have enough bad luck etched onto his soul.
III - Guided experience of linearity. Didn't mind the linearity at every opportunity. I mentioned before the linear sections needed to take a backseat and it's true. However, I appreciate the decent length and restraint of levels to hold being a maze-esque or overstaying their welcome. Grateful, exploration isn't filled to the brim with useless collectibles, an excess of loot, and a tedious length. Feels just right to be led to my next storybeat without a major hang-up stalling me. Consequently guiding me into a satisfactory mood. The commentary members' sprouts occasionally aid in removing the dullness permeating. Reminds me of FFXIII. This comes as no surprise since the director Motomu Toriyama resides with the FF7 crew. For what it's worth, it is an improvement from the hallway nature prior. Though to be frank I didn't mind them considering it was my official gateway into the franchise heh.
IV - Supplementary characterization made me smile a lot. I remember key specifics from FF7 and to behold my beloved characters now provides increased background, insight into their interpersonal relationships and human characteristics in expanded detail is one of the strongest I adore. Every person receives a modest to larger-than-life expansion for the better I reckon. A flirty armor girl surprised me. In her hidden motivations concerning family and her previous background. A splinter cell obtained considerable screentime that I previously forgot. Wedge endeared me for his loveable nature extending beyond his friends namely cats and tasty meals. Biggs worries a lot and is unable to stop overthinking things. Yet has a heart of gold. I can go on, but I believe the interesting conversations spoken out of fights and during walks heighten the sense of camaraderie and friendship blooming. Heartwarming to witness first impressions mellow out, distrust and suspicions thawing in the face of a common enemy. Giving out a helping hand, handshakes, high-fives with a motion to stand by fellow companions instead of walking away is a powerful show, don't tell. Precious bonds are forging and solidifying and it is awesome viewing these interactions.
V - The cinematography is breathtaking. I vividly remember iconic moments in the past. Thus perceiving them recreated in magnificent care is a sight to behold. Fluid animations, on-the-spot lip-sync, no out-of-character or sharp cuts. Action sequences offer an intense rush following combat during an encounter or moving along the plot. The camera is the star and I am on the edge of my seat looking forward to the next cutscene coming alive. I adore catching my beloved group shine. Panning the screen exhibits landscape shots to breathe in both the sheer beauty of the world and horror. Equally represented. I am thankful the camera doesn't move too fatal parading useless shots. I figure 90%+ of the whole work done by the cinematics is rendering shock and awe. From the biggest to smallest moments. I cannot for the life of me complain about the artistic vision. Pleased to note everything from monsters to humans, made with painstaking clarity and life. Conversations between allies are not too long or too short. Employing no waste. Made me appreciate discussions and commentary in and outside of battles. Body gestures, facial expressions, and voice acting coalesce achieving realism. Gluing on hidden peculiarities I may have missed. Antagonists also share a respectable amount of screen focus. Feeling far in tune with a darker nature behind fake placid expressions. Honestly, I'm clenching my teeth a bit whenever their presence is displayed. Seriously wish I could sockem into pancakes if I had One-Punch-Man's power. Ughhh.
VI - Combat runs optimally whereas before they staggered and walked tall. As Michael Higham first coined the term. Transforming two plus decades of the Active Time Battle(ATB) system for the 2020s is no small task. Has to be engaging, and tactical, delving into simple to complex maneuvers. FFVIIR succeeds in this aspect allowing gateways and fans a fresh, but familiar way to eliminate foes. FFXIII stagger mechanic is used, intensifying deadly blows on bosses by increasing their percentage. Spells, items, and abilities fluidly intersect. Defending, attacking, and retreating are viable options. Likewise activating a limit break. Ultimate moves by our members display a spectacle flourish as a coup de grace. A battle system worth revisiting and as someone who didn't tire of it on my 3rd run that says a lot on sheer robustness. Hard mode concentrates the finer aspects of fine-tuning equipment, materia(ability/passive modifiers during the flow of skirmishes), and proper item usage to etch a challenging win past a hard-fought match. Forming not an insurmountable cliff to climb. But a gradual incline passes the conventional rinse and repeat tactics of normal mode. Additionally, VR battles and completing optional objectives serve as a nice segway to learning the tricks of the trade. Granting a deeper fulfillment for those hungry for extended bloodthirsty encounters.
VII - New is cool and I don't care about the ancient material. And even if I did care, there is adequate 'new' content giving me a boatload of incentives to look forward to in the future. Hmph! I was imagining for a lengthy period of a scenario where I didn't play the compilation entries, or original and watched the extended media. Concluding, enough enjoyable parts to satisfy anyone(to varying degrees). In spite of my 7 mixed feelings affecting my overall experience. Yes, it is a remake, yes it is a re-imagining but it doesn't discount my mixed feelings and enjoyment. Instead, it brings perspective, reflection, and a culmination of everything I sought and gained in 2020. Everyone who loves it or almost the entire pie, is in for a tasty treat. My past self most certainly would agree. But my 2024 self I'm moving onwards over my honeymoon phase to realize the cracks forming. On the far side of splendor lies a troubled heart. I find myself beset with multiple questions on what constitutes a viable reimagining/remake/reboot. I'll probably ruminate for years to come constantly re-evaluating the ever-eluding dilemma. For now to answer what I said previously what is Final Fantasy VII Remake? It is a serviceable that could be improved remake striving to uphold, surpass, and capture new and youthful veterans. Regardless of reception, they move to the beat of their drum. Varying in results, what matters is what you think of the title. Feelings strong or minor are fair and valid. And it is as the 2015 E3 trailer prophesies.
"...there are now beginnings of a stir. The reunion at hand may bring joy; it may bring fear. But let us embrace whatever it brings..."
7/10
References and Additional Material:
DF’s 2020 Unpublished review + spoiler thoughts
2020 VG247 interview
2020 FFVII Remake Ultimania book. An interview
FF7R List and Rewards from a Guide
Original title by Michael Higham
FF7 Remake Official trailer
2015 Final Fantasy E3 trailer
1999
Ever since the Black Parade released to marvelous acclaim hitting Moddb’s mod of the year for 2023. I couldn’t help but ask myself “Is Thief good?” In an effort to see if the game holds up, I decided to start with the first installment before I inevitably reach the mod down the road. And I must say after 28 hours on expert difficulty. Thief Gold(Thief 1/T1) by Looking Glass Studio. Is a dark, thrilling, and fulfilling experience in reigniting all the checkmarks I like and love in the stealth realm. And I am glad to be back in the genre once again. From my days in Metal Gear, Syphon Filter & Old Assassin’s Creed.
Originally called Thief: The Dark Project. The gold edition adds three new missions to deepen the plot and five new enemies. Edited original missions with a slew of bug fixes. So this feels like a definitive edition. Although I did have to use several mods I’ll detail later on to bring the game up to modern standards.
The premise is simple and you control a single character Garret who is a master thief. With no special powers whatsoever. His days from being a homeless orphan were discarded long ago since he joined a secret order. Years later he leaves and decides to make it on his own. Delving into the path of thievery without remorse to fulfill his greed for money. He is ambitious, selfish, cynical, and an untraditional protagonist. All qualities I don’t like at all for a main character and yet by the time the end credits are rolling, I am very tempted to head right into the sequel to see what’s next in store for him.
Worldbuilding is subtle, dark, and strangely yet fittingly humorous at times. A mix of middle ages, dark fantasy, and on the cusp of an industrial revolution. With lore dropping from scrolls and conversations between guards during their breaks. Offering vital gossip on the citizenry, complaints of co-workers, and my personal favorite lore stories and convenient tips/hints that may connect to the main cast. A method to reach a previously unassailable location. Secrets will be revealed unintentionally and a good eavesdropper should without hesitation use it to their advantage to maximum effect. G-man will also monologue amongst himself and will at times drop interesting commentary during work. Usually comments like being dumbfounded or witty responses to abrupt changes in objectives. A nice change of pace from the otherwise silence permeating while you lurk in the shadows. Parchment readings and books offer insightful lessons and teachings from the factions of Hammerites and the Pagans. Both believe in their gods in a way bordering unhealthy zealotry and are at odds with one another. The supernatural elements took me by surprise many times. Spells, incantations, and rituals are fitting. Inducing a mystical wonder beyond the medieval. Zombies, ghosts, and malformed supernatural creatures are here to stay. Oh, and bugs like mutated spiders I didn’t think were a threat had me running away once I caught sight of them. Seriously, how can they jump so high and shoot acid!? Machinery such as factories, smelting tools, and items with a steady supply of lava provide their citizenry with new forms of artificial light instead of the traditional natural fire to illuminate surroundings. Creating an interesting level design throughout, a blend of medieval housing full of conventional bricks, wooden planks, and pavement with the power of adopting steel into the surroundings.
Quite ingenious for a stealth-based gameplay approach back in the old days. Erase approaches such as shooting from afar with guns or tasing anyone to oblivion. The game operates on a mission structure. Before a mission starts you are given a briefing of the events prior, a chance to buy equipment using gold earned from a prior mission, and a handy, but vague map. Embarking on a new place in the City at various times. Always looking forward to a new place to see the sightsand steal whatever I can of course. Sometimes your goals will change during an operation. Good o’l no plan survives contact with the enemy is important to keep in mind. Therefore, caution is advised when conducting skullduggery. But hey Garrett has immensely useful tools to help. No stamina gauge when swinging weapons. Innate ability knocking a bow and arrows. The blackjack is easily the #1 most useful weapon. Capable of one-shotting nearly every enemy into blissful unconsciousness. They never get back up despite hours passing by too! You can move them into shadowed areas preventing patrols from encountering them and thus initiating an alarm at a whole base. Arrows dipped in fire, water, gas, and rope are likewise vital in completing a task. Blasting creatures with fire is like launching a missile capable of damaging multiple enemies. Water aids in dousing torches causing the light in room/s to darken and therefore allowing one mistah G to conduct his activities in better stealth mode than dressing up like an orange ninja from a shinobi world. Gas is powerful. No not fart ones, these kinds if launched correctly can take out groups of enemies into dreamland. Vital when being chased by a horde of angry guards…
Additionally, the rope arrow single-handedly changed my whole experience. Making me think outside the box. Reminds me of using the GLOO gun from Prey and applying the weapon to reach places I wouldn’t otherwise be allowed to exploit regular means. The cable, by comparison, allows one to hit any wooden surface dropping a decent length of string. Becoming instantly available for climbing. As a result, you can traverse higher elevations. Furthermore, one can retrieve their shaft if applicable to re-use once again making the tool highly versatile in nearly any sticky situation he’s subjected to. Trust me you’ll need it when you're at a rock and hard place with nearby zombies closing in on your position with nowhere to run except upon checking your surroundings a wooden beam is above. Maybe a handy tool would surely be useful now.
Level design in every assignment is intricate, maze-like, and deep. Displaying an awesome sleight of hand in the dev’s works to craft initially simple environments then suddenly catching me off-guard by transforming into a large several corridors and passageways leading a lost one into a room full of secrets. It is deep and chock full of hidden areas that can be unlocked from levers, switches, and cleverly tucked away corners. Intrinsically linked in the environment. Delivering a cool verticality and thorough ‘puzzle-like’ solving when applicable. The start of any new venture won’t be the same to some extent in the end portion upon completing all your objectives. You will see sprawling organized streets and then hit unfamiliar ruined suburbs and towns. Dive underwater and emerge in desolate gray caves emerging into a facility of machinery mixed with stone masonry. Similar, but different to how dungeons are made from a certain Zelda series. Full of traps, few floors, and twisting passages that can be confusing to any newcomer unused to the design. One of my favorites is encountering an awesome Pixar-like ‘room’ essentially allowing me to venture inside and somehow escape replicating a [T$%] Story-like design. Someone at Looking Glass has good taste being inspired by the 1995 film huh. And to think this was an optional target I could’ve missed. I. Am. Amazed. Sure the rest of the content isn’t filled to the brim with cool sets like those, but to a degree, they offer a unique hodgepodge of interesting locales to wonder and gawk at least. As a newcomer coming into the series I did not expect at all to admire the sheer size of these levels. Some are more subtle in ways before a certain fire nation attacked delving into the mysticism of earth, wind, and water extending the dev’s creativity to their utmost limit. The elements become more profound and are used intricately as I delve deeper into the endgame. Changing the propensity of manmade structures into natural habitats. Surfaces of the earth and elevating platforms in one section demonstrate the move from traditional simple human paths to complex passageways. Can be confusing at times, but hey remember! You have a handy compass and a map too! So all is not lost. A master thief enjoys establishing their path forward through balanced platforming and embracing the wonders of being lost in the thrill of discovery.
Hell the power to jump provides excellent mobility in areas and the level design pays off in spades demonstrating to great effect. For example, Imagine facing a fort with no possible entryway. Ok well, let me go around to see for any wooden roofs or beams. Voila, there is! Shooting a rope arrow then. I climb and then acrobat onto the rampart. But wait, the door is locked inside! Hmm. The new plan is to head to another rooftop and get inside from there. I climb to the nearest rampart point then give myself a boost and ledge grab my way onto my destination. Successfully entering with no one aware. The ledge grab is super satisfying to enact every time. Although I quickly save before I launch myself just in case I fail. Yet holding the jump button is easy to maneuver and painless to execute.
Almost delving into the point of frustration at times, yet never truly becoming mad to the nth degree I wanted to throw my controller. Perhaps due to the save at anytime system in place making retries quick and painless. It is a relief to operate an easy system to retry failed attempts since most levels are so large. Not an open world at all. Garrett conducts most of his missions at different new locations within the metropolis, which we can explore without a time limit. And there’s always something new to look forward to. I ventured into a manor to steal a scepter. Dived into the pits below to enter hidden caverns and reach a prison facility. Sought treasure in abandoned ruins, boldly stole a precious item between two thieves' guilds, and enacted revenge on a rich dude who tried to assassinate me. Seriously the gall of that guy.
Sound design is brilliant, harsh, intense, and fair. And this is weird. Usually, I praise the heck out of the soundtrack, and while it is good. In Thief I found it more enjoyable to analyze how the gameplay and level design work in tandem with the soundscape. Each step you take and every breath you make is calculated. Go on the steel floor versus carpet and rugs and you can see the clear difference upon nearby patrols. Rugs and carpets muffle your steps while treading on steel produces loud noises capable of making any close enemy's senses go on alert. Any action like swinging your sword, launching an arrow, or even bringing out blackjack to play whack a guard heightens an enemy's awareness. G-dude will exhale after an action and it's gotten to a point where I hold my breath whenever I have a close encounter. Exhaling once the coast is clear. Sights and sounds are interconnected. If you’re in a very dark area, chances are you become neigh invisible compared to a brightly lit room. Staying in the shadows like a sneaky fella pays off. And thankfully, you can stay in a crouched position than a normal pose to conduct your sneaky endeavors. Harsh, but I kid you not I repeatedly felt it was balanced throughout at no point during my time did I feel it was brutally unfair at all times. Rather the usage of noise in this instance facilitates between easy to hard and complex as you dive deeper into the latter stages. As if the devs are saying “Hey, we are increasing the difficulty gradually, no steep cliffs or curveballs.” And I like it. Keeps things fresh and exciting to uncover new hurdles. Supernatural entities like zombies and spirits have this ghastly voice. I found myself with chills crawling up my back. And goodness the regular harmless citizen will shout for help to call attention to your current position. Tension is alive. Stress remains an ever-constant companion when pursued, and patience is needed every day for every hour.
Lastly, I also want to praise the main objectives of missions and AI. The latter for being smart and dumb. Patrols once memorize their route and what their limit is. Abusing their ai becomes rinse and repeat and oh so satisfying. Never waking up after becoming unconscious. Some enemies of different classifications will vary in their sight and danger capability. I.E. Seeing farther and more acutely aware of their surroundings than the usual shmuck of a guard with base intelligence. Think of them as elite guards who have an intruder radar built in updated to version 2.0 than the base version. Hearing better on how loud footsteps are near along with acute 20/20 vision if close in line in sight. This is fascinating and as I progressed deeper into the game, proved once again the devs are challenging me to be better. Goals likewise increase in complexity. You have standard, hard, and expert. Differs from traditional modifiers of upping the enemy's health I usually see in other games. Their parameters increase meaning more tasks to do. A 'normal' setting would indicate one or two retrieve an item and escape. 'Hard' adds a couple more like finding another item in conjunction with the main goal. Expert unleashes a full page of tasks to do. From not killing anyone, finding multiple items, checking with a friend of yours, and attaining a set amount of money all while completing the main quest and escaping to boot. Here are several examples of differences in difficulty. Insane. Furthermore, as I continued with 'expert' on all missions, they largely increased my time in a level due to how large they can be. I usually spent an hour or two depending on the size. Only occurred on max settings. If you try the standard option you can breeze through levels much faster. The addition of higher parameters causes an interesting shift to occur for the player. Thus I had to explore as much as possible, find hidden secrets, embrace the longer plans, being meticulous to survive and not incur any of the killings. The game is much easier killing anyone you come across. But a master thief should never kill. Only retrieve what was ordered and then get out without a fuss.
Time for my mixed feelings. Not a positive or a negative. Just some points from the game I think could be improved, tweaked for the better, and concerns I had. Didn’t affect my overall experience in a major manner.
First, same old, same old textures - Once I saw gray walls, gray bricks, stone pavement, same dirt in more than half of the missions, and frequent density in the latter stages it all became blurred together. Brought up with the maze-like corridors. I felt myself seeing the familiar paths without end. You don’t have a minimap either except a paper map that will vaguely pinpoint where you are. Therefore I had major deja vu. “Haven’t I been here before?” Thankfully, this isn’t egregious and the level variety for what it’s worth elevates everything else. Making it not so noticeable to see constantly. Makes me wonder if the sequel shakes things up a bit with colorful terrain when appropriate. I’m not asking for a rainbow from the color spectrum, merely suggesting slightly distinct patterns.
Second, Some objectives can be a bit vague to find. Like Mission 3. To retrieve the soul of the mystic required me to check everywhere and refer to my papyrus notes for hints and clues. Further, targets or items are not given exact instructions sometimes. Up to you to piece things together. Granted I personally like the non-approach to hand-holding, but some of these goals can be a real head scratcher. If you don’t come across hints and clues, eavesdropping a guard or finding a key to unlock another passageway or door is often the right path forward. Gentle reminder to explore thoroughly. Or use a guide when needed.
Third, May need a tool like a fire, water, or rope arrow to progress. While not required for every assignment. The wire is invaluable and shouldn't be utilized every so often at every opportunity. Elementals to a lesser degree, but still keep them in stock. Most of your inventory is consumables. And while you can find new ammo during a heist, it is best to at least save a decent amount. For situations when you require them. Sucks to use up all of your stock for minor loot grabbed when they may be needed for a critical venture.
Fourth, Wish some missions had health potions available close by. They’re pretty scarce in a job. Some later missions they in my opinion feel needed to help progress rather than me forcing a quicksave and quickload. Saving my health. Enemies can swarm you if you’re not careful and having more health is better than being one-shot. G-guy isn’t some deadliest warrior. So don’t think you can expertly assassinate any bloke. Keep in mind, I played on expert which usually required no bloodshed. Lowering settings offers no restrictions to eliminating anyone.
Fifth, Controls can take some getting used to. I tried keyboard and mouse and found the initial impression cumbersome so I switched to a controller setup and found it far better. Only had to input a couple more keybinds manually and I was fit as a fiddle tosteal! Borrow items. I suggest changing them if you feel weird handling your main character.
Sixth, due to the title being more than two decades old I highly recommend some of these mods I installed to grant an enhanced vanilla experience. Most you can find via a respective PC gaming wiki article. I did use a faithful texture pack. Not the popular one. Feel they change the original textures too much. I’ll leave the choice of what pack to choose up to you. I prefer Enhancement Pack 2.0 alpha.
Mods:
Unofficial patch for Thief 1/Gold - “improves compatibility with new pcs significantly, fixes graphic issues, adds support for widescreen resolutions and much more.”
Texture pack - “Replace all the old, low-quality objects and textures from Thief 1 and 2 with versions that have higher polygon counts and texture resolutions, while keeping as close to the originals as possible.” - This is the hardest mod to install. For some reason, the directions given resulted in half of the textures being improperly replaced. Displaying half high quality and half low quality. Inside you need to edit an ini file to put in the correct mod_path. Here is what I had that finally got everything to work. Hope it works for everyone else. If not, your mileage might vary.
mod_path usermods+mods\packfix+mods\candles+mods\EP\Thief1+NecroAge\Thief1+NecroAge+EP2\Thief1+EP2+mods+mods\t2skies+mods\EP+FMdml
Take a screenshot before the mod is installed and after to see if everything worked out. The rest of the mods I didn't have any trouble inputting.
Subtitles - Self-explanatory. In-game there is no option for subs. With this mod, you can read the spoken dialogue instead of straining your ears.
Sound Enhancement Pack - Makes all sound enhanced and not muddled. Providing clearer audio in both speech and sfx.
60 FPS Video Pack - Original videos are in a low resolution. With the video pack, all the videos are replaced with higher framerate and resolution.
Aside from minor tinkering to get the game up to speed and my barely noticeable mixed feelings. Thief shines when unconventional level design meets strong simple foundations in the gameplay to accentuate and enhance both categories. At its worst players(maybe newbies) may have difficulty in grasping the maze-like paths to reaching their objectives along with vague to almost obscure hints to their solutions(not always, uncommon I think). More so on increasing levels of difficulty than normal I feel. The central narrative I expected to be boring. And in turn I was mentally preparing myself for underwhelming. So to my delight, I was extremely glad to be wrong and found myself beset with a decent narrative and ultimately a likable protagonist.
Finally reaching the end of my trail I found Thief Gold impressed me to a degree I can’t stop thinking constantly about the missions inside. I adore it so much I had to hold off on playing the rest of the series so I won’t get burned out if I continue to run-non-stop at every entry. Filled with lengthy missions depending on difficulty and fair gameplay mechanics to tackle in whatever and however manner you so choose. A freedom in gameplay philosophy I love! And honestly its given me more thought to level design in general and the approach of AI to objectives. I encourage anyone to give it a shot. Especially those who love Stealth or dipping their toes into the genre. For those curious about this old title, it still holds up quite well. Especially if you installed mods to bring it up to modern standards. And hey here’s one tidbit I found fascinating. Turns out Ken Levine worked on Thief along with Warren Spector. These guys would ultimately father some well-known titles down the road. Pretty insightful stuff. I bet we're in for Shocking Examples down the road.
8.5/10
References & Additional Material:
Thief Black Parade Mod
Different Examples of Difficulty
Thief 1 Credits
Mods - Thief PC gaming wiki - Thief 1/Gold Unofficial patch - Sound Enhancement Pack - 60 FPS Video Pack - Texture pack
Subtitles
Edited: 4-3-24 - Small correction on Blackjack use. From human to nearly every enemy. Thanks to @blackcat for the correction! After the small edit. 99% of review still intact.
Originally called Thief: The Dark Project. The gold edition adds three new missions to deepen the plot and five new enemies. Edited original missions with a slew of bug fixes. So this feels like a definitive edition. Although I did have to use several mods I’ll detail later on to bring the game up to modern standards.
The premise is simple and you control a single character Garret who is a master thief. With no special powers whatsoever. His days from being a homeless orphan were discarded long ago since he joined a secret order. Years later he leaves and decides to make it on his own. Delving into the path of thievery without remorse to fulfill his greed for money. He is ambitious, selfish, cynical, and an untraditional protagonist. All qualities I don’t like at all for a main character and yet by the time the end credits are rolling, I am very tempted to head right into the sequel to see what’s next in store for him.
Worldbuilding is subtle, dark, and strangely yet fittingly humorous at times. A mix of middle ages, dark fantasy, and on the cusp of an industrial revolution. With lore dropping from scrolls and conversations between guards during their breaks. Offering vital gossip on the citizenry, complaints of co-workers, and my personal favorite lore stories and convenient tips/hints that may connect to the main cast. A method to reach a previously unassailable location. Secrets will be revealed unintentionally and a good eavesdropper should without hesitation use it to their advantage to maximum effect. G-man will also monologue amongst himself and will at times drop interesting commentary during work. Usually comments like being dumbfounded or witty responses to abrupt changes in objectives. A nice change of pace from the otherwise silence permeating while you lurk in the shadows. Parchment readings and books offer insightful lessons and teachings from the factions of Hammerites and the Pagans. Both believe in their gods in a way bordering unhealthy zealotry and are at odds with one another. The supernatural elements took me by surprise many times. Spells, incantations, and rituals are fitting. Inducing a mystical wonder beyond the medieval. Zombies, ghosts, and malformed supernatural creatures are here to stay. Oh, and bugs like mutated spiders I didn’t think were a threat had me running away once I caught sight of them. Seriously, how can they jump so high and shoot acid!? Machinery such as factories, smelting tools, and items with a steady supply of lava provide their citizenry with new forms of artificial light instead of the traditional natural fire to illuminate surroundings. Creating an interesting level design throughout, a blend of medieval housing full of conventional bricks, wooden planks, and pavement with the power of adopting steel into the surroundings.
Quite ingenious for a stealth-based gameplay approach back in the old days. Erase approaches such as shooting from afar with guns or tasing anyone to oblivion. The game operates on a mission structure. Before a mission starts you are given a briefing of the events prior, a chance to buy equipment using gold earned from a prior mission, and a handy, but vague map. Embarking on a new place in the City at various times. Always looking forward to a new place to see the sights
Additionally, the rope arrow single-handedly changed my whole experience. Making me think outside the box. Reminds me of using the GLOO gun from Prey and applying the weapon to reach places I wouldn’t otherwise be allowed to exploit regular means. The cable, by comparison, allows one to hit any wooden surface dropping a decent length of string. Becoming instantly available for climbing. As a result, you can traverse higher elevations. Furthermore, one can retrieve their shaft if applicable to re-use once again making the tool highly versatile in nearly any sticky situation he’s subjected to. Trust me you’ll need it when you're at a rock and hard place with nearby zombies closing in on your position with nowhere to run except upon checking your surroundings a wooden beam is above. Maybe a handy tool would surely be useful now.
Level design in every assignment is intricate, maze-like, and deep. Displaying an awesome sleight of hand in the dev’s works to craft initially simple environments then suddenly catching me off-guard by transforming into a large several corridors and passageways leading a lost one into a room full of secrets. It is deep and chock full of hidden areas that can be unlocked from levers, switches, and cleverly tucked away corners. Intrinsically linked in the environment. Delivering a cool verticality and thorough ‘puzzle-like’ solving when applicable. The start of any new venture won’t be the same to some extent in the end portion upon completing all your objectives. You will see sprawling organized streets and then hit unfamiliar ruined suburbs and towns. Dive underwater and emerge in desolate gray caves emerging into a facility of machinery mixed with stone masonry. Similar, but different to how dungeons are made from a certain Zelda series. Full of traps, few floors, and twisting passages that can be confusing to any newcomer unused to the design. One of my favorites is encountering an awesome Pixar-like ‘room’ essentially allowing me to venture inside and somehow escape replicating a [T$%] Story-like design. Someone at Looking Glass has good taste being inspired by the 1995 film huh. And to think this was an optional target I could’ve missed. I. Am. Amazed. Sure the rest of the content isn’t filled to the brim with cool sets like those, but to a degree, they offer a unique hodgepodge of interesting locales to wonder and gawk at least. As a newcomer coming into the series I did not expect at all to admire the sheer size of these levels. Some are more subtle in ways before a certain fire nation attacked delving into the mysticism of earth, wind, and water extending the dev’s creativity to their utmost limit. The elements become more profound and are used intricately as I delve deeper into the endgame. Changing the propensity of manmade structures into natural habitats. Surfaces of the earth and elevating platforms in one section demonstrate the move from traditional simple human paths to complex passageways. Can be confusing at times, but hey remember! You have a handy compass and a map too! So all is not lost. A master thief enjoys establishing their path forward through balanced platforming and embracing the wonders of being lost in the thrill of discovery.
Hell the power to jump provides excellent mobility in areas and the level design pays off in spades demonstrating to great effect. For example, Imagine facing a fort with no possible entryway. Ok well, let me go around to see for any wooden roofs or beams. Voila, there is! Shooting a rope arrow then. I climb and then acrobat onto the rampart. But wait, the door is locked inside! Hmm. The new plan is to head to another rooftop and get inside from there. I climb to the nearest rampart point then give myself a boost and ledge grab my way onto my destination. Successfully entering with no one aware. The ledge grab is super satisfying to enact every time. Although I quickly save before I launch myself just in case I fail. Yet holding the jump button is easy to maneuver and painless to execute.
Almost delving into the point of frustration at times, yet never truly becoming mad to the nth degree I wanted to throw my controller. Perhaps due to the save at anytime system in place making retries quick and painless. It is a relief to operate an easy system to retry failed attempts since most levels are so large. Not an open world at all. Garrett conducts most of his missions at different new locations within the metropolis, which we can explore without a time limit. And there’s always something new to look forward to. I ventured into a manor to steal a scepter. Dived into the pits below to enter hidden caverns and reach a prison facility. Sought treasure in abandoned ruins, boldly stole a precious item between two thieves' guilds, and enacted revenge on a rich dude who tried to assassinate me. Seriously the gall of that guy.
Sound design is brilliant, harsh, intense, and fair. And this is weird. Usually, I praise the heck out of the soundtrack, and while it is good. In Thief I found it more enjoyable to analyze how the gameplay and level design work in tandem with the soundscape. Each step you take and every breath you make is calculated. Go on the steel floor versus carpet and rugs and you can see the clear difference upon nearby patrols. Rugs and carpets muffle your steps while treading on steel produces loud noises capable of making any close enemy's senses go on alert. Any action like swinging your sword, launching an arrow, or even bringing out blackjack to play whack a guard heightens an enemy's awareness. G-dude will exhale after an action and it's gotten to a point where I hold my breath whenever I have a close encounter. Exhaling once the coast is clear. Sights and sounds are interconnected. If you’re in a very dark area, chances are you become neigh invisible compared to a brightly lit room. Staying in the shadows like a sneaky fella pays off. And thankfully, you can stay in a crouched position than a normal pose to conduct your sneaky endeavors. Harsh, but I kid you not I repeatedly felt it was balanced throughout at no point during my time did I feel it was brutally unfair at all times. Rather the usage of noise in this instance facilitates between easy to hard and complex as you dive deeper into the latter stages. As if the devs are saying “Hey, we are increasing the difficulty gradually, no steep cliffs or curveballs.” And I like it. Keeps things fresh and exciting to uncover new hurdles. Supernatural entities like zombies and spirits have this ghastly voice. I found myself with chills crawling up my back. And goodness the regular harmless citizen will shout for help to call attention to your current position. Tension is alive. Stress remains an ever-constant companion when pursued, and patience is needed every day for every hour.
Lastly, I also want to praise the main objectives of missions and AI. The latter for being smart and dumb. Patrols once memorize their route and what their limit is. Abusing their ai becomes rinse and repeat and oh so satisfying. Never waking up after becoming unconscious. Some enemies of different classifications will vary in their sight and danger capability. I.E. Seeing farther and more acutely aware of their surroundings than the usual shmuck of a guard with base intelligence. Think of them as elite guards who have an intruder radar built in updated to version 2.0 than the base version. Hearing better on how loud footsteps are near along with acute 20/20 vision if close in line in sight. This is fascinating and as I progressed deeper into the game, proved once again the devs are challenging me to be better. Goals likewise increase in complexity. You have standard, hard, and expert. Differs from traditional modifiers of upping the enemy's health I usually see in other games. Their parameters increase meaning more tasks to do. A 'normal' setting would indicate one or two retrieve an item and escape. 'Hard' adds a couple more like finding another item in conjunction with the main goal. Expert unleashes a full page of tasks to do. From not killing anyone, finding multiple items, checking with a friend of yours, and attaining a set amount of money all while completing the main quest and escaping to boot. Here are several examples of differences in difficulty. Insane. Furthermore, as I continued with 'expert' on all missions, they largely increased my time in a level due to how large they can be. I usually spent an hour or two depending on the size. Only occurred on max settings. If you try the standard option you can breeze through levels much faster. The addition of higher parameters causes an interesting shift to occur for the player. Thus I had to explore as much as possible, find hidden secrets, embrace the longer plans, being meticulous to survive and not incur any of the killings. The game is much easier killing anyone you come across. But a master thief should never kill. Only retrieve what was ordered and then get out without a fuss.
Time for my mixed feelings. Not a positive or a negative. Just some points from the game I think could be improved, tweaked for the better, and concerns I had. Didn’t affect my overall experience in a major manner.
First, same old, same old textures - Once I saw gray walls, gray bricks, stone pavement, same dirt in more than half of the missions, and frequent density in the latter stages it all became blurred together. Brought up with the maze-like corridors. I felt myself seeing the familiar paths without end. You don’t have a minimap either except a paper map that will vaguely pinpoint where you are. Therefore I had major deja vu. “Haven’t I been here before?” Thankfully, this isn’t egregious and the level variety for what it’s worth elevates everything else. Making it not so noticeable to see constantly. Makes me wonder if the sequel shakes things up a bit with colorful terrain when appropriate. I’m not asking for a rainbow from the color spectrum, merely suggesting slightly distinct patterns.
Second, Some objectives can be a bit vague to find. Like Mission 3. To retrieve the soul of the mystic required me to check everywhere and refer to my papyrus notes for hints and clues. Further, targets or items are not given exact instructions sometimes. Up to you to piece things together. Granted I personally like the non-approach to hand-holding, but some of these goals can be a real head scratcher. If you don’t come across hints and clues, eavesdropping a guard or finding a key to unlock another passageway or door is often the right path forward. Gentle reminder to explore thoroughly. Or use a guide when needed.
Third, May need a tool like a fire, water, or rope arrow to progress. While not required for every assignment. The wire is invaluable and shouldn't be utilized every so often at every opportunity. Elementals to a lesser degree, but still keep them in stock. Most of your inventory is consumables. And while you can find new ammo during a heist, it is best to at least save a decent amount. For situations when you require them. Sucks to use up all of your stock for minor loot grabbed when they may be needed for a critical venture.
Fourth, Wish some missions had health potions available close by. They’re pretty scarce in a job. Some later missions they in my opinion feel needed to help progress rather than me forcing a quicksave and quickload. Saving my health. Enemies can swarm you if you’re not careful and having more health is better than being one-shot. G-guy isn’t some deadliest warrior. So don’t think you can expertly assassinate any bloke. Keep in mind, I played on expert which usually required no bloodshed. Lowering settings offers no restrictions to eliminating anyone.
Fifth, Controls can take some getting used to. I tried keyboard and mouse and found the initial impression cumbersome so I switched to a controller setup and found it far better. Only had to input a couple more keybinds manually and I was fit as a fiddle to
Sixth, due to the title being more than two decades old I highly recommend some of these mods I installed to grant an enhanced vanilla experience. Most you can find via a respective PC gaming wiki article. I did use a faithful texture pack. Not the popular one. Feel they change the original textures too much. I’ll leave the choice of what pack to choose up to you. I prefer Enhancement Pack 2.0 alpha.
Mods:
Unofficial patch for Thief 1/Gold - “improves compatibility with new pcs significantly, fixes graphic issues, adds support for widescreen resolutions and much more.”
Texture pack - “Replace all the old, low-quality objects and textures from Thief 1 and 2 with versions that have higher polygon counts and texture resolutions, while keeping as close to the originals as possible.” - This is the hardest mod to install. For some reason, the directions given resulted in half of the textures being improperly replaced. Displaying half high quality and half low quality. Inside you need to edit an ini file to put in the correct mod_path. Here is what I had that finally got everything to work. Hope it works for everyone else. If not, your mileage might vary.
mod_path usermods+mods\packfix+mods\candles+mods\EP\Thief1+NecroAge\Thief1+NecroAge+EP2\Thief1+EP2+mods+mods\t2skies+mods\EP+FMdml
Take a screenshot before the mod is installed and after to see if everything worked out. The rest of the mods I didn't have any trouble inputting.
Subtitles - Self-explanatory. In-game there is no option for subs. With this mod, you can read the spoken dialogue instead of straining your ears.
Sound Enhancement Pack - Makes all sound enhanced and not muddled. Providing clearer audio in both speech and sfx.
60 FPS Video Pack - Original videos are in a low resolution. With the video pack, all the videos are replaced with higher framerate and resolution.
Aside from minor tinkering to get the game up to speed and my barely noticeable mixed feelings. Thief shines when unconventional level design meets strong simple foundations in the gameplay to accentuate and enhance both categories. At its worst players(maybe newbies) may have difficulty in grasping the maze-like paths to reaching their objectives along with vague to almost obscure hints to their solutions(not always, uncommon I think). More so on increasing levels of difficulty than normal I feel. The central narrative I expected to be boring. And in turn I was mentally preparing myself for underwhelming. So to my delight, I was extremely glad to be wrong and found myself beset with a decent narrative and ultimately a likable protagonist.
Finally reaching the end of my trail I found Thief Gold impressed me to a degree I can’t stop thinking constantly about the missions inside. I adore it so much I had to hold off on playing the rest of the series so I won’t get burned out if I continue to run-non-stop at every entry. Filled with lengthy missions depending on difficulty and fair gameplay mechanics to tackle in whatever and however manner you so choose. A freedom in gameplay philosophy I love! And honestly its given me more thought to level design in general and the approach of AI to objectives. I encourage anyone to give it a shot. Especially those who love Stealth or dipping their toes into the genre. For those curious about this old title, it still holds up quite well. Especially if you installed mods to bring it up to modern standards. And hey here’s one tidbit I found fascinating. Turns out Ken Levine worked on Thief along with Warren Spector. These guys would ultimately father some well-known titles down the road. Pretty insightful stuff. I bet we're in for Shocking Examples down the road.
8.5/10
References & Additional Material:
Thief Black Parade Mod
Different Examples of Difficulty
Thief 1 Credits
Mods - Thief PC gaming wiki - Thief 1/Gold Unofficial patch - Sound Enhancement Pack - 60 FPS Video Pack - Texture pack
Subtitles
Edited: 4-3-24 - Small correction on Blackjack use. From human to nearly every enemy. Thanks to @blackcat for the correction! After the small edit. 99% of review still intact.
Out of all the WRPGs (western RPGs), I've played thus far. Pathfinder: Kingmaker(PK) is without a doubt the most complex and rich in nearly every category I long for in the genre. And to Owlcat’s credit, the Kickstarter backed CRPG almost achieved full marks. Multiplex of systems, deep mechanics, extensive kingdom-building, matched by a fascinating world-building and filled with memorable characters. A long story, featuring multiple endings. Real-time with pause combat. Dense fantasy single-player title in an isometric perspective. And yet I can’t help but find the whole experience of clearing everything possible in over 130 hours a double-edged sword. Full of sharp awesome content. Yet underneath lies a blunt edge full of troubling matters. Alexander Mishulin, Creative Director at Owlcat Games eloquently sums up the matter in an 2020 interview saying “...Huge Pathfinder system ruleset was left tricky and unclear in many ways for the new players unfamiliar with the tabletop game.”
The IP is incredibly different from what I dabbled in Baldur's Gate 1 last year. And the old Fallout titles. Feels a lot more in-depth not just in terms of pen-and-paper, but in different rules and how the mechanics are implemented by Owlcat on Paizo’s ruleset. I’ll run through the positives first before I dive into my mixed feelings. Full disclosure: I played 100 hours without mods before relying on them to end credits. I’ll denote a mod section properly later on, but if I don’t discuss it please assume I'm discussing vanilla.
Storywise I found to be a slow-burn. But ultimately an enjoyable affair. You start in a competition for the rights to become baron/baroness of the Stolen Lands. A large swath of unclaimed land with no leader. Think bandit territory except fantasied to the gills. Crypts and hidden tombs full of nocturnal creatures sinisterly lurk. Local settlements are plagued by monster attacks and the occasional banditry. Fill your wanderlust and discover ancient ruins and dungeons! Full of traps, puzzles, and of course great treasure awaits! But take care, whimsical fey beings roam here and there so beware! For better or worse, depending on your choices in dialogue you may come across interesting outcomes. Discover a key piece and be led to a hidden location out on the world map! Or used in a way to uncover another hidden check. Where the locals and monsters alike will be found in all manners of the noble to villainy spectrum. Take heart, for finding a true pure soul in such a hostile place may seem dangerous! Yet behold! Beyond the borders lie a people still living brightly and drinking merrily in taverns. Singing to their heart's content without end!
Before I sing on further, I must talk about the initial priorities after becoming Baron/Baroness. Consists of the gameplay overview without combat. A gentle reminder, to not go gallivanting off into the wilderness following the wanderlust compass. Rather, one must remember to research curses. Curses are something unexplainable and mysterious occurring within your lands. And it is up to you to research why. There are more than 13+ of these curse events that need to be resolved as you progress through the game's many acts. All of which contain a time limit to complete under “xxx’ day. Doing so is one of the key requirements to unlocking a secret ending and progressing through the main story conveniently. Refrain from doing so and the consequences will be severe. I didn’t have much issue with deadlines. Bona fide lenient as long as you prioritize what to do. A general loop emerges: Enter building management -> research curses, solve problems, assign advisors, resolve advisor concerns, construct structures in settlements, invest in building points(BP) or use them for erecting structures or helping pass a bill using BP. Finished? Good, we're not done. -> Check the journal to see any main quests. Usually, one or two pop-ups and its a number one priority to complete. -> Once finished then you're allowed to finish any sides and errands. Followed by companion quests -> If you have any days left on the clock. Explore the map, discover new dungeons, finish off random mobs trying to kill you while traveling, and unearthing loot by turning over rocks and crannies you see are all worthy endeavors. The priorities may seem daunting at first, but I assure you have ample weeks to months. In finishing any important tasks before moving on to the rest. Generally, Traveling around and researching will consume most of your precious days. However, there are certain ways to mitigate any losses later on. I’ll include some links later on for extra tips.
Plethora of classes to choose from and upgrade. More than fifteen main jobs. And several archetypes within. A barbarian, for instance, specializes in an armored hulk, mad dog, or invulnerable rager. A cleric branches off into a herald caller, ecclesitheurge, and crusader. All with their unique powers and skills offered. I stayed as a paladin and found it decent. My primary joy came from the multiple allies who joined my merry band. Swapping into a different profession if inclined, but I kept them as their base class to see how it feels to use them. At the end of the day, I concluded they’re fun to use. One serves as a tank such as my tower shield specialist while my inquisitor summons undead to serve as handy meatshields. My bard’s songs randomly stun my enemies. I and my barbarian cleaned up! Rinse and repeat and voila! Dead guys in the aftermath. Granted not all encounters will not go as smoothly as one would think. Plenty of surprises await in store for any curious adventurer.
Should be noted there are special prestige classes. Several are not selectable at the character creation. As you progress and meet certain requirements they become available as your second class. I’ll be honest with the exception of the Wildcard DLC. I was not able to use any of these prestige ones. As a result, I am unable to comment on them other than some being powerful and others meh from what I skimmed online. Overall essential in understanding classes, since comprehending their capabilities will mark triumph and despair concerning the combat portion.
I mainly used real-time with pause(RtwP) mode. For those unaware, in CRPG's this means each action your party makes is conducted at the same wavelength against the opposing enemy side. Casting spells takes seconds before casting but attacking is ongoing when not in cooldown. Trading blows until one side is gone. For those uninterested in RtwP. Owlcat implemented a turn-based(TB) method. Activatable anytime with a single press of a button. Initially, a mod early, the devs decided to add it for those not enthused in the RtwP approach. As someone who favors turn-based. I have to say the move was pretty based. But I couldn’t stand doing TB for every fight encounter. My entire playthrough would’ve easily doubled or tripled. But the inclusion of the mechanic later on after release I appreciate a great deal especially if I get tired of RtwP. Convenient when needed.
In my honest opinion, an enjoyable isometric gameplay emerges. Regarding the many systems at play. Battles are somewhat challenging relying on your crew's profession. For instance, if you improperly manage equipment, health items, and proper class understanding then you may be in for a life of hurt when confronting multiple foes in a large open area filled with scattered mobs. I struggled early on since I had zero Pathfinder exposure. Meaning I rushed into things without thinking, quick-saved like my life was about to expire. To make sure I gained a favorable outcome and spammed abilities like a madlad. Kindly erase those foolish ‘jump before thinking’ mentality and realize no one will hold your hand gently. Despite a wealth of options available to reduce difficulty which I will talk about later on. Look at my character and witness how one tab from the summary may induce information overload. What is AC? Fortitude? Reflex? Will? The difference between wisdom and intelligence. Knowledge arcana/world? lore/nature? Sounds rubbish, who needs these skills? Alignment? Bah, who cares. Well, my friend I do! A great deal since you must understand a sizable chunk to succeed. I won’t go into complete minute details, but suffice it to say each terminology is important to survive. Basic stereotypes do exist though, so no need to worry! A mage is squishy early on, but a glass cannon. Ranger and barbarian are viable builds and hybrid classes are available for those who wish to slot into a job outside of the standard ones.
Have no fear of the daunting Pathfinder homework ahead! I did only the bare minimum cause I wanted to get straight into the thick of things and still managed fairly well. Here’s a secret that has never failed me when playing any CRPG. Buffing/debuffing/summoning is honestly the bread and butter. And will undoubtedly your life easier. Without any of those above, I would not be able to win against my adversaries. Helped me so much to the point I spent over 100 hours buffing in less than a minute before engagements. In the blink of an eye. Yeah, I'm not kidding about those buffs. Crucial in starting up a massive advantage before striking any foe ahead. Summon any pets, skeletons, elementals, or animals at your side ahead of any battle so attackers will be dumb dumbs and attack them foolishly. As if they are the priority. Debuffing is equally important. Any Atlus JRPG fan should know from Megami Tensei how skills like reducing enemy power, missing an attack, freezing them, and whatever manner of debuffs to inflict. Will turn the tides in your favor. The same principle applies here. Min-maxers like myself who love adjusting little morsels of numbers are in for a real treat. Countless loot is around, as a result, I never had an issue strengthening my characters and applying any spells to their repertoire. No requirements to micromanage level-ups either. If checked in the menu. And since I started from beginning to end credits with the preference on. You are in good safe hands. An indispensable accessibility feature reduces the steep cliff into a more manageable one for newcomers to the series.
Do keep this in mind. It's inadvisable to spamming spells and abilities without a drawback. The consequence of using magical abilities means the 'charge' will be used up. Mana is unavailable. Instead, your party will have a certain amount of ‘charges’ so to speak on how many times to reuse a magick discipline. A basic 'fireball' for example may have one charge. In spite of that, within the magic system for some classes, possible to increase multiple slots. Consequently granting more amounts. Area of effect, cones, and single targets, bouncing are all attainable parameters, so watch out not to hurt your allies. Lest you need to revive them after the battle ends. After an engagement with an enemy, a non-combative status will occur for all. Any damages and spells used along with health will not return to their original condition. This means every skirmish with a mob will leave you bleeding. Continue fighting and sooner or later the effect of 'fatigue' will emerge. A debuff handicapping with horrible stats. Go further and you may become exhausted incurring further penalties. To counter a weakened state, one 'rest' is recommended, and rations to heal back to 100%. Be warned you may be ambushed by nearby hostiles. It's these little things that pile up later on when you expect a benefit there must always be a drawback in some form. Not much of an issue provided players remember to buy rations and set their PC to scavenge for rations out in the wild.
In the wilds and civilizations players will need to contend with the text and dialogue system. You will inevitably conduct a wide array of meaningful conversations. For instance, talking yields a host of options. Both are informative to educate, pushing to the next segment in a quest, moving the conversation forward with lore passages highlighting key information whenever you need, and taking a gamble in stat-oriented discourse to affect an outcome. Crucial to give context to the rich history in Pathfinder where putting the mouse cursor will describe any bolded phrase. Appropriately connecting any relevant lore with anyone. Where paragraphs on gods, nations, political figures, religion, etc. will be described when highlighted. Hearing a disgruntled futilist dwarf talk about the impending doom of the end of days from the god Grotis transforms otherwise static boring sentences into flavorful dynamic words to remember and an “Ahah!” moment arises. Stumble upon reading a book about certain dangerous religions only to learn later about a crazy cult related to said religion. You will inevitably come up with many of these examples. Nevertheless, conversations are susceptible to stats; you have to needle your way through unique text. Granting extra experience and new conversational topics to discuss with whomever you meet. Such a deeply intricate word system is only part of the whole gameplay pie to understand why I adore talking to my party to understand their backstory, relationships, and history and develop them further with their quest lines down the road.
Under these circumstances, the world-building is richly implemented and flourishes through meaningful lines as I meandered my way to talk to important NPCs whenever I traveled. Be it a villain, an unsuspecting stranger, or an upstanding citizen of the realm. All are not spared my inquisitive nature to converse! In my delight, speaking yields both favorable and unfavorable outcomes concerning a dice roll. Meet the stat check to enable the dialogue requirement, but plausible still failing the result. Meaning my goals for a peaceful resolution between two angry interracial groups could be thrown into the fire. Erupting a bloody feud betwixt two leaves me no choice but to eliminate both or take one side. Invigorating my soul and leaving me contemplative to carefully consider a circumspect approach. Take information with the grainiest of salts and don’t label everything in simple good or evil manners. Difficult to judge whether the NPC is acting in the best interest at your behest while secretly holding a dagger behind their back unknowingly to your eyes. As a result, Non-conflict encounters are unique here, where fights interrupted are an uncommon occurrence with a conversation box, hearing their plea and moving on from there. I’ve had the personal pleasure of converting evil dastards onto my side while subjecting good souls to betrayal. Interconnecting later on in a future side-mission or main narrative where your previous actions will have a consequence later on. I befuddled a group and investigated a murder or caused mayhem on the populace by lying to whomever. Offered a mysterious item I picked up just for this occasion. Bribed, persuaded, intimidated, or sought further lore knowledge. No one is spared from my decisions and I lived with the consequences of my actions.
If there is one notable strength here in PK then companions here are a breath of fresh air. Not the best, but certainly not the worst. Recruit all eleven comrades, plus two more from the Wildcards DLC. A wonderful motley crew full of contradictions and wild alignments from chaotic to lawful and those staying in the realm of neutrality. I adore my party's banter. Sharing wonderful stories and barbs anytime I rest. And their voice actors deserve only praise for going the distance. Seeing their background update during a loading screen is a small, but appreciative detail. As I progressed further in their questline. From the loveable optimistic bard who never fails to brighten the room, the tough barbarian exile who continues to thirst for a challenge, the curious explorer alchemist who underneath their arrogant exterior lies a heart of gold, the noble tower specialist who continues to make each stranger drop their jaw in awe at her beauty. The chaotic duo of eldritch scion and rogue wizard lent their bond to my group despite their horrible past. A stoic tragic ranger avenger, a dwarven futilist cleric, a goblin knife master, and others I could list but I'll save them for a surprise… Needless to say, all have a colorful history beyond simple tropes and evolve constantly throughout my journey. I won’t say any favorites since I like all of them equally, instead, I will remark my allies' goals are a must-play and some intertwine with the main story at length. Providing a nice integration into the story and commenting during side activities on their thoughts, feelings, and alignment. Your actions will favor or dislike you. Therefore, it's essential to think carefully about their beliefs, morals, and alignment to adjust your response accordingly relative to the situation. Complex and not one-sided, and not all that hard to keep with you by when the end credits rolled around. Heck, I operated a solid crew of five. With changes in the guard whenever any relative friend's objectives arrived. Some benefit from putting any relative members in a relatable matter for instance. Otherwise, serving an appropriate role in another area below.
Kingdom building surprised me a great deal. There are plenty of systems in place here to almost make me wish for a separate game to play exclusively. Heck, employing any of your companions as advisors who will approach you about a delicate matter related to any of the stats concerning your authority. Population, relation, military, culture, divine, loyalty, arcane, stability, espionage, and community. Accepting a new policy, rejecting or fashioning a unique dialogue choice conditional on the advisor’s characteristics. I was able to increase the guardsmen with more men and budget instead of leaving them to their whits. Fought espionage wars with another neighboring nation by honoring our dead spies than risking their status. Favored culture of the arts and freedom to use magic freely and threw away the bill restricting their passion. And so forth. Completing these requests and listening to my advisors leads to benefits and detriments. So take heed of your colleague's advice and choose the best course of action. In doing so you manage your domain from impending self-destruction. Be careless and your citizenry will revolt. Therefore, it is imperative for one to finish any dilemmas arising in priority rather than any opportunity points. Issues if not solved, worsen stats, so pray to RNGSUS you land on a good dice roll to resolve the conflict peacefully. Or quickload like me hehe. Opportunities are okay to ignore, but for those who decide to try them the rewards are equally as good as solving problems. Don’t worry about taking care of your vassals constantly, a timer will run on when resolved and a notification will pop up for any impending event.
An option to automate your kingdom exists, but I still suggest that folks embrace the system to get a feel of managing affairs in your nation while also investing your precious days. Pays dividends later on in the form of passives and supplementary items. The latter leads you to new objectives and random encounters providing free equipment through artisans(Specialists who join your nation, when you visit your new settlement when claiming a region), and investing in your crown pays dividends later on to grant permanent buffs like increased attack roll chances, immunity to fear, and faster movement when traveling and more. Constructing mage towers(unlockable once you level up an advisor's ranks) allows one to teleport with minimal downtime creating a genuine saver for those urgent investigations in your journal. Aside from leveling your partners in combat and dialogue, you advance their rank in their advisory role to have a better chance to resolve troubles and opportunities. Useful when RNGSUS will sway to your lucky side rather than the unlucky side.
Decent-to-quality sidequests and errands are plentiful and ultimately awesome to complete. Enhanced my experience during my adventures. Here is a small taste of what I encountered. Uncovering a dark mega villain through a long monster extermination hunt Mediated between fey beings on trees and preached to no end on civility, peace, and compromise during heated debates and mob pitchforks. Hunted weird cultics from weird satanic ones to disturbing groups with their nefarious agenda preying on helpless innocents like a pregnant woman in need delivering her baby for a price. Oh hell no. I saved her thankfully, but whether or not it was a good thing in the end leaves me still troubled. Engaged in a puzzle to resurrect a powerful, but evil ghost for sick armor and weapons. Participated in treasure hunts, fought bandits holding hostages, saved mythical creatures like dragons, and found a boy who cried wolf-like investigation whose outcome was vastly different from what I expected. Returned a Necronomicon-like book to a powerful hermit in the lands and traveled to other realms to investigate curses to reach and attain the absurdly difficult secret ending. Heck, I took advantage of alignment choices to brutally reach a good outcome. Nonetheless, I still time-traveled into alternate universes. By reloading to recruit horrible fellows into my cabinet. Yeah, I’m not proud of that at all…
Anyway, mod time. Earlier I mentioned I played vanilla for 100 hours. Once I reached that point I decided enough was enough and threw away the base content life. And subsequently enjoyed in greater detail the latter half to an insane degree with much-needed quality-of-life features. Below I’ll briefly outline some must-haves for anyone on PC.
Mod manager - Number one key ingredient for all kingmaker needs and easy to install any of the following to make your playthrough fun and eliminate the tedium.
Bag of Tricks - Solve 99% of any troubles you face. From side quests not occurring, to fixing a bug here and there. And to be fair I had very little bugs or crashes. I think outside of a handful of minor bugs my playthrough was nearly perfect. My convenient tricks were instant teleporting on the world map, instant rest + after fighting, instant auto-complete realm events, lock-picking unlimited attempts, force success/triumph on problems and opportunities, pass skill checks, and my personal favorite a romance counter which is crucial for the secret ending. Trust me. If you want the bonus act to activate I recommend it. These listed are my favorites from the mod, but there’s way more inside I never used.
Faster menu book zoom - When you launch the program, it takes a long eternity for the book which contains the standard menu options to proceed. Do yourself a favor and download them to save you extra. Adding in the command line ‘-skip intro’ from the program launcher when right-clicking the properties on Steam is beneficial too.
Buffbot - Takes less than a second to activate all the buffs you currently have. A necessary alternative than taking a minute to individually select each member and buff them to the nth degree I said previously. Use Buffbot once and be done.
Aside from the mods above. You have a wealth of selections to tune the difficulty to your liking. From the image I customized the normal settings, making encounters less of a chore and more on the easier side. Restricting to the confines of vanilla as much as possible. So I recommend tuning them to your preference.
Now then for my mixed feelings. Consider the following text as small to big red flags in varying degrees. I feel are worth noting down. I had to trim this a bit since this review is getting too long and I apologize for that.
Kingdom Building is a mixed bag. I love the aspect of erecting settlements and determining the kinds of architecture. However the ‘time-limit’ before the next act and what to do perhaps make newcomers feel pressured and quite honestly have no clue what to do. I had to frequently Google and ask my friends about priorities. Although frankly, I'm leaning towards being positive on the aspect. Sincerely cool having advisors and solving problems since you are a Baron. I found it more enjoyable than my playthrough with Ni No Kuni 2’s version. Which ultimately was all right with uninteresting sidequests. Here I kept coming back to my empire. Taking personal pleasure in being hands-on in my day-to-day. See how your settlements grow and flourish along with your subjects. It’s thrilling, satisfying, and most of all worth seeing all your efforts come to fruition. For general tips, I'll echo what before I play & walkthrough for advice. Was instrumental and made daunting tasks to fulfill become easier to manage.
However, tiredness will undoubtedly occur. I had to stop playing kingmaker constantly in 2023 due to fatigue. The sheer amount of content if you combine the DLC is a lot for anyone’s plate. Acts on average took me 20 hours give or take some change to complete considering there are a total of 8 acts. If you count the act-like DLC Varnhold and the roguelike beneath the stolen lands. You’re easily reaching 150+. This is a friendly reminder to stop and take a break in case you are feeling burned out. I played palette cleansers like indies and shifted into different genres from a CRPG in between chapters to refresh my willpower to keep going. The slow-burn narrative along with my mixed feelings on kingdom-building aspects among others leave me in doubt whether I unintentionally had resorted to sunk cost fallacy. However, I would say once you reach part 2 to part 3 then the plot beats start to heat up gradually into a snowball. Turning my interest from a “hmmm” to an “Oh now we're getting somewhere.”
I think some rules for Pathfinder in general are too restrictive and punishing. This isn’t a negative against Owlcat; rather they did a phenomenal job adapting the tabletop ruleset for the videogame audience. Paizo the company from my understanding created the IP and surrounding laws within. Here are notable head-scratchers. I am not allowed unlimited lockpicking? Once I fail an attempt it's impossible to try again. I had to resort to a mod to give me unlimited attempts. Moreover, no instant rest after skirmishes. Meaning in vanilla, if my heavily damaged party needs to rejuvenate I have to manually activate the button to heal where I am assailable randomly. And lord help my soul if I fail that encounter during the process. Thus my momentum of adventuring unimpeded is halted. Sure I soothe my comrade's health, but what happens when I run out of charges for each of my healers? Then I am incapable of reviving their vitality. Resulting in, busywork. Coupled with the majority of loading screens from entering my throne room -> kingdom management -> back to throne room -> going out to world map -> entering a new area on the map -> reverting a save if something awry occurs -> repeat. Granted not a major deal, but over the course of my long playthrough, it all adds up. As a consequence, I am forced to struggle whereas I could be enjoying. Maybe I'm spoiled by fast load speeds, but I did install this on a fast SSD. Maybe a faster M.2 drive would be better. Goodness, imagine playing this on an HDD…
Other miscellaneous stuff: Gameplay would hang. An uncommon occurrence during random battles. Perhaps an NVME is better? I played on a Samsung SSD with a decent PC that ran the highest graphics on max settings to optimal framerate. The hanging is like a split second. Usually, initializing textures and characters when starting and during loading screens to govern your principality or unpacking a file. Not something glaringly obvious since my overall experience is still positive. Nevertheless, it is something noteworthy. Moving on. Some portraits of enemies are not given a unique picture. We are faced with our characters' faces. Pretty jarring to witness as if any major enemy is well an imposter of us. Granted not all of them are like this, but the inconsistency is mildly weird to witness.
Owlcat’s version of Pathfinder gamified is an incredibly ambitious undertaking. Took me nearly a year to finish in its entirety and while I did have some annoyances from the ruleset, scattered loading times, and mixed feelings. There’s quite a bit to enjoy among the many systems within. I liked overseeing my realm. Making tough decisions based on fair policies and having an immediate effect on my subjects whether good or bad. I delved deep to understand the deep mechanics in real time and pause. Yet at the end of the day, I think the amount of gratification here despite the herculean effort the devs have encompassed with a gigantic stuff to devour is dependent on the user's experience to get down in the trenches. If I never knew about skill checks and buffing, then I would have suffered early on because of my ignorance in taking advantage of magical resistances. If I didn’t read up on how to manage my provinces better, then possibly in a bad alternate universe I would’ve game over in my 100+ hour run due to my improper handling and neglect of the state of affairs. And that is NOT a feeling I want anyone to suffer with. Considering the reports I've read online of users having the same issues of neglecting their nation. Please make sure to check 'invincible kingdom' in the options. Speaks volumes how much you have to devote yourself to bring out something worthwhile. And for me? I think this is certainly one of the greats along with Baldur’s Gate. As long as you dedicate enough energy inside and mods installed. A deep & expansive CRPG that doesn’t hold your hand, but rewards the most invested of players. Sadly I find this incredibly difficult to recommend to everyone. Except only to fans of the genre. I believe Mandaloregaming said it best "... you play this game more for the systems than for the writing." And I can’t help but agree with their statement despite him saying the line in his story section. I would say it also accounts for the whole breadth of the game itself.
Base game without mods: 7.6/10
Base game with mods: 8/10
References & Additional Material:
Interview with the creative director on Pathfinder: Kingmaker
Pathfinder: Kingmaker Classes overview and archetypes
Example of information overload from my character
Long road to secret ending - heavy endgame spoilers within
PK Difficulty Settings - Pretty extensive options to tune the combat modifiers to your preference.
Before I play & Walkthrough
Mods:
Mod Manager - Bag of Tricks - Faster Menu - Buffbot
The IP is incredibly different from what I dabbled in Baldur's Gate 1 last year. And the old Fallout titles. Feels a lot more in-depth not just in terms of pen-and-paper, but in different rules and how the mechanics are implemented by Owlcat on Paizo’s ruleset. I’ll run through the positives first before I dive into my mixed feelings. Full disclosure: I played 100 hours without mods before relying on them to end credits. I’ll denote a mod section properly later on, but if I don’t discuss it please assume I'm discussing vanilla.
Storywise I found to be a slow-burn. But ultimately an enjoyable affair. You start in a competition for the rights to become baron/baroness of the Stolen Lands. A large swath of unclaimed land with no leader. Think bandit territory except fantasied to the gills. Crypts and hidden tombs full of nocturnal creatures sinisterly lurk. Local settlements are plagued by monster attacks and the occasional banditry. Fill your wanderlust and discover ancient ruins and dungeons! Full of traps, puzzles, and of course great treasure awaits! But take care, whimsical fey beings roam here and there so beware! For better or worse, depending on your choices in dialogue you may come across interesting outcomes. Discover a key piece and be led to a hidden location out on the world map! Or used in a way to uncover another hidden check. Where the locals and monsters alike will be found in all manners of the noble to villainy spectrum. Take heart, for finding a true pure soul in such a hostile place may seem dangerous! Yet behold! Beyond the borders lie a people still living brightly and drinking merrily in taverns. Singing to their heart's content without end!
Before I sing on further, I must talk about the initial priorities after becoming Baron/Baroness. Consists of the gameplay overview without combat. A gentle reminder, to not go gallivanting off into the wilderness following the wanderlust compass. Rather, one must remember to research curses. Curses are something unexplainable and mysterious occurring within your lands. And it is up to you to research why. There are more than 13+ of these curse events that need to be resolved as you progress through the game's many acts. All of which contain a time limit to complete under “xxx’ day. Doing so is one of the key requirements to unlocking a secret ending and progressing through the main story conveniently. Refrain from doing so and the consequences will be severe. I didn’t have much issue with deadlines. Bona fide lenient as long as you prioritize what to do. A general loop emerges: Enter building management -> research curses, solve problems, assign advisors, resolve advisor concerns, construct structures in settlements, invest in building points(BP) or use them for erecting structures or helping pass a bill using BP. Finished? Good, we're not done. -> Check the journal to see any main quests. Usually, one or two pop-ups and its a number one priority to complete. -> Once finished then you're allowed to finish any sides and errands. Followed by companion quests -> If you have any days left on the clock. Explore the map, discover new dungeons, finish off random mobs trying to kill you while traveling, and unearthing loot by turning over rocks and crannies you see are all worthy endeavors. The priorities may seem daunting at first, but I assure you have ample weeks to months. In finishing any important tasks before moving on to the rest. Generally, Traveling around and researching will consume most of your precious days. However, there are certain ways to mitigate any losses later on. I’ll include some links later on for extra tips.
Plethora of classes to choose from and upgrade. More than fifteen main jobs. And several archetypes within. A barbarian, for instance, specializes in an armored hulk, mad dog, or invulnerable rager. A cleric branches off into a herald caller, ecclesitheurge, and crusader. All with their unique powers and skills offered. I stayed as a paladin and found it decent. My primary joy came from the multiple allies who joined my merry band. Swapping into a different profession if inclined, but I kept them as their base class to see how it feels to use them. At the end of the day, I concluded they’re fun to use. One serves as a tank such as my tower shield specialist while my inquisitor summons undead to serve as handy meatshields. My bard’s songs randomly stun my enemies. I and my barbarian cleaned up! Rinse and repeat and voila! Dead guys in the aftermath. Granted not all encounters will not go as smoothly as one would think. Plenty of surprises await in store for any curious adventurer.
Should be noted there are special prestige classes. Several are not selectable at the character creation. As you progress and meet certain requirements they become available as your second class. I’ll be honest with the exception of the Wildcard DLC. I was not able to use any of these prestige ones. As a result, I am unable to comment on them other than some being powerful and others meh from what I skimmed online. Overall essential in understanding classes, since comprehending their capabilities will mark triumph and despair concerning the combat portion.
I mainly used real-time with pause(RtwP) mode. For those unaware, in CRPG's this means each action your party makes is conducted at the same wavelength against the opposing enemy side. Casting spells takes seconds before casting but attacking is ongoing when not in cooldown. Trading blows until one side is gone. For those uninterested in RtwP. Owlcat implemented a turn-based(TB) method. Activatable anytime with a single press of a button. Initially, a mod early, the devs decided to add it for those not enthused in the RtwP approach. As someone who favors turn-based. I have to say the move was pretty based. But I couldn’t stand doing TB for every fight encounter. My entire playthrough would’ve easily doubled or tripled. But the inclusion of the mechanic later on after release I appreciate a great deal especially if I get tired of RtwP. Convenient when needed.
In my honest opinion, an enjoyable isometric gameplay emerges. Regarding the many systems at play. Battles are somewhat challenging relying on your crew's profession. For instance, if you improperly manage equipment, health items, and proper class understanding then you may be in for a life of hurt when confronting multiple foes in a large open area filled with scattered mobs. I struggled early on since I had zero Pathfinder exposure. Meaning I rushed into things without thinking, quick-saved like my life was about to expire. To make sure I gained a favorable outcome and spammed abilities like a madlad. Kindly erase those foolish ‘jump before thinking’ mentality and realize no one will hold your hand gently. Despite a wealth of options available to reduce difficulty which I will talk about later on. Look at my character and witness how one tab from the summary may induce information overload. What is AC? Fortitude? Reflex? Will? The difference between wisdom and intelligence. Knowledge arcana/world? lore/nature? Sounds rubbish, who needs these skills? Alignment? Bah, who cares. Well, my friend I do! A great deal since you must understand a sizable chunk to succeed. I won’t go into complete minute details, but suffice it to say each terminology is important to survive. Basic stereotypes do exist though, so no need to worry! A mage is squishy early on, but a glass cannon. Ranger and barbarian are viable builds and hybrid classes are available for those who wish to slot into a job outside of the standard ones.
Have no fear of the daunting Pathfinder homework ahead! I did only the bare minimum cause I wanted to get straight into the thick of things and still managed fairly well. Here’s a secret that has never failed me when playing any CRPG. Buffing/debuffing/summoning is honestly the bread and butter. And will undoubtedly your life easier. Without any of those above, I would not be able to win against my adversaries. Helped me so much to the point I spent over 100 hours buffing in less than a minute before engagements. In the blink of an eye. Yeah, I'm not kidding about those buffs. Crucial in starting up a massive advantage before striking any foe ahead. Summon any pets, skeletons, elementals, or animals at your side ahead of any battle so attackers will be dumb dumbs and attack them foolishly. As if they are the priority. Debuffing is equally important. Any Atlus JRPG fan should know from Megami Tensei how skills like reducing enemy power, missing an attack, freezing them, and whatever manner of debuffs to inflict. Will turn the tides in your favor. The same principle applies here. Min-maxers like myself who love adjusting little morsels of numbers are in for a real treat. Countless loot is around, as a result, I never had an issue strengthening my characters and applying any spells to their repertoire. No requirements to micromanage level-ups either. If checked in the menu. And since I started from beginning to end credits with the preference on. You are in good safe hands. An indispensable accessibility feature reduces the steep cliff into a more manageable one for newcomers to the series.
Do keep this in mind. It's inadvisable to spamming spells and abilities without a drawback. The consequence of using magical abilities means the 'charge' will be used up. Mana is unavailable. Instead, your party will have a certain amount of ‘charges’ so to speak on how many times to reuse a magick discipline. A basic 'fireball' for example may have one charge. In spite of that, within the magic system for some classes, possible to increase multiple slots. Consequently granting more amounts. Area of effect, cones, and single targets, bouncing are all attainable parameters, so watch out not to hurt your allies. Lest you need to revive them after the battle ends. After an engagement with an enemy, a non-combative status will occur for all. Any damages and spells used along with health will not return to their original condition. This means every skirmish with a mob will leave you bleeding. Continue fighting and sooner or later the effect of 'fatigue' will emerge. A debuff handicapping with horrible stats. Go further and you may become exhausted incurring further penalties. To counter a weakened state, one 'rest' is recommended, and rations to heal back to 100%. Be warned you may be ambushed by nearby hostiles. It's these little things that pile up later on when you expect a benefit there must always be a drawback in some form. Not much of an issue provided players remember to buy rations and set their PC to scavenge for rations out in the wild.
In the wilds and civilizations players will need to contend with the text and dialogue system. You will inevitably conduct a wide array of meaningful conversations. For instance, talking yields a host of options. Both are informative to educate, pushing to the next segment in a quest, moving the conversation forward with lore passages highlighting key information whenever you need, and taking a gamble in stat-oriented discourse to affect an outcome. Crucial to give context to the rich history in Pathfinder where putting the mouse cursor will describe any bolded phrase. Appropriately connecting any relevant lore with anyone. Where paragraphs on gods, nations, political figures, religion, etc. will be described when highlighted. Hearing a disgruntled futilist dwarf talk about the impending doom of the end of days from the god Grotis transforms otherwise static boring sentences into flavorful dynamic words to remember and an “Ahah!” moment arises. Stumble upon reading a book about certain dangerous religions only to learn later about a crazy cult related to said religion. You will inevitably come up with many of these examples. Nevertheless, conversations are susceptible to stats; you have to needle your way through unique text. Granting extra experience and new conversational topics to discuss with whomever you meet. Such a deeply intricate word system is only part of the whole gameplay pie to understand why I adore talking to my party to understand their backstory, relationships, and history and develop them further with their quest lines down the road.
Under these circumstances, the world-building is richly implemented and flourishes through meaningful lines as I meandered my way to talk to important NPCs whenever I traveled. Be it a villain, an unsuspecting stranger, or an upstanding citizen of the realm. All are not spared my inquisitive nature to converse! In my delight, speaking yields both favorable and unfavorable outcomes concerning a dice roll. Meet the stat check to enable the dialogue requirement, but plausible still failing the result. Meaning my goals for a peaceful resolution between two angry interracial groups could be thrown into the fire. Erupting a bloody feud betwixt two leaves me no choice but to eliminate both or take one side. Invigorating my soul and leaving me contemplative to carefully consider a circumspect approach. Take information with the grainiest of salts and don’t label everything in simple good or evil manners. Difficult to judge whether the NPC is acting in the best interest at your behest while secretly holding a dagger behind their back unknowingly to your eyes. As a result, Non-conflict encounters are unique here, where fights interrupted are an uncommon occurrence with a conversation box, hearing their plea and moving on from there. I’ve had the personal pleasure of converting evil dastards onto my side while subjecting good souls to betrayal. Interconnecting later on in a future side-mission or main narrative where your previous actions will have a consequence later on. I befuddled a group and investigated a murder or caused mayhem on the populace by lying to whomever. Offered a mysterious item I picked up just for this occasion. Bribed, persuaded, intimidated, or sought further lore knowledge. No one is spared from my decisions and I lived with the consequences of my actions.
If there is one notable strength here in PK then companions here are a breath of fresh air. Not the best, but certainly not the worst. Recruit all eleven comrades, plus two more from the Wildcards DLC. A wonderful motley crew full of contradictions and wild alignments from chaotic to lawful and those staying in the realm of neutrality. I adore my party's banter. Sharing wonderful stories and barbs anytime I rest. And their voice actors deserve only praise for going the distance. Seeing their background update during a loading screen is a small, but appreciative detail. As I progressed further in their questline. From the loveable optimistic bard who never fails to brighten the room, the tough barbarian exile who continues to thirst for a challenge, the curious explorer alchemist who underneath their arrogant exterior lies a heart of gold, the noble tower specialist who continues to make each stranger drop their jaw in awe at her beauty. The chaotic duo of eldritch scion and rogue wizard lent their bond to my group despite their horrible past. A stoic tragic ranger avenger, a dwarven futilist cleric, a goblin knife master, and others I could list but I'll save them for a surprise… Needless to say, all have a colorful history beyond simple tropes and evolve constantly throughout my journey. I won’t say any favorites since I like all of them equally, instead, I will remark my allies' goals are a must-play and some intertwine with the main story at length. Providing a nice integration into the story and commenting during side activities on their thoughts, feelings, and alignment. Your actions will favor or dislike you. Therefore, it's essential to think carefully about their beliefs, morals, and alignment to adjust your response accordingly relative to the situation. Complex and not one-sided, and not all that hard to keep with you by when the end credits rolled around. Heck, I operated a solid crew of five. With changes in the guard whenever any relative friend's objectives arrived. Some benefit from putting any relative members in a relatable matter for instance. Otherwise, serving an appropriate role in another area below.
Kingdom building surprised me a great deal. There are plenty of systems in place here to almost make me wish for a separate game to play exclusively. Heck, employing any of your companions as advisors who will approach you about a delicate matter related to any of the stats concerning your authority. Population, relation, military, culture, divine, loyalty, arcane, stability, espionage, and community. Accepting a new policy, rejecting or fashioning a unique dialogue choice conditional on the advisor’s characteristics. I was able to increase the guardsmen with more men and budget instead of leaving them to their whits. Fought espionage wars with another neighboring nation by honoring our dead spies than risking their status. Favored culture of the arts and freedom to use magic freely and threw away the bill restricting their passion. And so forth. Completing these requests and listening to my advisors leads to benefits and detriments. So take heed of your colleague's advice and choose the best course of action. In doing so you manage your domain from impending self-destruction. Be careless and your citizenry will revolt. Therefore, it is imperative for one to finish any dilemmas arising in priority rather than any opportunity points. Issues if not solved, worsen stats, so pray to RNGSUS you land on a good dice roll to resolve the conflict peacefully. Or quickload like me hehe. Opportunities are okay to ignore, but for those who decide to try them the rewards are equally as good as solving problems. Don’t worry about taking care of your vassals constantly, a timer will run on when resolved and a notification will pop up for any impending event.
An option to automate your kingdom exists, but I still suggest that folks embrace the system to get a feel of managing affairs in your nation while also investing your precious days. Pays dividends later on in the form of passives and supplementary items. The latter leads you to new objectives and random encounters providing free equipment through artisans(Specialists who join your nation, when you visit your new settlement when claiming a region), and investing in your crown pays dividends later on to grant permanent buffs like increased attack roll chances, immunity to fear, and faster movement when traveling and more. Constructing mage towers(unlockable once you level up an advisor's ranks) allows one to teleport with minimal downtime creating a genuine saver for those urgent investigations in your journal. Aside from leveling your partners in combat and dialogue, you advance their rank in their advisory role to have a better chance to resolve troubles and opportunities. Useful when RNGSUS will sway to your lucky side rather than the unlucky side.
Decent-to-quality sidequests and errands are plentiful and ultimately awesome to complete. Enhanced my experience during my adventures. Here is a small taste of what I encountered. Uncovering a dark mega villain through a long monster extermination hunt Mediated between fey beings on trees and preached to no end on civility, peace, and compromise during heated debates and mob pitchforks. Hunted weird cultics from weird satanic ones to disturbing groups with their nefarious agenda preying on helpless innocents like a pregnant woman in need delivering her baby for a price. Oh hell no. I saved her thankfully, but whether or not it was a good thing in the end leaves me still troubled. Engaged in a puzzle to resurrect a powerful, but evil ghost for sick armor and weapons. Participated in treasure hunts, fought bandits holding hostages, saved mythical creatures like dragons, and found a boy who cried wolf-like investigation whose outcome was vastly different from what I expected. Returned a Necronomicon-like book to a powerful hermit in the lands and traveled to other realms to investigate curses to reach and attain the absurdly difficult secret ending. Heck, I took advantage of alignment choices to brutally reach a good outcome. Nonetheless, I still time-traveled into alternate universes. By reloading to recruit horrible fellows into my cabinet. Yeah, I’m not proud of that at all…
Anyway, mod time. Earlier I mentioned I played vanilla for 100 hours. Once I reached that point I decided enough was enough and threw away the base content life. And subsequently enjoyed in greater detail the latter half to an insane degree with much-needed quality-of-life features. Below I’ll briefly outline some must-haves for anyone on PC.
Mod manager - Number one key ingredient for all kingmaker needs and easy to install any of the following to make your playthrough fun and eliminate the tedium.
Bag of Tricks - Solve 99% of any troubles you face. From side quests not occurring, to fixing a bug here and there. And to be fair I had very little bugs or crashes. I think outside of a handful of minor bugs my playthrough was nearly perfect. My convenient tricks were instant teleporting on the world map, instant rest + after fighting, instant auto-complete realm events, lock-picking unlimited attempts, force success/triumph on problems and opportunities, pass skill checks, and my personal favorite a romance counter which is crucial for the secret ending. Trust me. If you want the bonus act to activate I recommend it. These listed are my favorites from the mod, but there’s way more inside I never used.
Faster menu book zoom - When you launch the program, it takes a long eternity for the book which contains the standard menu options to proceed. Do yourself a favor and download them to save you extra. Adding in the command line ‘-skip intro’ from the program launcher when right-clicking the properties on Steam is beneficial too.
Buffbot - Takes less than a second to activate all the buffs you currently have. A necessary alternative than taking a minute to individually select each member and buff them to the nth degree I said previously. Use Buffbot once and be done.
Aside from the mods above. You have a wealth of selections to tune the difficulty to your liking. From the image I customized the normal settings, making encounters less of a chore and more on the easier side. Restricting to the confines of vanilla as much as possible. So I recommend tuning them to your preference.
Now then for my mixed feelings. Consider the following text as small to big red flags in varying degrees. I feel are worth noting down. I had to trim this a bit since this review is getting too long and I apologize for that.
Kingdom Building is a mixed bag. I love the aspect of erecting settlements and determining the kinds of architecture. However the ‘time-limit’ before the next act and what to do perhaps make newcomers feel pressured and quite honestly have no clue what to do. I had to frequently Google and ask my friends about priorities. Although frankly, I'm leaning towards being positive on the aspect. Sincerely cool having advisors and solving problems since you are a Baron. I found it more enjoyable than my playthrough with Ni No Kuni 2’s version. Which ultimately was all right with uninteresting sidequests. Here I kept coming back to my empire. Taking personal pleasure in being hands-on in my day-to-day. See how your settlements grow and flourish along with your subjects. It’s thrilling, satisfying, and most of all worth seeing all your efforts come to fruition. For general tips, I'll echo what before I play & walkthrough for advice. Was instrumental and made daunting tasks to fulfill become easier to manage.
However, tiredness will undoubtedly occur. I had to stop playing kingmaker constantly in 2023 due to fatigue. The sheer amount of content if you combine the DLC is a lot for anyone’s plate. Acts on average took me 20 hours give or take some change to complete considering there are a total of 8 acts. If you count the act-like DLC Varnhold and the roguelike beneath the stolen lands. You’re easily reaching 150+. This is a friendly reminder to stop and take a break in case you are feeling burned out. I played palette cleansers like indies and shifted into different genres from a CRPG in between chapters to refresh my willpower to keep going. The slow-burn narrative along with my mixed feelings on kingdom-building aspects among others leave me in doubt whether I unintentionally had resorted to sunk cost fallacy. However, I would say once you reach part 2 to part 3 then the plot beats start to heat up gradually into a snowball. Turning my interest from a “hmmm” to an “Oh now we're getting somewhere.”
I think some rules for Pathfinder in general are too restrictive and punishing. This isn’t a negative against Owlcat; rather they did a phenomenal job adapting the tabletop ruleset for the videogame audience. Paizo the company from my understanding created the IP and surrounding laws within. Here are notable head-scratchers. I am not allowed unlimited lockpicking? Once I fail an attempt it's impossible to try again. I had to resort to a mod to give me unlimited attempts. Moreover, no instant rest after skirmishes. Meaning in vanilla, if my heavily damaged party needs to rejuvenate I have to manually activate the button to heal where I am assailable randomly. And lord help my soul if I fail that encounter during the process. Thus my momentum of adventuring unimpeded is halted. Sure I soothe my comrade's health, but what happens when I run out of charges for each of my healers? Then I am incapable of reviving their vitality. Resulting in, busywork. Coupled with the majority of loading screens from entering my throne room -> kingdom management -> back to throne room -> going out to world map -> entering a new area on the map -> reverting a save if something awry occurs -> repeat. Granted not a major deal, but over the course of my long playthrough, it all adds up. As a consequence, I am forced to struggle whereas I could be enjoying. Maybe I'm spoiled by fast load speeds, but I did install this on a fast SSD. Maybe a faster M.2 drive would be better. Goodness, imagine playing this on an HDD…
Other miscellaneous stuff: Gameplay would hang. An uncommon occurrence during random battles. Perhaps an NVME is better? I played on a Samsung SSD with a decent PC that ran the highest graphics on max settings to optimal framerate. The hanging is like a split second. Usually, initializing textures and characters when starting and during loading screens to govern your principality or unpacking a file. Not something glaringly obvious since my overall experience is still positive. Nevertheless, it is something noteworthy. Moving on. Some portraits of enemies are not given a unique picture. We are faced with our characters' faces. Pretty jarring to witness as if any major enemy is well an imposter of us. Granted not all of them are like this, but the inconsistency is mildly weird to witness.
Owlcat’s version of Pathfinder gamified is an incredibly ambitious undertaking. Took me nearly a year to finish in its entirety and while I did have some annoyances from the ruleset, scattered loading times, and mixed feelings. There’s quite a bit to enjoy among the many systems within. I liked overseeing my realm. Making tough decisions based on fair policies and having an immediate effect on my subjects whether good or bad. I delved deep to understand the deep mechanics in real time and pause. Yet at the end of the day, I think the amount of gratification here despite the herculean effort the devs have encompassed with a gigantic stuff to devour is dependent on the user's experience to get down in the trenches. If I never knew about skill checks and buffing, then I would have suffered early on because of my ignorance in taking advantage of magical resistances. If I didn’t read up on how to manage my provinces better, then possibly in a bad alternate universe I would’ve game over in my 100+ hour run due to my improper handling and neglect of the state of affairs. And that is NOT a feeling I want anyone to suffer with. Considering the reports I've read online of users having the same issues of neglecting their nation. Please make sure to check 'invincible kingdom' in the options. Speaks volumes how much you have to devote yourself to bring out something worthwhile. And for me? I think this is certainly one of the greats along with Baldur’s Gate. As long as you dedicate enough energy inside and mods installed. A deep & expansive CRPG that doesn’t hold your hand, but rewards the most invested of players. Sadly I find this incredibly difficult to recommend to everyone. Except only to fans of the genre. I believe Mandaloregaming said it best "... you play this game more for the systems than for the writing." And I can’t help but agree with their statement despite him saying the line in his story section. I would say it also accounts for the whole breadth of the game itself.
Base game without mods: 7.6/10
Base game with mods: 8/10
References & Additional Material:
Interview with the creative director on Pathfinder: Kingmaker
Pathfinder: Kingmaker Classes overview and archetypes
Example of information overload from my character
Long road to secret ending - heavy endgame spoilers within
PK Difficulty Settings - Pretty extensive options to tune the combat modifiers to your preference.
Before I play & Walkthrough
Mods:
Mod Manager - Bag of Tricks - Faster Menu - Buffbot
Last year I had the pleasure of unofficially starting into the Front Mission(FM) universe via a mediocre spin-off. Fast-forward to the present and now I started and finished a proper mainline with the first installment. And to my absolute surprise and delight. Front Mission 1st remake(FM1RE) holds up very well today despite some notable concerns.
Why should I play the remake(2022) when I could start the DS or fan-translated SNES game of the same name? Well, here’s a brief overview of what you’re getting on either version. The first Western installment officially came ashore with the Nintendo 2007 DS port. Originally released in Japan on the SNES in 1995. The game featured only one campaign, the OCU. Oceania Cooperative Union. Detailing one side of a major conflict in 2090. Later remade for the PlayStation in 2003. Featuring a new campaign added. The USN. Unified Continental States. Where the 2nd details the other perspective, months before the major war. Again only released in Japan. The 2007 port includes all the above in English with new secret scenarios for both sides of the story. A handful more or less provide extra context during your ventures. The 2022 title includes everything the last upgrade had with the original music and the option for a remastered soundtrack. Basic quality of life features like instant/faster movement, instant battle, and quicker battle speed. And a save-anytime option. With multiple difficulty configurations, I could change to my leisure. With new content coming later on in 2024 in the form of multiplayer and single-player scenarios. So I figured I’d start with the current one. Previously I owned and played the DS port several times but bounced off hard, considering the second and third missions being too brutal for me. So it's a blessing, that Square outsourced the JRPG/SRPG IP to Forever Entertainment with a respectable game for newcomers and veterans piloting their own mech in the battles to come.
It is imperative to note, that starting with the OCU point of view is recommended for beginners. Veterans for USN and disclosed prominently with warnings when starting the game. I’ll touch on the harder operation later. For now, if the player starts the first operation. The premise starts with you controlling a human in a wanzer(mech) by the name of Royd Clive, a young talented lieutenant who’s been sent to numerous hot zones. Coming back alive again and again. A walking coffin man. He is approached by Glen, a sergeant who after testing him proceeds to grant him the rank of captain. Complete with a recon squad to lead under him. For soon enough he’ll have to conduct a reconnaissance operation on a certain U.C.S. facility in Larcus. Traveling there with his fiance Karen. Yeah, I kid you, not that’s her name. They proceed to investigate the facility. All goes well. Until like so many JRPGs in the past go. Things spiral outside of their control and Bam! Newspaper headlines:
June 3rd, 2090:
The Larcus Incident
The Unified Continental States(UCS) publicly accused the Oceania Cooperative Union(OCU) of sending Wanzers. On a mission to destroy U.C.S. military factories in the Larcus District of Huffman Island.
Officially, the text is given following their first mission. The rest of the headline will go off shooting fingers at one another. Rising tensions between the superpowers. Making dreams of a peaceful resolution erode entirely. What happens after tensions build like this? Well, it all comes to a boiling point and soon enough the two superpowers declare war. Huh sounds familiar in real life eh?
Thus began the Second Huffman Conflict
Don’t worry about the first battle. Those are covered in a different game. What is important to cover for you budding newbies piloting wanzers. Is how awesome it is to command a whole team of mechs against other foes trying to destroy you to kingdom come! Here’s a cool rundown of what to expect out the gate. Large squad to use in a majority of battles. At the most, I was able to deploy 11 pilots on the field. Such a staggeringly large amount to utilize speaks well to the freedom granted. Sure there are a handful of missions with smaller deployments. However, allowing us to manage a sizable troop speaks of confidence by the developers G-Craft & Square. Battling twice our number, easily replicating large-scale warfare. Nothing beats the slow hum of our engines roaring to life and clashing amidst the heated missiles and bullets galore. No copy-paste in environments. You’ll find a varied selection of biomes to traverse and fight in. Cityscapes, day, rain, night maps, jungles, sandy areas like dunes, beaches, ruined towns, rivers, snow and heck forts, and mountainous tiles are not spared either. Meaning there’s always something to look forward to when picking a mission on the point-and-click world map.
Excellent quality of life features. I mentioned them previously, but to expand on why? The difficulty options, instant battle/movement, faster battle speed, and save anytime are a godsend and should be used whenever you fancy a brisk pace or an easier time. Due to the fact battles can take a while on normal. And there's not any dialogue spoken between hostiles during their animation phase or new animation when a critical strike occurs. The remake includes two options; classic mode and modern. I chose the modern mode. Displaying freedom of the camera in every aspect. Meaning I'm not constrained to a set camera perspective while overviewing the field of battle. Resulting in better situational awareness of any hidden details I may have missed if I had chosen the other mode. It is a small pet peeve of mine in tactical games when I'm not offered the full freedom to move the camera at my own pace. A tactical map is exhibited. Picture a bird's eye view of the entire battleground much like a real-time war map. These also contain fixes and improvements to the DS port.
Earlier I classified the game as a JRPG, but to be honest, calling FM1RE an SRPG fits too. You fight on grid battles and tactfully determine what terrain you should place your units on to gain cover bonuses. Level up your pilot during skirmishes with the enemy. Earn enough experience to be granted abilities changing the tide of battle. Shoot any part of Wanzer? Well hello! VATS-like system in place. Except this game came before the Fallout series. I can shoot and if the shot hits the limb is destroyed. Right, and left arms, legs, and body are the only possible choices. Choose wisely, since each provides an additional layer to help in your fight on Huffman Island. Eliminate legs to reduce their overall movement power to traverse the land. Land body blows and if successful you can explode the whole unit to smithereens. Thereby lessening remaining oppositions within your vision. Destroy both arms and the enemy becomes a sitting duck without any capability to repair themselves. Unless there is a supply truck nearby. Supply trucks can restore ammo to long-range weapons and have the cool ability to slam bullets on unfriendlies with a weak attack. Heal when nearby for free for a small amount and exchange equipment and items when needed. Speaking of items. Man, they can help if you’re in a pinch. I love using repair packs. Think of these as the potion to high potion and various other tiers similar to Pokemon or Final Fantasy. Restoring decent to large amounts of health.
A big feature of any mech game is customization and I am glad to report you have a lot to tinker and dabble your mech. Once you finish all the tutorial missions you will be inside a town/city. Enter the shop and outfit their squad with any manner of weaponry they see fit. Some key things to note. Arm accuracy is king. Make sure to equip your party with high-accuracy arms to not miss your shots. Missing early game is a snowball to a death sentence once the enemy has more strikes than you. Then the result is you have a less likely chance of surviving. Although if you’re a cheesy dude, one could quicksave before a battle and RNG in your favor to give a slight advantage. Heh. Legs are akin to an additional decoy target. If any dum dum manages to shoot your legs and make them go boom. Well, the only penalty is a reduction in movement capability. A 6-tile with a full hp leg becomes a 3-tile shift if destroyed. So you’re not entirely a helpless fighter who can’t move. HP is self-explanatory and represents your life. But the body is your life. If an enemy destroys your main body. Well, reload the save file, and voila you’re back in action. The world is primarily set in a fictionalized Cold War world similar to real life except with mechs. You can’t revive with a phoenix down or use a handy revive. Get your fantasy out of here. Thankfully, there is no permadeath like a certain JRPG series coughs looking at an emblem on fire Nintendo likes to do. Anytime any of your pilots die in the field of battle. They simply will return in tip-top form once the next mission arrives. Sure they don’t get any experience and you do have to pay their repair costs(which is miniscule). But hey! That’s why we have the quick save and quick loading here! So abuse the system and take out the pesky RNG nature if you get a solid rocket to your metal face. Players are allowed to exploit the RNG during their ventures gambling in the arena. Think 1v1 versus a variety of foes of various expertise. Picking one with higher odds and betting an ‘x’ amount like 1000 can net you a lot of money if done correctly. One trick is to use garbage equipment to increase the payout odds in your favor. So if you bet 1000 x 8.57. One time I saw the odds were x 32! But oof I couldn’t win that payout sadly. An awesome if not vital feature to grind for money and pilot skills.
Skills like Guide and Duel allow the VATS-like targeting mechanic to activate pretty much 99% of the time during any engagement with foes. Sadly the first installment doesn’t have a lot you can procure. Your initial party including Royd will only have vacant spots. You need to level up and reach certain ‘####’ tiers in proficiencies of melee, short, long, and dodge. Here's a brief overview of what each skill does in their respective categories.
Melee:
First - attack first during engagements.
Stun - Self-explanatory. Preventing them from any action for an ‘x’ amount of turns.
Double - Can attack again. Sometimes thrice!
Short:
Duel - Arms equipped with rifles and machine guns can manually target any enemy component.
Speed - Allows more bullets to strike the enemy.
Switch - activates other armament on the other arm. Granting one more shot at the enemy.
Long:
Guide - Shoulder weapons like missiles can manually aim at any enemy limb.
Skills are tremendously useful when gained. And can drastically shift the fate of a battle. I advise checking out when they activate for each character you recruit. Some can gain them swiftly than others while a select amount can only equip three abilities compared to five. So choose wisely! I’ll drop a link below. Nevertheless, I found their inclusion during fights essential to gaining an overwhelming advantage. Duel, guide, speed, switch, and first were instrumental in turning the tide countless times. However, keep in mind they’re not universal and dependent on the category used. So a missile cannot use duel, speed, or switch and vice versa with their respective categories. Furthermore, some wanzers do not have the power to activate some of the above if one uses a mobile weapon.
Mobile weapons are a secret reward that can be found once reaching certain tiles on a handful of maps. Think of these as special mechs that can’t be upgraded the usual ways as Wanzers but boast a miniboss-like design when faced as an enemy. Imagine crab tanks, hulking wanzers without arms but big ol cannons equipped sometimes on their chest or using dual machine guns. Here’s my screenshot as an example. Honestly, I didn’t use any of these since my two-legged crew was more than enough to blast these supposedly superior mechanized machines to nothingness. Additionally one can unlock concealed missions by talking to a sequence of people or new unknown characters after or before completing a new mission. These secret operations convey extra context on either side of the story and may provide clues to the overarching narrative or breadcrumbs to one character’s past in particular. I recommend them wholeheartedly. Considering you can win a mobile wep. as a reward. I advise seeking out a walkthrough for proper instructions.
Before I forget I must talk about the music. I listened to the original OST initially. With remastered in NG+ to clean up any last-minute assignments. As a whole Yoko Shimomura & Noriko Matsueda's composition on the entire soundtrack is hauntingly jolly. A mix of techno and jazz, I initially thought their music styles would not work at all. Yet blowing past all my expectations once again! I was astounded. How their styles work in tandem. Shimomura’s techno expertise lends itself well to the futuristic tone the series starts with. Beats of Coaxial Town are sending me to nodding heaven as is her wonderful ability to switch to a different tone effortlessly. Like Field Hospital. Producing a serious yet catchy tone. Canyon Crow to my eyes encapsulates a prelude of events to come with heavy percussion on display foreshadowing the gritty war to come. Yet I cannot help but praise Matsueda’s style of jazz to complement the techno. Filled with her soul I embraced the ambient tracks in absolute pleasure. Tracks like Rise to Action blew me away. Hearing upbeat tunes on repeat and a cool rhythm loop never fails to impress me. Optical City by comparison is a nice change of pace delving into a cityscape almost a cyberpunk feel where the low passive background of woodwind instruments coalesce together with percussion offering a mesmerizing yet beautiful atmosphere permeating to my eardrums. Within Living Memory is breathtaking where minimal instruments are used and no vocals are echoed. Yet manifests a strong determination in both the foreground and background, thrusting my soul into contemplative tranquility. The passionate duos reach a powerful teamwork when endgame tracks like Fear. Culminate the true reality behind the uplifting tracks I've heard thus far. The remastered is good too, even if I’m more inclined to listen to the original OST first, yet the remastered isn’t of a diminished quality. Either option is fine to listen to. Nice to have as an option to change at any time and for what it's worth I think it is faithful when compared to the original work.
Any SRPG worth theirsalt WD-40 must manifest a fun combat loop. A fun combat loop to me in FM1RE is utilizing everything from how your unit composition clashes against the enemy, grid modifiers to help shield from enemy fire using cover, any underlying main/side objectives, and level design(easy/hard to traverse, any gimmicks, obstacles?) I could add more, but I simplified some basics. Combine everything topside with the player’s experience then. Outputting at the final stretch of any mission their current feelings based on whatever they experienced. To this end. The mission structure the OCU campaign launches us into is a ‘simple and safe’ fun combat loop after the initial hurdle in the beginning. I marched on countless varied terrains without being bombarded by enormous levels to tread nor filled to the brim with armies of mecha to stand against my party. No, not 300 vs. Persian size. Think of skirmishes. Eleven vs. double that number is more or less enough. Struggling against our opposing adversaries. Making use of the elevation at times to wipe foolish stuck mobs in a choke point never fails to inject a rush of immense satisfaction. Targeting with pinpoint accuracy to disable each hostile offensive capability leaving them defenseless and free from any sign of counter-attack is a fistbump moment every time I landed a deadly blow. Undertaking a protect/escort mission by slowly baiting my enemy to irrational decisions by striking my tanky ally embraces my inner keikaku greatly. Retreating is whenever my plan doesn’t work out upon first contact. Regroup and activate any items to halt or impede enemy advance and thus give your comrades a better fighting chance. Can’t say no to repair packs ya know?! Salvaging any secluded equipment during a 1v1 with a pesky opponent. Hell, I found a sweet rifle allowing me to shoot a big one nearly destroying a limb. Or heck, salvage a mobile wep! Taking my sweet time on each battlefield to read any dialogue between my members and the enemy. Delving into the horrifying effects of war on the psyche and how each soldier will try to trick my cabal into lowering their morale at times. Especially when reinforcements arrive midway or drop a plot beat. Demonstrating not only physical clashes but hurtful words against those under my command. Would be weird if my constant scuffles were silent no?
Concerning the OCU campaign. I was caught off guard by how geo-political, mortal drama and the war affect the innocents/soldiers' PTSD the plot underwent. A fantastic departure from the usual tropes I see with fantasy where we usually to some degree at the end of the day face off a [censored] b%^&@. The plot, endgame, and major antagonist were a refreshing change from those classic tropes I battled in the end. Presenting a fictionalized realistic take on border wars, ulterior motives, and backdoor shady deals you won’t see coming. Meanwhile, Royd’s journey without going into any spoilers enthralled me to the point I wanted to know the immediate aftermath causing the 2nd Huffman war, his allies whom he recruits later on and would soon as other JRPGs/SRPGs undergo after any lore bomb or revelation hits the climax reach the final map and fight to the bitter end to whatever hell awaits me before the curtain falls.
Concerning the USN campaign. I was again caught off guard by how different operations underwent, detailing the ‘enemy’ POV months before the 2nd Huffman struggle and the hidden events occurring behind the scenes. As well as controlling a new protagonist called Kevin Greenfield. Who controls a much smaller crew than Royd with his limit being up to seven. Nevertheless, they greatly differ from OCU by undertaking a more militarized focus. Back in Clive’s point of view, I conversed with relatable people in the city's bar and had a lot of downtime between activities to test the arena. Embracing the lethargic pace of sinking in the war took its toll on my army. Here take out the glacial threads. Remove the conversations in bars in favor of talking to your underlings. Bonding with them early on and seeking personal aspirations as vaguely as I can say without spoiling Greenfield's motivations for participating in the war provides an interesting parallel compared to Royd. Assignments are varied offering more tactical objectives than ever before and raising the difficulty a decent amount. You will meet new enemy types like fast-moving armored personnel carriers(APC), bigger cannons and smaller cannons, disabling prototypes, night vision, mini-bosses, protection, escort, and defeating all enemies within an ‘x’ amount of turns. All of these types emerge in greater volume. As a consequence of the small squad you have on hand. I can’t win by sheer numbers alone. Thereby, I have to make careful use of micromanaging my supplies and capability versus forces greater than my own.
Now time for my mixed feelings. Not a positive or a negative. Only notable concerns I had during my playthroughs that I think are worth noting.
First, on the technical side. I had ten crashes on my PS4 Pro. Five on a new game playthrough(NG) OCU and five on NG USN. Oddly enough. Crashing wasn’t a major pain because I reverted my past save back with barely any loss of progress. I usually have a high tolerance for game crashes. With Cyberpunk 2077 on my same console accumulating over 40+. Yet it didn’t affect my whole experience in a sizable manner. The save system was very well implemented. In a similar vein, FM1RE also didn’t impact my overall enjoyment. Only a minor portion. I did experience an uncommon amount of black screens sadly. Anytime after you finish a mission the background where you select areas to visit like the: shop, arena, hanger, command room, etc. will only have a black background. I’m not exactly sure about the cause of this. Since I have clear memories of no odd bugs like that for a long period. Pretty jarring since I like to admire the setting and having a black screen can be immersion-breaking. Still not a major issue, but one to look out for. Keep in mind you only have five save slots. Four of which you can manually overwrite whenever with the fifth being designated as an autosave. You don’t receive new slots if you decide to start the USN offensive. So if you accidentally overwrite your OCU save well… F$%! Pray you still have an earlier save just in case. Use the cloud or back up your saves via USB to help.
Second, loadouts and constant customization. I love reshaping all components in any mech game. So I'm puzzled that I reached a different outcome than the usual reworking craze. To the point I can't say I love the customization here. Early on I didn’t have trouble whatsoever changing and buying new equipment for my teammates. The tediousness comes from buying the same upgraded item ‘x’ many times repeatedly on each of my eleven units constantly. Imagine scrolling through various menus to pick a high-tier left arm. Only to repeat the process eleven times for my friends. Oh, but I'm not done. Need to upgrade the other ones like my right arm, legs, and body. Multiply those by eleven times. I’m still not done. I have to replace all my crew’s offensive capabilities. So left and right along with the shoulder to boot. Yeah, you guessed it, I'm still not done. CPU, backpacks, and items I still need to manually input. All the busy work would have been smoothly eliminated if I had load-outs. I probably spent fifteen minutes give or take some change after several missions passed to overhaul my allies. Each time. Tedious to do every time if I use the same stuff to slot each limb. Is it too much to ask for load-outs or at least a purchase button to replicate what I bought and install them for my whole squad? I don't know. I'm not a game designer. I can only offer alternatives and suggestions.
Third, wish there was more variation in mission objectives. Most of them boil down to killing everyone with rare odd ones out there being limited turns to complete and some optional side-goals of keeping allies alive, new units alive, to be rewarded the max amount of cash. Thankfully, the United side and hidden missions solve this dilemma, but for the regular OCU viewpoint. I felt it was formulaic and didn’t push the encounter design as much. Which was more experimental and pushed my mental limits further. Not a bad thing mind you. I appreciate the simple nature of directives in Clive’s story. But I think more variation in parameters could’ve elevated it further. Different enemy types, and new boss types instead of recycling mini-bosses and new encounters. A relatively decent oddball in the grand scheme of things.
Fourth, Possible information overload on what each user interface term does. Ask anyone off the bat what these terms mean. AT, DF, Hit, Weight, Power and if I hadn’t explained the short, long, melee earlier along with any other word terminology I surmise a decent amount may be confused and thus will be disinclined to persevere. Such an issue was one of the major factors I had when I played the 2007 version years ago. Look at this image(insert DS image of battle before attacking) and see if you can translate all the information displayed before determining your first command. Doesn’t help there’s no innate help button to identify and define the jargon given. Wish there was an explain button available. Still, the tutorial and in-game control guide + shopkeeper can give useful tips.
Fifth, difficult and a rough beginning. I initiated on a normal setting. And still found it somewhat challenging. Oddly mirroring the same experience I had with the previous rendition. Be that as it may. I did use some helpful links from: before I play, LegaiaRules walkthrough. Which are crucial and instrumental to grant me a better start. Tremendously received a better understanding and comprehension in regards to the mechanics and tricks. Thereby, giving me a solid push to persevere beyond meager gains through the main story content for each protagonist. I suggest grinding in the arena when necessary to help offset any hardship you may encounter or simply change the difficulty setting, for an easier time.
That’s it for my mixed feelings. Despite the minor bugs and crashes. And a gentle reminder to save constantly. The difficulty, customization, and information are the big key things to note coming in. However, I believe there is still a solid Mecha JRPG here. Enough to set an excellent foundation for newcomers to try before delving into the latter entries to reach the last mainline in the series. Where knowledge of each core game in the series is utilized to its fullest effect from the praise I’ve been seeing across the horizon. Nevertheless, I did enjoy a great deal of both campaigns. Worth experiencing in my honest opinion to get a better picture of the major war occurring. While dealing with palpable emotions. Human drama is essential in any narrative to connect with the cast be it main or side. Perhaps even villains themselves. In a 1995 Sakaguchi X Tsuchida interview with Famicom Tsuushin magazine. Translated by shmuplations. When the developers were asked about the colorful cast who pilot the wanzers they responded.
Toshiro Tsuchida(producer/writer): “That’s right. This was something that emerged from conversations with Sakaguchi, the idea that a game about robots would be ripe for a story about human drama. That was his idea, that in this game themed around war, we should try and include human drama as well.”
Hironobu Sakaguchi(supervisor): “I said, let’s not abandon or compromise on the tasteful, refined aesthetic that the G-Craft team has created, but let’s see if we can also include some human drama that would evoke the realism of war. In that sense, I think Front Mission ended up becoming a very mature, adult game.”
The realism of mecha warfare and vivid drama are intrinsically linked in FM. A gruff, gritty yet humorous at times evokes a dusty atmosphere to lighten the mature themes presented. Thus a fascinating foundational world-building sets the stage for the events to come in the later entries to follow. Royd’s walking coffin status plays a key role in shaping his development based on the tumultuous skirmishes he endures. Kevin Greenfield’s no man left behind personality provides a stark, but refreshing perspective in a militaristic point of view on the events in secret operations conducted opposite enemy lines. Both are assigned a colorful cast to bridge the narrative to each member. Their reasons for fighting, any grayish feelings buried deep within their psyche perhaps bubbling forth when any adversary taunts them, and perhaps through the fires of battles and camaraderie something deeper emerges. Bonds forged in hellfire. It is brutal, but not so much in the realm of senseless violence. But when used carefully in dozens of assignments they undergo. The threads start to align and knots converge, developing into a moderately satisfying geo-political strife against each superpower's story. Forever Entertainments' remake of FM 1st only deserves praise, despite some rough gears attached. Therefore, I hesitantly recommend the mature and realistic military plot mecha JRPG/SRPG to any folks willing to dive into an old but still fresh war spectacle. Akin to what Tsuchida likes to call “...For Front Mission, I wanted to combine the entertainment quality of a blockbuster sci-fi movie with the realism of a Vietnam war film.”
Tsuchida if I ever meet you personally, I firmly believe you succeeded on both accounts! Looking forward to trying out more in the IP!
7.8/10
References & Additional Material:
Sakaguchi x Tsuchida – 1995 Developer Interview
Examples of mobile weapon and black screens
FM1 DS guide and walkthrough by LegaiaRules - incredibly in-depth and remarkably holds up to the remake.
FM1 skills explanation
FM1 Before I play - Additional tips to know beforehand
Why should I play the remake(2022) when I could start the DS or fan-translated SNES game of the same name? Well, here’s a brief overview of what you’re getting on either version. The first Western installment officially came ashore with the Nintendo 2007 DS port. Originally released in Japan on the SNES in 1995. The game featured only one campaign, the OCU. Oceania Cooperative Union. Detailing one side of a major conflict in 2090. Later remade for the PlayStation in 2003. Featuring a new campaign added. The USN. Unified Continental States. Where the 2nd details the other perspective, months before the major war. Again only released in Japan. The 2007 port includes all the above in English with new secret scenarios for both sides of the story. A handful more or less provide extra context during your ventures. The 2022 title includes everything the last upgrade had with the original music and the option for a remastered soundtrack. Basic quality of life features like instant/faster movement, instant battle, and quicker battle speed. And a save-anytime option. With multiple difficulty configurations, I could change to my leisure. With new content coming later on in 2024 in the form of multiplayer and single-player scenarios. So I figured I’d start with the current one. Previously I owned and played the DS port several times but bounced off hard, considering the second and third missions being too brutal for me. So it's a blessing, that Square outsourced the JRPG/SRPG IP to Forever Entertainment with a respectable game for newcomers and veterans piloting their own mech in the battles to come.
It is imperative to note, that starting with the OCU point of view is recommended for beginners. Veterans for USN and disclosed prominently with warnings when starting the game. I’ll touch on the harder operation later. For now, if the player starts the first operation. The premise starts with you controlling a human in a wanzer(mech) by the name of Royd Clive, a young talented lieutenant who’s been sent to numerous hot zones. Coming back alive again and again. A walking coffin man. He is approached by Glen, a sergeant who after testing him proceeds to grant him the rank of captain. Complete with a recon squad to lead under him. For soon enough he’ll have to conduct a reconnaissance operation on a certain U.C.S. facility in Larcus. Traveling there with his fiance Karen. Yeah, I kid you, not that’s her name. They proceed to investigate the facility. All goes well. Until like so many JRPGs in the past go. Things spiral outside of their control and Bam! Newspaper headlines:
June 3rd, 2090:
The Larcus Incident
The Unified Continental States(UCS) publicly accused the Oceania Cooperative Union(OCU) of sending Wanzers. On a mission to destroy U.C.S. military factories in the Larcus District of Huffman Island.
Officially, the text is given following their first mission. The rest of the headline will go off shooting fingers at one another. Rising tensions between the superpowers. Making dreams of a peaceful resolution erode entirely. What happens after tensions build like this? Well, it all comes to a boiling point and soon enough the two superpowers declare war. Huh sounds familiar in real life eh?
Thus began the Second Huffman Conflict
Don’t worry about the first battle. Those are covered in a different game. What is important to cover for you budding newbies piloting wanzers. Is how awesome it is to command a whole team of mechs against other foes trying to destroy you to kingdom come! Here’s a cool rundown of what to expect out the gate. Large squad to use in a majority of battles. At the most, I was able to deploy 11 pilots on the field. Such a staggeringly large amount to utilize speaks well to the freedom granted. Sure there are a handful of missions with smaller deployments. However, allowing us to manage a sizable troop speaks of confidence by the developers G-Craft & Square. Battling twice our number, easily replicating large-scale warfare. Nothing beats the slow hum of our engines roaring to life and clashing amidst the heated missiles and bullets galore. No copy-paste in environments. You’ll find a varied selection of biomes to traverse and fight in. Cityscapes, day, rain, night maps, jungles, sandy areas like dunes, beaches, ruined towns, rivers, snow and heck forts, and mountainous tiles are not spared either. Meaning there’s always something to look forward to when picking a mission on the point-and-click world map.
Excellent quality of life features. I mentioned them previously, but to expand on why? The difficulty options, instant battle/movement, faster battle speed, and save anytime are a godsend and should be used whenever you fancy a brisk pace or an easier time. Due to the fact battles can take a while on normal. And there's not any dialogue spoken between hostiles during their animation phase or new animation when a critical strike occurs. The remake includes two options; classic mode and modern. I chose the modern mode. Displaying freedom of the camera in every aspect. Meaning I'm not constrained to a set camera perspective while overviewing the field of battle. Resulting in better situational awareness of any hidden details I may have missed if I had chosen the other mode. It is a small pet peeve of mine in tactical games when I'm not offered the full freedom to move the camera at my own pace. A tactical map is exhibited. Picture a bird's eye view of the entire battleground much like a real-time war map. These also contain fixes and improvements to the DS port.
Earlier I classified the game as a JRPG, but to be honest, calling FM1RE an SRPG fits too. You fight on grid battles and tactfully determine what terrain you should place your units on to gain cover bonuses. Level up your pilot during skirmishes with the enemy. Earn enough experience to be granted abilities changing the tide of battle. Shoot any part of Wanzer? Well hello! VATS-like system in place. Except this game came before the Fallout series. I can shoot and if the shot hits the limb is destroyed. Right, and left arms, legs, and body are the only possible choices. Choose wisely, since each provides an additional layer to help in your fight on Huffman Island. Eliminate legs to reduce their overall movement power to traverse the land. Land body blows and if successful you can explode the whole unit to smithereens. Thereby lessening remaining oppositions within your vision. Destroy both arms and the enemy becomes a sitting duck without any capability to repair themselves. Unless there is a supply truck nearby. Supply trucks can restore ammo to long-range weapons and have the cool ability to slam bullets on unfriendlies with a weak attack. Heal when nearby for free for a small amount and exchange equipment and items when needed. Speaking of items. Man, they can help if you’re in a pinch. I love using repair packs. Think of these as the potion to high potion and various other tiers similar to Pokemon or Final Fantasy. Restoring decent to large amounts of health.
A big feature of any mech game is customization and I am glad to report you have a lot to tinker and dabble your mech. Once you finish all the tutorial missions you will be inside a town/city. Enter the shop and outfit their squad with any manner of weaponry they see fit. Some key things to note. Arm accuracy is king. Make sure to equip your party with high-accuracy arms to not miss your shots. Missing early game is a snowball to a death sentence once the enemy has more strikes than you. Then the result is you have a less likely chance of surviving. Although if you’re a cheesy dude, one could quicksave before a battle and RNG in your favor to give a slight advantage. Heh. Legs are akin to an additional decoy target. If any dum dum manages to shoot your legs and make them go boom. Well, the only penalty is a reduction in movement capability. A 6-tile with a full hp leg becomes a 3-tile shift if destroyed. So you’re not entirely a helpless fighter who can’t move. HP is self-explanatory and represents your life. But the body is your life. If an enemy destroys your main body. Well, reload the save file, and voila you’re back in action. The world is primarily set in a fictionalized Cold War world similar to real life except with mechs. You can’t revive with a phoenix down or use a handy revive. Get your fantasy out of here. Thankfully, there is no permadeath like a certain JRPG series coughs looking at an emblem on fire Nintendo likes to do. Anytime any of your pilots die in the field of battle. They simply will return in tip-top form once the next mission arrives. Sure they don’t get any experience and you do have to pay their repair costs(which is miniscule). But hey! That’s why we have the quick save and quick loading here! So abuse the system and take out the pesky RNG nature if you get a solid rocket to your metal face. Players are allowed to exploit the RNG during their ventures gambling in the arena. Think 1v1 versus a variety of foes of various expertise. Picking one with higher odds and betting an ‘x’ amount like 1000 can net you a lot of money if done correctly. One trick is to use garbage equipment to increase the payout odds in your favor. So if you bet 1000 x 8.57. One time I saw the odds were x 32! But oof I couldn’t win that payout sadly. An awesome if not vital feature to grind for money and pilot skills.
Skills like Guide and Duel allow the VATS-like targeting mechanic to activate pretty much 99% of the time during any engagement with foes. Sadly the first installment doesn’t have a lot you can procure. Your initial party including Royd will only have vacant spots. You need to level up and reach certain ‘####’ tiers in proficiencies of melee, short, long, and dodge. Here's a brief overview of what each skill does in their respective categories.
Melee:
First - attack first during engagements.
Stun - Self-explanatory. Preventing them from any action for an ‘x’ amount of turns.
Double - Can attack again. Sometimes thrice!
Short:
Duel - Arms equipped with rifles and machine guns can manually target any enemy component.
Speed - Allows more bullets to strike the enemy.
Switch - activates other armament on the other arm. Granting one more shot at the enemy.
Long:
Guide - Shoulder weapons like missiles can manually aim at any enemy limb.
Skills are tremendously useful when gained. And can drastically shift the fate of a battle. I advise checking out when they activate for each character you recruit. Some can gain them swiftly than others while a select amount can only equip three abilities compared to five. So choose wisely! I’ll drop a link below. Nevertheless, I found their inclusion during fights essential to gaining an overwhelming advantage. Duel, guide, speed, switch, and first were instrumental in turning the tide countless times. However, keep in mind they’re not universal and dependent on the category used. So a missile cannot use duel, speed, or switch and vice versa with their respective categories. Furthermore, some wanzers do not have the power to activate some of the above if one uses a mobile weapon.
Mobile weapons are a secret reward that can be found once reaching certain tiles on a handful of maps. Think of these as special mechs that can’t be upgraded the usual ways as Wanzers but boast a miniboss-like design when faced as an enemy. Imagine crab tanks, hulking wanzers without arms but big ol cannons equipped sometimes on their chest or using dual machine guns. Here’s my screenshot as an example. Honestly, I didn’t use any of these since my two-legged crew was more than enough to blast these supposedly superior mechanized machines to nothingness. Additionally one can unlock concealed missions by talking to a sequence of people or new unknown characters after or before completing a new mission. These secret operations convey extra context on either side of the story and may provide clues to the overarching narrative or breadcrumbs to one character’s past in particular. I recommend them wholeheartedly. Considering you can win a mobile wep. as a reward. I advise seeking out a walkthrough for proper instructions.
Before I forget I must talk about the music. I listened to the original OST initially. With remastered in NG+ to clean up any last-minute assignments. As a whole Yoko Shimomura & Noriko Matsueda's composition on the entire soundtrack is hauntingly jolly. A mix of techno and jazz, I initially thought their music styles would not work at all. Yet blowing past all my expectations once again! I was astounded. How their styles work in tandem. Shimomura’s techno expertise lends itself well to the futuristic tone the series starts with. Beats of Coaxial Town are sending me to nodding heaven as is her wonderful ability to switch to a different tone effortlessly. Like Field Hospital. Producing a serious yet catchy tone. Canyon Crow to my eyes encapsulates a prelude of events to come with heavy percussion on display foreshadowing the gritty war to come. Yet I cannot help but praise Matsueda’s style of jazz to complement the techno. Filled with her soul I embraced the ambient tracks in absolute pleasure. Tracks like Rise to Action blew me away. Hearing upbeat tunes on repeat and a cool rhythm loop never fails to impress me. Optical City by comparison is a nice change of pace delving into a cityscape almost a cyberpunk feel where the low passive background of woodwind instruments coalesce together with percussion offering a mesmerizing yet beautiful atmosphere permeating to my eardrums. Within Living Memory is breathtaking where minimal instruments are used and no vocals are echoed. Yet manifests a strong determination in both the foreground and background, thrusting my soul into contemplative tranquility. The passionate duos reach a powerful teamwork when endgame tracks like Fear. Culminate the true reality behind the uplifting tracks I've heard thus far. The remastered is good too, even if I’m more inclined to listen to the original OST first, yet the remastered isn’t of a diminished quality. Either option is fine to listen to. Nice to have as an option to change at any time and for what it's worth I think it is faithful when compared to the original work.
Any SRPG worth their
Concerning the OCU campaign. I was caught off guard by how geo-political, mortal drama and the war affect the innocents/soldiers' PTSD the plot underwent. A fantastic departure from the usual tropes I see with fantasy where we usually to some degree at the end of the day face off a [censored] b%^&@. The plot, endgame, and major antagonist were a refreshing change from those classic tropes I battled in the end. Presenting a fictionalized realistic take on border wars, ulterior motives, and backdoor shady deals you won’t see coming. Meanwhile, Royd’s journey without going into any spoilers enthralled me to the point I wanted to know the immediate aftermath causing the 2nd Huffman war, his allies whom he recruits later on and would soon as other JRPGs/SRPGs undergo after any lore bomb or revelation hits the climax reach the final map and fight to the bitter end to whatever hell awaits me before the curtain falls.
Concerning the USN campaign. I was again caught off guard by how different operations underwent, detailing the ‘enemy’ POV months before the 2nd Huffman struggle and the hidden events occurring behind the scenes. As well as controlling a new protagonist called Kevin Greenfield. Who controls a much smaller crew than Royd with his limit being up to seven. Nevertheless, they greatly differ from OCU by undertaking a more militarized focus. Back in Clive’s point of view, I conversed with relatable people in the city's bar and had a lot of downtime between activities to test the arena. Embracing the lethargic pace of sinking in the war took its toll on my army. Here take out the glacial threads. Remove the conversations in bars in favor of talking to your underlings. Bonding with them early on and seeking personal aspirations as vaguely as I can say without spoiling Greenfield's motivations for participating in the war provides an interesting parallel compared to Royd. Assignments are varied offering more tactical objectives than ever before and raising the difficulty a decent amount. You will meet new enemy types like fast-moving armored personnel carriers(APC), bigger cannons and smaller cannons, disabling prototypes, night vision, mini-bosses, protection, escort, and defeating all enemies within an ‘x’ amount of turns. All of these types emerge in greater volume. As a consequence of the small squad you have on hand. I can’t win by sheer numbers alone. Thereby, I have to make careful use of micromanaging my supplies and capability versus forces greater than my own.
Now time for my mixed feelings. Not a positive or a negative. Only notable concerns I had during my playthroughs that I think are worth noting.
First, on the technical side. I had ten crashes on my PS4 Pro. Five on a new game playthrough(NG) OCU and five on NG USN. Oddly enough. Crashing wasn’t a major pain because I reverted my past save back with barely any loss of progress. I usually have a high tolerance for game crashes. With Cyberpunk 2077 on my same console accumulating over 40+. Yet it didn’t affect my whole experience in a sizable manner. The save system was very well implemented. In a similar vein, FM1RE also didn’t impact my overall enjoyment. Only a minor portion. I did experience an uncommon amount of black screens sadly. Anytime after you finish a mission the background where you select areas to visit like the: shop, arena, hanger, command room, etc. will only have a black background. I’m not exactly sure about the cause of this. Since I have clear memories of no odd bugs like that for a long period. Pretty jarring since I like to admire the setting and having a black screen can be immersion-breaking. Still not a major issue, but one to look out for. Keep in mind you only have five save slots. Four of which you can manually overwrite whenever with the fifth being designated as an autosave. You don’t receive new slots if you decide to start the USN offensive. So if you accidentally overwrite your OCU save well… F$%! Pray you still have an earlier save just in case. Use the cloud or back up your saves via USB to help.
Second, loadouts and constant customization. I love reshaping all components in any mech game. So I'm puzzled that I reached a different outcome than the usual reworking craze. To the point I can't say I love the customization here. Early on I didn’t have trouble whatsoever changing and buying new equipment for my teammates. The tediousness comes from buying the same upgraded item ‘x’ many times repeatedly on each of my eleven units constantly. Imagine scrolling through various menus to pick a high-tier left arm. Only to repeat the process eleven times for my friends. Oh, but I'm not done. Need to upgrade the other ones like my right arm, legs, and body. Multiply those by eleven times. I’m still not done. I have to replace all my crew’s offensive capabilities. So left and right along with the shoulder to boot. Yeah, you guessed it, I'm still not done. CPU, backpacks, and items I still need to manually input. All the busy work would have been smoothly eliminated if I had load-outs. I probably spent fifteen minutes give or take some change after several missions passed to overhaul my allies. Each time. Tedious to do every time if I use the same stuff to slot each limb. Is it too much to ask for load-outs or at least a purchase button to replicate what I bought and install them for my whole squad? I don't know. I'm not a game designer. I can only offer alternatives and suggestions.
Third, wish there was more variation in mission objectives. Most of them boil down to killing everyone with rare odd ones out there being limited turns to complete and some optional side-goals of keeping allies alive, new units alive, to be rewarded the max amount of cash. Thankfully, the United side and hidden missions solve this dilemma, but for the regular OCU viewpoint. I felt it was formulaic and didn’t push the encounter design as much. Which was more experimental and pushed my mental limits further. Not a bad thing mind you. I appreciate the simple nature of directives in Clive’s story. But I think more variation in parameters could’ve elevated it further. Different enemy types, and new boss types instead of recycling mini-bosses and new encounters. A relatively decent oddball in the grand scheme of things.
Fourth, Possible information overload on what each user interface term does. Ask anyone off the bat what these terms mean. AT, DF, Hit, Weight, Power and if I hadn’t explained the short, long, melee earlier along with any other word terminology I surmise a decent amount may be confused and thus will be disinclined to persevere. Such an issue was one of the major factors I had when I played the 2007 version years ago. Look at this image(insert DS image of battle before attacking) and see if you can translate all the information displayed before determining your first command. Doesn’t help there’s no innate help button to identify and define the jargon given. Wish there was an explain button available. Still, the tutorial and in-game control guide + shopkeeper can give useful tips.
Fifth, difficult and a rough beginning. I initiated on a normal setting. And still found it somewhat challenging. Oddly mirroring the same experience I had with the previous rendition. Be that as it may. I did use some helpful links from: before I play, LegaiaRules walkthrough. Which are crucial and instrumental to grant me a better start. Tremendously received a better understanding and comprehension in regards to the mechanics and tricks. Thereby, giving me a solid push to persevere beyond meager gains through the main story content for each protagonist. I suggest grinding in the arena when necessary to help offset any hardship you may encounter or simply change the difficulty setting, for an easier time.
That’s it for my mixed feelings. Despite the minor bugs and crashes. And a gentle reminder to save constantly. The difficulty, customization, and information are the big key things to note coming in. However, I believe there is still a solid Mecha JRPG here. Enough to set an excellent foundation for newcomers to try before delving into the latter entries to reach the last mainline in the series. Where knowledge of each core game in the series is utilized to its fullest effect from the praise I’ve been seeing across the horizon. Nevertheless, I did enjoy a great deal of both campaigns. Worth experiencing in my honest opinion to get a better picture of the major war occurring. While dealing with palpable emotions. Human drama is essential in any narrative to connect with the cast be it main or side. Perhaps even villains themselves. In a 1995 Sakaguchi X Tsuchida interview with Famicom Tsuushin magazine. Translated by shmuplations. When the developers were asked about the colorful cast who pilot the wanzers they responded.
Toshiro Tsuchida(producer/writer): “That’s right. This was something that emerged from conversations with Sakaguchi, the idea that a game about robots would be ripe for a story about human drama. That was his idea, that in this game themed around war, we should try and include human drama as well.”
Hironobu Sakaguchi(supervisor): “I said, let’s not abandon or compromise on the tasteful, refined aesthetic that the G-Craft team has created, but let’s see if we can also include some human drama that would evoke the realism of war. In that sense, I think Front Mission ended up becoming a very mature, adult game.”
The realism of mecha warfare and vivid drama are intrinsically linked in FM. A gruff, gritty yet humorous at times evokes a dusty atmosphere to lighten the mature themes presented. Thus a fascinating foundational world-building sets the stage for the events to come in the later entries to follow. Royd’s walking coffin status plays a key role in shaping his development based on the tumultuous skirmishes he endures. Kevin Greenfield’s no man left behind personality provides a stark, but refreshing perspective in a militaristic point of view on the events in secret operations conducted opposite enemy lines. Both are assigned a colorful cast to bridge the narrative to each member. Their reasons for fighting, any grayish feelings buried deep within their psyche perhaps bubbling forth when any adversary taunts them, and perhaps through the fires of battles and camaraderie something deeper emerges. Bonds forged in hellfire. It is brutal, but not so much in the realm of senseless violence. But when used carefully in dozens of assignments they undergo. The threads start to align and knots converge, developing into a moderately satisfying geo-political strife against each superpower's story. Forever Entertainments' remake of FM 1st only deserves praise, despite some rough gears attached. Therefore, I hesitantly recommend the mature and realistic military plot mecha JRPG/SRPG to any folks willing to dive into an old but still fresh war spectacle. Akin to what Tsuchida likes to call “...For Front Mission, I wanted to combine the entertainment quality of a blockbuster sci-fi movie with the realism of a Vietnam war film.”
Tsuchida if I ever meet you personally, I firmly believe you succeeded on both accounts! Looking forward to trying out more in the IP!
7.8/10
References & Additional Material:
Sakaguchi x Tsuchida – 1995 Developer Interview
Examples of mobile weapon and black screens
FM1 DS guide and walkthrough by LegaiaRules - incredibly in-depth and remarkably holds up to the remake.
FM1 skills explanation
FM1 Before I play - Additional tips to know beforehand
Tell anyone what’s a fantastic gateway into the Warhammer series and you may receive a host of different answers. Since the 90’s until now in the 2020s there have been more than a haystack full of various types: FPS, 3rd person shooters, RTS, 4x grand strategy, XCOM-like, Turn-based, ARPG, sports, puzzle, MMOs, cards, auto-battler, VR, crossovers, heck there’s a new racing one coming out and I wouldn’t be surprised if a visual novel is located deep in the vast library already or will be in the future. Need I say more? Oh, wait, recently a CRPG came out. But where’s my Kojima-version?! Meh, I’ll take a Cavil one coming... oh wait- April Ahhh- what a cruel world.
Nevertheless, despite my low experience in the franchise I am here to tell you about an incredibly solid real-time strategy(RTS). Warhammer 40,000: Dawn of War - Master Collection for the PC. Mouthful ain’t it? I’ll refer to it simply as the DoW master collection for short. A bundle containing the first dawn of war game. The first expansion, Winter Assault, contains two campaigns. And two others are called Dark Crusade and Soulstorm. I completed all the regular single-player ones with the two meta campaigns I'll play off and on since they barely have any plot. Primarily a conquer the whole system/planet type of gameplay. For now, I’ll dive into the first installment. Move onto my mixed feelings plus mods, then the final expanded content. In Dawn of War 1(DOW 1), The story begins as you control Gabriel Angelos. Captain of the Space Marines’ Blood Ravens 3rd Company among others to assist the planet Tartarus defenders from Ork invaders. Yup, you heard that right. ORK not orc or uruk-hai. Ork. Big scars, super ugly faces, and body. Hulking armors haphazardly glued together, massive sneers and frowns, sharp pointy weapons combined with menacing growls and teeth. Waaagh! Battle cries galore, but still deadly in wreaking havoc and mayhem wherever they tread. Ultimately giving off a decent main story narrative after the end credits rolled. For now, let's dive into the vast grimdark world that is Warhammer.
To imagine how different the aforementioned universe is. Conceptualize both sci-fi and fantasy elements where inside the fictional universe of the sci-fi variant lies a technologically advanced human society in constant battle against both hostile aliens and the supernatural variant. Unaugmented and augmented humans, the latter of which are bigger than us average-sized individuals. Oversized armor platings and pauldrons, 4x-8x the size of regular guns, and a fierce facial expression capable of withstanding sheer terror. Combating hostiles, without shying away from blood, ashes, skulls, and death is the norm while slapping magical powers and thrusting all of these in the unforgiving nature that is war. Where deathstar-likes exist and exterminating countless billions is commonplace. Ork warbosses killing their comrades without remorse for disobedience exudes similar energies when the imperium of man, and chaos space marines do the same. Albeit in different methods. I’ll leave the disgusting imagery in your imagination. Amongst the other supernatural and alien forces. Epic stories are told harrowing tales of humanity in the imperium triumphing against the might of corruption and whoever stands against them. For the Emperor… While I live and breathe. All is not dandy. The universe delves far into the vastness of these ideas unflinchingly. Screw good and evil. Fighting is everywhere.
For a more comparable, but different example. Think Starcraft(SC) except far more grittier in tone and visceral in tackling the onslaught of armies with little remorse. Adding spectacle in the action without gorgeous cinematics. If you have that mental picture, good. Then add more races beyond the base three in SC. Replace basic gathering resources by sending off workers to collect crystals and vespene gas(resources in SC) with acquiring requisition and power. One has you gather specific points on the map. The other is increasing by making generators. For combat. We have to train units from buildings using any of the above resources. Thankfully starting we don’t need both, usually, power is enough. Once you gain enough upgrades to your headquarters and establish more structures then you can fashion better grunts to do the leg work. In general, the game operates in two different groups. One infantry where you can send scouts, marines, jetpack dudes, medics, builders, and more potent exterminator squads once you acquire enough necessary architecture and tiers. Vehicles are on the other side. Mighty mechanized entities. Tanks, transport trucks, mobile mortars. And my personal favorite is the impressive dreadnoughts. Big hulking mechas. Oh yesssssss…. As a mecha fan. You know which I picked already heh! Aside from troop recruitment, players can also construct research centers(to impart passive bonuses and possible tech trees on their army), defensive turrets/bunkers, and various others to unlock the capability to recruit the above-mentioned groups to use in battle.
Keep in mind there is a sort of light rock-paper-scissors(RPS) to produce certain battalions. Being effective against types or multiple and vice-versa is advisable. For instance, you can highlight a mouse cursor over a soldier icon to see what they're effective against. The tooltip will say. Blah blah blah this squad is effective against certain infantry. Light armored vehicles can be super weak to heavy infantry. Dynamic companies are formed later on once the headquarters is upgraded to the max. Allowing the player to summon robust dreadnoughts or elite squads to do your bidding. I’m sure you can imagine what their weaknesses are. Here’s a hint: none. Unless you like testing their mettle against a full regiment against one sole capable hero then the odds may not be in your favor. Although, you generally don’t have to conform to the RPS formula at all. Sending out a mix-matched corps of various molds can get the job done as well. And that’s a strategy I like a lot. The non-adherence to basic tenets of predestined unit composition, allowing anyone to conjure any manner of crowd combinations to win against your foes is an awesome dopamine rush that never gets old.
And I have to say after engaging in countless skirmishes and laying waste to foolish mobs. I found the whole experience of combat to be enjoyable to the point I completed multiple campaigns after the first ended. Didn’t take a lot of hours to complete either. With the first taking nine hours and winter assault taking ten. Not much rigorous thinking is required. The mechanics are neither too complex nor too simple. Managing to hit the fine line to grasp newcomers and veterans in the RTS genre to pick up with ease. A tutorial is here as well, so newbies shouldn’t fear complex systems to learn. Different difficulty modifiers are present to shift the challenge from easy to more punishing for those in need of it. I played the game + expansions in vanilla form. And honestly, I was satisfied because the devs hit regular elements of what I was looking for in the genre. A fun loop of replacing dead soldiers with fresh blood, with non-complex mechanics to understand, without any major faults, defending my bases, completing my main and secondary objectives with challenging enemies to fight against, and the coup de grace of having every map with a hero analogous to the good old days in Warcraft III. Without any of these or tweaked in a more squad-based approach. The formula becomes different from the core formula. It is why I bounced off Company of Heroes and wasn’t too enthused by the shift in core mechanics in Dawn of War II(& chaos rising). Latter I finished, former is on hiatus. Not a negative at all for those games. I simply prefer training useful meatshields for my cause and creating defenses. Here I was able to build numerous armies, select them all, and order them to eliminate everyone in their path. Designing fortifications, and turrets, and queuing new grunts to throw into the fray. The loop became more enjoyable as new missions came in and new goals to take advantage of the war-torn battlefields littered with orbital bombardment, wire trenches, destroyed structures, and fleeing citizens. Creating an immediately grim reality than what reports would suggest.
Nevertheless, I am here to report that DoW 1 has a great mission structure. Often most mission targets will boil down to eliminating all hostiles with extreme prejudice, but when the game shakes things up with infiltration using stealth, eradicating new mob specimens, embracing guerilla warfare, investigating a new area, escorting your champion to the point far in the map deep within enemy territory. Starting with no bases and must use a limited supply of troops to establish a foothold, and defend against multiple waves. And I could go on into detail for a package totaling eleven missions. The difficulty was a natural progressive curve. Didn’t find it too challenging outside of learning my go-to formula for amassing squads and defenses quickly. Super cool going up against an uphill battle where my armies start small and I have to build fortifications, shield my dudes from enemy fire and grant a reprieve, soldiers, upgrade them then set forth in completing both my main and secondary quests. Maps for each mission are medium-sized and can take time to march your whole company, with a decent amount of variation. Tartarus is like Mars. Except filled with human colonies before the invasion. Terraformed so you will see lush forests, vegetation such as grass, and rivers with water and snow! But as the invasion occurs the atmosphere slowly bleeds out becoming harsher. A yellow-to-red tinge filter occurs. Explosions litter the once industrialized cities becoming desolate and broken beyond repair. Fires are commonplace and the once lively greenery we saw before has irrevocably become charred. Countless sandbags, barbed wire, and ruined roadways leave a haunting effect on those remaining alive to fight or flee. Try mustering morale while besotted by ash in your face, the dead comrades who tried to save you while still bogged down in enemy fire. It is harsh, unrelenting, and brutal to keep ongoing.
I'm treated to a gritty sci-fi human race struggling to defend their continent from alien hostiles. However, have faith for when all hope is lost Captain Angelos is here to help! He surprised me a great deal with how strong he exudes. Beyond his rough exterior lies a man who will do anything to protect Tartarus from imminent annihilation. And the lengths which he undergoes and struggles is a sight to witness. Stoic, grit, unbending on his ideals, and relentless fortitude to keep going in the face of overwhelming odds stacked against his combatants. Tough not to like him to be honest. The side-cast like the librarian, inquisitor, and villains are also brought up with a respectable screen time I appreciate without being another mustache twirly antics and handled relatively well. To the point, my suspension of disbelief wasn’t bombarded by an orbital strike.
Usually in RTS games, I adore how they implement commanders or leaders. Heroes as I like to call them such as Angelos, are far stronger than an average foot soldier. But he isn’t alone at all; sometimes others join his missions to combat against the armies of Orks like Isador, a librarian, a close friend to Gabriel, and has the power of psychics. Making him invaluable on the field. Casting smite. A force-like energy to push and damage enemies at a distance, weaken resolve to lower the morale of enemies and the word of the emperor. Making all allies in an area unkillable for a small amount of time. Good thing I never used that ability heh. Seems too overpowering. Inversely the enemy champions can utilize their abilities so being on the end of those isn’t pretty. So watch out, evade, and retaliate with overwhelming strength! Anyway, commanders make the constant tug-of-war between engagements with combatants interesting. Sure you can send waves of enemies en-masse by placing a rallypoint, but nothing beats attaching a dude in full space marine armor leading the charge while viscerally leaving nothing but broken morale, broken swords, guns, and more in their wake. Laying waste to all who oppose the Imperium(galactic empire of humanity). Activate their abilities to turn the tide in your favor and a cool benefit is they instantly respawn freely with no cost whatsoever should they die. So sending them feet first in the bloodiest of all skirmishes is the right way to go! Take that blood god!
Now time for my mixed feelings. Not a positive or a negative. The following text is a set of observations I had, perhaps a critique or two. A recommendation and some other tidbits I think are important to know beyond all the praise I’ve been sprouting up above.
First, when diving feet-first in any RTS game one needs to remember what pathfinding is. For those unaware, I understand this as how a unit will move across the map when instructed. Hopefully without being obstructed by comrades or by terrain obstacles. DoW1 pathfinding I think could be better. I had uncommon moments like this one in my playthrough. Sorry about the low quality. When the group pathfinding is supposed to be smooth. The gif is from Dru Erridge from game developer. He has an informative breakdown of how to approach pathfinding issues. Relative to our current topic. Should be noted, that this has been a regular occurrence since the 90s with Starcraft with the remaster being faithful to the original as you can see. Nevertheless not a big issue. Very minor actually
Second, I think the troop limit is awfully strict initially at twenty for both infantry and vehicles . For the unaware. In real-time strategy games, you cannot build infinitely to send your lackeys in mass. There’s generally a maximum to what you can build. For DoW 1. Each one can take a certain amount like two to four. Again not a big deal since they can be upgraded to have eight or more. So essentially if you have say a squad of jetpack bros taking up a three-unit cap. And you built six of them. Then you have 18/20. A unit isn’t always singular by the way. Sometimes they’ll be accompanied by two to four plus. You can also upgrade the group to give them more personnel thereby giving substantial health, new weapons, etc. In the end, after playing through the main story, I think I'm on board with the hard restriction. At first, I was a bit disgruntled since I'm used to 100 or 200 as the cap. But twenty feels balanced. Heck, there’s a faction that allows you to hold way more than twenty! So look forward to controlling a swarm of ugly creatures to send over the trenches.
Third, before starting the game. It’s important to remember the developers of Relic Entertainment haven’t updated the game in a long while since the original release back in 2004. Therefore, quality of life improvements I frequently see in modern RTS games are missing here. As a result I’m gently recommending everyone to check out the pcgamingwiki article on the aforementioned game before starting. For essential mods to install enhancing the vanilla content. Only a small list. For me I only needed skip intro videos, higher resolution models, enabling 1080p. Forcing AA by graphics drivers, V-sync. Contains bug fixes and recommended mods too! I didn’t have any bugs throughout my time in the collection and the latter I'll talk about later. Before I forget please install the camera mod to allow zooming out during gameplay. Vanilla you can’t zoom out and get a general overview of the battle. Picture your face closer to the screen. And extend your pinky touching the monitor and putting your chin on the thumb. That’s how close my experience was without camera zoom.
Fourth. I think maps could use more variation in tile design within the campaigns. Kinda got old seeing the red palette terrain in the first game. Could’ve used more interesting mission purposes like defend for ‘x’ amount of time. Tower defense, more stealth, rescue missions, time limits, etc. While the vanilla content is satisfactory, the inclusion of these suggestions would’ve changed the great mission structure into a fantastic, excellent one. Fifth, a great majority of missions. Were truly easy in my opinion. Turns out the normal difficulty is easy while the hard mode felt normal.… I didn’t know until I checked what parameters from which each tier changes. Sighs cue facepalm upon learning… A gentle reminder for veterans looking for a challenge in the genre. Enable hard difficulty. Newcomers try either mode to see which you fall in.
Hope this helps those interested in the game. Not trying to deter any folks. Most of my observations shouldn’t be taken as a negative and more as a point to know coming in.
Now onto Winter Assault(WA). The first expansion and one hell of a follow-up I like probably equal to Brood War from starcraft. A separate story from what Captain Angelos endures on Tartarus. We run through familiar, but different missions in reclaiming a winter planet called Lorn V. Shorter than DoW 1. WA has two campaigns. Order where you control the guardsman and Eldar. And Disorder where you command the horde of Ork and Chaos. Both have 6 missions with a branching split mission before the last one changing the final faction you oversee and perspective. Motives for each of the races are somewhat near the same wavelength. The guardsman's underlying purpose is to recover a powerful weapon called the Titan Dominatus. Eldar’s agenda is a bit mysterious. Halt an old enemy while secretly assisting the guardsman and who knows what else is in our sights? Both forces have an uneasy alliance to conquer the globe and direct the titan. All the races have changed since their introduction in 1. A more extensive list of changes can be read at the wikipedia page.
Honestly, I like Winter Assault's mission design the most. By improving on one of my earlier points from my mixed feelings regarding uniquely challenging assignments. I am thrilled to say Relic must’ve wanted to go wild here and holy moly they go the full nine yards. Ya know when you engage in tug of war, and you have enough strength to win in several pulls? That’s how it was playing DoW 1 on normal. Winning in three tugs. WA says no. We're in for the full ride. Blisters, warts, and full-on tugging and warring. I had repeated wins and losses in most of the main missions. And again on the same difficulty I had previously. And I can’t imagine continuing beyond the 4th mission on higher difficulties with how arduous it can be…
Anyways, objectives have expanded. One to three main assignments are gone in favor of secure areas, assault enemy bases, switch to your ally, and accomplish subsidiary goals like flanking the enemy to unlock a path for your comrade. More secondary objectives to complete, reinforce allies defending a critical position, luring an army, repairing a vital machine, and I could just go on man. It’s incredible and super gratifying witnessing the devs flex their creative muscles with better encounter design. Back then there was a predestined path you could move towards. The expansion also operates the same. Except we may need protection. Manually go brave through gunfire in the trenches. Eliminate various waves of enemies blocking a key position all while supporting our main bases. Or transport bombarded people in armored APCs to mitigate enemy fire. Take advantage of bunkers to burrow beneath the surface and re-emerge like a gopher near another bunker. Ah to be a human Diglett except harshly conducting guerilla tactics.
Narratively I don’t consider either campaign the strongest suit to offer. The last missions in the endgame are flipped with different objectives based on the faction. With the earlier ones being different and offering a unique experience. Governing the Eldar, Guardsman, Chaos, and Ork was extraordinarily entertaining and I still recommend it. Each race has unique characteristics I found to be distinct enough to tinker around. Guards don’t have a superhero, instead, they're kinda of a weaker sect of humanity with stronger-than-usual vehicles and defense capabilities and a nice tunnel network for stealth purposes. Helps a bunch transporting a group of dudes to the frontline. Eldar is sublime. They’re like Protoss from Starcraft, but are more mystical and deal in energy weaponry. They differ from humans in one crucial ability. All of their buildings can teleport to another location. For example, you can participate in hide-and-seek against an overwhelming force bearing down on your location as long as you produce a node to act as a waypoint for them to travel. Chaos is well, from my understanding. More of a darker form of humanity and their sworn enemies. Think of these guys like fanatic dudes embracing the dark side of the warp instead of the glory of the emperor and well for the blood god. Summoning demons, consorting with imps and all manner of monstrous beings to do their bidding. Their aesthetic design reeks of evil and forging any superstructure feels wretched. Builders can speed up the construction of structures at the cost of health, and most of their capabilities usually have a drawback in their skills to activate. Summoning a badass daemon for instance requires sacrificing people or guardsmen. Ork is a breath of fresh air. They massacre the 20-limit cap to oblivion and can reach over 90. Activating the Wagghhh ability strengthens others when near a warboss and while they can be a bit stiff, gaining resources in the beginning. I’ve likened them similar in some respects to Zerg rushes. Due to the sheer amount, I can train at my disposal.
Dark Crusade(DC)/Soulstorm(SS) offer different but almost the same meta-campaign. The former is reminiscent of how Total War operates intending to conquer all provinces on the sphere. Depending on the aliens you choose, you’ll be placed on certain points on the map. Tau, Chaos, Necron, Ork, Guard, and Eldar are possible choices to pick. Each has a different detachment of soldiers, structures, heroes, and advantages/disadvantages that come with utilizing them. You cannot attack and move all the time on the world map. Only one specified action. Either moving to another area or attacking. Once you finish your commands. You can end your turn and see what the other side will do on the map. Enemies can attack other foes and conquer the opposing lands. Careful though, they may attack you! If you’re nearby. Battles take place on a separate map. Tasking the player and opposing force to start from the beginning to establish a foothold and train infantry. The ultimate intent is always to defeat the enemy by eliminating every squad alive and architecture they have or at the very least destroy their headquarters and any builder. DC offers a cool incentive for replayability. As you achieve victory in battles/new territories you can gain passive bonuses like a reduction in costs for buildings/units and even wargear. Wargear makes your commander in battle stronger by strengthening their capabilities. Choose a helmet to grant true sight and reveal cloaked assassins, boots to prevent knockdown, body armor for increased HP regen, etc. I found this aspect rewarding and a nice incentive to keep going. While I didn’t finish the Total War-like mode, I think it could be profoundly addicting for those hungry for more content.
Soulstorm operates in almost the same manner as the above, except the dev’s added new factions; the Sisters of Battle to use, Blood Ravens, & Dark Eldar. Expands the meta-campaign to be system-wide. So no longer, are you essentially subjugating the planet. Instead, you need to control the whole star system. What’s stunning in both these expansions is facing off the commander in their stronghold shifts the battlefield to assume a special scenario. These come with voice text on the loading screen detailing the enemy commander’s background along with special orders of main and secondary targets. I kid you not. This single-handedly blew my freaking mind. In SS I faced off what I initially thought would be a puny guardsman, only to run between the tails behind my head in having to win every single engagement and defend my base against constant waves of enemies that would progressively become stronger as time passed. Must stop a convoy at regular ‘x’ intervals to stop them from manifesting a baneblade. Yeah, think ultra badass tank with a s%^& ton of health and massive firepower. So yeah for sure I’m gonna take great pains to stop the convoys. And if that’s not enough I have to contend with stealth punches against my troops, a biga@@ artillery that can wipe my army off the face of the map. Contend against sneaky nuclear assaults and if that’s not enough I have to deal with air types. Introduced in this standalone is the addition of air attackers for every alien. I won in the end, but I felt it was a hollow victory since It took me hours to brutally drill a win on normal difficulty. I should’ve stayed and cornered the guy while assembling enough power/requisition to reinforce my territories and establish a garrison. Instead, I Lee-roy Jenkins myself into battle without support… I didn’t finish SS’s campaign either, only taking one globe for the taking, but spent a large amount of time longer than DC’s. Nevertheless, I had to stop or else I would never see the light of day. Therefore I recommend them only if you hunger for more gameplay using different races. Offering a show, don’t tell approach without a major story to follow. Callum McCole wrote a fascinating article why meta-campaigns are fun and I largely agree with all their points.
In the end, I am here to tell y'all. Warhammer 40,000: Dawn of War - Master Collection is a brutally awesome gateway into the franchise for a real-time strategy game. Sure I had some mixed feelings but they feel largely minor and didn’t impact my overall enjoyment of the multiple plot missions on Tartarus and beyond. Gabriel’s story is only one piece, though a vital one to watch out for. His steadfast defense of the planet Tartarus is admirable against the onslaught of Orks, and unveils an incredible discipline to do what needs to be done. Let me share one quote from him later on. “Innocents die so that humanity may live. I ended their suffering, as I will end yours.” Chills man. I don’t think I will ever forget those words. And soon enough if you dive into the operations on Lorn V, be warned they aren’t for the faint of heart, mercy is thrown out the window in favor of carnage, bloodshed and cunning tactics exhibiting a grim spectacle of sci-fi war up close and personal. Yes, it doesn’t reach my favorites in the genre, but I swear its close. Perhaps, once I finish the meta campaigns here and there. I have a good feeling they will sooner or later join their ranks. Anyway, If you can buy the master collection below 7 bucks or 10. You’re in for a wealth of content to dive into with dozens of hours to devour. Besides, there's a wonderful community filled with amazing content mods you can add. Ultimate apocalypse, Unification, Strongholds, custom sets of missions, new races, new modes, and so much more. By the emperor, I am glad to be back in the series once again. Though I wonder why I have a pages upon pages of 40k reasons why you should join the Imperium of Man. At least they’re far better than those chaos dudes who preach about blood all day everyday. I mean come on “Blood for the blood god?”
I prefer Angelos’s words.
“While the enemies of the Emperor still draw breath, there can be no peace.”
8.5/10
References & Additional Material:
Long list of Warhamer games from the beginning
Example from my playthrough on pathfinding.
Example from game dev on group pathfinding
Dru Erridge article on group pathfinding
Callum McCole on RTS meta campaigns and why they’re fun.
Helpful Links for DoW: MC - Essential Improvements/Fixes/Difficulty Overview - pcgaming wiki on Dawn of War 1 + expansions -
Widescreen fix - Difficulty overview - WA changes - Player guide
Before I play DoW1 - Odd there was no section for the first game prior to this review, so I sent some tips. Hope this helps!
Cavil Warhammer Cinematic Universe - Slight tangent to above. But plugging the news since I'm so happy for Cavill for landing his dream job producing and starring in his favorite series with none other than Warhammer.
Nevertheless, despite my low experience in the franchise I am here to tell you about an incredibly solid real-time strategy(RTS). Warhammer 40,000: Dawn of War - Master Collection for the PC. Mouthful ain’t it? I’ll refer to it simply as the DoW master collection for short. A bundle containing the first dawn of war game. The first expansion, Winter Assault, contains two campaigns. And two others are called Dark Crusade and Soulstorm. I completed all the regular single-player ones with the two meta campaigns I'll play off and on since they barely have any plot. Primarily a conquer the whole system/planet type of gameplay. For now, I’ll dive into the first installment. Move onto my mixed feelings plus mods, then the final expanded content. In Dawn of War 1(DOW 1), The story begins as you control Gabriel Angelos. Captain of the Space Marines’ Blood Ravens 3rd Company among others to assist the planet Tartarus defenders from Ork invaders. Yup, you heard that right. ORK not orc or uruk-hai. Ork. Big scars, super ugly faces, and body. Hulking armors haphazardly glued together, massive sneers and frowns, sharp pointy weapons combined with menacing growls and teeth. Waaagh! Battle cries galore, but still deadly in wreaking havoc and mayhem wherever they tread. Ultimately giving off a decent main story narrative after the end credits rolled. For now, let's dive into the vast grimdark world that is Warhammer.
To imagine how different the aforementioned universe is. Conceptualize both sci-fi and fantasy elements where inside the fictional universe of the sci-fi variant lies a technologically advanced human society in constant battle against both hostile aliens and the supernatural variant. Unaugmented and augmented humans, the latter of which are bigger than us average-sized individuals. Oversized armor platings and pauldrons, 4x-8x the size of regular guns, and a fierce facial expression capable of withstanding sheer terror. Combating hostiles, without shying away from blood, ashes, skulls, and death is the norm while slapping magical powers and thrusting all of these in the unforgiving nature that is war. Where deathstar-likes exist and exterminating countless billions is commonplace. Ork warbosses killing their comrades without remorse for disobedience exudes similar energies when the imperium of man, and chaos space marines do the same. Albeit in different methods. I’ll leave the disgusting imagery in your imagination. Amongst the other supernatural and alien forces. Epic stories are told harrowing tales of humanity in the imperium triumphing against the might of corruption and whoever stands against them. For the Emperor… While I live and breathe. All is not dandy. The universe delves far into the vastness of these ideas unflinchingly. Screw good and evil. Fighting is everywhere.
For a more comparable, but different example. Think Starcraft(SC) except far more grittier in tone and visceral in tackling the onslaught of armies with little remorse. Adding spectacle in the action without gorgeous cinematics. If you have that mental picture, good. Then add more races beyond the base three in SC. Replace basic gathering resources by sending off workers to collect crystals and vespene gas(resources in SC) with acquiring requisition and power. One has you gather specific points on the map. The other is increasing by making generators. For combat. We have to train units from buildings using any of the above resources. Thankfully starting we don’t need both, usually, power is enough. Once you gain enough upgrades to your headquarters and establish more structures then you can fashion better grunts to do the leg work. In general, the game operates in two different groups. One infantry where you can send scouts, marines, jetpack dudes, medics, builders, and more potent exterminator squads once you acquire enough necessary architecture and tiers. Vehicles are on the other side. Mighty mechanized entities. Tanks, transport trucks, mobile mortars. And my personal favorite is the impressive dreadnoughts. Big hulking mechas. Oh yesssssss…. As a mecha fan. You know which I picked already heh! Aside from troop recruitment, players can also construct research centers(to impart passive bonuses and possible tech trees on their army), defensive turrets/bunkers, and various others to unlock the capability to recruit the above-mentioned groups to use in battle.
Keep in mind there is a sort of light rock-paper-scissors(RPS) to produce certain battalions. Being effective against types or multiple and vice-versa is advisable. For instance, you can highlight a mouse cursor over a soldier icon to see what they're effective against. The tooltip will say. Blah blah blah this squad is effective against certain infantry. Light armored vehicles can be super weak to heavy infantry. Dynamic companies are formed later on once the headquarters is upgraded to the max. Allowing the player to summon robust dreadnoughts or elite squads to do your bidding. I’m sure you can imagine what their weaknesses are. Here’s a hint: none. Unless you like testing their mettle against a full regiment against one sole capable hero then the odds may not be in your favor. Although, you generally don’t have to conform to the RPS formula at all. Sending out a mix-matched corps of various molds can get the job done as well. And that’s a strategy I like a lot. The non-adherence to basic tenets of predestined unit composition, allowing anyone to conjure any manner of crowd combinations to win against your foes is an awesome dopamine rush that never gets old.
And I have to say after engaging in countless skirmishes and laying waste to foolish mobs. I found the whole experience of combat to be enjoyable to the point I completed multiple campaigns after the first ended. Didn’t take a lot of hours to complete either. With the first taking nine hours and winter assault taking ten. Not much rigorous thinking is required. The mechanics are neither too complex nor too simple. Managing to hit the fine line to grasp newcomers and veterans in the RTS genre to pick up with ease. A tutorial is here as well, so newbies shouldn’t fear complex systems to learn. Different difficulty modifiers are present to shift the challenge from easy to more punishing for those in need of it. I played the game + expansions in vanilla form. And honestly, I was satisfied because the devs hit regular elements of what I was looking for in the genre. A fun loop of replacing dead soldiers with fresh blood, with non-complex mechanics to understand, without any major faults, defending my bases, completing my main and secondary objectives with challenging enemies to fight against, and the coup de grace of having every map with a hero analogous to the good old days in Warcraft III. Without any of these or tweaked in a more squad-based approach. The formula becomes different from the core formula. It is why I bounced off Company of Heroes and wasn’t too enthused by the shift in core mechanics in Dawn of War II(& chaos rising). Latter I finished, former is on hiatus. Not a negative at all for those games. I simply prefer training useful meatshields for my cause and creating defenses. Here I was able to build numerous armies, select them all, and order them to eliminate everyone in their path. Designing fortifications, and turrets, and queuing new grunts to throw into the fray. The loop became more enjoyable as new missions came in and new goals to take advantage of the war-torn battlefields littered with orbital bombardment, wire trenches, destroyed structures, and fleeing citizens. Creating an immediately grim reality than what reports would suggest.
Nevertheless, I am here to report that DoW 1 has a great mission structure. Often most mission targets will boil down to eliminating all hostiles with extreme prejudice, but when the game shakes things up with infiltration using stealth, eradicating new mob specimens, embracing guerilla warfare, investigating a new area, escorting your champion to the point far in the map deep within enemy territory. Starting with no bases and must use a limited supply of troops to establish a foothold, and defend against multiple waves. And I could go on into detail for a package totaling eleven missions. The difficulty was a natural progressive curve. Didn’t find it too challenging outside of learning my go-to formula for amassing squads and defenses quickly. Super cool going up against an uphill battle where my armies start small and I have to build fortifications, shield my dudes from enemy fire and grant a reprieve, soldiers, upgrade them then set forth in completing both my main and secondary quests. Maps for each mission are medium-sized and can take time to march your whole company, with a decent amount of variation. Tartarus is like Mars. Except filled with human colonies before the invasion. Terraformed so you will see lush forests, vegetation such as grass, and rivers with water and snow! But as the invasion occurs the atmosphere slowly bleeds out becoming harsher. A yellow-to-red tinge filter occurs. Explosions litter the once industrialized cities becoming desolate and broken beyond repair. Fires are commonplace and the once lively greenery we saw before has irrevocably become charred. Countless sandbags, barbed wire, and ruined roadways leave a haunting effect on those remaining alive to fight or flee. Try mustering morale while besotted by ash in your face, the dead comrades who tried to save you while still bogged down in enemy fire. It is harsh, unrelenting, and brutal to keep ongoing.
I'm treated to a gritty sci-fi human race struggling to defend their continent from alien hostiles. However, have faith for when all hope is lost Captain Angelos is here to help! He surprised me a great deal with how strong he exudes. Beyond his rough exterior lies a man who will do anything to protect Tartarus from imminent annihilation. And the lengths which he undergoes and struggles is a sight to witness. Stoic, grit, unbending on his ideals, and relentless fortitude to keep going in the face of overwhelming odds stacked against his combatants. Tough not to like him to be honest. The side-cast like the librarian, inquisitor, and villains are also brought up with a respectable screen time I appreciate without being another mustache twirly antics and handled relatively well. To the point, my suspension of disbelief wasn’t bombarded by an orbital strike.
Usually in RTS games, I adore how they implement commanders or leaders. Heroes as I like to call them such as Angelos, are far stronger than an average foot soldier. But he isn’t alone at all; sometimes others join his missions to combat against the armies of Orks like Isador, a librarian, a close friend to Gabriel, and has the power of psychics. Making him invaluable on the field. Casting smite. A force-like energy to push and damage enemies at a distance, weaken resolve to lower the morale of enemies and the word of the emperor. Making all allies in an area unkillable for a small amount of time. Good thing I never used that ability heh. Seems too overpowering. Inversely the enemy champions can utilize their abilities so being on the end of those isn’t pretty. So watch out, evade, and retaliate with overwhelming strength! Anyway, commanders make the constant tug-of-war between engagements with combatants interesting. Sure you can send waves of enemies en-masse by placing a rallypoint, but nothing beats attaching a dude in full space marine armor leading the charge while viscerally leaving nothing but broken morale, broken swords, guns, and more in their wake. Laying waste to all who oppose the Imperium(galactic empire of humanity). Activate their abilities to turn the tide in your favor and a cool benefit is they instantly respawn freely with no cost whatsoever should they die. So sending them feet first in the bloodiest of all skirmishes is the right way to go! Take that blood god!
Now time for my mixed feelings. Not a positive or a negative. The following text is a set of observations I had, perhaps a critique or two. A recommendation and some other tidbits I think are important to know beyond all the praise I’ve been sprouting up above.
First, when diving feet-first in any RTS game one needs to remember what pathfinding is. For those unaware, I understand this as how a unit will move across the map when instructed. Hopefully without being obstructed by comrades or by terrain obstacles. DoW1 pathfinding I think could be better. I had uncommon moments like this one in my playthrough. Sorry about the low quality. When the group pathfinding is supposed to be smooth. The gif is from Dru Erridge from game developer. He has an informative breakdown of how to approach pathfinding issues. Relative to our current topic. Should be noted, that this has been a regular occurrence since the 90s with Starcraft with the remaster being faithful to the original as you can see. Nevertheless not a big issue. Very minor actually
Second, I think the troop limit is awfully strict initially at twenty for both infantry and vehicles . For the unaware. In real-time strategy games, you cannot build infinitely to send your lackeys in mass. There’s generally a maximum to what you can build. For DoW 1. Each one can take a certain amount like two to four. Again not a big deal since they can be upgraded to have eight or more. So essentially if you have say a squad of jetpack bros taking up a three-unit cap. And you built six of them. Then you have 18/20. A unit isn’t always singular by the way. Sometimes they’ll be accompanied by two to four plus. You can also upgrade the group to give them more personnel thereby giving substantial health, new weapons, etc. In the end, after playing through the main story, I think I'm on board with the hard restriction. At first, I was a bit disgruntled since I'm used to 100 or 200 as the cap. But twenty feels balanced. Heck, there’s a faction that allows you to hold way more than twenty! So look forward to controlling a swarm of ugly creatures to send over the trenches.
Third, before starting the game. It’s important to remember the developers of Relic Entertainment haven’t updated the game in a long while since the original release back in 2004. Therefore, quality of life improvements I frequently see in modern RTS games are missing here. As a result I’m gently recommending everyone to check out the pcgamingwiki article on the aforementioned game before starting. For essential mods to install enhancing the vanilla content. Only a small list. For me I only needed skip intro videos, higher resolution models, enabling 1080p. Forcing AA by graphics drivers, V-sync. Contains bug fixes and recommended mods too! I didn’t have any bugs throughout my time in the collection and the latter I'll talk about later. Before I forget please install the camera mod to allow zooming out during gameplay. Vanilla you can’t zoom out and get a general overview of the battle. Picture your face closer to the screen. And extend your pinky touching the monitor and putting your chin on the thumb. That’s how close my experience was without camera zoom.
Fourth. I think maps could use more variation in tile design within the campaigns. Kinda got old seeing the red palette terrain in the first game. Could’ve used more interesting mission purposes like defend for ‘x’ amount of time. Tower defense, more stealth, rescue missions, time limits, etc. While the vanilla content is satisfactory, the inclusion of these suggestions would’ve changed the great mission structure into a fantastic, excellent one. Fifth, a great majority of missions. Were truly easy in my opinion. Turns out the normal difficulty is easy while the hard mode felt normal.… I didn’t know until I checked what parameters from which each tier changes. Sighs cue facepalm upon learning… A gentle reminder for veterans looking for a challenge in the genre. Enable hard difficulty. Newcomers try either mode to see which you fall in.
Hope this helps those interested in the game. Not trying to deter any folks. Most of my observations shouldn’t be taken as a negative and more as a point to know coming in.
Now onto Winter Assault(WA). The first expansion and one hell of a follow-up I like probably equal to Brood War from starcraft. A separate story from what Captain Angelos endures on Tartarus. We run through familiar, but different missions in reclaiming a winter planet called Lorn V. Shorter than DoW 1. WA has two campaigns. Order where you control the guardsman and Eldar. And Disorder where you command the horde of Ork and Chaos. Both have 6 missions with a branching split mission before the last one changing the final faction you oversee and perspective. Motives for each of the races are somewhat near the same wavelength. The guardsman's underlying purpose is to recover a powerful weapon called the Titan Dominatus. Eldar’s agenda is a bit mysterious. Halt an old enemy while secretly assisting the guardsman and who knows what else is in our sights? Both forces have an uneasy alliance to conquer the globe and direct the titan. All the races have changed since their introduction in 1. A more extensive list of changes can be read at the wikipedia page.
Honestly, I like Winter Assault's mission design the most. By improving on one of my earlier points from my mixed feelings regarding uniquely challenging assignments. I am thrilled to say Relic must’ve wanted to go wild here and holy moly they go the full nine yards. Ya know when you engage in tug of war, and you have enough strength to win in several pulls? That’s how it was playing DoW 1 on normal. Winning in three tugs. WA says no. We're in for the full ride. Blisters, warts, and full-on tugging and warring. I had repeated wins and losses in most of the main missions. And again on the same difficulty I had previously. And I can’t imagine continuing beyond the 4th mission on higher difficulties with how arduous it can be…
Anyways, objectives have expanded. One to three main assignments are gone in favor of secure areas, assault enemy bases, switch to your ally, and accomplish subsidiary goals like flanking the enemy to unlock a path for your comrade. More secondary objectives to complete, reinforce allies defending a critical position, luring an army, repairing a vital machine, and I could just go on man. It’s incredible and super gratifying witnessing the devs flex their creative muscles with better encounter design. Back then there was a predestined path you could move towards. The expansion also operates the same. Except we may need protection. Manually go brave through gunfire in the trenches. Eliminate various waves of enemies blocking a key position all while supporting our main bases. Or transport bombarded people in armored APCs to mitigate enemy fire. Take advantage of bunkers to burrow beneath the surface and re-emerge like a gopher near another bunker. Ah to be a human Diglett except harshly conducting guerilla tactics.
Narratively I don’t consider either campaign the strongest suit to offer. The last missions in the endgame are flipped with different objectives based on the faction. With the earlier ones being different and offering a unique experience. Governing the Eldar, Guardsman, Chaos, and Ork was extraordinarily entertaining and I still recommend it. Each race has unique characteristics I found to be distinct enough to tinker around. Guards don’t have a superhero, instead, they're kinda of a weaker sect of humanity with stronger-than-usual vehicles and defense capabilities and a nice tunnel network for stealth purposes. Helps a bunch transporting a group of dudes to the frontline. Eldar is sublime. They’re like Protoss from Starcraft, but are more mystical and deal in energy weaponry. They differ from humans in one crucial ability. All of their buildings can teleport to another location. For example, you can participate in hide-and-seek against an overwhelming force bearing down on your location as long as you produce a node to act as a waypoint for them to travel. Chaos is well, from my understanding. More of a darker form of humanity and their sworn enemies. Think of these guys like fanatic dudes embracing the dark side of the warp instead of the glory of the emperor and well for the blood god. Summoning demons, consorting with imps and all manner of monstrous beings to do their bidding. Their aesthetic design reeks of evil and forging any superstructure feels wretched. Builders can speed up the construction of structures at the cost of health, and most of their capabilities usually have a drawback in their skills to activate. Summoning a badass daemon for instance requires sacrificing people or guardsmen. Ork is a breath of fresh air. They massacre the 20-limit cap to oblivion and can reach over 90. Activating the Wagghhh ability strengthens others when near a warboss and while they can be a bit stiff, gaining resources in the beginning. I’ve likened them similar in some respects to Zerg rushes. Due to the sheer amount, I can train at my disposal.
Dark Crusade(DC)/Soulstorm(SS) offer different but almost the same meta-campaign. The former is reminiscent of how Total War operates intending to conquer all provinces on the sphere. Depending on the aliens you choose, you’ll be placed on certain points on the map. Tau, Chaos, Necron, Ork, Guard, and Eldar are possible choices to pick. Each has a different detachment of soldiers, structures, heroes, and advantages/disadvantages that come with utilizing them. You cannot attack and move all the time on the world map. Only one specified action. Either moving to another area or attacking. Once you finish your commands. You can end your turn and see what the other side will do on the map. Enemies can attack other foes and conquer the opposing lands. Careful though, they may attack you! If you’re nearby. Battles take place on a separate map. Tasking the player and opposing force to start from the beginning to establish a foothold and train infantry. The ultimate intent is always to defeat the enemy by eliminating every squad alive and architecture they have or at the very least destroy their headquarters and any builder. DC offers a cool incentive for replayability. As you achieve victory in battles/new territories you can gain passive bonuses like a reduction in costs for buildings/units and even wargear. Wargear makes your commander in battle stronger by strengthening their capabilities. Choose a helmet to grant true sight and reveal cloaked assassins, boots to prevent knockdown, body armor for increased HP regen, etc. I found this aspect rewarding and a nice incentive to keep going. While I didn’t finish the Total War-like mode, I think it could be profoundly addicting for those hungry for more content.
Soulstorm operates in almost the same manner as the above, except the dev’s added new factions; the Sisters of Battle to use, Blood Ravens, & Dark Eldar. Expands the meta-campaign to be system-wide. So no longer, are you essentially subjugating the planet. Instead, you need to control the whole star system. What’s stunning in both these expansions is facing off the commander in their stronghold shifts the battlefield to assume a special scenario. These come with voice text on the loading screen detailing the enemy commander’s background along with special orders of main and secondary targets. I kid you not. This single-handedly blew my freaking mind. In SS I faced off what I initially thought would be a puny guardsman, only to run between the tails behind my head in having to win every single engagement and defend my base against constant waves of enemies that would progressively become stronger as time passed. Must stop a convoy at regular ‘x’ intervals to stop them from manifesting a baneblade. Yeah, think ultra badass tank with a s%^& ton of health and massive firepower. So yeah for sure I’m gonna take great pains to stop the convoys. And if that’s not enough I have to contend with stealth punches against my troops, a biga@@ artillery that can wipe my army off the face of the map. Contend against sneaky nuclear assaults and if that’s not enough I have to deal with air types. Introduced in this standalone is the addition of air attackers for every alien. I won in the end, but I felt it was a hollow victory since It took me hours to brutally drill a win on normal difficulty. I should’ve stayed and cornered the guy while assembling enough power/requisition to reinforce my territories and establish a garrison. Instead, I Lee-roy Jenkins myself into battle without support… I didn’t finish SS’s campaign either, only taking one globe for the taking, but spent a large amount of time longer than DC’s. Nevertheless, I had to stop or else I would never see the light of day. Therefore I recommend them only if you hunger for more gameplay using different races. Offering a show, don’t tell approach without a major story to follow. Callum McCole wrote a fascinating article why meta-campaigns are fun and I largely agree with all their points.
In the end, I am here to tell y'all. Warhammer 40,000: Dawn of War - Master Collection is a brutally awesome gateway into the franchise for a real-time strategy game. Sure I had some mixed feelings but they feel largely minor and didn’t impact my overall enjoyment of the multiple plot missions on Tartarus and beyond. Gabriel’s story is only one piece, though a vital one to watch out for. His steadfast defense of the planet Tartarus is admirable against the onslaught of Orks, and unveils an incredible discipline to do what needs to be done. Let me share one quote from him later on. “Innocents die so that humanity may live. I ended their suffering, as I will end yours.” Chills man. I don’t think I will ever forget those words. And soon enough if you dive into the operations on Lorn V, be warned they aren’t for the faint of heart, mercy is thrown out the window in favor of carnage, bloodshed and cunning tactics exhibiting a grim spectacle of sci-fi war up close and personal. Yes, it doesn’t reach my favorites in the genre, but I swear its close. Perhaps, once I finish the meta campaigns here and there. I have a good feeling they will sooner or later join their ranks. Anyway, If you can buy the master collection below 7 bucks or 10. You’re in for a wealth of content to dive into with dozens of hours to devour. Besides, there's a wonderful community filled with amazing content mods you can add. Ultimate apocalypse, Unification, Strongholds, custom sets of missions, new races, new modes, and so much more. By the emperor, I am glad to be back in the series once again. Though I wonder why I have a pages upon pages of 40k reasons why you should join the Imperium of Man. At least they’re far better than those chaos dudes who preach about blood all day everyday. I mean come on “Blood for the blood god?”
I prefer Angelos’s words.
“While the enemies of the Emperor still draw breath, there can be no peace.”
8.5/10
References & Additional Material:
Long list of Warhamer games from the beginning
Example from my playthrough on pathfinding.
Example from game dev on group pathfinding
Dru Erridge article on group pathfinding
Callum McCole on RTS meta campaigns and why they’re fun.
Helpful Links for DoW: MC - Essential Improvements/Fixes/Difficulty Overview - pcgaming wiki on Dawn of War 1 + expansions -
Widescreen fix - Difficulty overview - WA changes - Player guide
Before I play DoW1 - Odd there was no section for the first game prior to this review, so I sent some tips. Hope this helps!
Cavil Warhammer Cinematic Universe - Slight tangent to above. But plugging the news since I'm so happy for Cavill for landing his dream job producing and starring in his favorite series with none other than Warhammer.
I missed out on a lot of platformers after the fifth generation of video game consoles. Never owned a PlayStation 2 at the time. Thus, IP's such as Sly and Ratchet alongside a certain J. series. Were some franchises I never played. In order to rectify such a mistake. I decided to play another Naughty Dog(ND) platformer except in a 3D open-world environment. with Jak and Daxter: The Precursor Legacy for the first time.
Gone are the restricted side-scrolling segments we were forced to endure in Crash Bandicoot 1 and disconnected world through warping in 2 and 3. Jak feels like a natural evolution from the studio's PS1 days and wickedly refreshing with a narrative starting with an act of disobedience. Against the elders' warnings, the protagonists travel to a forbidden island. There the two witness mysterious figures who are sinisterly planning some horrible deed using dark eco and precursor artifacts. Knowing this is well above their usual tomfoolery the duo try to leave. However, before sneakily trying to leave the island... they were ambushed! The events that follow from here have the titular characters embark on a vital quest to fulfill for the elder, any side-missions to complete, and uncover what dastardly plans those two figures were plotting.
The world design is richly goofy. But has a certain serious aesthetic I like. To the extent I was venturing off the beaten path considerably to see what secrets lay in store for me. I bravely ventured into a diverse amount of biomes: A jungle with an old ruin, murky swamp, underwater laboratory, volcano with a spider-cavern, and a snowy peak, with huge snowballs rolling down a path to riding a hoverbike on racing segments and one larger zone to go ham. Reminded me heavily of Spyro using a skateboard. Seems ND was a fan of that and devised their take on a particular basin. Battled a wide assortment of foes from goofy but deadly frogs, drill enemies, shield dudes, not cute at all blue jumping rabbits, long centipedes, and the good old regular animals, but naughty dogified in every biome. Worms, bats, spiders, rats. You name it! Sooner or later they shall appear! Heck faced quite a bit of environmental hazards from falling to my death, being shot by smog, lava deaths, or shocked to a crisp. Not quite quicksand but quickmud. Encountered spiked traps, and spiked logs swaying from trees, and overcame countless jumping sections within. Not too hard and not too easy thankfully. Didn’t see much if any copy paste from the enemy design or world design. Everything was consistently varied and the final zone itself proved a serviceable final act.
Concerning the gameplay loop. I would say it’s consistently fun from the beginning until the very end credits. The open world without any loading aside from using fast travel when you need to is a plus. Allowing anyone to venture as far as they can within reason. The plot will stop you from venturing further until you accrue enough power cells. A collectible item and usually one that stops you from exploring more biomes until they reach a certain number. Didn’t have trouble getting these since I was already forgetting about the main quest to complete some side missions offered by NPCs here. Individuals who look similar to J-man. Although, he doesn’t look like a regular human. To me, he seems like a cross between a mad scientist trying to combine an elf and a human resulting in a humanoid with long ears and inheriting an athletic body to boot. Tasks can range from moving bulls into a pen, pushing an egg, doing a favor for a future mayor, or a fishing dude in a mini-game. I enjoyed finishing these day-to-day jobs since a majority are elderly. Didn’t feel right to leave them to their struggle. And I didn’t mind giving a helping hand for a power cell after the job was done. Thus, my reward felt adequate for my services rendered. Aside from the cells, you can also come across other collectible precursor orbs. Think of these like the apples from the Crash series you’ll often find on the paths, tucked away around the corner, nooks or crannies. Except, you can amass over a hundred to trade them in for a cell. Additionally, scout flies are in special boxes you need to slam into to release the flies. Gather seven of these spread throughout any major level to be awarded a cell. Kinda thankful they're here, so the player doesn’t amass orbs all day ya know?
Furthermore, the world has a varied amount of colored eco. These differ from absorbing orbs changing the gameplay formula in fun ways. They're a temporary power-up granting our main characters a wide array of elemental passives. Blue charges our dudes to move faster, jump a bit farther, and make it so easier to absorb collectibles nearby like a magnet. Red strengthens attacks and invincibility against exploding crates. Plus, a nice interactivity emerges when enemies die. Leaving off green residue for their remains. Once we accrue enough scraps, up to fifty to restore a ⅓ of our health points. In total, we have three health bars. And no finite life stacks to keep track of. Die and you respawn at a nearby point of a large level. Didn’t find too much trouble with re-spawning. They were fine for me. And the inclusion of colored eco’s is gratifying to add spice to the experience. An extra edge in both combat and traversal.
Usually, platformers(broadly speaking) offer some enticing gameplay to differentiate themselves from others in the same genre. To various degrees of enjoyment. Have you noticed other games conduct themselves around their mechanics through level design, encounter's and etc. Below are several examples I pulled from my limited experience in the genre.
- Ape Escape using the analog stick ingeniously. Left stick for movement. Right stick for your gadgets.
- Trine used the stick to coordinate with your allies. The thief can shoot a bow & arrow and a grapple hook in any possible direction when applicable, the knight can block enemies with his shield in any direction, and the wizard can conjure different objects by drawing to help them overcome obstacles or fall on unsuspecting enemies.
- Super Mario 64’s long jump, triple jump, wall jump combined with grabbing, kicking, running, swimming, crouching and etc. proved to be a simple, yet effective formula to endorse player freedom in the whole world.
- Pac-Man World’s shift from the classic game into a 3D landscape works oh so well. Heck P-man can interact with objects, solve puzzles and use new abilities!
- Spyro & Crash's basic movesets were frequently used and tested in various large levels from a hub to straightforward linear segments. Overcoming multiple obstacles both vertical and horizontal. Calling back once again if it ain't broke, don't fix it with sequels largely staying true to the same moves.
- Mirror's Edge smooth parkour capabilities lends itself well into the whole level design employing minimal visual aid to your destination.
Aside from the slew of other platformers. And returning back to Jak. Story-wise I felt the narrative had a stop-and-go momentum. Perhaps owing to the fact, that I completed sidequests along the way while not truly investing in the adventure, making the pacing slow to a crawl. However, the beats in the narrative were like a slow burn in a good way. I think this could be intentional to convey an absence of agency from an immediate save-the-world aspect vs. uncovering a devious plot. Allowing player freedom vs. player urgency to flourish for the former rather than the latter. As someone who adores freedom a great deal in games, such an aspect appealed to me greatly. I don’t like being rushed. Therefore Jak 1 succeeds at least for me in creating a freshly wacky fun world to navigate and a decent story. Unreasonable to expect a masterpiece in the first entry of a new franchise. However, the attempt to do so is noteworthy.
As someone familiar with several PS1 games in the same genre. Although, not an expert or veteran, I was pleasantly surprised how Naughty Dog did not regress in the sixth console generation and boldly made a new IP direction to positive acclaim. Back in the day, I felt plenty of rigidness in their earlier works in how levels were constructed and punishing in a way. Jumping on scaffolding, but hold up we got countless traps, and obstacles to drop us dead. Sure I could use Aku-Aku help, but hey it sucks having to redo a segment ‘x’ amount of times. Don’t get me wrong, I love the Crash series to the point I replayed them in the remastered trilogy. By comparison, Precursor Legacy in my opinion eliminates the rigidity in favoring a more open-freedom in gameplay and combat. The power to go anywhere you physically can is a compelling motivation to fulfill a wanderlust. Exploring what is on the horizon and saying “Oh I can go there.” Busting my athletic skills to their limit. Fluidity at work too. Where I didn’t experience much clunkiness from controlling J & D as one character. Weighty animations from his spin-to-win moves felt satisfying. The long almost Falcon punch from a select Nintendo IP has an immensely awesome feel to wham enemies. Uppercutting and ground slams extend the combat capability of our heroes. Blessing us, a nice reactivity to enemies dying.
Concerning my feelings on platforming. I was initially apprehensive due to the fact I am super horrible at managing timing, and the right jump distance, and easily frustrated if I have to restart a whole level after almost completing a dungeon/level. So after seeing the end credits and witnessing the 100% mark. I couldn’t believe I had the patience and perseverance to keep going. Perhaps owing to the fact the re-spawning mechanic and save system felt very generous, not punishing with ease to let players keep trying. The former mechanic felt quick and would make the duo spawn near the start of a level or a certain point within a zone. Usually after overcoming a major obstacle. The latter on the system feels very safe. In addition to saving at any time. Whenever our main character receives a cell, an autosave will occur. Considering there are over a hundred of these to collect I didn’t find much trouble losing progress upon dying or returning to the original point of death.
I usually die plenty in the Bandicoot games far more in the first and second. Consequently, I was holding my breath and mentally strengthening my willpower if I encountered similar levels of difficulty. To my sheer delight, most if not all platforming levels, sections, and areas are relatively easy to medium in challenging. Some examples I came across were: jumping on dais floating above water and above in mountainous regions. Sometimes moving while the water below is filled with electricity. Falling and rotating in some respects. Camera shifting to a traditional side-scrolling segment. Navigating through falling debris, snowballs, and slides while avoiding exploding crates. Maneuvering through a section to unlock switches, and levers and thus unlocking a new path. Add in timers to complete a task and you may have to think of an optimal route to beat the clock. Trick players into venturing into a dark room and force them to utilize unconventional crystal lights to persevere. Combine these elements in a lesser manner during riding segments and you have a recipe that tastes better as you eat more of the dish. With an excellent difficulty curve for beginners and a nice incline for enthusiasts looking for a challenge to master every level by acquiring everything.
Despite the praise I’ve been sprouting, I do have some mixed feelings. Not a positive or a negative, but some concerns I had during my playthrough I think should be important to note.
In the beginning, I had trouble adjusting to the inverted controls for the camera. But, ultimately got used to the control scheme as an hour or two passed. I felt meaningful collectibles were lacking in rewards. Could be a better incentive to introduce various extensions to temporary powers, permanent move sets, or classic increasing the player with more health would work wonders. Furthermore, I think having a timer for different eco uses is weird. I had to rush constantly to gather new types to utilize during combat. I propose a different alternative. Make the gathered amounts a stock type. Depleting when in use and able to switch between different types when the situation calls for it. Also, I didn’t know there was a secret ending upon gathering everything possible only to reveal a pretty underwhelming scene in the end. Therefore, going for 100% can be a chore in some respects since the collecting aspect doesn't seem to affect the overall gameplay by rewarding the player to search for them. Lastly, the game has a weird texture pop-in. Some textures in the far distance have muddy paint adorned. But upon closer inspection would magically reveal the appropriate textures. And I couldn’t help but feel the game dipped at times. Wonder if there is a definitive version out there to play the series… Well lo and behold OpenGOAL does. A fanmade PC port to play the series with higher fidelity. Currently, at the time this review was published, the team is working on Jak II. Here’s a comparison video I. Am. Amazed. At the difference in quality. While internally slapping myself why I didn’t start the first game with OG’s version. As a result, I recommend checking out the version differences from PS2, PS3, PS4, and unofficial PC port. And select the best one depending on your preference.
Ultimately, despite some minor mixed feelings I had. The overwhelming positives outweigh the concerns by a great deal. Jak’s seamless goofy yet serious, open world is a refreshing 3D experience without being too difficult and not too easy to deter newcomers and veterans. Resulting in a nice curve of challenge in approaching cool-level design. A solid fun gameplay loop kept my interest for a long while and doesn’t overstay their welcome by having enough of their own identity. Distinct from the Bandicoot days. Temporary elemental passives provide a nice spice to the movesets and offer interesting resolutions to tackle both enemies and obstacles. A decent story with a great sense of freedom brings a bright smile to my face constantly. Bringing relief with a generous save system and a painless re-spawn mechanic. Heck, your ottsel companion will incentivize the player upon dying with various quotes. “Don't worry, I'll avenge you! Not...!” “Hey, Jak! Can I, uh... have your insect collection?” Yeah… Oddly motivating.
Still for what it's worth I enjoyed my playthrough with the first installment. Chuckling in amusement at times at the silly things our heroes undergo. I'm looking forward to what awaits me in the franchise. Maybe I’ll dive into Daxter or Jak II next! Anyways! If you’re looking for an excellent platformer from the PS2 days. I recommend Jak and Daxter: The Precursor Legacy. Watch how a young foolish duo starts their adventure with an act of disobedience. Tsk tsk. What a naughty d-
8.2/10
References & Additional Material:
Jak and Daxter - PS2 vs PS3 vs OpenGOAL Graphics Comparison
Jak & Daxter PS4 VS PS3 VS Vita VS PS2
Fifth generation of video game consoles
OpenGOAL Jak Project
Gone are the restricted side-scrolling segments we were forced to endure in Crash Bandicoot 1 and disconnected world through warping in 2 and 3. Jak feels like a natural evolution from the studio's PS1 days and wickedly refreshing with a narrative starting with an act of disobedience. Against the elders' warnings, the protagonists travel to a forbidden island. There the two witness mysterious figures who are sinisterly planning some horrible deed using dark eco and precursor artifacts. Knowing this is well above their usual tomfoolery the duo try to leave. However, before sneakily trying to leave the island... they were ambushed! The events that follow from here have the titular characters embark on a vital quest to fulfill for the elder, any side-missions to complete, and uncover what dastardly plans those two figures were plotting.
The world design is richly goofy. But has a certain serious aesthetic I like. To the extent I was venturing off the beaten path considerably to see what secrets lay in store for me. I bravely ventured into a diverse amount of biomes: A jungle with an old ruin, murky swamp, underwater laboratory, volcano with a spider-cavern, and a snowy peak, with huge snowballs rolling down a path to riding a hoverbike on racing segments and one larger zone to go ham. Reminded me heavily of Spyro using a skateboard. Seems ND was a fan of that and devised their take on a particular basin. Battled a wide assortment of foes from goofy but deadly frogs, drill enemies, shield dudes, not cute at all blue jumping rabbits, long centipedes, and the good old regular animals, but naughty dogified in every biome. Worms, bats, spiders, rats. You name it! Sooner or later they shall appear! Heck faced quite a bit of environmental hazards from falling to my death, being shot by smog, lava deaths, or shocked to a crisp. Not quite quicksand but quickmud. Encountered spiked traps, and spiked logs swaying from trees, and overcame countless jumping sections within. Not too hard and not too easy thankfully. Didn’t see much if any copy paste from the enemy design or world design. Everything was consistently varied and the final zone itself proved a serviceable final act.
Concerning the gameplay loop. I would say it’s consistently fun from the beginning until the very end credits. The open world without any loading aside from using fast travel when you need to is a plus. Allowing anyone to venture as far as they can within reason. The plot will stop you from venturing further until you accrue enough power cells. A collectible item and usually one that stops you from exploring more biomes until they reach a certain number. Didn’t have trouble getting these since I was already forgetting about the main quest to complete some side missions offered by NPCs here. Individuals who look similar to J-man. Although, he doesn’t look like a regular human. To me, he seems like a cross between a mad scientist trying to combine an elf and a human resulting in a humanoid with long ears and inheriting an athletic body to boot. Tasks can range from moving bulls into a pen, pushing an egg, doing a favor for a future mayor, or a fishing dude in a mini-game. I enjoyed finishing these day-to-day jobs since a majority are elderly. Didn’t feel right to leave them to their struggle. And I didn’t mind giving a helping hand for a power cell after the job was done. Thus, my reward felt adequate for my services rendered. Aside from the cells, you can also come across other collectible precursor orbs. Think of these like the apples from the Crash series you’ll often find on the paths, tucked away around the corner, nooks or crannies. Except, you can amass over a hundred to trade them in for a cell. Additionally, scout flies are in special boxes you need to slam into to release the flies. Gather seven of these spread throughout any major level to be awarded a cell. Kinda thankful they're here, so the player doesn’t amass orbs all day ya know?
Furthermore, the world has a varied amount of colored eco. These differ from absorbing orbs changing the gameplay formula in fun ways. They're a temporary power-up granting our main characters a wide array of elemental passives. Blue charges our dudes to move faster, jump a bit farther, and make it so easier to absorb collectibles nearby like a magnet. Red strengthens attacks and invincibility against exploding crates. Plus, a nice interactivity emerges when enemies die. Leaving off green residue for their remains. Once we accrue enough scraps, up to fifty to restore a ⅓ of our health points. In total, we have three health bars. And no finite life stacks to keep track of. Die and you respawn at a nearby point of a large level. Didn’t find too much trouble with re-spawning. They were fine for me. And the inclusion of colored eco’s is gratifying to add spice to the experience. An extra edge in both combat and traversal.
Usually, platformers(broadly speaking) offer some enticing gameplay to differentiate themselves from others in the same genre. To various degrees of enjoyment. Have you noticed other games conduct themselves around their mechanics through level design, encounter's and etc. Below are several examples I pulled from my limited experience in the genre.
- Ape Escape using the analog stick ingeniously. Left stick for movement. Right stick for your gadgets.
- Trine used the stick to coordinate with your allies. The thief can shoot a bow & arrow and a grapple hook in any possible direction when applicable, the knight can block enemies with his shield in any direction, and the wizard can conjure different objects by drawing to help them overcome obstacles or fall on unsuspecting enemies.
- Super Mario 64’s long jump, triple jump, wall jump combined with grabbing, kicking, running, swimming, crouching and etc. proved to be a simple, yet effective formula to endorse player freedom in the whole world.
- Pac-Man World’s shift from the classic game into a 3D landscape works oh so well. Heck P-man can interact with objects, solve puzzles and use new abilities!
- Spyro & Crash's basic movesets were frequently used and tested in various large levels from a hub to straightforward linear segments. Overcoming multiple obstacles both vertical and horizontal. Calling back once again if it ain't broke, don't fix it with sequels largely staying true to the same moves.
- Mirror's Edge smooth parkour capabilities lends itself well into the whole level design employing minimal visual aid to your destination.
Aside from the slew of other platformers. And returning back to Jak. Story-wise I felt the narrative had a stop-and-go momentum. Perhaps owing to the fact, that I completed sidequests along the way while not truly investing in the adventure, making the pacing slow to a crawl. However, the beats in the narrative were like a slow burn in a good way. I think this could be intentional to convey an absence of agency from an immediate save-the-world aspect vs. uncovering a devious plot. Allowing player freedom vs. player urgency to flourish for the former rather than the latter. As someone who adores freedom a great deal in games, such an aspect appealed to me greatly. I don’t like being rushed. Therefore Jak 1 succeeds at least for me in creating a freshly wacky fun world to navigate and a decent story. Unreasonable to expect a masterpiece in the first entry of a new franchise. However, the attempt to do so is noteworthy.
As someone familiar with several PS1 games in the same genre. Although, not an expert or veteran, I was pleasantly surprised how Naughty Dog did not regress in the sixth console generation and boldly made a new IP direction to positive acclaim. Back in the day, I felt plenty of rigidness in their earlier works in how levels were constructed and punishing in a way. Jumping on scaffolding, but hold up we got countless traps, and obstacles to drop us dead. Sure I could use Aku-Aku help, but hey it sucks having to redo a segment ‘x’ amount of times. Don’t get me wrong, I love the Crash series to the point I replayed them in the remastered trilogy. By comparison, Precursor Legacy in my opinion eliminates the rigidity in favoring a more open-freedom in gameplay and combat. The power to go anywhere you physically can is a compelling motivation to fulfill a wanderlust. Exploring what is on the horizon and saying “Oh I can go there.” Busting my athletic skills to their limit. Fluidity at work too. Where I didn’t experience much clunkiness from controlling J & D as one character. Weighty animations from his spin-to-win moves felt satisfying. The long almost Falcon punch from a select Nintendo IP has an immensely awesome feel to wham enemies. Uppercutting and ground slams extend the combat capability of our heroes. Blessing us, a nice reactivity to enemies dying.
Concerning my feelings on platforming. I was initially apprehensive due to the fact I am super horrible at managing timing, and the right jump distance, and easily frustrated if I have to restart a whole level after almost completing a dungeon/level. So after seeing the end credits and witnessing the 100% mark. I couldn’t believe I had the patience and perseverance to keep going. Perhaps owing to the fact the re-spawning mechanic and save system felt very generous, not punishing with ease to let players keep trying. The former mechanic felt quick and would make the duo spawn near the start of a level or a certain point within a zone. Usually after overcoming a major obstacle. The latter on the system feels very safe. In addition to saving at any time. Whenever our main character receives a cell, an autosave will occur. Considering there are over a hundred of these to collect I didn’t find much trouble losing progress upon dying or returning to the original point of death.
I usually die plenty in the Bandicoot games far more in the first and second. Consequently, I was holding my breath and mentally strengthening my willpower if I encountered similar levels of difficulty. To my sheer delight, most if not all platforming levels, sections, and areas are relatively easy to medium in challenging. Some examples I came across were: jumping on dais floating above water and above in mountainous regions. Sometimes moving while the water below is filled with electricity. Falling and rotating in some respects. Camera shifting to a traditional side-scrolling segment. Navigating through falling debris, snowballs, and slides while avoiding exploding crates. Maneuvering through a section to unlock switches, and levers and thus unlocking a new path. Add in timers to complete a task and you may have to think of an optimal route to beat the clock. Trick players into venturing into a dark room and force them to utilize unconventional crystal lights to persevere. Combine these elements in a lesser manner during riding segments and you have a recipe that tastes better as you eat more of the dish. With an excellent difficulty curve for beginners and a nice incline for enthusiasts looking for a challenge to master every level by acquiring everything.
Despite the praise I’ve been sprouting, I do have some mixed feelings. Not a positive or a negative, but some concerns I had during my playthrough I think should be important to note.
In the beginning, I had trouble adjusting to the inverted controls for the camera. But, ultimately got used to the control scheme as an hour or two passed. I felt meaningful collectibles were lacking in rewards. Could be a better incentive to introduce various extensions to temporary powers, permanent move sets, or classic increasing the player with more health would work wonders. Furthermore, I think having a timer for different eco uses is weird. I had to rush constantly to gather new types to utilize during combat. I propose a different alternative. Make the gathered amounts a stock type. Depleting when in use and able to switch between different types when the situation calls for it. Also, I didn’t know there was a secret ending upon gathering everything possible only to reveal a pretty underwhelming scene in the end. Therefore, going for 100% can be a chore in some respects since the collecting aspect doesn't seem to affect the overall gameplay by rewarding the player to search for them. Lastly, the game has a weird texture pop-in. Some textures in the far distance have muddy paint adorned. But upon closer inspection would magically reveal the appropriate textures. And I couldn’t help but feel the game dipped at times. Wonder if there is a definitive version out there to play the series… Well lo and behold OpenGOAL does. A fanmade PC port to play the series with higher fidelity. Currently, at the time this review was published, the team is working on Jak II. Here’s a comparison video I. Am. Amazed. At the difference in quality. While internally slapping myself why I didn’t start the first game with OG’s version. As a result, I recommend checking out the version differences from PS2, PS3, PS4, and unofficial PC port. And select the best one depending on your preference.
Ultimately, despite some minor mixed feelings I had. The overwhelming positives outweigh the concerns by a great deal. Jak’s seamless goofy yet serious, open world is a refreshing 3D experience without being too difficult and not too easy to deter newcomers and veterans. Resulting in a nice curve of challenge in approaching cool-level design. A solid fun gameplay loop kept my interest for a long while and doesn’t overstay their welcome by having enough of their own identity. Distinct from the Bandicoot days. Temporary elemental passives provide a nice spice to the movesets and offer interesting resolutions to tackle both enemies and obstacles. A decent story with a great sense of freedom brings a bright smile to my face constantly. Bringing relief with a generous save system and a painless re-spawn mechanic. Heck, your ottsel companion will incentivize the player upon dying with various quotes. “Don't worry, I'll avenge you! Not...!” “Hey, Jak! Can I, uh... have your insect collection?” Yeah… Oddly motivating.
Still for what it's worth I enjoyed my playthrough with the first installment. Chuckling in amusement at times at the silly things our heroes undergo. I'm looking forward to what awaits me in the franchise. Maybe I’ll dive into Daxter or Jak II next! Anyways! If you’re looking for an excellent platformer from the PS2 days. I recommend Jak and Daxter: The Precursor Legacy. Watch how a young foolish duo starts their adventure with an act of disobedience. Tsk tsk. What a naughty d-
8.2/10
References & Additional Material:
Jak and Daxter - PS2 vs PS3 vs OpenGOAL Graphics Comparison
Jak & Daxter PS4 VS PS3 VS Vita VS PS2
Fifth generation of video game consoles
OpenGOAL Jak Project
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.
—
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?
In a FAQ on Blood Omen: Legacy of Kain. It was revealed that "The Vision of Kain'' was conceived to be a game which adults would want to play. The character Kain was modeled in part after Clint Eastwood's character in the movie "Unforgiven". In this movie, there were no "good" or "evil" characters, they were all "gray". The vision of Kain was to create a game where the player is put in the position where everyone believes you are evil, perhaps even yourself. We wanted to ask the question "What is evil? Perhaps it is merely a perspective."
The notion of evil has long been exercised for, against, and studied at length for varying degrees across countless years before the release of Blood Omen: Legacy of Kain. Most often against the opposite side of ‘good,’ yet intensely analyzed with a fine pen from the schools of philosophy and psychology. Yet, here the concept is used in a uniquely interesting manner compared to all the other titles in the PSX library I’ve played thus far. Since released back in 1996. Offering a nuanced dark story, featuring an unconventional ‘hero’ protagonist. Where you play as the aforementioned character. A recently slain petty noble turned vampire on his quest for revenge and cure for his vampirism status. His quest is fraught with peril at every turn. He’s weak and isn’t a badass for one turned into a dark creature of the night. Hasn’t adjusted well to his transformation thus his monologues both external and internal display a cynically arrogant personality throughout. A type I vehemently abhor in video games. Yet I cannot help but become allured to his actions throughout as he marches across the lands of Nosgoth.
A medieval fantasy land full of vampires, humans, and other manner of terrifying supernatural creatures prowling the night and day. And before I entered the game, I checked the world map to see what the world is like from a geographical perspective. Nosgoth is filled with large swathes of diverse terrain. Mountainous regions, lush forests, spots of bustling towns, and fortified cities lie amidst the gentle rivers and calm lakes. Most eye-catching of all is the unusually large architectures: big skull, floating island, tall fortress near flowing lava, nine giant pillars, some kinda frozen water temple? A haunting mansion, and one colossal knight statue similar to the Argonath from Lord of the Rings. There’s more I could list but hopefully you get the picture. Jutting out with varied names attached related to the Circle of Nine. Nine powerful sorcerers who protect the pillars of Nosgoth. These pillars reflect the health of the lands. And I was struck with a burning wanderlust to travel to each exotic location and see what each experience has to offer me.
A clear strength at the forefront to lure me like bait on a hook for subtle worldbuilding. Sure it’s not as rich and dense as the Forgotten Realms universe or how nuanced the deep characters of the Witcher are in complexity. Nor does it boast the rich history from Fallout or the sinister and epic clashes from the Diablo games spilling into the world of man. Nay, Nosgoth’s light world-building is steeped in the powerful echelon of the circle, the unholy might of vampires grip onto fearful mortals, breeding suspicion, fear, and all manners of dark monsters waiting, watching to grab innocents and thus bring them closer to death's embrace. Oh yes, right off the bat the unforgiving tone and presentation caught me unawares to the point my wonder was viscerally torn at how brutal events play out here. Evil thrives in all forms and I am here for it.
Despite the malevolent atmosphere, I had plenty of fun here with some caveats I’ll talk about later. For now, I’ll reminisce on the good memories. My first impressions as several hours passed shocked me. To find the gameplay remarkably similar to the Legend of Zelda (LoZ) formula except twisted in a Vampire’s tale filled with a darker domain and dubious individuals at nearly every turn. Short to medium-length dungeons with multiple rooms and puzzles. Seen from a top-down perspective. Linear with non-linear segments for optional items or for the most studious in exploring to be richly rewarded in permanent upgrades to health and magic capacities. Different weapons, armor, spells, and transformations can be found and earned in optional caverns and cleverly tucked away basements in mausoleums or normal houses. Not a wide selection, but useful nonetheless in overcoming multiple obstacles in your path. Use a mace to break stone formations, and axes to chop trees blocking your way. Turn into a wolf to leap across great distances, a bat to fast travel and so much more. Hell, spells are useful when you’re in a pickle like summoning a lightning bolt to activate a switch from a fair distance. A light spell to illuminate your surroundings, and my favorite mind control. Oh, man! You can assume control of any enemy except bosses to reach inaccessible areas, activate a mechanism on the wall, procure consumable items, and even kill enemies! Seriously, I'm amazed at how versatile his powers are in both equipment and utility. I used them habitually time and time again as I progressed further into my quest. Removing anyone and anything from my path.
Vae Victus
In the opening FMV, those lines were uttered by Kain as he suffers with a big sword lodged through his chest and again used during combat as a battle cry. The iconic line and more is profoundly voiced by Simon Templeman. A man who eloquently becomes the aforementioned character to deliver rich monologues both external and internal. His many years of theatre experience provide such a dash of realism to the protagonist to the point I am instantly captivated by his voice just as any time Morgan Freeman talks. And this without a shadow of a doubt is one of the game's strongest points. “Where the entire story is conveyed through voice-over and first-person narrative.” told by Denis Dyack, who created the original concept of Kain. & director. I was engrossed any time Templeman spoke, and beyond the cutscenes lies numerous mystical signs littering the grounds of Nosgoth where he would speak. Of his internal thoughts. The Shakespearean-like voiced lines provide a fascinating look into the thought process, habits, personality, beliefs, values, history, relationships and so much more. Through Kain’s eyes, we see the story in a personal nature arise and combine with the mature plot. Complementing the FMV and plot beats in tandem with the excellent voice acting. In layman’s terms think of our central figure commentating aloud on the previous events, of goals in mind, self-doubts, and ruminations. It is here I felt the voiced narrative intertwine with the inhabitants ranging from all kinds of human hierarchy. Commoners, beggars, nobles, knights, guards, kings, and of course the nine sorcerers who become major subjects of interest to our 'hero' within thirty minutes of starting the game. Their voices contribute a stark contrast to the audacious personality our titular character conveys. Mortanius the necromancer, speaks to the newly turned vampire via telepathy. Supporting him with new goals. Vorador the elder vampire, a mighty being who without remorse advocates embracing blacker-than-night tendencies. Ariel, the balance of the circle, offers our main character an unusual proposal to cure his sickness. Common folks are not spared either. Granting hints via gossip on unnatural events occurring nearby. Spells, weapons, armor, and items are also given fair treatment. Our key player will briefly talk about the item at hand, any relevant history, and their purpose during battle. Never was tiring hearing these precious lines or other beings like foes. Administering an immersive quality and thus bringing liveliness and deadliness as we journey onward.
His journey, for a closer inspection underneath the surface, upholds a somewhat deadly, but mostly fair design in how dungeons, puzzles to a certain extent, and boss fights are constructed. Tying to the fun gameplay I mentioned earlier. The adequate Legend of Zelda-esque dungeon designs are designed with a mix of traps, like spikes coming from walls and floors. While pesky enemies like skeletons, wraiths, ghosts, murderous humans, etc litter rooms. Thankfully, the game employs a lot of enemy variety so we're not bored seeing mob #1 to mob #2. Switches and levers on walls to open a passageway, sometimes big puzzles requiring more than simply hitting a switch reside. Tingling the brain to use other means within your arsenal. Traveling to another location in a specific path, do so wrongly and I am teleported back to the beginning, one had me teleporting to different places, so backtracking may be needed to remember paths, some walkways may seem insurmountable, but using a handy spell or transformation will make the march trivial. There’s more I could list, but hopefully, you get the picture. To contend with these endeavors in dungeons lies a dungeon boss. Most bosses can be eliminated by any means of weaponry or ability at your disposal. The hard part is getting close to them. Usually, they’ll have a gimmick or two involved making any movement closer hastily punishing. For example, bullet hells. Illusion of death, oh you thought this would be a fair fight man vs. man, bouts of strength and attrition, etc. Overall I would say most of the encounters with each big baddie were decent to very satisfying. Some worrying signals to know though.
And this is where I'll talk about my mixed feelings. Not a positive or a negative. Simply some concerns I found that may prove troublesome for others in varying degrees. For me, all of these points brought the all-embracing experience a tad. Yet doesn’t detract too much from the positives the game entails.
First, every time you re-enter a room or corridor all enemies will re-spawn. In spite of already defeating them into oblivion. This wouldn’t be so egregious if we could gain a reward like extra items to replenish our vitality. Yet some adversaries are troublesome to defeat since they will always be without end once your character moves closer to them. Become public enemy #1 where you cannot escape until you run a sufficient amount of distance. Distance from what I experimented with leads from afar. You go into another room. And two. Run a decent amount so they cannot catch up to you. Both parts aren't really helpful in the long run if I need to go back to a previous room. Driving the knife deeper are several enemies like wraiths shooting magical bolts dealing a decent amount of damage and flinging you to one side. The game loves to slap several of these infuriating dudes in a room and have us try to kill or evade them. Imagine killing the insufferable apparitions only to forget there was a spare hidden path tucked cleverly. Oh, I should head back. OH, MAN. You guys again f%^ my life. For what it’s worth, these occurrences didn’t happen often, merely uncommon to rare times. Doesn’t help that we can't suck the essence out of foolish enemies to recover our strength. And more often than not I faced scores of foes where I cannot possibly suck their juice. Thereby taking my enjoyment a bit at times in a minor form.
Second, speaking of opponents. I think the game needs to lessen the attackers' devastation in the middle to late game. Enemies hit hard, so you’ll need to be careful of wasting precious items and spells. Dying here and using up your remaining heart of darkness(these are the only consumables to automatically restore you to life with 1/7 of your max health) sucks. I think more enemies chained on walls to freely replenish our vigor would’ve helped and a decrease in overall damage from 10-25% towards endgame would’ve helped smoothen my slight frustration. He doesn’t have a lot of health in the beginning. Regardless of the player exploring thoroughly to upgrade their total HP supply. Therefore, my endgame suffered a bit until I decided to use cheats the game employs. Starting from the halfway mark. Think button commands ala Grand Theft Auto III to restore health. Only used the commands as a last resort to recover my magic/health. And only when I had less than three hearts of darkness in my pockets. Die without any of the hearts and goodbye save file. Hello, game over screen and back to your last known save location. I should confess to prevent any misconceptions. I explored thoroughly to grab as many health and magic upgrades. To the point I was still struggling somewhat with this amount of health and magic Yet I still suffered through bloodshed. Even when I ran away most of the time. I barely used any blood spells which according to the spell description can restore your health from enemies. Using the heart as a consumable might also mitigate loss in endurance due to restoring a decent amount of health instead of dying and reviving. So maybe my playstyle suffered more because of this. Thus, your mileage may vary.
Third, both qualities of constant re-spawning of enemies as we re-enter rooms and high damage output from assailants lead me to believe the Silicon knights(the developers who created Blood Omen: Legacy of Kain) perhaps had trouble configuring the right balance of enemy placement and harmful properties. The fact there are cheats available leads me to believe that the devs saw this as a temporary bandaid to solve possible frustrations from lack of healing/revival items. I suspect perhaps if I were more vigilant and prepared properly with some tips and hints then maybe I wouldn’t have any issues. However, one other factor that may cause further difficulty is how the save system is implemented. Innately players cannot save manually anytime. They have to approach a blood shrine to activate. I found these shrines constantly in caverns, mausoleums, castles, towns, cities, and homes where a multiple-floor level resides. The problem is that they only appear at the start. So if you die mid-way through a dungeon. Welp, my dude back to square one. Only if you have no heart of darkness. If you do, you can come back alive. Thankfully before hitting a major boss, the devs saw fit to include another shrine before a bossfight. A large sigh of relief overcame my being once I saw this implemented again and again, yet this doesn’t remove the underlying dilemma. Progress lost is still progress lost. Losing minutes to half an hour can be morale-inducing to my detriment. So beware of each shrine location and how far you are from one. Still, the aspect isn’t a major negative in my books, since I was able to complete the game using the titular mechanic constantly. Merely a warning for those curious about how to save properly.
That’s it for my mixed feelings. Honestly quite a lot of my troubles I feel were attributed to my negligence to seek help in favor of a blind playthrough. I don’t regret it. But a lingering doubt in my head feels like it could’ve been better to smoothen out my overall experience. Nevertheless, the sheer strengths Silicon Knights employed back in 1996 deserve special praise to this day. The music hits the orchestral high notes while giving off epic drums and beats to intensify our moods into mythical dimensions. Complementing well with Templeman’s impeccable voice acting among others. Luring me like a helpless slave to their magnificent voices. Reminiscent of Louis de Pointe du Lac detailing his past stories as a vampire to a reporter in the film Interview with a Vampire(1994). And similar, but different in some respects to Sang-hyun. A priest who turns into a vampire. From the Korean film Thirst(2009).
In the end. The dark fantasy & bloodthirsty LoZ-like formula works almost perfectly, the solid arsenal and wicked powers our titular character can utilize are maximized to a degree, I didn’t have trouble figuring out the right solution to solve the puzzles. Sufficient amount of paths to back-track for the curious fella in need of any upgrades to become stronger. A large and dense world to traverse while listening to Kain’s constant monologues is alluring, if not horrifying to witness. As a consequence, we are treated to a captivating nuanced character development take, of a 'hero' into something else. A remarkable campaign experience from the good old days and most certainly punches above its weight class for the grayish gothic story-telling. Delving without excess on what shapes evil, different forms that come to be, why the notion exists, and for what purpose does evil maintain in a world against a different ‘evil.’ And ultimately what is the result of our malicious acts? Blood Omen: Legacy of Kain asks these mature questions without forgiveness. Through his eyes and actions, the unmaking of the human soul surges. Blackened with dark tapestry and removed of all sensible feeling. Hmmm… I wonder what awaits me plus others, as the saga moves forward to Soul Reaver. And what fate ultimately lies to Kain in the end.
Vae Victus. Suffering to the conquered.
7.7/10
References & Additional Material:
FAQ on Blood Omen: Legacy of Kain. - Frequently Asked Questions on BO:LoK. Inspirations, original concept, creator etc.
Evil. Origins and all forms from Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy - More reading material on Evil.
Nosgoth world map - Lord of the Rings Argonath - Picture example
Playing Catch-Up - A conversation with Denis Dyack, founder of Silicon knights and creator of the original concept of Kain
Interview with Denis Dyack - On Simon Templeman who voices Kain
2nd interview with Denis Dyack - on Silicon Knights and what they tried to achieve with the first entry of Blood Omen: Legacy of Kain “Where the entire story is conveyed through voice-over and first person narrative.” and more like Too Human and guild philosophy.
Blood Omen: Legacy of Kain cheats - Cheats if you need it. Think of button commands like GTA III cheats
Example of my endgame health and magic - Disregard the subtitle
Youtube example of slow load times on PS1 - Compared to fast loading speed on PC -
Simon Templeman - who voices Kain in every game.
Blood Omen: Legacy of Kain on Mobygames - Interesting to see the narrative in the genre section is horror. When wikipedia classifies the game as dark fantasy.
Plot Guide to the whole series - For all games + observations after the ending
Highly Recommend installing fan-patch on PC - Verok's GL wrapper & patch should be enough. Was easy to add after first installing the GOG version. Game is super cheap when on sale at less than 2 bucks.
Essential tips on for newcomers to Blood Omen: Legacy of Kain - Previously prior to this review. There was no section for BO:LoK. On the Before I play website. So I contacted the owner and sent him my tips! Hope this helps newcomers!
The notion of evil has long been exercised for, against, and studied at length for varying degrees across countless years before the release of Blood Omen: Legacy of Kain. Most often against the opposite side of ‘good,’ yet intensely analyzed with a fine pen from the schools of philosophy and psychology. Yet, here the concept is used in a uniquely interesting manner compared to all the other titles in the PSX library I’ve played thus far. Since released back in 1996. Offering a nuanced dark story, featuring an unconventional ‘hero’ protagonist. Where you play as the aforementioned character. A recently slain petty noble turned vampire on his quest for revenge and cure for his vampirism status. His quest is fraught with peril at every turn. He’s weak and isn’t a badass for one turned into a dark creature of the night. Hasn’t adjusted well to his transformation thus his monologues both external and internal display a cynically arrogant personality throughout. A type I vehemently abhor in video games. Yet I cannot help but become allured to his actions throughout as he marches across the lands of Nosgoth.
A medieval fantasy land full of vampires, humans, and other manner of terrifying supernatural creatures prowling the night and day. And before I entered the game, I checked the world map to see what the world is like from a geographical perspective. Nosgoth is filled with large swathes of diverse terrain. Mountainous regions, lush forests, spots of bustling towns, and fortified cities lie amidst the gentle rivers and calm lakes. Most eye-catching of all is the unusually large architectures: big skull, floating island, tall fortress near flowing lava, nine giant pillars, some kinda frozen water temple? A haunting mansion, and one colossal knight statue similar to the Argonath from Lord of the Rings. There’s more I could list but hopefully you get the picture. Jutting out with varied names attached related to the Circle of Nine. Nine powerful sorcerers who protect the pillars of Nosgoth. These pillars reflect the health of the lands. And I was struck with a burning wanderlust to travel to each exotic location and see what each experience has to offer me.
A clear strength at the forefront to lure me like bait on a hook for subtle worldbuilding. Sure it’s not as rich and dense as the Forgotten Realms universe or how nuanced the deep characters of the Witcher are in complexity. Nor does it boast the rich history from Fallout or the sinister and epic clashes from the Diablo games spilling into the world of man. Nay, Nosgoth’s light world-building is steeped in the powerful echelon of the circle, the unholy might of vampires grip onto fearful mortals, breeding suspicion, fear, and all manners of dark monsters waiting, watching to grab innocents and thus bring them closer to death's embrace. Oh yes, right off the bat the unforgiving tone and presentation caught me unawares to the point my wonder was viscerally torn at how brutal events play out here. Evil thrives in all forms and I am here for it.
Despite the malevolent atmosphere, I had plenty of fun here with some caveats I’ll talk about later. For now, I’ll reminisce on the good memories. My first impressions as several hours passed shocked me. To find the gameplay remarkably similar to the Legend of Zelda (LoZ) formula except twisted in a Vampire’s tale filled with a darker domain and dubious individuals at nearly every turn. Short to medium-length dungeons with multiple rooms and puzzles. Seen from a top-down perspective. Linear with non-linear segments for optional items or for the most studious in exploring to be richly rewarded in permanent upgrades to health and magic capacities. Different weapons, armor, spells, and transformations can be found and earned in optional caverns and cleverly tucked away basements in mausoleums or normal houses. Not a wide selection, but useful nonetheless in overcoming multiple obstacles in your path. Use a mace to break stone formations, and axes to chop trees blocking your way. Turn into a wolf to leap across great distances, a bat to fast travel and so much more. Hell, spells are useful when you’re in a pickle like summoning a lightning bolt to activate a switch from a fair distance. A light spell to illuminate your surroundings, and my favorite mind control. Oh, man! You can assume control of any enemy except bosses to reach inaccessible areas, activate a mechanism on the wall, procure consumable items, and even kill enemies! Seriously, I'm amazed at how versatile his powers are in both equipment and utility. I used them habitually time and time again as I progressed further into my quest. Removing anyone and anything from my path.
Vae Victus
In the opening FMV, those lines were uttered by Kain as he suffers with a big sword lodged through his chest and again used during combat as a battle cry. The iconic line and more is profoundly voiced by Simon Templeman. A man who eloquently becomes the aforementioned character to deliver rich monologues both external and internal. His many years of theatre experience provide such a dash of realism to the protagonist to the point I am instantly captivated by his voice just as any time Morgan Freeman talks. And this without a shadow of a doubt is one of the game's strongest points. “Where the entire story is conveyed through voice-over and first-person narrative.” told by Denis Dyack, who created the original concept of Kain. & director. I was engrossed any time Templeman spoke, and beyond the cutscenes lies numerous mystical signs littering the grounds of Nosgoth where he would speak. Of his internal thoughts. The Shakespearean-like voiced lines provide a fascinating look into the thought process, habits, personality, beliefs, values, history, relationships and so much more. Through Kain’s eyes, we see the story in a personal nature arise and combine with the mature plot. Complementing the FMV and plot beats in tandem with the excellent voice acting. In layman’s terms think of our central figure commentating aloud on the previous events, of goals in mind, self-doubts, and ruminations. It is here I felt the voiced narrative intertwine with the inhabitants ranging from all kinds of human hierarchy. Commoners, beggars, nobles, knights, guards, kings, and of course the nine sorcerers who become major subjects of interest to our 'hero' within thirty minutes of starting the game. Their voices contribute a stark contrast to the audacious personality our titular character conveys. Mortanius the necromancer, speaks to the newly turned vampire via telepathy. Supporting him with new goals. Vorador the elder vampire, a mighty being who without remorse advocates embracing blacker-than-night tendencies. Ariel, the balance of the circle, offers our main character an unusual proposal to cure his sickness. Common folks are not spared either. Granting hints via gossip on unnatural events occurring nearby. Spells, weapons, armor, and items are also given fair treatment. Our key player will briefly talk about the item at hand, any relevant history, and their purpose during battle. Never was tiring hearing these precious lines or other beings like foes. Administering an immersive quality and thus bringing liveliness and deadliness as we journey onward.
His journey, for a closer inspection underneath the surface, upholds a somewhat deadly, but mostly fair design in how dungeons, puzzles to a certain extent, and boss fights are constructed. Tying to the fun gameplay I mentioned earlier. The adequate Legend of Zelda-esque dungeon designs are designed with a mix of traps, like spikes coming from walls and floors. While pesky enemies like skeletons, wraiths, ghosts, murderous humans, etc litter rooms. Thankfully, the game employs a lot of enemy variety so we're not bored seeing mob #1 to mob #2. Switches and levers on walls to open a passageway, sometimes big puzzles requiring more than simply hitting a switch reside. Tingling the brain to use other means within your arsenal. Traveling to another location in a specific path, do so wrongly and I am teleported back to the beginning, one had me teleporting to different places, so backtracking may be needed to remember paths, some walkways may seem insurmountable, but using a handy spell or transformation will make the march trivial. There’s more I could list, but hopefully, you get the picture. To contend with these endeavors in dungeons lies a dungeon boss. Most bosses can be eliminated by any means of weaponry or ability at your disposal. The hard part is getting close to them. Usually, they’ll have a gimmick or two involved making any movement closer hastily punishing. For example, bullet hells. Illusion of death, oh you thought this would be a fair fight man vs. man, bouts of strength and attrition, etc. Overall I would say most of the encounters with each big baddie were decent to very satisfying. Some worrying signals to know though.
And this is where I'll talk about my mixed feelings. Not a positive or a negative. Simply some concerns I found that may prove troublesome for others in varying degrees. For me, all of these points brought the all-embracing experience a tad. Yet doesn’t detract too much from the positives the game entails.
First, every time you re-enter a room or corridor all enemies will re-spawn. In spite of already defeating them into oblivion. This wouldn’t be so egregious if we could gain a reward like extra items to replenish our vitality. Yet some adversaries are troublesome to defeat since they will always be without end once your character moves closer to them. Become public enemy #1 where you cannot escape until you run a sufficient amount of distance. Distance from what I experimented with leads from afar. You go into another room. And two. Run a decent amount so they cannot catch up to you. Both parts aren't really helpful in the long run if I need to go back to a previous room. Driving the knife deeper are several enemies like wraiths shooting magical bolts dealing a decent amount of damage and flinging you to one side. The game loves to slap several of these infuriating dudes in a room and have us try to kill or evade them. Imagine killing the insufferable apparitions only to forget there was a spare hidden path tucked cleverly. Oh, I should head back. OH, MAN. You guys again f%^ my life. For what it’s worth, these occurrences didn’t happen often, merely uncommon to rare times. Doesn’t help that we can't suck the essence out of foolish enemies to recover our strength. And more often than not I faced scores of foes where I cannot possibly suck their juice. Thereby taking my enjoyment a bit at times in a minor form.
Second, speaking of opponents. I think the game needs to lessen the attackers' devastation in the middle to late game. Enemies hit hard, so you’ll need to be careful of wasting precious items and spells. Dying here and using up your remaining heart of darkness(these are the only consumables to automatically restore you to life with 1/7 of your max health) sucks. I think more enemies chained on walls to freely replenish our vigor would’ve helped and a decrease in overall damage from 10-25% towards endgame would’ve helped smoothen my slight frustration. He doesn’t have a lot of health in the beginning. Regardless of the player exploring thoroughly to upgrade their total HP supply. Therefore, my endgame suffered a bit until I decided to use cheats the game employs. Starting from the halfway mark. Think button commands ala Grand Theft Auto III to restore health. Only used the commands as a last resort to recover my magic/health. And only when I had less than three hearts of darkness in my pockets. Die without any of the hearts and goodbye save file. Hello, game over screen and back to your last known save location. I should confess to prevent any misconceptions. I explored thoroughly to grab as many health and magic upgrades. To the point I was still struggling somewhat with this amount of health and magic Yet I still suffered through bloodshed. Even when I ran away most of the time. I barely used any blood spells which according to the spell description can restore your health from enemies. Using the heart as a consumable might also mitigate loss in endurance due to restoring a decent amount of health instead of dying and reviving. So maybe my playstyle suffered more because of this. Thus, your mileage may vary.
Third, both qualities of constant re-spawning of enemies as we re-enter rooms and high damage output from assailants lead me to believe the Silicon knights(the developers who created Blood Omen: Legacy of Kain) perhaps had trouble configuring the right balance of enemy placement and harmful properties. The fact there are cheats available leads me to believe that the devs saw this as a temporary bandaid to solve possible frustrations from lack of healing/revival items. I suspect perhaps if I were more vigilant and prepared properly with some tips and hints then maybe I wouldn’t have any issues. However, one other factor that may cause further difficulty is how the save system is implemented. Innately players cannot save manually anytime. They have to approach a blood shrine to activate. I found these shrines constantly in caverns, mausoleums, castles, towns, cities, and homes where a multiple-floor level resides. The problem is that they only appear at the start. So if you die mid-way through a dungeon. Welp, my dude back to square one. Only if you have no heart of darkness. If you do, you can come back alive. Thankfully before hitting a major boss, the devs saw fit to include another shrine before a bossfight. A large sigh of relief overcame my being once I saw this implemented again and again, yet this doesn’t remove the underlying dilemma. Progress lost is still progress lost. Losing minutes to half an hour can be morale-inducing to my detriment. So beware of each shrine location and how far you are from one. Still, the aspect isn’t a major negative in my books, since I was able to complete the game using the titular mechanic constantly. Merely a warning for those curious about how to save properly.
That’s it for my mixed feelings. Honestly quite a lot of my troubles I feel were attributed to my negligence to seek help in favor of a blind playthrough. I don’t regret it. But a lingering doubt in my head feels like it could’ve been better to smoothen out my overall experience. Nevertheless, the sheer strengths Silicon Knights employed back in 1996 deserve special praise to this day. The music hits the orchestral high notes while giving off epic drums and beats to intensify our moods into mythical dimensions. Complementing well with Templeman’s impeccable voice acting among others. Luring me like a helpless slave to their magnificent voices. Reminiscent of Louis de Pointe du Lac detailing his past stories as a vampire to a reporter in the film Interview with a Vampire(1994). And similar, but different in some respects to Sang-hyun. A priest who turns into a vampire. From the Korean film Thirst(2009).
In the end. The dark fantasy & bloodthirsty LoZ-like formula works almost perfectly, the solid arsenal and wicked powers our titular character can utilize are maximized to a degree, I didn’t have trouble figuring out the right solution to solve the puzzles. Sufficient amount of paths to back-track for the curious fella in need of any upgrades to become stronger. A large and dense world to traverse while listening to Kain’s constant monologues is alluring, if not horrifying to witness. As a consequence, we are treated to a captivating nuanced character development take, of a 'hero' into something else. A remarkable campaign experience from the good old days and most certainly punches above its weight class for the grayish gothic story-telling. Delving without excess on what shapes evil, different forms that come to be, why the notion exists, and for what purpose does evil maintain in a world against a different ‘evil.’ And ultimately what is the result of our malicious acts? Blood Omen: Legacy of Kain asks these mature questions without forgiveness. Through his eyes and actions, the unmaking of the human soul surges. Blackened with dark tapestry and removed of all sensible feeling. Hmmm… I wonder what awaits me plus others, as the saga moves forward to Soul Reaver. And what fate ultimately lies to Kain in the end.
Vae Victus. Suffering to the conquered.
7.7/10
References & Additional Material:
FAQ on Blood Omen: Legacy of Kain. - Frequently Asked Questions on BO:LoK. Inspirations, original concept, creator etc.
Evil. Origins and all forms from Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy - More reading material on Evil.
Nosgoth world map - Lord of the Rings Argonath - Picture example
Playing Catch-Up - A conversation with Denis Dyack, founder of Silicon knights and creator of the original concept of Kain
Interview with Denis Dyack - On Simon Templeman who voices Kain
2nd interview with Denis Dyack - on Silicon Knights and what they tried to achieve with the first entry of Blood Omen: Legacy of Kain “Where the entire story is conveyed through voice-over and first person narrative.” and more like Too Human and guild philosophy.
Blood Omen: Legacy of Kain cheats - Cheats if you need it. Think of button commands like GTA III cheats
Example of my endgame health and magic - Disregard the subtitle
Youtube example of slow load times on PS1 - Compared to fast loading speed on PC -
Simon Templeman - who voices Kain in every game.
Blood Omen: Legacy of Kain on Mobygames - Interesting to see the narrative in the genre section is horror. When wikipedia classifies the game as dark fantasy.
Plot Guide to the whole series - For all games + observations after the ending
Highly Recommend installing fan-patch on PC - Verok's GL wrapper & patch should be enough. Was easy to add after first installing the GOG version. Game is super cheap when on sale at less than 2 bucks.
Essential tips on for newcomers to Blood Omen: Legacy of Kain - Previously prior to this review. There was no section for BO:LoK. On the Before I play website. So I contacted the owner and sent him my tips! Hope this helps newcomers!
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
2022
I’m impressed by how Lunacid captured me. Not entirely, but the sheer passion created by Kira and others is worthy of note. For a dark fantasy first-person dungeon crawler. Inspired heavily by FromSoftware’s Kingsfield and Shadow Tower IPs. While I haven’t played those games in particular, I know the style and gameplay enough from videos I’ve seen. Other influences I feel worth mentioning are Zelda, Castlevania and another franchise I love, but I can't say or else it'll spoil a major thing. I'll give you a hint though. The person most famous for creating this IP is from Square Enix. Even those with no experience may find something worthy of note to be found. Bonus points for those who love/like Souls entries I would say it's enough to tickle your soul's interest into overdrive. I know it did for me.
Nonetheless, the dark fantasy tag is apt, but I want to highlight one element here and that is horror. And though I have limited experience in the genre, I feel there was enough stuff here to warrant it because I had plenty of spine-chilling moments crawling up my back. Facing off close to a dozen truly nightmarish creatures I wish I didn’t have to face since I was constantly yelling “Nope! nope! nope!” Slowly making my way through grayish stygian corridors with none other than my handy torch or ghostlight magic to illuminate my surroundings during my inkiest of days. While fearfully at times investigating corners or empty rooms for any hidden surprises. Phew… Be that as it may. Lunacid doesn’t boast a must-play in the story-telling department nor does it captivate me with thrilling combat mechanics. Instead, the music captured my heart, and the dungeon exploring fueled my sense of curiosity like a cat where I could not stop delving deeper into the Great Well. A fresh and diverse chunk of enemy variety, spells, weapons, and level design consistently kept my fun factor decently high against several heart-pumping segments and concerns I found. I'll talk about the enjoyable parts first and discuss several alarm bells later.
Story-wise, a short exposition begins detailing how a great beast brought an age of death and how the inhabitants throw the wretched, criminals, and ill into the Great Well. And you, the main player character are one of those unfortunate souls thrown in. Escape, fight, learn, what lies beneath. That’s the main gist to get started. And after completing everything in the game in eighteen hours I can only say the narrative isn’t the strongest to entice players. Instead, the freedom to explore, level up, and find what lurks in the shadows and caves! And more kept my intrigue! The fascinating NPCs you encounter every time during Wing’s Rest(the main hub) were enough of a reason for me to come back. Listening to new stories I didn’t expect would be delightful. Imagine sitting on a campfire listening to the storyteller. Kinda feels like that. Except in reality, I'm listening to a forgetful skeleton by the name of Clive casually drinking HP potions like no tomorrow. I’m still in disbelief where it all goes…
Moreover, the gameplay loop of exploring, fighting, and healing is a formula I found oddly satisfying. Though, I admit early on about 30 minutes in I was not particularly enthused. Only took an hour plus before I slightly became enthralled. I cautiously explored the first area to find another entrance to a dimmer zone called the temple of silence. From here, I was hooked. This lightless section filled with mummies and a haunting atmosphere sped up my heartbeat beyond the average. I found myself beset with anxiety, fear and reckless courage to brave gloomy corridors. A trusty sword, torch, and my low levels kept me slowly progressing until I achieved victory by finding a crystal shard. Shards can become sites of rest to heal, teleport you to past crystal locations, and most importantly level up your stats. These can range from increasing health, mana, melee & spell damage. Most unique in these stats is the inclusion of jump and running speed which are essential for newcomers. Don’t doubt the speed at which you run. By upgrading the stat value you can run away from enemies and whittle down their vitality until their demise. By the same token adding points to your jump stat allows you to jump across obstacles you wouldn’t otherwise reach. Both horizontally and vertically. Ties well enough into the level design. So the gameplay loop of fighting enemies, gaining enough experience, leveling up, completing sidequests, and healing, returning to new grounds is a fun cycle.
The world of Lunacid is as free as you can muster. And as deep as you can bravely master. Don’t see constant boring walking simulators here. Levels are intricate and provide multiple pathways through interconnectivity. I almost hesitate to say this is a Metroidvania except I'm not forced to have essential abilities to progress. Certainly, several keys are needed to progress, but for the most part, the varied amount of dungeons are carefully constructed to induce a wide spread of biomes to venture. With enough secrets, clever wall positioning for hidden valuables, verticality for platforming(not a lot, but a decent number), and multiple zones within. I saw filthy sewers, stood in awe of a red sea, held my controller tightly upon entering a deep tomb, and became mesmerized finding greenery! As if Nintendo decided to swing by and whisper in Kira’s ear “Hey! We want a forest dimension!” And voila there it is. I gorged the countless books in the library archives, tackled the looming castle, and sought the throne within. Even undertook the challenging abyssal tower for the greatest of all treasures shining under the pale moonlight. Yes, my wanderlust was satiated. Conversely, more than half a dozen, I dreaded due to the enemies I found to be horrifying, but regardless of the nightmarish creatures, I breathed a sigh of relief upon realizing each locale I visited. I think we're carefully balanced not to the brim filled with mobs of baddies. The placement of each of them throughout my playthrough felt balanced and not too sparse. I even found kawaii inhabitants in the most uncommon of sectors. To embrace or for those with murderous tendencies, you can eliminate them if you wish.
Simplicity in mechanics is a core focus. I didn’t find anything complex in the systems. And I would say it is a strength to keep it simple. Jump, attack, guard, use spell 1, spell 2, activate item 1, item 2, etc. These are all you need while paying attention to your health, mana, and charge gauge(This determines how hard to hit opponents). Aside from the easy-to-learn stats. You can equip any weapon without any stat requirement. The rule applies to magic as well. However, you can only have two slots to equip. And both of these categories have a great wealth of equipment and arcane to discover. Use ranged weaponry like a bow and arrow or any manner of swords to the smallest of daggers and unconventional arms like clubs or hammers and lance. Additionally, quite a decent sum of these melee armaments can be upgraded once you accrue enough experience for the equipped arm! Great way to evolve a weapon granting better stats, and a new look, and perhaps may give you the edge unexpectedly. I found a broken hilt and turned it into a fire-sword! Not gonna lie, it looks like a fantasy red lightsaber. No need to use a torch anymore in shadowy regions heh. Doesn’t take all that long to fill up the experience bar. Although, a decent chunk of endgame weapons can take a bit. Do yourself a favor and wack breakable objects or cheese the method by whacking a dead enemy, raising the values faster than you can ordinarily fight mobs. Sadly spells can’t be upgraded, but there’s a plethora to choose from. My favorites were healing magic, a god-tier moonbeam, lightning, and summoning a classic companion from the good old days. Won’t say the name, but if you played any of the franchises I mentioned above you’re in for a good time, not a bad time. Naturally defensive, utility, and support are available. Move faster, barrier, create coffins, rockbridges, fire, dark, light, wind, ice, and blood elements are at your disposal. Go mad you crazy wizard. Weaponry can be found in various ways through NPC’s, enemy drops, and by mere searching on the path ahead. A good incentive to explore every inch. Hell, you may come across a hidden door revealing good loot or a new shortcut.
The soundwork is stunning. I felt a wide range of feelings upon hearing the music. I felt the sorrow and hatred of realms giving off plenty of melancholy and sadness. I nodded vigorously upon hearing uplifting instruments turning my sad soul into one of light. Full of brightness and joy. I have to hand it to Kira, ThorHighHeels, and others. Holy. Black Magic! They manage to keep me invested. Notwithstanding becoming unsettling, yet oddly enough some tracks were atmospheric and tranquil. Also, super love how entering a new location will show the track name listed in the bottom left corner. With author credit on who composed it. Wish more devs included the feature. Thereby, we can properly credit the composer/s and see what track occurs when entering a new zone. Seriously underrated aspect, while I listened to pleasant sounds! Soft instrumentals like pianos and percussions are used to great effect to give off peaceful melodies. Accompanied by a diverse amount of tracks to hit specific spectrums like anxiety when you’re lurking in a dim tomb or inside a desolate area full of forgotten criminals. Even sewers are given lots of love to be eerie and kinda desolate. By far my favorite is Serence which is the main hub theme you go back to. Much like Firelink Shrine from Dark Souls. A place of rest and quiet comfort amid constant fighting. I was lured by the gentle sounds and stayed in it for countless hours. It’s not as heavenly to the Nier lengths of a certain franchise. For what it's worth, the ambiance and soothing rhythm beats while trekking, battling, and healing left me with a feeling of contentment.
Despite all the praise I’ve been sprouting I have to talk about my mixed feelings. Not a positive or a negative, just stuff I felt during my playthrough that could be improved or tweaked.
First, my biggest disgruntlement is the lack of a lore archive or database. As a lore-nut I always wish games had a menu option, you can constantly reference and go back to the documents you found or significant objects during your travels. Especially for those who like to litter the ground with papers of scattered entries. A prudent feature, you don’t need to reference user print screen images or steam’s handy screenshot key like I did where I stored countless notes I found during my ventures into the deep. Providing a reference point or allowing the player to go “Hmmm I see” like a smart fella where you can see all the cards falling into place. Connecting pieces of documents by process of elimination and linking them to the worldbuilding if I see a common pattern or core thread to tie knots. Here my knots are fraying at the seams at the frustration I have since there isn’t enough of a focus to properly identify half of the notes I found to a person. The papers I found only give a quote that ties into the locale, but the missing person’s identity leaves me befuddled at the meaning beyond a random person’s woes to give off a false illusion of being careful of what lies ahead. Thankfully, not all the notes are like this. More often than not the books I found say who wrote the message like Sir Garrat, Bonnard(random tangent, but I'm speechless at what this guy did), Jusztina, & Ophelia. Everything else? Nothing, I can’t connect the person to the vicinity or race, only allocate their message to the residing location where I found the quote. Still not a big deal, since my boney dude Clive was lore dripping me with lore stories. They more than makeup for this transgression. Highly recommend checking them out. Always love what they have to say to me every time I return to the main hub.
Second, the alchemy system feels underutilized due to the pitiful volume of drops you may gain from random chance and perhaps no materials at all. Making the early to mid part of my playthrough somewhat of a struggle for resources. But not necessary to scavenge. For example, I didn't have enough of the exact materials to create a mana potion, I had to rely on destructible objects and be careful of how many health potions I had on hand. There is a shop, but you can only gain money from destroying objects and defeating enemies. You don’t gain a lot during your playthrough. This becomes hampered by a plethora of usable items that the game teases you often by showing the formulas but doesn’t fully express itself to the fullest extent by again a lack of materials. Maybe I played in a weird format and that’s why the required ingredients didn’t show. But I thoroughly explored every inch and crevice, and something clearly went awry. I think giving more monsters and flora you find of the common ingredients would be a better alternative. Additionally, instead of dropping one measly morsel per enemy death. Or none at all. Make it double or triple if it's a common rarity we need for consumables. Thankfully, you don’t need to use the alchemy system, I only used it after the final boss to see what recipes I was missing. Feels like a supplementary system attached to give players extra breathing room.
Third, a multitude of factors: more bosses. I can count on one hand, the exact number including to a lesser extent mini-bosses. I get it’s not supposed to be souls-like and more of a Kingsfield-like. However, I feel it's a missed opportunity since there were plenty of open spaces in various biomes I visited that could’ve been used to test the player. Granted, less than a handful of major bosses do a great job of testing me to my limit. And the sick art models and artificial intelligence made fights visually interesting. Kinda weird to expect more, when there isn’t. Additionally, I abhor the fact there is an enemy in the game that steals your money. I lost over 500 bucks. I was devastated. Needed the money to buy a very expensive weapon. And I’ve been saving in bulk since the start only to lose it all in the 80% mark. Couldn’t regain my wallet after defeating them either. So beware! Happens when you’re in a sandy region. Keep an eye on your vitality. And don’t get hit. I paid dearly for it. Don’t be a fool like me! I was arrogant to think I could defeat this dastardly foe. Furthermore, there is a bit of obscurity in certain areas like not knowing how to use elemental spells to open doors and how to achieve one of the endings clearly. Consequently, I highly recommend looking up a guide for those. I’ll post links below to help players in case they're in a slump. No shame in finding the solution instead of spending 'x' hours struggling. I used them only when I combed every new field blind and then checked a map guide to see if I missed any.
Finally, I think more NPCs could’ve been added to make a handful of spaces filled with more life in spite of the apparent and purposeful design to keep it somewhat sparse. Inducing a sense of anxiety and fear ramping up. Certainly, there are NPCs in various sectors, but these are only used more than a handful of times and don’t offer much besides several sidequests. I’m not asking for a new person per new biome. Feel it is a 50/50 chance of there being one and perhaps gives me something to do other than finding/fighting new enemies and discovering new loot. Along with the occasional minor puzzle here and there by pulling or destroying mechanisms. The game does a good enough job with the existing characters inside that you can help each of them during a level to complete their side quest. So extra individuals to spice up locations. A tiny bundle would suffice. Doesn’t even have to be friendly… Could be a rival or murderous individual who hates us. I think that would’ve been a nice twist.
Overall, there’s a decent sum I appreciate from trying my first-person dungeon crawler. With no bugs, crashes, or major framerate dips encountered to my utter relief. Took me over a week to consolidate my final thoughts. Nevertheless, my mixed feelings don’t affect the overall game too much. The biggest hurdle I think is the fact the beginning may not be the most enticing and it takes a decent effort to sift through beyond the mundanity, yet for those patient enough. For an indie-Kingsfield-like, Lunacid shines once you familiarize yourself with the simplistic core mechanics and express courage and genuine interest into crawling into the unknown. The accompanying sound work deserves special praise, and I cannot for the life of me wait until the soundtrack is available to purchase. It is not the next must-hear for unheard composers, but for an indie, I am awe-inspired at the sheer quality of most music tracks. The nuance in level structure by not adhering to a copy-paste in every single pathway kept things fresh and new throughout my eighteen hours. Becoming more complex as you progress further with no big difficulty spikes. A nice way to raise the challenge once I reach the endgame. Not too insurmountable while taking a fine line to be not a cakewalk even for my level 92 cleric. Ok, maybe I was too over-leveled… Well... it's okay. Going overpowered is good in my books hah! In the end, I hesitate to say this is a must-play to try for newcomers in the genre due to its shortcomings. Rather it is merely a valid choice to consider. So if you’re interested in this type of game I would suggest checking videos of the gameplay and reviews to get a broader idea of what you’re looking into. For fourteen USD I think it's a fair price for what you’re getting. Better on a sale. Anyway! Excuse me while I fill up my backlog on dungeon crawler games I missed out on! While keeping a close eye on whatever else Kira is cooking up.
7.5/10
Additional Material:
Adventurer’s Guide & Before I play - All around guide and other helpful tips to keep in mind.
100% checklist - To help those trying for 100%
Maps, Secrets, Items - Need a map?
WIP Alchemy list - Alchemy recipes
Other reviews on Lunacid - Other reviews to read
Curse’s review - touches on a lot of points I like. Not to discourage others, but to give a circumspect view.
Nonetheless, the dark fantasy tag is apt, but I want to highlight one element here and that is horror. And though I have limited experience in the genre, I feel there was enough stuff here to warrant it because I had plenty of spine-chilling moments crawling up my back. Facing off close to a dozen truly nightmarish creatures I wish I didn’t have to face since I was constantly yelling “Nope! nope! nope!” Slowly making my way through grayish stygian corridors with none other than my handy torch or ghostlight magic to illuminate my surroundings during my inkiest of days. While fearfully at times investigating corners or empty rooms for any hidden surprises. Phew… Be that as it may. Lunacid doesn’t boast a must-play in the story-telling department nor does it captivate me with thrilling combat mechanics. Instead, the music captured my heart, and the dungeon exploring fueled my sense of curiosity like a cat where I could not stop delving deeper into the Great Well. A fresh and diverse chunk of enemy variety, spells, weapons, and level design consistently kept my fun factor decently high against several heart-pumping segments and concerns I found. I'll talk about the enjoyable parts first and discuss several alarm bells later.
Story-wise, a short exposition begins detailing how a great beast brought an age of death and how the inhabitants throw the wretched, criminals, and ill into the Great Well. And you, the main player character are one of those unfortunate souls thrown in. Escape, fight, learn, what lies beneath. That’s the main gist to get started. And after completing everything in the game in eighteen hours I can only say the narrative isn’t the strongest to entice players. Instead, the freedom to explore, level up, and find what lurks in the shadows and caves! And more kept my intrigue! The fascinating NPCs you encounter every time during Wing’s Rest(the main hub) were enough of a reason for me to come back. Listening to new stories I didn’t expect would be delightful. Imagine sitting on a campfire listening to the storyteller. Kinda feels like that. Except in reality, I'm listening to a forgetful skeleton by the name of Clive casually drinking HP potions like no tomorrow. I’m still in disbelief where it all goes…
Moreover, the gameplay loop of exploring, fighting, and healing is a formula I found oddly satisfying. Though, I admit early on about 30 minutes in I was not particularly enthused. Only took an hour plus before I slightly became enthralled. I cautiously explored the first area to find another entrance to a dimmer zone called the temple of silence. From here, I was hooked. This lightless section filled with mummies and a haunting atmosphere sped up my heartbeat beyond the average. I found myself beset with anxiety, fear and reckless courage to brave gloomy corridors. A trusty sword, torch, and my low levels kept me slowly progressing until I achieved victory by finding a crystal shard. Shards can become sites of rest to heal, teleport you to past crystal locations, and most importantly level up your stats. These can range from increasing health, mana, melee & spell damage. Most unique in these stats is the inclusion of jump and running speed which are essential for newcomers. Don’t doubt the speed at which you run. By upgrading the stat value you can run away from enemies and whittle down their vitality until their demise. By the same token adding points to your jump stat allows you to jump across obstacles you wouldn’t otherwise reach. Both horizontally and vertically. Ties well enough into the level design. So the gameplay loop of fighting enemies, gaining enough experience, leveling up, completing sidequests, and healing, returning to new grounds is a fun cycle.
The world of Lunacid is as free as you can muster. And as deep as you can bravely master. Don’t see constant boring walking simulators here. Levels are intricate and provide multiple pathways through interconnectivity. I almost hesitate to say this is a Metroidvania except I'm not forced to have essential abilities to progress. Certainly, several keys are needed to progress, but for the most part, the varied amount of dungeons are carefully constructed to induce a wide spread of biomes to venture. With enough secrets, clever wall positioning for hidden valuables, verticality for platforming(not a lot, but a decent number), and multiple zones within. I saw filthy sewers, stood in awe of a red sea, held my controller tightly upon entering a deep tomb, and became mesmerized finding greenery! As if Nintendo decided to swing by and whisper in Kira’s ear “Hey! We want a forest dimension!” And voila there it is. I gorged the countless books in the library archives, tackled the looming castle, and sought the throne within. Even undertook the challenging abyssal tower for the greatest of all treasures shining under the pale moonlight. Yes, my wanderlust was satiated. Conversely, more than half a dozen, I dreaded due to the enemies I found to be horrifying, but regardless of the nightmarish creatures, I breathed a sigh of relief upon realizing each locale I visited. I think we're carefully balanced not to the brim filled with mobs of baddies. The placement of each of them throughout my playthrough felt balanced and not too sparse. I even found kawaii inhabitants in the most uncommon of sectors. To embrace or for those with murderous tendencies, you can eliminate them if you wish.
Simplicity in mechanics is a core focus. I didn’t find anything complex in the systems. And I would say it is a strength to keep it simple. Jump, attack, guard, use spell 1, spell 2, activate item 1, item 2, etc. These are all you need while paying attention to your health, mana, and charge gauge(This determines how hard to hit opponents). Aside from the easy-to-learn stats. You can equip any weapon without any stat requirement. The rule applies to magic as well. However, you can only have two slots to equip. And both of these categories have a great wealth of equipment and arcane to discover. Use ranged weaponry like a bow and arrow or any manner of swords to the smallest of daggers and unconventional arms like clubs or hammers and lance. Additionally, quite a decent sum of these melee armaments can be upgraded once you accrue enough experience for the equipped arm! Great way to evolve a weapon granting better stats, and a new look, and perhaps may give you the edge unexpectedly. I found a broken hilt and turned it into a fire-sword! Not gonna lie, it looks like a fantasy red lightsaber. No need to use a torch anymore in shadowy regions heh. Doesn’t take all that long to fill up the experience bar. Although, a decent chunk of endgame weapons can take a bit. Do yourself a favor and wack breakable objects or cheese the method by whacking a dead enemy, raising the values faster than you can ordinarily fight mobs. Sadly spells can’t be upgraded, but there’s a plethora to choose from. My favorites were healing magic, a god-tier moonbeam, lightning, and summoning a classic companion from the good old days. Won’t say the name, but if you played any of the franchises I mentioned above you’re in for a good time, not a bad time. Naturally defensive, utility, and support are available. Move faster, barrier, create coffins, rockbridges, fire, dark, light, wind, ice, and blood elements are at your disposal. Go mad you crazy wizard. Weaponry can be found in various ways through NPC’s, enemy drops, and by mere searching on the path ahead. A good incentive to explore every inch. Hell, you may come across a hidden door revealing good loot or a new shortcut.
The soundwork is stunning. I felt a wide range of feelings upon hearing the music. I felt the sorrow and hatred of realms giving off plenty of melancholy and sadness. I nodded vigorously upon hearing uplifting instruments turning my sad soul into one of light. Full of brightness and joy. I have to hand it to Kira, ThorHighHeels, and others. Holy. Black Magic! They manage to keep me invested. Notwithstanding becoming unsettling, yet oddly enough some tracks were atmospheric and tranquil. Also, super love how entering a new location will show the track name listed in the bottom left corner. With author credit on who composed it. Wish more devs included the feature. Thereby, we can properly credit the composer/s and see what track occurs when entering a new zone. Seriously underrated aspect, while I listened to pleasant sounds! Soft instrumentals like pianos and percussions are used to great effect to give off peaceful melodies. Accompanied by a diverse amount of tracks to hit specific spectrums like anxiety when you’re lurking in a dim tomb or inside a desolate area full of forgotten criminals. Even sewers are given lots of love to be eerie and kinda desolate. By far my favorite is Serence which is the main hub theme you go back to. Much like Firelink Shrine from Dark Souls. A place of rest and quiet comfort amid constant fighting. I was lured by the gentle sounds and stayed in it for countless hours. It’s not as heavenly to the Nier lengths of a certain franchise. For what it's worth, the ambiance and soothing rhythm beats while trekking, battling, and healing left me with a feeling of contentment.
Despite all the praise I’ve been sprouting I have to talk about my mixed feelings. Not a positive or a negative, just stuff I felt during my playthrough that could be improved or tweaked.
First, my biggest disgruntlement is the lack of a lore archive or database. As a lore-nut I always wish games had a menu option, you can constantly reference and go back to the documents you found or significant objects during your travels. Especially for those who like to litter the ground with papers of scattered entries. A prudent feature, you don’t need to reference user print screen images or steam’s handy screenshot key like I did where I stored countless notes I found during my ventures into the deep. Providing a reference point or allowing the player to go “Hmmm I see” like a smart fella where you can see all the cards falling into place. Connecting pieces of documents by process of elimination and linking them to the worldbuilding if I see a common pattern or core thread to tie knots. Here my knots are fraying at the seams at the frustration I have since there isn’t enough of a focus to properly identify half of the notes I found to a person. The papers I found only give a quote that ties into the locale, but the missing person’s identity leaves me befuddled at the meaning beyond a random person’s woes to give off a false illusion of being careful of what lies ahead. Thankfully, not all the notes are like this. More often than not the books I found say who wrote the message like Sir Garrat, Bonnard(random tangent, but I'm speechless at what this guy did), Jusztina, & Ophelia. Everything else? Nothing, I can’t connect the person to the vicinity or race, only allocate their message to the residing location where I found the quote. Still not a big deal, since my boney dude Clive was lore dripping me with lore stories. They more than makeup for this transgression. Highly recommend checking them out. Always love what they have to say to me every time I return to the main hub.
Second, the alchemy system feels underutilized due to the pitiful volume of drops you may gain from random chance and perhaps no materials at all. Making the early to mid part of my playthrough somewhat of a struggle for resources. But not necessary to scavenge. For example, I didn't have enough of the exact materials to create a mana potion, I had to rely on destructible objects and be careful of how many health potions I had on hand. There is a shop, but you can only gain money from destroying objects and defeating enemies. You don’t gain a lot during your playthrough. This becomes hampered by a plethora of usable items that the game teases you often by showing the formulas but doesn’t fully express itself to the fullest extent by again a lack of materials. Maybe I played in a weird format and that’s why the required ingredients didn’t show. But I thoroughly explored every inch and crevice, and something clearly went awry. I think giving more monsters and flora you find of the common ingredients would be a better alternative. Additionally, instead of dropping one measly morsel per enemy death. Or none at all. Make it double or triple if it's a common rarity we need for consumables. Thankfully, you don’t need to use the alchemy system, I only used it after the final boss to see what recipes I was missing. Feels like a supplementary system attached to give players extra breathing room.
Third, a multitude of factors: more bosses. I can count on one hand, the exact number including to a lesser extent mini-bosses. I get it’s not supposed to be souls-like and more of a Kingsfield-like. However, I feel it's a missed opportunity since there were plenty of open spaces in various biomes I visited that could’ve been used to test the player. Granted, less than a handful of major bosses do a great job of testing me to my limit. And the sick art models and artificial intelligence made fights visually interesting. Kinda weird to expect more, when there isn’t. Additionally, I abhor the fact there is an enemy in the game that steals your money. I lost over 500 bucks. I was devastated. Needed the money to buy a very expensive weapon. And I’ve been saving in bulk since the start only to lose it all in the 80% mark. Couldn’t regain my wallet after defeating them either. So beware! Happens when you’re in a sandy region. Keep an eye on your vitality. And don’t get hit. I paid dearly for it. Don’t be a fool like me! I was arrogant to think I could defeat this dastardly foe. Furthermore, there is a bit of obscurity in certain areas like not knowing how to use elemental spells to open doors and how to achieve one of the endings clearly. Consequently, I highly recommend looking up a guide for those. I’ll post links below to help players in case they're in a slump. No shame in finding the solution instead of spending 'x' hours struggling. I used them only when I combed every new field blind and then checked a map guide to see if I missed any.
Finally, I think more NPCs could’ve been added to make a handful of spaces filled with more life in spite of the apparent and purposeful design to keep it somewhat sparse. Inducing a sense of anxiety and fear ramping up. Certainly, there are NPCs in various sectors, but these are only used more than a handful of times and don’t offer much besides several sidequests. I’m not asking for a new person per new biome. Feel it is a 50/50 chance of there being one and perhaps gives me something to do other than finding/fighting new enemies and discovering new loot. Along with the occasional minor puzzle here and there by pulling or destroying mechanisms. The game does a good enough job with the existing characters inside that you can help each of them during a level to complete their side quest. So extra individuals to spice up locations. A tiny bundle would suffice. Doesn’t even have to be friendly… Could be a rival or murderous individual who hates us. I think that would’ve been a nice twist.
Overall, there’s a decent sum I appreciate from trying my first-person dungeon crawler. With no bugs, crashes, or major framerate dips encountered to my utter relief. Took me over a week to consolidate my final thoughts. Nevertheless, my mixed feelings don’t affect the overall game too much. The biggest hurdle I think is the fact the beginning may not be the most enticing and it takes a decent effort to sift through beyond the mundanity, yet for those patient enough. For an indie-Kingsfield-like, Lunacid shines once you familiarize yourself with the simplistic core mechanics and express courage and genuine interest into crawling into the unknown. The accompanying sound work deserves special praise, and I cannot for the life of me wait until the soundtrack is available to purchase. It is not the next must-hear for unheard composers, but for an indie, I am awe-inspired at the sheer quality of most music tracks. The nuance in level structure by not adhering to a copy-paste in every single pathway kept things fresh and new throughout my eighteen hours. Becoming more complex as you progress further with no big difficulty spikes. A nice way to raise the challenge once I reach the endgame. Not too insurmountable while taking a fine line to be not a cakewalk even for my level 92 cleric. Ok, maybe I was too over-leveled… Well... it's okay. Going overpowered is good in my books hah! In the end, I hesitate to say this is a must-play to try for newcomers in the genre due to its shortcomings. Rather it is merely a valid choice to consider. So if you’re interested in this type of game I would suggest checking videos of the gameplay and reviews to get a broader idea of what you’re looking into. For fourteen USD I think it's a fair price for what you’re getting. Better on a sale. Anyway! Excuse me while I fill up my backlog on dungeon crawler games I missed out on! While keeping a close eye on whatever else Kira is cooking up.
7.5/10
Additional Material:
Adventurer’s Guide & Before I play - All around guide and other helpful tips to keep in mind.
100% checklist - To help those trying for 100%
Maps, Secrets, Items - Need a map?
WIP Alchemy list - Alchemy recipes
Other reviews on Lunacid - Other reviews to read
Curse’s review - touches on a lot of points I like. Not to discourage others, but to give a circumspect view.
"This is a shelter. There's nothing to steal. Get out." and he did! - A secret dialogue when Aunt May talks to a promising Brooklyn Kid from 2018's Marvel’s Spider-Man.
This conversation is incredibly important and details how strong May’s willpower is to face off a major villain all by her lonesome. And her nephew Peter Parker AKA Spider-Man also inherits the strong willpower to face off dangerous adversaries. And the sequel is no different giving off the same phenomenal faceoffs, secret dialogue, and payoffs. Speaking of face-offs. The Spider-Men will struggle against new foes on the hunt with a different flair from the earlier. Like noticing sand in the air… Hmm… Strange… Guess the forecast for the day is sandy, with little chance of rain. A pity. Still what remains from the foreboding skies is a bolder game from the previous installment with new developments and reaching higher wings alongside venomous tidings. And yet a question arises whenever any game receives a sequel and follow-up. Is it better? And 2020’s Marvel's Spider-Man: Miles Morales? The short answer is yes. And the long answer is a bit complicated to call this almost everything I wish for.
Before I start I have to say I’m no expert regarding how sequels do a stronger job than the predecessor. In my eyes the next entry has to meet certain criteria to call itself worthy. I won’t bore you with the exact standards because sequel principles vary for every other individual and everyone has their own values on which they can base. To put it simply and succinctly I’ll say if any of ‘X’ improves that the earlier entry didn’t. Then that should be enough. I’ll attempt to condense my thoughts as to why Marvel's Spider-Man 2(MSM2) exceeded my expectations to the point I think it is a spectacular must-play for those who enjoyed the first and follow-up game. Without any spoilers. I’ll try to vaguely reference without hinting at anything concrete. If I fail to do so, you have my permission to send me to the dark dimension. First, the story. Moving past the sinister plot in the beginning and set up with Morales in the follow-up. Two strives to enrich the player in becoming not just Spider-Man within the game, but the man behind the mask. A focus on Peter Parker's desire to become a better person while Miles struggles to become a better Spider-Man. It features new villains kraving for a final hunt, a return of a scaly foe, and one para-. Man New York City can’t catch a break huh? Gotta stay positive and not negative with the webhead's rogue gallery eh?
Gameplay is a solid step up from eating decent pizza from before. Now we're having quality dishes served for NYC’s finest without a certain J. Jonah Jameson(JJJ) harping on our heels. Same but with improved combat and traversal mechanics. The former received new abilities to utilize like spider arms reminiscent of Parker's greatest enemy. Switching between the older and wiser web dude to a Brooklyn kid. So, you can’t go wrong playing as either a mentor or a fresh dude on the block to help the innocent. Morales has youthful, vibrant enthusiasm for taking on his new role from his debut and MSM2 demonstrates a wonderful way of how he is coming to terms with helping beyond Harlem for close to a year since his debut. As you progress further you can unlock new abilities once you accrue enough experience, allocating tokens for new suits and gadgets. These help instrumentally and leave a nice way to keep the gameplay fun factor fresh and exciting. Costumes allow you to customize each protagonist's looks with favorites like Cat Bodega and Scarlet + 2099 suits with classic into and across the spider-verse outfits. Honestly, there’s plenty to unlock to suit your needs heh. Gadgets return, a tad bit simplified from the many weaponry you could utilize, but it's not a downside since you have new abilities to utilize. Both arachnids have their skill trees with a shared linked tree to take advantage of new combat moves on foolish baddies. Super cool. The latter concerning traversal introduces a new form of travel in the form of webwings. And I kid you not, I felt like I was transported back in my childhood playing Spyro once again except taking inspiration from the guiding wind mechanic from Ghost of Tsushima in the form of wind tunnels to guide and accelerate our web slingers across blocks and tall skyscrapers. The new addition is very satisfying to a degree I find myself forgoing fast traveling multiple times to woop in delight as I soar to the skies and keep my arms by my sides to keep my speed in tip-top form. Ah, magnificent. Man if Vulture or Shocker were here, I bet we could fly circles around them.
Side activities (including city-wide collectibles) are a remarkable improvement. In the past I had mixed feelings about them as a whole since there were some activities worth completing to become a taskmaster with some caveats. In the 2020 game, they for the most part improved on the side content a vast deal. Here they’ve taken a sensational upgrade, with minor blemishes I’ll discuss later. Without going into too much detail to prevent spoilers. Mysteriums, photo ops, M. memories, Flame, FNSM App, prowler, EMF experiments, cultural museum, Brooklyn visions, and hunter blinds/bases are satisfying to complete in my honest opinion. To give a brief praise why: Mysteriums offers both a visual treat and somewhat of an extension from 2019’s Far From Home film concerning a mysterious baddie. Taking on handicap challenges to defeat within each location. Photo ops return. You gain cool NYC lore from Pete’s old Daily Bugle coworker Robbie Robertson. M. Memories, offers a melancholy monologue from the man who has sand, offering the big question of why he’s here and what he was doing. Moving on, The Flame quests is a nice departure from the pleasant vibe of the city, detailing a very serious tone and atmosphere bringing a familiar companion back to spice up moments. Love the companion of which I wont to say the name, but I’ll keep it as a surprise. The development the individual undergoes with Parker is a must-see and offers a tantalizing tease of a possible DLC. Anyway, the friendly neighborhood Spider-Man app returns taking cues from 2020’s excellent side-content to help the troubled New Yorkers in the Big Apple is without a doubt spectacularly strong. They’re not the most fleshed out, not visually stunning nor are they dropping maximum compelling narratives with eyes glued to the screen nor do they offer awesome scenes with the funnest gameplay inside. Instead, what is here is simply helping your everyday citizens. And while others might see this as “meh not worth it then!” I assure you if I were to rank all the optional content. This would easily be at the top. Two requests in particular brought home an excellent display of the man behind the mask to help the people in need. Howard and the Grandpa's request demonstrate the little things of simply talking with a person in need resulting in I would say superbly profound dialogue I witnessed. I want to say so much more here and why I appreciate these two requests in particular but I’ll refrain. Suffice it to say, please complete them. The other quests from the app are also beneficial to do to a lesser extent displaying humorous & serious content.
Prowler stashes. A banger job to showcase more conversations between Miles and his uncle. Very nice re-connecting filled with bonds, love, redemption, and greater insight into the brotherhood between Miles' father and his brother. Excellent addition from the 2020 follow-up. EMF experiments, please forgive me for not saying the acronym, but again a pleasant surprise for when you learn-ingame. This features creative tasks to do in a similar vein to the research stations in the first installment. Here were charged with healing the world. Using methods to help citizens via finding alternative sources of food, preventing pollution, and providing new means to make the world a better place. Much like how Pete and Doc did with their start-up. Terrific to do featuring different tasks like blasting wasps, testing out a new bike, and more. Man, I couldn’t get enough of these. Cultural Museum surprised me considerably in enriching the player on notable African-American idols while intertwining an investigation spearheaded by none other than Miles and his mom. Finding clues as to who would try to steal priceless artifacts related to music. Nice to see them not just for culture learning, but bonding with his mom. Brooklyn Visions is a series of simple, yet creative tasks on Miles' high school to help his fellow students. Sneaky Insomniac pulling inspiration from Talos Principle puzzles, a rescue, a very heartwarming quest to help a student help facilitate a proposal for homecoming, etc. Lastly, Hunter blind/bases offer a classic clearing out hideouts, but I felt they’re more reduced in quantity and far less in numbers which is a smashing plus in my books because the previous game featured them too much imo. You also get a nice slice of lore background upon completing them. So worth it to complete. And it is cool to flex out new powers to test on foolish goons who still think once again they have a chance at defeating the spider-bros. Seriously, these guys never learn…
Speaking of learning, the devs learned quite a lot since their debut with the webslinger back then. I am over the moon to say there are plenty of interactions of the men behind the mask to show, don’t tell. And this is huge because at the core of the wall-crawler is a man who continues to struggle to manage his personal and hero life. His relationships with Mary Jane Watson and Harry Osborn, two lifelong buddies, are instrumental in giving him the push and nudges he needs to support him and vice-versa. I witnessed endearing flashbacks back in high school, I spent a well-earned break with my loveable comrades in an amusement park. Taking the time to wisely, but gently push Miles to remember his college application. And partake in an old memory with none other than JJJ. These memories are vital to Pete’s mental health and maintaining a healthy balance. It is something that was touched upon earlier, but I felt it coming more into fruition here to a high degree. This coupled with interesting gameplay sequences like finer stealth sections and not drawn out added a stronger tie to the plot while delicately embracing bonds, friendship, brotherhood, and even love. Magnificent to witness and playthrough.
Also, I can’t believe I’m saying this, but I like JJJ’s podcast. Shocker I know. I didn’t before since dude continues to be a douchebag. But the sheer amount of mental gymnastics the man has to go through to tear apart the Web menace/s is quite frankly amusing to hear. More so to listen to how he included Miles in the equation with Spider-Men. But I have to give props to him. Due to one segment in the game, which made me go “Huh I didn’t think of him that way before.” A layer was peeled off upon completing the segment and in a way brought a shaky new light to him. So here’s to you Jonah I’m giving you the praise for doing that. Although, I can never forgive you for smearing Pete’s name over the years… manchild never quits having a hate mode for all things web-like.
Before I forget I have to confess on coming into this game doubting how much Miles will contribute and I’m glad to report how wrong I was to think of that. There are plenty of main story and optional quests to undertake which do a sizzling job of contextualizing the kid becoming a man, and transitioning his life from high school to college all while maintaining healthy relationships with family. Despite hurdles along the way, he manages to help his mentor in becoming a reliable partner. Shows no fear in telling the truth and admits when he’s wrong to become a better person. Struggles internally with understandably traumatic episodes with unresolved emotions toward someone I shall not name. But here, we see so much relatability emerge and how the human element of Miles shines brightly among the darkness. And most of all he’s not alone, others think highly of him and support him when he needs it. Like Hailey. There is a wholesome segment regarding her which made me reminiscent of Jet Set Radio Future oddly enough. Pretty rad.
Before I move on, I must talk about the fantastic accessible settings the game features. QTE autocomplete, puzzle/explicit hints with skipping, chase assist, dodge/parry timing increased, swing/parkour mode, tricks mode, and turning off visual effects like motion blur and depth of field is an absolute godsend. I kid you not I abused these settings without an inch of shame so much so it increased my enjoyment of every aspect of the game to the nth degree. No more failing chases, no more head-scratching puzzles! There are loads of different and varied ones you can complete so it feels good to try and solve them before resorting to the skip option. Moving on, forgiving dodge/parry mechanic, auto web-slinging, and turning off unneeded visual effects help so much in making the hero’s life easier. Don’t get me started on the quick-time events. I love watching the cutscenes uninterrupted without the requirement to press a button. I get it if others like that, but for me, I prefer a smooth scene to watch, soak in the dialogue, and take a breather from intense action sequences. At least it's not Hideo Kojima long cutscenes to movie length here… Despite the fact, that I love long cutscenes heh.
As much as I love the game. I did have some mixed feelings. Not a positive or a negative, but for the sake of transparency I’ll note them below, since I think these elements could’ve been improved, cut, or redone. Let's start with the big one.
Two villains needed more screen time and development which was another case I talked about previously for the 2018 game. And while I didn’t make a review(yet) of Miles Morales I completed the game twice to get a feel of them. From what I could ascertain, the 2018, 2020, and 2023 arachnid games share similar problems with not enough focus on antagonists/s which I won’t name. Twist the knife deeper and attack one of either spider’s family/friends, more depth to the bad guys, more missions. Additional screen time and development. Etc. While MSM2 improves tremendously in doing something for past foes. An element I liked to see. Nonetheless, I was hungry for everything above on my suggestions regarding the two. However, I think the devs do a good job of fleshing out enough of the rest you’ll come across later.
MJ stealth missions are back and while I was dreading their possible resurgence, I have to admit it does improve a bit from the original formula. Thankfully not dragging out too much while giving her enough new tools to help. Their frequency of coming back to these sections is enormously lessened too. Granted I believe they could’ve forgone with some of this or implemented other changes than a back to the old rinse and repeat method. The director sure ain't caring a whole lot it looks like, which I think speaks volumes about her stealth sections. So perhaps it’ll change in a possible third entry? Though considering his words I heavily doubt it. Would love to be wrong though.
Several activities needed major improvement. Such as Spider-Bots return in certain parts of the game and as a collectible to collect which I love, but this time I'll discuss strange spider-bots in random parts of NYC to capture. I find it mega lacking since both web dudes will say a brief comment and a very short note in the collections menu. Felt this could be improved like how finding backpacks included a nugget of lore for past Spidey villains. They could’ve added a recording from where the bots originated to confuse Parker and Morales on why the information being extracted feels so unfamiliar and familiar. Nonetheless, the reward for collecting all of them is such a tease for fans. So I recommend it despite my thoughts on it. Furthermore, one optional activity is rinse and repeat following a drone. With barely any payoff in the end. Nice to know the outcome, but I think this could’ve been constructed differently to make the gameplay more engaging. Thankfully there is a button you can press in the menu to skip the activity altogether, yet this is merely a band-aid instead of a proper solution. The [redacted] nests are pretty repetitive time-limit challenges to complete by preventing enemies from destroying a device to destroy said nests. An easy alternative would’ve been to include more lore/worldbuilding here or replace it by having our heroes rescue our allies. Granted I will give credit for making it a cleanup task to do.
Finally, there is a stretch of the game I won’t pinpoint while excellent in its execution I think the section needed more time fleshing out. At least two to five plus hours more to let the events that occur settle in and explore more complicated nuances in what happens in friendships/family. This ties into the [redacted] nests from earlier along with more missions to showcase devastation, further ramifications of a character's actions, and worthwhile optional content related to it. Why not a side mission to save some close friends? Family? Heck, even JJJ. Introduce new enemies taking advantage of the city and criminal team-ups. I had heavy nostalgia despite the fact I’ve barely played any Spider-Man games. And there’s one in particular this game takes large inspiration among other things like the films.
One silver lining to all these mixed feelings I have that it doesn’t impact my overall experience too much. The full package of controlling either Spider-Men and living their private life is as gratifying as it is to see their hero life continue among troubled times. Which reminds me of one quote that the dev’s continue to hit time and time again to marvelous effect. “-nothing ever turns out 100 percent OK; he's got a lot of problems, and he does things wrong, and I can relate to that.” From a Stan Lee interview with the Chicago Tribune. We see constant internal and external forces continuing to batter our strong-willed protagonists to the point I was left on the edge of my seat at times. Saw them during their darkest moments. Leaving me filled with dread and anxiety. Yet despite these tumultuous emotions. There is careful thought, precision and passion in crafting original new material while taking great cues from classic sources we know like Raimi’s Spider-Man 3. among certain liberties with one of their IPs to excellent effect. Making MSM2 almost like a careful love letter without treading on familiar material to utilize. Embracing realistic and surprising scenarios sending my eyebrows nearly to the top of my hairline and my eyeballs close to expelling from my sockets. So you could say I was pretty impressed by how far Insomniac continues to twist the narrative to make it both compelling and impactful to newcomers/ veterans well used to spidey lore. And boy oh boy are we in for one hell of a ride with a spectacular duo. If this is how much Insomniac upgraded after several years, I can only shudder at how much a third possible entry would reach in the future.
8.5/10
Additional Material:
Why Miles is the MVP - Major spoilers to endgame, good focus on Miles parts.
Villains and %^&$ - Same warning as above, related to what I discussed early on villains doing something
Black Suit $%^* - Same warning as above - Related to my last point in mixed feelings
Discourse on Peter and Miles - Same warning as above - I’m hesitant to link this since I think its kinda controversial in the fandom, but I think its good food for thought. Regardless, I agree with OP.
Marvel Spider-Man 2 & Raimi’s Spider-Man 3 scenes compilation - Same warning as above. Related to my point on Raimi above. I love it.
MJ in Spider-Man 1 vs. Spider-Man 2- minor spoilers, but meme sums up her performance to a T.
If this Be My Destiny - Fascinating look on early Spidey and one of his most defining traits.
My spoiler thoughts throughout the game up to the post-credit scene - same warning as above
Spider-Man’s Marriage- Not related to MSM2. But this recent news is so uplifting I have to share it since we’ve been in major dark times ever since Paul was introduced in the comics. Finally, good news.
This conversation is incredibly important and details how strong May’s willpower is to face off a major villain all by her lonesome. And her nephew Peter Parker AKA Spider-Man also inherits the strong willpower to face off dangerous adversaries. And the sequel is no different giving off the same phenomenal faceoffs, secret dialogue, and payoffs. Speaking of face-offs. The Spider-Men will struggle against new foes on the hunt with a different flair from the earlier. Like noticing sand in the air… Hmm… Strange… Guess the forecast for the day is sandy, with little chance of rain. A pity. Still what remains from the foreboding skies is a bolder game from the previous installment with new developments and reaching higher wings alongside venomous tidings. And yet a question arises whenever any game receives a sequel and follow-up. Is it better? And 2020’s Marvel's Spider-Man: Miles Morales? The short answer is yes. And the long answer is a bit complicated to call this almost everything I wish for.
Before I start I have to say I’m no expert regarding how sequels do a stronger job than the predecessor. In my eyes the next entry has to meet certain criteria to call itself worthy. I won’t bore you with the exact standards because sequel principles vary for every other individual and everyone has their own values on which they can base. To put it simply and succinctly I’ll say if any of ‘X’ improves that the earlier entry didn’t. Then that should be enough. I’ll attempt to condense my thoughts as to why Marvel's Spider-Man 2(MSM2) exceeded my expectations to the point I think it is a spectacular must-play for those who enjoyed the first and follow-up game. Without any spoilers. I’ll try to vaguely reference without hinting at anything concrete. If I fail to do so, you have my permission to send me to the dark dimension. First, the story. Moving past the sinister plot in the beginning and set up with Morales in the follow-up. Two strives to enrich the player in becoming not just Spider-Man within the game, but the man behind the mask. A focus on Peter Parker's desire to become a better person while Miles struggles to become a better Spider-Man. It features new villains kraving for a final hunt, a return of a scaly foe, and one para-. Man New York City can’t catch a break huh? Gotta stay positive and not negative with the webhead's rogue gallery eh?
Gameplay is a solid step up from eating decent pizza from before. Now we're having quality dishes served for NYC’s finest without a certain J. Jonah Jameson(JJJ) harping on our heels. Same but with improved combat and traversal mechanics. The former received new abilities to utilize like spider arms reminiscent of Parker's greatest enemy. Switching between the older and wiser web dude to a Brooklyn kid. So, you can’t go wrong playing as either a mentor or a fresh dude on the block to help the innocent. Morales has youthful, vibrant enthusiasm for taking on his new role from his debut and MSM2 demonstrates a wonderful way of how he is coming to terms with helping beyond Harlem for close to a year since his debut. As you progress further you can unlock new abilities once you accrue enough experience, allocating tokens for new suits and gadgets. These help instrumentally and leave a nice way to keep the gameplay fun factor fresh and exciting. Costumes allow you to customize each protagonist's looks with favorites like Cat Bodega and Scarlet + 2099 suits with classic into and across the spider-verse outfits. Honestly, there’s plenty to unlock to suit your needs heh. Gadgets return, a tad bit simplified from the many weaponry you could utilize, but it's not a downside since you have new abilities to utilize. Both arachnids have their skill trees with a shared linked tree to take advantage of new combat moves on foolish baddies. Super cool. The latter concerning traversal introduces a new form of travel in the form of webwings. And I kid you not, I felt like I was transported back in my childhood playing Spyro once again except taking inspiration from the guiding wind mechanic from Ghost of Tsushima in the form of wind tunnels to guide and accelerate our web slingers across blocks and tall skyscrapers. The new addition is very satisfying to a degree I find myself forgoing fast traveling multiple times to woop in delight as I soar to the skies and keep my arms by my sides to keep my speed in tip-top form. Ah, magnificent. Man if Vulture or Shocker were here, I bet we could fly circles around them.
Side activities (including city-wide collectibles) are a remarkable improvement. In the past I had mixed feelings about them as a whole since there were some activities worth completing to become a taskmaster with some caveats. In the 2020 game, they for the most part improved on the side content a vast deal. Here they’ve taken a sensational upgrade, with minor blemishes I’ll discuss later. Without going into too much detail to prevent spoilers. Mysteriums, photo ops, M. memories, Flame, FNSM App, prowler, EMF experiments, cultural museum, Brooklyn visions, and hunter blinds/bases are satisfying to complete in my honest opinion. To give a brief praise why: Mysteriums offers both a visual treat and somewhat of an extension from 2019’s Far From Home film concerning a mysterious baddie. Taking on handicap challenges to defeat within each location. Photo ops return. You gain cool NYC lore from Pete’s old Daily Bugle coworker Robbie Robertson. M. Memories, offers a melancholy monologue from the man who has sand, offering the big question of why he’s here and what he was doing. Moving on, The Flame quests is a nice departure from the pleasant vibe of the city, detailing a very serious tone and atmosphere bringing a familiar companion back to spice up moments. Love the companion of which I wont to say the name, but I’ll keep it as a surprise. The development the individual undergoes with Parker is a must-see and offers a tantalizing tease of a possible DLC. Anyway, the friendly neighborhood Spider-Man app returns taking cues from 2020’s excellent side-content to help the troubled New Yorkers in the Big Apple is without a doubt spectacularly strong. They’re not the most fleshed out, not visually stunning nor are they dropping maximum compelling narratives with eyes glued to the screen nor do they offer awesome scenes with the funnest gameplay inside. Instead, what is here is simply helping your everyday citizens. And while others might see this as “meh not worth it then!” I assure you if I were to rank all the optional content. This would easily be at the top. Two requests in particular brought home an excellent display of the man behind the mask to help the people in need. Howard and the Grandpa's request demonstrate the little things of simply talking with a person in need resulting in I would say superbly profound dialogue I witnessed. I want to say so much more here and why I appreciate these two requests in particular but I’ll refrain. Suffice it to say, please complete them. The other quests from the app are also beneficial to do to a lesser extent displaying humorous & serious content.
Prowler stashes. A banger job to showcase more conversations between Miles and his uncle. Very nice re-connecting filled with bonds, love, redemption, and greater insight into the brotherhood between Miles' father and his brother. Excellent addition from the 2020 follow-up. EMF experiments, please forgive me for not saying the acronym, but again a pleasant surprise for when you learn-ingame. This features creative tasks to do in a similar vein to the research stations in the first installment. Here were charged with healing the world. Using methods to help citizens via finding alternative sources of food, preventing pollution, and providing new means to make the world a better place. Much like how Pete and Doc did with their start-up. Terrific to do featuring different tasks like blasting wasps, testing out a new bike, and more. Man, I couldn’t get enough of these. Cultural Museum surprised me considerably in enriching the player on notable African-American idols while intertwining an investigation spearheaded by none other than Miles and his mom. Finding clues as to who would try to steal priceless artifacts related to music. Nice to see them not just for culture learning, but bonding with his mom. Brooklyn Visions is a series of simple, yet creative tasks on Miles' high school to help his fellow students. Sneaky Insomniac pulling inspiration from Talos Principle puzzles, a rescue, a very heartwarming quest to help a student help facilitate a proposal for homecoming, etc. Lastly, Hunter blind/bases offer a classic clearing out hideouts, but I felt they’re more reduced in quantity and far less in numbers which is a smashing plus in my books because the previous game featured them too much imo. You also get a nice slice of lore background upon completing them. So worth it to complete. And it is cool to flex out new powers to test on foolish goons who still think once again they have a chance at defeating the spider-bros. Seriously, these guys never learn…
Speaking of learning, the devs learned quite a lot since their debut with the webslinger back then. I am over the moon to say there are plenty of interactions of the men behind the mask to show, don’t tell. And this is huge because at the core of the wall-crawler is a man who continues to struggle to manage his personal and hero life. His relationships with Mary Jane Watson and Harry Osborn, two lifelong buddies, are instrumental in giving him the push and nudges he needs to support him and vice-versa. I witnessed endearing flashbacks back in high school, I spent a well-earned break with my loveable comrades in an amusement park. Taking the time to wisely, but gently push Miles to remember his college application. And partake in an old memory with none other than JJJ. These memories are vital to Pete’s mental health and maintaining a healthy balance. It is something that was touched upon earlier, but I felt it coming more into fruition here to a high degree. This coupled with interesting gameplay sequences like finer stealth sections and not drawn out added a stronger tie to the plot while delicately embracing bonds, friendship, brotherhood, and even love. Magnificent to witness and playthrough.
Also, I can’t believe I’m saying this, but I like JJJ’s podcast. Shocker I know. I didn’t before since dude continues to be a douchebag. But the sheer amount of mental gymnastics the man has to go through to tear apart the Web menace/s is quite frankly amusing to hear. More so to listen to how he included Miles in the equation with Spider-Men. But I have to give props to him. Due to one segment in the game, which made me go “Huh I didn’t think of him that way before.” A layer was peeled off upon completing the segment and in a way brought a shaky new light to him. So here’s to you Jonah I’m giving you the praise for doing that. Although, I can never forgive you for smearing Pete’s name over the years… manchild never quits having a hate mode for all things web-like.
Before I forget I have to confess on coming into this game doubting how much Miles will contribute and I’m glad to report how wrong I was to think of that. There are plenty of main story and optional quests to undertake which do a sizzling job of contextualizing the kid becoming a man, and transitioning his life from high school to college all while maintaining healthy relationships with family. Despite hurdles along the way, he manages to help his mentor in becoming a reliable partner. Shows no fear in telling the truth and admits when he’s wrong to become a better person. Struggles internally with understandably traumatic episodes with unresolved emotions toward someone I shall not name. But here, we see so much relatability emerge and how the human element of Miles shines brightly among the darkness. And most of all he’s not alone, others think highly of him and support him when he needs it. Like Hailey. There is a wholesome segment regarding her which made me reminiscent of Jet Set Radio Future oddly enough. Pretty rad.
Before I move on, I must talk about the fantastic accessible settings the game features. QTE autocomplete, puzzle/explicit hints with skipping, chase assist, dodge/parry timing increased, swing/parkour mode, tricks mode, and turning off visual effects like motion blur and depth of field is an absolute godsend. I kid you not I abused these settings without an inch of shame so much so it increased my enjoyment of every aspect of the game to the nth degree. No more failing chases, no more head-scratching puzzles! There are loads of different and varied ones you can complete so it feels good to try and solve them before resorting to the skip option. Moving on, forgiving dodge/parry mechanic, auto web-slinging, and turning off unneeded visual effects help so much in making the hero’s life easier. Don’t get me started on the quick-time events. I love watching the cutscenes uninterrupted without the requirement to press a button. I get it if others like that, but for me, I prefer a smooth scene to watch, soak in the dialogue, and take a breather from intense action sequences. At least it's not Hideo Kojima long cutscenes to movie length here… Despite the fact, that I love long cutscenes heh.
As much as I love the game. I did have some mixed feelings. Not a positive or a negative, but for the sake of transparency I’ll note them below, since I think these elements could’ve been improved, cut, or redone. Let's start with the big one.
Two villains needed more screen time and development which was another case I talked about previously for the 2018 game. And while I didn’t make a review(yet) of Miles Morales I completed the game twice to get a feel of them. From what I could ascertain, the 2018, 2020, and 2023 arachnid games share similar problems with not enough focus on antagonists/s which I won’t name. Twist the knife deeper and attack one of either spider’s family/friends, more depth to the bad guys, more missions. Additional screen time and development. Etc. While MSM2 improves tremendously in doing something for past foes. An element I liked to see. Nonetheless, I was hungry for everything above on my suggestions regarding the two. However, I think the devs do a good job of fleshing out enough of the rest you’ll come across later.
MJ stealth missions are back and while I was dreading their possible resurgence, I have to admit it does improve a bit from the original formula. Thankfully not dragging out too much while giving her enough new tools to help. Their frequency of coming back to these sections is enormously lessened too. Granted I believe they could’ve forgone with some of this or implemented other changes than a back to the old rinse and repeat method. The director sure ain't caring a whole lot it looks like, which I think speaks volumes about her stealth sections. So perhaps it’ll change in a possible third entry? Though considering his words I heavily doubt it. Would love to be wrong though.
Several activities needed major improvement. Such as Spider-Bots return in certain parts of the game and as a collectible to collect which I love, but this time I'll discuss strange spider-bots in random parts of NYC to capture. I find it mega lacking since both web dudes will say a brief comment and a very short note in the collections menu. Felt this could be improved like how finding backpacks included a nugget of lore for past Spidey villains. They could’ve added a recording from where the bots originated to confuse Parker and Morales on why the information being extracted feels so unfamiliar and familiar. Nonetheless, the reward for collecting all of them is such a tease for fans. So I recommend it despite my thoughts on it. Furthermore, one optional activity is rinse and repeat following a drone. With barely any payoff in the end. Nice to know the outcome, but I think this could’ve been constructed differently to make the gameplay more engaging. Thankfully there is a button you can press in the menu to skip the activity altogether, yet this is merely a band-aid instead of a proper solution. The [redacted] nests are pretty repetitive time-limit challenges to complete by preventing enemies from destroying a device to destroy said nests. An easy alternative would’ve been to include more lore/worldbuilding here or replace it by having our heroes rescue our allies. Granted I will give credit for making it a cleanup task to do.
Finally, there is a stretch of the game I won’t pinpoint while excellent in its execution I think the section needed more time fleshing out. At least two to five plus hours more to let the events that occur settle in and explore more complicated nuances in what happens in friendships/family. This ties into the [redacted] nests from earlier along with more missions to showcase devastation, further ramifications of a character's actions, and worthwhile optional content related to it. Why not a side mission to save some close friends? Family? Heck, even JJJ. Introduce new enemies taking advantage of the city and criminal team-ups. I had heavy nostalgia despite the fact I’ve barely played any Spider-Man games. And there’s one in particular this game takes large inspiration among other things like the films.
One silver lining to all these mixed feelings I have that it doesn’t impact my overall experience too much. The full package of controlling either Spider-Men and living their private life is as gratifying as it is to see their hero life continue among troubled times. Which reminds me of one quote that the dev’s continue to hit time and time again to marvelous effect. “-nothing ever turns out 100 percent OK; he's got a lot of problems, and he does things wrong, and I can relate to that.” From a Stan Lee interview with the Chicago Tribune. We see constant internal and external forces continuing to batter our strong-willed protagonists to the point I was left on the edge of my seat at times. Saw them during their darkest moments. Leaving me filled with dread and anxiety. Yet despite these tumultuous emotions. There is careful thought, precision and passion in crafting original new material while taking great cues from classic sources we know like Raimi’s Spider-Man 3. among certain liberties with one of their IPs to excellent effect. Making MSM2 almost like a careful love letter without treading on familiar material to utilize. Embracing realistic and surprising scenarios sending my eyebrows nearly to the top of my hairline and my eyeballs close to expelling from my sockets. So you could say I was pretty impressed by how far Insomniac continues to twist the narrative to make it both compelling and impactful to newcomers/ veterans well used to spidey lore. And boy oh boy are we in for one hell of a ride with a spectacular duo. If this is how much Insomniac upgraded after several years, I can only shudder at how much a third possible entry would reach in the future.
8.5/10
Additional Material:
Why Miles is the MVP - Major spoilers to endgame, good focus on Miles parts.
Villains and %^&$ - Same warning as above, related to what I discussed early on villains doing something
Black Suit $%^* - Same warning as above - Related to my last point in mixed feelings
Discourse on Peter and Miles - Same warning as above - I’m hesitant to link this since I think its kinda controversial in the fandom, but I think its good food for thought. Regardless, I agree with OP.
Marvel Spider-Man 2 & Raimi’s Spider-Man 3 scenes compilation - Same warning as above. Related to my point on Raimi above. I love it.
MJ in Spider-Man 1 vs. Spider-Man 2- minor spoilers, but meme sums up her performance to a T.
If this Be My Destiny - Fascinating look on early Spidey and one of his most defining traits.
My spoiler thoughts throughout the game up to the post-credit scene - same warning as above
Spider-Man’s Marriage- Not related to MSM2. But this recent news is so uplifting I have to share it since we’ve been in major dark times ever since Paul was introduced in the comics. Finally, good news.
2023
Four years have passed since the release of Wargroove(WG1). And as someone who loves strategy games and dearly loved the first title. This was a no brainer to pick up at launch. So, I’m confused to report the newest entry ends on a weird mish-mash of good ideas and questionable decisions. First, let's start with the story. Three years have passed since the events prior. Now a new plot unfolds. With a new faction to boot! Mouse! Who has sneakily landed on the shores of the continent of Aurania. What are they here for? Cheese?! Nope! Researching forbidden technologies! But that’s not all. You have three campaigns to tackle and one final act to see how each faction’s stories will interweave with one another. Feels good to come back to one of my fondest indie’s take on Advance Wars. And there’s quite a bit to sift through.
The gameplay has been expanded much to my satisfaction. With a very beginner-friendly tutorial and handy codex with lore pages to unlock as you progress further into the narrative. Grooves are upgraded. No longer are charged to 100%. Now you can charge for 200% and release a more powerful version with new effects as well. Similar to how Advance Wars 2 upgraded their commander ability. You too can dish out more damage than before! Items have arrived, sadly we can’t have our leader equip any, however, these items provide powerful new changes to the unit composition. Armors that reduce incoming damage by fifty percent. Deal more damage if your health is above eighty percent, and move further without being impeded by terrain modifiers. There’s more I could list, but I’ll keep those as a surprise. You’ll encounter them regularly as you progress through the campaigns. New buildings, units, and faction heroes are also given fair treatment and I found their inclusion to be a breath of fresh air alongside the old cast from the first game. Not too powerful, and not too weak with enough charm, personality, and lore to sink your teeth into. Heck, You can use a Mecha and ride cats as your mount!
Mission variety is fantastic. You have sea, land, and air units to utilize. Different terrain of nearly every biome. Unique mechanics with their twists during a main objective to complete. Defend against a wave of enemies, reach the objective while trying not to fall onto chasms, defeat enemy bosses or strongholds with recruitment and sometimes no recruiting, complete battles within one turn, chess battles, go island hopping, and my new favorite change has to be simply exploring a map without fighting. Yeah kinda a weird one, but hey I love the fact we can talk to our allies in missions and open chests for lore or items. Very nice change of pace from the constant battles. Think of it similar to how Fire Emblem Engage had players conversing with their units after the battle ends. Side objectives are also overhauled. No longer are we restricted to completing missions to gain stars via turn limits and difficulty. Here, we have proper side-objectives. With a diverse amount to complete. Destroy the enemy stronghold, don’t attack the enemy commander, go to a certain place on the board, kill the ‘x’ amount of enemies using a troop critical hit, have the ‘x’ amount of units alive, and more I could list. Far better than the previous installment. Completing side activities makes the difficulty ramp up since you’re essentially handicapped to complete objectives. Yet the reward is worth it. Lore pages, unique events, and getting stars are nice incentives to reach for.
As much as I could go on and on about praising what WG2 does well compared to the previous game. I must talk about my mixed feelings. Not a positive or a negative, but for the sake of transparency I'm noting them down.
Minor bugs and glitches with how stars are gained. Occurs very rarely depending on maps with tricky side-objectives not registering. Like a mission not ending properly if you send a boss into a chasm. Thankfully, this didn’t happen regularly. I'm not sure if this issue is prevalent among other players, but I did notice a small pause when music tracks are being played. Usually, during battles we hear the background music, yet as it loops there’s a slight pause. Didn’t impact my experience in a major way, but it’s something I noticed when playing with headphones on. Speaking of which, the soundtrack is pretty forgettable. But no bad tracks are here. Wish it was more memorable and not too similar to one another. Wargroove 1(WG1) did a good job of making newcomers feel invited to a new world to explore. Here we don’t get that.
Multiplayer is buggy as heck. I tried more than five times playing with a buddy of mine for a co-op map he made and we could not progress after the 2nd turn due to desyncing, random ejecting from the game and freezes happening constantly. I’m surprised how far multiplayer has fallen since I was praising the hell out of it years ago when WG1 first arrived. So to say I'm disappointed is a major understatement.
Next, the story is lackluster. It is my biggest ‘ehhhh’ since the ending is pretty unsatisfying to hook newcomers for a WG3. I was puzzled at the shift because I had a great time going through the story in the earlier title. Turns out Chucklefish got another developer to work on the sequel called Robotality. Which may explain why it was so lacking to me. WG1 did a fantastic job of luring the player into a fantasy world filled with interesting characters, world-building, and great moments in the cutscenes between villains and protagonists. Here we get slices of greatness mixed with mediocreness. The starting campaign after the prologue in WG2. If you follow the recommended order. Has a great start while the 2nd in Felheim is such a tonal shift, I’m quite honestly flabbergasted as to why the devs ran with it. The third does a nice job fleshing out the new faction that was introduced in the co-op DLC from the earlier title, yet the last set of missions is pretty underwhelming. Overall I'd personally rank it as Floran/Pirate > Felheim > Final act. I think additional missions to let the moment-to-moment scenes settle in, change some elements in the writing to be consistent in tone and themes and intertwining missions would’ve been better. Granted there is a sufficient amount of lore and character development towards my necromancer fella. The rest receive a modicum of development here and there that is ultimately decent. I’m still kind of bitter that I couldn't use my favorite faction… sigh. However, the Mouse faction has very cool characters with personalities. Lytra for instance, is endearing and her backstory made me slightly emotional to hear.
The roguelike mode is serviceable, yet feels constrained. You traverse on a non-linear map taking missions to fight your army against enemies. Against an elite boss. Fighting in the fog of war etc. As you progress you can encounter helpful nodes to recruit, replenish, and for those daring to march to a mystery spot which can be good or bad for your army. Good for rewards like items to equip and healing. But bad if it's a trap or you see a battle onsite. Regardless, it is nice to attain rewards and gradually become stronger. Yet the lack of incentive coupled with barely any plot inside the four mini-campaigns leaves much to be desired. Despite the fact that I completed all of them on the max difficulty. There just isn’t enough meat to hold people over. I’d only recommend this mode for those who enjoy roguelikes and want to experience more of the satisfying gameplay in the main story.
Overall, short and sweet to taste, but leaves a bitter aftertaste. Took me sixteen hours to finish the story on normal difficulty and tweaking the options so I can have ten undo turns instead of one for default. Five hours to finish the roguelike mode. Thankfully, it doesn't take many hours to finish. Despite my mixed feelings, there is somewhat a good indie strategy game here for those interested solely in the campaign. And an unacceptable performance in the multiplayer for me. I am crushed to recommend this for newcomers since I still think of the series highly for giving me so many great memories in WG1. Yet the taint of the multiplayer leaves a bad taste in my mouth making it brutally difficult for me to recommend for those interested in playing with friends and others. Only play this for the campaign for strategy enthusiasts, fans of the first and especially for those interested in the genre or hungry for similar games to Advance Wars. Don’t bother with the multiplayer until the dev’s fix it.
6/10 current state with multiplayer
6.5/10 without multiplayer
The gameplay has been expanded much to my satisfaction. With a very beginner-friendly tutorial and handy codex with lore pages to unlock as you progress further into the narrative. Grooves are upgraded. No longer are charged to 100%. Now you can charge for 200% and release a more powerful version with new effects as well. Similar to how Advance Wars 2 upgraded their commander ability. You too can dish out more damage than before! Items have arrived, sadly we can’t have our leader equip any, however, these items provide powerful new changes to the unit composition. Armors that reduce incoming damage by fifty percent. Deal more damage if your health is above eighty percent, and move further without being impeded by terrain modifiers. There’s more I could list, but I’ll keep those as a surprise. You’ll encounter them regularly as you progress through the campaigns. New buildings, units, and faction heroes are also given fair treatment and I found their inclusion to be a breath of fresh air alongside the old cast from the first game. Not too powerful, and not too weak with enough charm, personality, and lore to sink your teeth into. Heck, You can use a Mecha and ride cats as your mount!
Mission variety is fantastic. You have sea, land, and air units to utilize. Different terrain of nearly every biome. Unique mechanics with their twists during a main objective to complete. Defend against a wave of enemies, reach the objective while trying not to fall onto chasms, defeat enemy bosses or strongholds with recruitment and sometimes no recruiting, complete battles within one turn, chess battles, go island hopping, and my new favorite change has to be simply exploring a map without fighting. Yeah kinda a weird one, but hey I love the fact we can talk to our allies in missions and open chests for lore or items. Very nice change of pace from the constant battles. Think of it similar to how Fire Emblem Engage had players conversing with their units after the battle ends. Side objectives are also overhauled. No longer are we restricted to completing missions to gain stars via turn limits and difficulty. Here, we have proper side-objectives. With a diverse amount to complete. Destroy the enemy stronghold, don’t attack the enemy commander, go to a certain place on the board, kill the ‘x’ amount of enemies using a troop critical hit, have the ‘x’ amount of units alive, and more I could list. Far better than the previous installment. Completing side activities makes the difficulty ramp up since you’re essentially handicapped to complete objectives. Yet the reward is worth it. Lore pages, unique events, and getting stars are nice incentives to reach for.
As much as I could go on and on about praising what WG2 does well compared to the previous game. I must talk about my mixed feelings. Not a positive or a negative, but for the sake of transparency I'm noting them down.
Minor bugs and glitches with how stars are gained. Occurs very rarely depending on maps with tricky side-objectives not registering. Like a mission not ending properly if you send a boss into a chasm. Thankfully, this didn’t happen regularly. I'm not sure if this issue is prevalent among other players, but I did notice a small pause when music tracks are being played. Usually, during battles we hear the background music, yet as it loops there’s a slight pause. Didn’t impact my experience in a major way, but it’s something I noticed when playing with headphones on. Speaking of which, the soundtrack is pretty forgettable. But no bad tracks are here. Wish it was more memorable and not too similar to one another. Wargroove 1(WG1) did a good job of making newcomers feel invited to a new world to explore. Here we don’t get that.
Multiplayer is buggy as heck. I tried more than five times playing with a buddy of mine for a co-op map he made and we could not progress after the 2nd turn due to desyncing, random ejecting from the game and freezes happening constantly. I’m surprised how far multiplayer has fallen since I was praising the hell out of it years ago when WG1 first arrived. So to say I'm disappointed is a major understatement.
Next, the story is lackluster. It is my biggest ‘ehhhh’ since the ending is pretty unsatisfying to hook newcomers for a WG3. I was puzzled at the shift because I had a great time going through the story in the earlier title. Turns out Chucklefish got another developer to work on the sequel called Robotality. Which may explain why it was so lacking to me. WG1 did a fantastic job of luring the player into a fantasy world filled with interesting characters, world-building, and great moments in the cutscenes between villains and protagonists. Here we get slices of greatness mixed with mediocreness. The starting campaign after the prologue in WG2. If you follow the recommended order. Has a great start while the 2nd in Felheim is such a tonal shift, I’m quite honestly flabbergasted as to why the devs ran with it. The third does a nice job fleshing out the new faction that was introduced in the co-op DLC from the earlier title, yet the last set of missions is pretty underwhelming. Overall I'd personally rank it as Floran/Pirate > Felheim > Final act. I think additional missions to let the moment-to-moment scenes settle in, change some elements in the writing to be consistent in tone and themes and intertwining missions would’ve been better. Granted there is a sufficient amount of lore and character development towards my necromancer fella. The rest receive a modicum of development here and there that is ultimately decent. I’m still kind of bitter that I couldn't use my favorite faction… sigh. However, the Mouse faction has very cool characters with personalities. Lytra for instance, is endearing and her backstory made me slightly emotional to hear.
The roguelike mode is serviceable, yet feels constrained. You traverse on a non-linear map taking missions to fight your army against enemies. Against an elite boss. Fighting in the fog of war etc. As you progress you can encounter helpful nodes to recruit, replenish, and for those daring to march to a mystery spot which can be good or bad for your army. Good for rewards like items to equip and healing. But bad if it's a trap or you see a battle onsite. Regardless, it is nice to attain rewards and gradually become stronger. Yet the lack of incentive coupled with barely any plot inside the four mini-campaigns leaves much to be desired. Despite the fact that I completed all of them on the max difficulty. There just isn’t enough meat to hold people over. I’d only recommend this mode for those who enjoy roguelikes and want to experience more of the satisfying gameplay in the main story.
Overall, short and sweet to taste, but leaves a bitter aftertaste. Took me sixteen hours to finish the story on normal difficulty and tweaking the options so I can have ten undo turns instead of one for default. Five hours to finish the roguelike mode. Thankfully, it doesn't take many hours to finish. Despite my mixed feelings, there is somewhat a good indie strategy game here for those interested solely in the campaign. And an unacceptable performance in the multiplayer for me. I am crushed to recommend this for newcomers since I still think of the series highly for giving me so many great memories in WG1. Yet the taint of the multiplayer leaves a bad taste in my mouth making it brutally difficult for me to recommend for those interested in playing with friends and others. Only play this for the campaign for strategy enthusiasts, fans of the first and especially for those interested in the genre or hungry for similar games to Advance Wars. Don’t bother with the multiplayer until the dev’s fix it.
6/10 current state with multiplayer
6.5/10 without multiplayer
2018
With the recent Spider-Man comics hitting an all time low due to a new character named Paul character assassinating a beloved fan-favorite and a controversial change in the PS5 remastered version and upcoming sequel. I felt it was time to try out Marvel’s Spider-Man by Insomniac. Been more than two decades of not playing any spidey games. The only ones I played back then were the Playstation One games. After twenty-six hours doing everything possible I must say. It is so amazing coming back to Insomniac's take on the Wall-crawler. Filled with enough uniqueness to feel fresh from the comics, TV shows and movies they garnered. First, let’s start with the good stuff.
Story actually surprised me a great deal. I expected an underwhelming one and instead received an almost spectacular and sinister plot. Keeping me interested as scenes pass by wondering what else is in store for our human arachnid. You play as none other than twenty-three year old Peter Benjamin Parker. A dude who still struggles to properly balance his workload as a lab assistant to Dr. Otto and stopping the next villain attack when the police can’t do it as his alter ego Spider-man, and helping the little guys of course. Still keeping his identity a secret to mostly everyone while spending time as a hero for the past eight years. All of this he has to juggle while internally dealing with the aftermath of breaking up with Mary Jane Watson. Close confidant, best-friend and at one time his girlfriend. Who is employed as a reporter for the Daily Bugle. Life ain't easy for the spider-menace! As one J. Jonah Jameson(JJJ) puts it. But the New Yorkers in the big apple appreciate his help, even if he’s battling a big corporate guy named Wilson Fisk with a contact in the police department named Yuri Watanabe. And oh boy do I get mixed up between the two since Yuri Lowenthal voices Peter Parker heh. You’ll see Pete struggling with his professional duties while dealing with the new villains popping up after Fisk is gone. It’s an engrossing tale I couldn’t stop playing to know what happens in the next scene. Where good o’l Parker luck strikes again leaving our webslinger hanging by the tightest of threads against past adversaries you can’t miss out on.
Gameplay is as satisfying as eating a pepperoni pizza from Eddie’s. Very tasteful. Although, best not to do Spidey tasks on a full stomach whilst swinging across the tall skyscrapers. I’ve never felt better swinging from street to street seeing iconic places like Hell’s Kitchen, Bar with no name, Avengers tower, Brooklyn bridge, Central Park and so many more. My nostalgia is getting to me from visiting the places back then in real life. Excusing the fictional areas. I had a lot of fun swinging and pushing myself to the limit in going faster, zipping across city buildings to reach my destination. So much so, I barely used fast traveling at all! And the amount of customization. Oh by the One Above all, it is freaking awesome! There’s a bunch of suits you can gain from the story and free updates the game has. A list of my favorites include: Scarlet, Raimi, Wrestler, classic, armor MK III, 2099 black, vintage comic book, last stand, spirit and cyborg. Other’s are good too, but these I spent the most of my time in. Interestingly some story suits/side activities you complete have suit powers. Think of these as ultimate abilities. Activating once you reach enough charge. You can web enemies quickly, charge focus(another bar to defeat enemies quickly and regain health), use iron tentacles, have a shield, gain massive strength, emit fire, summon holo decoys and even use an ability to quip enemies! Insulting their pride! Hah! These are not set in stone in various costumes to wear. You can assign whichever power suits your needs. Pun intended. Aside from these ultimate abilities you can also equip three passive skills. Like detecting enemies farther away using your radar. Earning more experience points from clashing with mobs, gaining more focus, not losing combo meter and I could say extra, but I’ll refrain. Sure I had to unlock them via tokens which are earned by side-activities you can do, but hey they’re pretty wicked! Speaking of experience. You can earn it by partaking in any activity, beating up goons, completing the optional content, continuing the main story etc. There is no shortage of points to earn, level up and gain skill points to spend on three skill trees. Adding new moves, passive abilities, and heck new traversal moves too. Seriously fella has a lot of tricks up his sleeve and experience under his belt. I bet he could teach new blood on the street how to be the next Web Menace! Oh boy better not to give JJJ any more fire.
Gadgets are also a nifty way to give players an edge in combat. Sticky bombs, electric bombs, gravity suspension bombs, drones etc. All help our webslinger have an ace up his sleeve and these can be replenished freely by eliminating foes. No need to constantly equip them. You have them all at your disposal during fights. Just make sure to unlock them first and upgrade them further if you constantly use them. Helps a bunch in beating countless mobs thinking they have a chance at defeating me? Honestly, after punching thug #65 to kingdom come these guys never quit huh.
Side activities I'm a bit mixed on, but I'll praise the ones worth doing. And discuss the downsides of some of them later on. First collecting backpacks throughout your playthrough is fabulous. The webhead will reminisce about the item in question upon finding backpacks of his youth. From Sandman in a vial, Lizard, Mysterio, Vulture, Shocker and even a very stinky gym t-shirt he forgot years to collect… God the smell. Suffice it to say all of these items are worth collecting, they inform the player on our protagonist's recent history and what he was doing at the time. Next, Research stations. A project conducted by Pete’s best friend Harry Osborn is a nice change of pace from protecting the citizens through science! Huh?! How?! Well, Harry’s stations all have different objectives to do. Usually related to pollution. Benjy gathers samples from contaminated air molecules, reducing pressure on pipes, finding bacteria samples, vaccinating fish etc. All these large scale labors are a disaster waiting to happen for the future ignorant citizens and my endeavors to prevent these future problems early on. Black Cat stakeouts have you finding a black cat plushie on rooftops as Felicia(who dated The P-man) gives off flirtatious “can you catch me spider” vibes. An alluring prospect to know some hidden details from Benjamin’s past during his tenure as his alter ego. Can you imagine how he would’ve reacted to meeting Felicia back when he was fifteen years old?! Bet the kid was stuttering like no tomorrow heh. Optional missions unlock as you progress through the story and most of them are worth completing. To aid citizens who ask our friendly neighborhood spider-man for assistance. One has a random upstanding citizen impersonating his hero persona to conduct helpful deeds to people in need. Another has you storming the castle, cooperating with a college fellow pinpoint missing people. There’s sixteen in total. Some of which chain together in multiple quest chains. Feels good helping out the little guy ya know? Taskmaster challenges provide an interesting challenge for those hoping to test an arachnid’s skills. Villain of the aforementioned name gives you a set of varied objectives ranging from combat, stealth, bomb, and drone. All of which you, my unlucky orphan, must try and solve each of them within a set amount of time. Do so, and you’re in for one hell of a surprise during your quest to finish them all. Really enjoyed these set of tasks mhhm.
Before I go into my final thoughts I have to talk about my mixed feelings. Not a positive or a negative, but for the sake of transparency I'll note them down below.
Conceptually I'm fine with the idea of the MJ stealth sections, but the execution seems lacking. Since it repeats a handful of times. With the same repetitive formula of evading enemies and moving forward with some changes here and there. Like more stealth variety than having to play spy. Like going in vents, investigating clues by interviewing people, assisting Peter like misdirecting a crowd so he can evade them and find a hidden spot to change into his alter-ego safely, asking questions a reporter does, she does some investigating regarding particular topics of interest near her, but I believe this was lacking. Needs lively substance not only in writing and in the gameplay design. As a character I think the writers made her out decently well. Although I would’ve liked her presence displayed beyond phone calls to Pete and vice-versa. Outside of some cutscenes Peter shares with her, MJ’s presence isn’t given enough attention to make me say she’s fantastic. Only decently above average performance in her sections of the game. Not horrible or bad, but in the good category. She’s there when he struggles and helps him out the most when he needs it. Personally I think some more scenes with her beyond stealth like healing Peter, going on dates, flashbacks of their past, aiding May. Him supporting her. All of these instances could’ve elevated her further and by extension the protagonist. And as a result make her sections more fleshed out, instead of repeating again for yet another spy section.
Repetitive open world structure akin to Ubisoft tasks. Insomniac’s other side-activities I felt were lacking and made me weary. Clearing out districts, hideouts, warehouses and outposts. They do not offer much to extend worldbuilding and lore. Take for example: More than a dozen hideouts to clear out. With six waves of enemies coming at me. As if an army has a chance of defeating me. Lacking banter from the fighting wall-crawler or many phone calls to update him on life outside of being a protector and sure. It is turbulent with barely any balance between managing his personal, job and hero duties. But I would’ve appreciated a different quest. Give me quests in F.E.A.S.T. to help Aunt May around. While sprinkling internal monologues like how collecting backpacks were done. Indirectly help Miles while he’s at school. Imagine Miles Morales slowly becoming a real friend to the person behind the mask by helping him with needing supplies, fending off some thugs by distracting or rallying his classmates to cheer him on. Slam a wrench in the combat systems by making all his gadgets inoperable or disabling his suit powers. Transforming him to become our marvel Jason Bourne/Jackie Chan/John Wick dude in a pinch using items around the environment to wack enemies. Yes he can use throwable items, but the man can’t wield any of them preferring to knock, punch and kick enemies to KO status.
Tired of beating thugs in waves? Then go on patrol and eliminate forty-plus each of thugs, demons, [redacted] & Sa%^* crimes spread throughout each district. I had to finish more than 120 of those to clear out the streets. And this was initially a nice way for patrol and having something to do when someone calls me or I listen to a JJJ podcast, yet these seem like padding. I did complete them all certainly, but comparable to my time in Ghost of Tsushima where clearing out camps and mongols felt like a tedious activity while not rewarding me the player enough with enough incentive to complete. Like better rewards, extend the worldbuilding, lore. Drop a minor villain here and there. Drop tombstone, chameleon, spot, hydro-man etc. encounters. Even worse to think about are these crimes will only pop-up if you swing a certain distance. They’re not displayed on the map at all times. You have to idly swing waiting for crimes to happen. Honestly, give me a notification from an app to let me know about crimes happening. This could be an easy fix by reducing the filler and adding plenty more unique encounters. Make me believe New York is threatened by these villains than some schmuck or goon being told to fight the resident superguy who webs enemies up on buildings. Come on man. What am I some dude with nothing better to do than fight petty burglaries with a ridiculous spider costume? Oh wait…
Might be a controversial take, but I think the relationship Peter has with Doc, while excellent throughout, perhaps avenues were feasible in regards to their segments. Implementing organic gameplay tasks than constant spectrograph and line mini-puzzles to do. Why can’t I complete some projects using artisal science? Combine their talents together with him building parts using different puzzles than resorting to the same ones again. These become egregious as I progressed further in the main story and optional content requiring Parker to once again complete these mini-games repeatedly. Sure there is an option in the settings to excuse them, a feature I never expected but came to rely on during the endgame. Yet this doesn’t alleviate the problem altogether, rather it is more of a band-aid than a proper solution. I think more unique segments had potential to bear fruit. Its why I credit Atomic Heart a lot by providing variety in the same category to keep the gameplay fresh and exciting. Not re-using the same formula again for the sake of consistency. If anything I’m more astonished that goons resort to similar practices to conduct their nefarious deeds. And while there are several outside the norm. These ultimately were outliers. I also think some more flashbacks between the two instead of me seeking dialogue points as I perused the lab for points of interest regarding their friendship/professional relationship. Bringing a more emotional weight than ever before. Adding more show, don’t tell.
Last critique I think some more time to develop villains/characters would’ve been better. We get to know plenty of a certain N$%&*%^(E Man which has interesting developments as we progress further into the game, yet others are left to the side-street in favor of giving other villains more screen time. I get it, I really do. To focus on these important characters than other adversaries lending more focus, yet I feel this could’ve been tweaked to give us more scenes perhaps to humanize them. Granted I haven’t delved deep into the comics to know their full interactions to go beyond one note villains into the complex categories, but still an attempt is possible to make them more of a threat and memorable than being used as tools then discarded. May, Miles, Harry, MJ by extension needed a bit more time in the oven to cook. Sure they have scenes in the game, but some of them perhaps needed supplementary scenes to push their characterization further.
Before I finish, I have to talk about the DLC’s. A solid return to the main game after seeing the mid-credits and post credit scene. Called the City That Never Sleeps. Taking place after the main story is done. Three episodes. For players hungry for more web-slinging and web-menacing action. The first, The Heist deals with a Black Cat’s troubles which your resident friendly neighborhood arachnid will have no choice but to assist, the second Turf Wars, occurs after the events of the Heist. Providing a decent filler, backed by the nice development of Yuri Watanabe. And third the final dlc begins Silver Lining stars none other than Silver Sable returning, giving trouble to our main character once again. Yet good guy Spidey is up for the challenge. Each DLC occurs chronologically. So best to go in release order or else you will be confused. By the end, I believe the post game content is a good conclusion to tie everything together before we depart into Spider-Man: Miles Morales. The episodes provide new enemy types, side-content and slightly new gameplay segments for fans after the ending. Worth completing to see what Peter after the base game. Seeing him assume another role and reinvigorating his friendship with one friend are a must see after learning his relationship with one female friend. The phone calls he has with a certain student provide wonderful if not humorous conversations to witness. And the side-quests, well most of them excusing Screwball because she’s pretty cringe. Have interesting lore/worldbuilding to eat up. Man my stomach was so full devouring the paintings in episode one, and the Symkaria hideouts, mystery crime investigations in episode three.
Moving on, If there are some last notable things to say before I head out. I would say Peter’s relationship with Doc. is a breathtaking fresh take on his character and their relationship with one another. I've seen other iterations in films and tv shows and I’m quite frankly shocked by how well Insomniac incorporates theirs. I enjoyed coming back to the lab and cooperating with his employer, took my sweet time scouring new points of interest to hear and have Pete reminisce on the fond memories he shared with him to create a better world. To help those in need and despite many hurdles and setbacks. The outcome of their efforts is so beautiful. It is such a joy and pleasure to witness the super bond they share. Sure it could be improved like I said earlier, but the base foundation the dev’s have created is nothing short of extraordinary. I am greatly looking forward to the potential of what’s to come. And if he does return. Oh man we're in for one hell of a superior storyline.
Sure I did experience some mixed feelings, yet this doesn’t detract much from the sheer strengths the game envisions and strides for. I am impressed by how engrossed I was by the storyline, how satisfying it was to sling and slap, kick, punch my enemies to victory. Even quipping and insulting a core part of Parker to whittle enemies pride, taunting them is a core tactic I’ll never get tired of seeing again and again. Hell JJJ’s podcast once again putting the web- warrior down, I actually can’t help but admire the sheer guts to do so. Curbing public perception against the masked menace sure takes dedication to keep going for over eight years huh Jonah. Never gets tiring hearing some trashy entertainment while defeating countless thugs. Kinda like listening to a podcast at work ya know. Except our webspinner is listening to JJJ while multitasking eh. “Dude is a masochist” - As one Brooklyn kid says.
Overall, I think I can safely say Marvel’s Spider-Man have done the impossible by reinvigorating my superhero inner childhood I’ve sorely missed ever since the Raimi trilogy ended, ever since the Webb (I just realized we had a director with Web in his name. Nice.) films were gutted and only until the Watts and Spider-verse have kept my love for the genre going instead of resorting back to cynicism as I grew older. It is heartening witnessing such an endearing videogame calling back to what I love since my childhood. The insecurity our Webhead undergoes, the sheer struggle in managing a proper life from his alter-ego, work and personal intertwining and intersecting at times when he least expects it, the sheer weight of responsibility and power he beholds to share with others in need is both incredibly admiring and awe-inspiring. Again and again he continues to become the Hero everyone needs yet does not seek the glamor or reward. He simply does. And this entry only solidifies his excellent qualities while taking adequate time to showcase he too is flawed just as the rest of us. Making him instantly relatable and personable to nearly everyone. The Amazing Spider-Man continues to be my favorite superhero of all time and while this entry is a spectacular return to form embodying all his greatest triumphs, a careful balance emerges to display his greatest hardships too. And these two in tandem create one hell of hook to watch out for in future installments. I can only expect we will dive into marvelous troubles and epic adventures. To any Spidey fan out there, this is a title that cannot be missed. And for any newcomer, I envy you greatly with one of the best stories I’ve ever seen in Spider-Man media.
8/10
Additional Material:
Marvel Spider-Man Ending thoughts - Spoiler thoughts + DLC included.
Story actually surprised me a great deal. I expected an underwhelming one and instead received an almost spectacular and sinister plot. Keeping me interested as scenes pass by wondering what else is in store for our human arachnid. You play as none other than twenty-three year old Peter Benjamin Parker. A dude who still struggles to properly balance his workload as a lab assistant to Dr. Otto and stopping the next villain attack when the police can’t do it as his alter ego Spider-man, and helping the little guys of course. Still keeping his identity a secret to mostly everyone while spending time as a hero for the past eight years. All of this he has to juggle while internally dealing with the aftermath of breaking up with Mary Jane Watson. Close confidant, best-friend and at one time his girlfriend. Who is employed as a reporter for the Daily Bugle. Life ain't easy for the spider-menace! As one J. Jonah Jameson(JJJ) puts it. But the New Yorkers in the big apple appreciate his help, even if he’s battling a big corporate guy named Wilson Fisk with a contact in the police department named Yuri Watanabe. And oh boy do I get mixed up between the two since Yuri Lowenthal voices Peter Parker heh. You’ll see Pete struggling with his professional duties while dealing with the new villains popping up after Fisk is gone. It’s an engrossing tale I couldn’t stop playing to know what happens in the next scene. Where good o’l Parker luck strikes again leaving our webslinger hanging by the tightest of threads against past adversaries you can’t miss out on.
Gameplay is as satisfying as eating a pepperoni pizza from Eddie’s. Very tasteful. Although, best not to do Spidey tasks on a full stomach whilst swinging across the tall skyscrapers. I’ve never felt better swinging from street to street seeing iconic places like Hell’s Kitchen, Bar with no name, Avengers tower, Brooklyn bridge, Central Park and so many more. My nostalgia is getting to me from visiting the places back then in real life. Excusing the fictional areas. I had a lot of fun swinging and pushing myself to the limit in going faster, zipping across city buildings to reach my destination. So much so, I barely used fast traveling at all! And the amount of customization. Oh by the One Above all, it is freaking awesome! There’s a bunch of suits you can gain from the story and free updates the game has. A list of my favorites include: Scarlet, Raimi, Wrestler, classic, armor MK III, 2099 black, vintage comic book, last stand, spirit and cyborg. Other’s are good too, but these I spent the most of my time in. Interestingly some story suits/side activities you complete have suit powers. Think of these as ultimate abilities. Activating once you reach enough charge. You can web enemies quickly, charge focus(another bar to defeat enemies quickly and regain health), use iron tentacles, have a shield, gain massive strength, emit fire, summon holo decoys and even use an ability to quip enemies! Insulting their pride! Hah! These are not set in stone in various costumes to wear. You can assign whichever power suits your needs. Pun intended. Aside from these ultimate abilities you can also equip three passive skills. Like detecting enemies farther away using your radar. Earning more experience points from clashing with mobs, gaining more focus, not losing combo meter and I could say extra, but I’ll refrain. Sure I had to unlock them via tokens which are earned by side-activities you can do, but hey they’re pretty wicked! Speaking of experience. You can earn it by partaking in any activity, beating up goons, completing the optional content, continuing the main story etc. There is no shortage of points to earn, level up and gain skill points to spend on three skill trees. Adding new moves, passive abilities, and heck new traversal moves too. Seriously fella has a lot of tricks up his sleeve and experience under his belt. I bet he could teach new blood on the street how to be the next Web Menace! Oh boy better not to give JJJ any more fire.
Gadgets are also a nifty way to give players an edge in combat. Sticky bombs, electric bombs, gravity suspension bombs, drones etc. All help our webslinger have an ace up his sleeve and these can be replenished freely by eliminating foes. No need to constantly equip them. You have them all at your disposal during fights. Just make sure to unlock them first and upgrade them further if you constantly use them. Helps a bunch in beating countless mobs thinking they have a chance at defeating me? Honestly, after punching thug #65 to kingdom come these guys never quit huh.
Side activities I'm a bit mixed on, but I'll praise the ones worth doing. And discuss the downsides of some of them later on. First collecting backpacks throughout your playthrough is fabulous. The webhead will reminisce about the item in question upon finding backpacks of his youth. From Sandman in a vial, Lizard, Mysterio, Vulture, Shocker and even a very stinky gym t-shirt he forgot years to collect… God the smell. Suffice it to say all of these items are worth collecting, they inform the player on our protagonist's recent history and what he was doing at the time. Next, Research stations. A project conducted by Pete’s best friend Harry Osborn is a nice change of pace from protecting the citizens through science! Huh?! How?! Well, Harry’s stations all have different objectives to do. Usually related to pollution. Benjy gathers samples from contaminated air molecules, reducing pressure on pipes, finding bacteria samples, vaccinating fish etc. All these large scale labors are a disaster waiting to happen for the future ignorant citizens and my endeavors to prevent these future problems early on. Black Cat stakeouts have you finding a black cat plushie on rooftops as Felicia(who dated The P-man) gives off flirtatious “can you catch me spider” vibes. An alluring prospect to know some hidden details from Benjamin’s past during his tenure as his alter ego. Can you imagine how he would’ve reacted to meeting Felicia back when he was fifteen years old?! Bet the kid was stuttering like no tomorrow heh. Optional missions unlock as you progress through the story and most of them are worth completing. To aid citizens who ask our friendly neighborhood spider-man for assistance. One has a random upstanding citizen impersonating his hero persona to conduct helpful deeds to people in need. Another has you storming the castle, cooperating with a college fellow pinpoint missing people. There’s sixteen in total. Some of which chain together in multiple quest chains. Feels good helping out the little guy ya know? Taskmaster challenges provide an interesting challenge for those hoping to test an arachnid’s skills. Villain of the aforementioned name gives you a set of varied objectives ranging from combat, stealth, bomb, and drone. All of which you, my unlucky orphan, must try and solve each of them within a set amount of time. Do so, and you’re in for one hell of a surprise during your quest to finish them all. Really enjoyed these set of tasks mhhm.
Before I go into my final thoughts I have to talk about my mixed feelings. Not a positive or a negative, but for the sake of transparency I'll note them down below.
Conceptually I'm fine with the idea of the MJ stealth sections, but the execution seems lacking. Since it repeats a handful of times. With the same repetitive formula of evading enemies and moving forward with some changes here and there. Like more stealth variety than having to play spy. Like going in vents, investigating clues by interviewing people, assisting Peter like misdirecting a crowd so he can evade them and find a hidden spot to change into his alter-ego safely, asking questions a reporter does, she does some investigating regarding particular topics of interest near her, but I believe this was lacking. Needs lively substance not only in writing and in the gameplay design. As a character I think the writers made her out decently well. Although I would’ve liked her presence displayed beyond phone calls to Pete and vice-versa. Outside of some cutscenes Peter shares with her, MJ’s presence isn’t given enough attention to make me say she’s fantastic. Only decently above average performance in her sections of the game. Not horrible or bad, but in the good category. She’s there when he struggles and helps him out the most when he needs it. Personally I think some more scenes with her beyond stealth like healing Peter, going on dates, flashbacks of their past, aiding May. Him supporting her. All of these instances could’ve elevated her further and by extension the protagonist. And as a result make her sections more fleshed out, instead of repeating again for yet another spy section.
Repetitive open world structure akin to Ubisoft tasks. Insomniac’s other side-activities I felt were lacking and made me weary. Clearing out districts, hideouts, warehouses and outposts. They do not offer much to extend worldbuilding and lore. Take for example: More than a dozen hideouts to clear out. With six waves of enemies coming at me. As if an army has a chance of defeating me. Lacking banter from the fighting wall-crawler or many phone calls to update him on life outside of being a protector and sure. It is turbulent with barely any balance between managing his personal, job and hero duties. But I would’ve appreciated a different quest. Give me quests in F.E.A.S.T. to help Aunt May around. While sprinkling internal monologues like how collecting backpacks were done. Indirectly help Miles while he’s at school. Imagine Miles Morales slowly becoming a real friend to the person behind the mask by helping him with needing supplies, fending off some thugs by distracting or rallying his classmates to cheer him on. Slam a wrench in the combat systems by making all his gadgets inoperable or disabling his suit powers. Transforming him to become our marvel Jason Bourne/Jackie Chan/John Wick dude in a pinch using items around the environment to wack enemies. Yes he can use throwable items, but the man can’t wield any of them preferring to knock, punch and kick enemies to KO status.
Tired of beating thugs in waves? Then go on patrol and eliminate forty-plus each of thugs, demons, [redacted] & Sa%^* crimes spread throughout each district. I had to finish more than 120 of those to clear out the streets. And this was initially a nice way for patrol and having something to do when someone calls me or I listen to a JJJ podcast, yet these seem like padding. I did complete them all certainly, but comparable to my time in Ghost of Tsushima where clearing out camps and mongols felt like a tedious activity while not rewarding me the player enough with enough incentive to complete. Like better rewards, extend the worldbuilding, lore. Drop a minor villain here and there. Drop tombstone, chameleon, spot, hydro-man etc. encounters. Even worse to think about are these crimes will only pop-up if you swing a certain distance. They’re not displayed on the map at all times. You have to idly swing waiting for crimes to happen. Honestly, give me a notification from an app to let me know about crimes happening. This could be an easy fix by reducing the filler and adding plenty more unique encounters. Make me believe New York is threatened by these villains than some schmuck or goon being told to fight the resident superguy who webs enemies up on buildings. Come on man. What am I some dude with nothing better to do than fight petty burglaries with a ridiculous spider costume? Oh wait…
Might be a controversial take, but I think the relationship Peter has with Doc, while excellent throughout, perhaps avenues were feasible in regards to their segments. Implementing organic gameplay tasks than constant spectrograph and line mini-puzzles to do. Why can’t I complete some projects using artisal science? Combine their talents together with him building parts using different puzzles than resorting to the same ones again. These become egregious as I progressed further in the main story and optional content requiring Parker to once again complete these mini-games repeatedly. Sure there is an option in the settings to excuse them, a feature I never expected but came to rely on during the endgame. Yet this doesn’t alleviate the problem altogether, rather it is more of a band-aid than a proper solution. I think more unique segments had potential to bear fruit. Its why I credit Atomic Heart a lot by providing variety in the same category to keep the gameplay fresh and exciting. Not re-using the same formula again for the sake of consistency. If anything I’m more astonished that goons resort to similar practices to conduct their nefarious deeds. And while there are several outside the norm. These ultimately were outliers. I also think some more flashbacks between the two instead of me seeking dialogue points as I perused the lab for points of interest regarding their friendship/professional relationship. Bringing a more emotional weight than ever before. Adding more show, don’t tell.
Last critique I think some more time to develop villains/characters would’ve been better. We get to know plenty of a certain N$%&*%^(E Man which has interesting developments as we progress further into the game, yet others are left to the side-street in favor of giving other villains more screen time. I get it, I really do. To focus on these important characters than other adversaries lending more focus, yet I feel this could’ve been tweaked to give us more scenes perhaps to humanize them. Granted I haven’t delved deep into the comics to know their full interactions to go beyond one note villains into the complex categories, but still an attempt is possible to make them more of a threat and memorable than being used as tools then discarded. May, Miles, Harry, MJ by extension needed a bit more time in the oven to cook. Sure they have scenes in the game, but some of them perhaps needed supplementary scenes to push their characterization further.
Before I finish, I have to talk about the DLC’s. A solid return to the main game after seeing the mid-credits and post credit scene. Called the City That Never Sleeps. Taking place after the main story is done. Three episodes. For players hungry for more web-slinging and web-menacing action. The first, The Heist deals with a Black Cat’s troubles which your resident friendly neighborhood arachnid will have no choice but to assist, the second Turf Wars, occurs after the events of the Heist. Providing a decent filler, backed by the nice development of Yuri Watanabe. And third the final dlc begins Silver Lining stars none other than Silver Sable returning, giving trouble to our main character once again. Yet good guy Spidey is up for the challenge. Each DLC occurs chronologically. So best to go in release order or else you will be confused. By the end, I believe the post game content is a good conclusion to tie everything together before we depart into Spider-Man: Miles Morales. The episodes provide new enemy types, side-content and slightly new gameplay segments for fans after the ending. Worth completing to see what Peter after the base game. Seeing him assume another role and reinvigorating his friendship with one friend are a must see after learning his relationship with one female friend. The phone calls he has with a certain student provide wonderful if not humorous conversations to witness. And the side-quests, well most of them excusing Screwball because she’s pretty cringe. Have interesting lore/worldbuilding to eat up. Man my stomach was so full devouring the paintings in episode one, and the Symkaria hideouts, mystery crime investigations in episode three.
Moving on, If there are some last notable things to say before I head out. I would say Peter’s relationship with Doc. is a breathtaking fresh take on his character and their relationship with one another. I've seen other iterations in films and tv shows and I’m quite frankly shocked by how well Insomniac incorporates theirs. I enjoyed coming back to the lab and cooperating with his employer, took my sweet time scouring new points of interest to hear and have Pete reminisce on the fond memories he shared with him to create a better world. To help those in need and despite many hurdles and setbacks. The outcome of their efforts is so beautiful. It is such a joy and pleasure to witness the super bond they share. Sure it could be improved like I said earlier, but the base foundation the dev’s have created is nothing short of extraordinary. I am greatly looking forward to the potential of what’s to come. And if he does return. Oh man we're in for one hell of a superior storyline.
Sure I did experience some mixed feelings, yet this doesn’t detract much from the sheer strengths the game envisions and strides for. I am impressed by how engrossed I was by the storyline, how satisfying it was to sling and slap, kick, punch my enemies to victory. Even quipping and insulting a core part of Parker to whittle enemies pride, taunting them is a core tactic I’ll never get tired of seeing again and again. Hell JJJ’s podcast once again putting the web- warrior down, I actually can’t help but admire the sheer guts to do so. Curbing public perception against the masked menace sure takes dedication to keep going for over eight years huh Jonah. Never gets tiring hearing some trashy entertainment while defeating countless thugs. Kinda like listening to a podcast at work ya know. Except our webspinner is listening to JJJ while multitasking eh. “Dude is a masochist” - As one Brooklyn kid says.
Overall, I think I can safely say Marvel’s Spider-Man have done the impossible by reinvigorating my superhero inner childhood I’ve sorely missed ever since the Raimi trilogy ended, ever since the Webb (I just realized we had a director with Web in his name. Nice.) films were gutted and only until the Watts and Spider-verse have kept my love for the genre going instead of resorting back to cynicism as I grew older. It is heartening witnessing such an endearing videogame calling back to what I love since my childhood. The insecurity our Webhead undergoes, the sheer struggle in managing a proper life from his alter-ego, work and personal intertwining and intersecting at times when he least expects it, the sheer weight of responsibility and power he beholds to share with others in need is both incredibly admiring and awe-inspiring. Again and again he continues to become the Hero everyone needs yet does not seek the glamor or reward. He simply does. And this entry only solidifies his excellent qualities while taking adequate time to showcase he too is flawed just as the rest of us. Making him instantly relatable and personable to nearly everyone. The Amazing Spider-Man continues to be my favorite superhero of all time and while this entry is a spectacular return to form embodying all his greatest triumphs, a careful balance emerges to display his greatest hardships too. And these two in tandem create one hell of hook to watch out for in future installments. I can only expect we will dive into marvelous troubles and epic adventures. To any Spidey fan out there, this is a title that cannot be missed. And for any newcomer, I envy you greatly with one of the best stories I’ve ever seen in Spider-Man media.
8/10
Additional Material:
Marvel Spider-Man Ending thoughts - Spoiler thoughts + DLC included.
“It’s often written about how Final Fantasy VII changed the fate of Japanese RPGs upon its release in 1997. Much less is written about how, one year later, Baldur’s Gate revitalized the CRPG genre. After the genre tapered off during the mid-90s, losing its appeal to “Doom clones”, RTS games, and the rising popularity of consoles, some CRPG developers were left wondering if they had coded themselves into a corner. Baldur’s Gate, though, managed to bring them back to the spotlight, selling two million copies worldwide and forever elevating the recently founded BioWare into a household name for CRPGs. It’s not that it was the only CRPG around. The revered Fallout series began a year before, to similar critical acclaim – but only a tiny fraction of the sales.” - Felipe Pepe, The CRPG Book: A Guide to Computer Role-Playing Games
As someone who didn’t grow up with Fallout or Baldur’s Gate. Two franchises continued to surprise me to no end during my ventures playing their older catalog over recent years. Fallout 2, being the last old CRPG I beat, I figured it was high time to see how much BG1 holds up, so I can familiarize myself with the universe before eventually starting BG3 down the road. First, I must confess to completing both the base game and Siege of Dragonspear with mods. I say this earlier on to not confuse my experience of a modded playthrough against a non-mod experience. As a consequence, I’ve gone the extra mile to play my switch copy to see how vanilla is to compare the two. Not to completion, but enough to grant me a fair grasp. I’ll discuss this in detail later, but I figure a warning would suffice early on to prevent any misconceptions between vanilla and modded content. I’ll talk about mods later and if I don’t discuss it, please assume I’m discussing vanilla.
Orphaned at a young age. Unknowing of their parentage. Adopted by the kindness of a stranger. Grew up sharing a loving childhood along a playful lass. Taught discipline and care by your father. Lived safely in the confines of the library fortress of Candlekeep for many years. What more could they want? Well… Such halcyon days must come to an end when suddenly you’re attacked by mysterious assassins! Questioning them leads to no answers. So we ask our stepfather later on for any information, However, he evades your queries in favor of leaving the bastion of respite and comfort you’ve known for twenty years. In search of finding answers to these unprovoked attacks in the Sword Coast of the Forgotten Realms. A campaign setting inside Dungeon and Dragons.
I adore the slow story approach to gently albeit dangerously letting the player go off to the coast and encounter whatever lurks behind the shadows, paved roads, and unbeaten paths. The unrestricted freedom is a major plus and to my delight, I found worthwhile discoveries across my travels alongside my horrible luck being attacked by foolish bandits or powerful creatures. Early on, I was scared yet excited. I came across another kind soul offering tips and directions. Yet unknowingly I wonder if such a person may have a hidden motive to backstab me. Anxiety, dread, and vigilance were my constant internal ruminations once I saw unfamiliar creatures patrolling. Even neutral bears are no exception. Capable of dealing massive damage to my comrades should I provoke one half-heartedly. Beyond the regular horrors of animals and insects, I was able to fight different manners of goblins, ogres, variants of ghouls, ghosts, etc. No shortage of interesting enemies to fight. And my axe cleaved through them viscerally. A dangerous yet fine balance emerges. Granting parties a fighting chance, and safety and instilling a sense of vigilance. I could’ve bumped the difficulty lower time, but I kept the normal difficulty throughout to give me a sense of challenge and excitement. I deeply appreciate the open freedom whilst encountering dangers and opportunities wherever I tread, reminding me heavily of roaming the Wastelands in Fallout 1 and 2.
Enjoyable isometric RPG gameplay. Dialogue choices do a good job of giving you a variety of options to be witty, sarcastic, no-nonsense, blunt, dismissive, etc. In effect, they augment conversations. A visit to the tavern to buy alcohol teases points of interest to travel and investigate. Conversing with the common folk results in similar outcomes. Innocent conversations may lead to potential side quests and multichain ones providing increased incentive to witness the outcome of an ailing NPC. Forget the conversations? Simply scrolling up on the text box reveals past lines said. A handy journal is equipped too which is interesting and provides the player character(PC) monologues of his/her/their internal thoughts about the quest or information sought. Therefore, depth to the world of Forgotten Realms is an alluring prospect. A search function is included too! I habitually checked my journal constantly to read my inner PC’s thoughts on a quest or journal entry. Occasionally to my amusement my dialogue choices can be quite witty, sarcastic, brisk, blunt, or gentle and helpful. The internal monologues are shared without remorse. And I welcome these thoughts and relish the lines.
For those not inclined to the hustle and bustle of speaking. One can dive deep into combat. No, not turn-based. No need to grind to level 100 like a JRPG. BG1 uses advanced dungeons and dragons 2nd edition(2E ADND) ruleset. This means you start at a measly level one, working your way to ten. Utilizing real-time action with pause fights they’re the main meat of the fighting aspect. Mouse over an enemy, click, and bam! Your whole party will auto-attack the individual. You can also initiate battles whenever you please. So attacking a shopkeeper or nearby civilian who’s off doing their errands is not exempt from your blade or spells. Hell, the AI will work its magic! No input is required! If the AI isn’t up to snuff. Tinker their script and check each unit’s actions. An aspect that surprised me greatly and the innate options to change their AI to your preference is excellent. Though to be fair I didn’t tinker too much! The default settings are adequate to suit my fighting playstyle. To BG1’s credit, plenty of customization options are at your disposal. Aside from the regular equipment, you can outfit each member: equip two rings, cloaks, amulets, belts, and extra weapon slots! Changeable in the heat of battle. I’m astounded by the sheer options at your disposal in 1998! Making build variety worth experimenting like a madman. Min-maxers will find no shortage to increase their stats or change spells in their spellbook to suit any occasion.
I felt super joy in clearing the nearby lands of evil and helping poor souls along the way. Despite ironically being an allegedly evil paladin. Builds and classes are plentiful and deep. I could assign any of my members in dual classes(within reason), learn spells for my mages, or slot any manner of weaponry as long as the class allows them to. Use ranged weaponry, a sling to hit enemies, and casting spells using wands. By the last chapter, I was running a six-man crew consisting of A Blackguard who is an evil paladin, a thief who is a ranger, and my childhood friend. A vengeful half-orcish Blackguard, A red wizard who begrudgingly joins our motley crew, a neutral evil drow cleric, and an unlucky wild mage who can’t control her powers. A dysfunctional group, full of uneasy alliances and explosive personalities, stayed together through thick and thin. Many fights ensued and yet. We. Did. Not Falter.Okay I must admit we did fail a lot in the final boss… but that’s a story for another day
Companions are plentiful. Twenty-four plus allies you can recruit and four exclusive ones in the enhanced edition. My feelings of satisfaction permeated once I saw a potentially new member along the horizon. Asking for genuine assistance. By random chance in a building. Stumble on unique encounters. Where any battle may ensue or a unique script may play. Choose to help, attack, or run away. These instances never rinse and repeat in a tiring formula. Instead, they felt natural. Moving on the question may arise to utilize canon units before importing to the following expansions/sequels. According to my CRPG veteran friend of mine. The individuals or other party members you choose are “subjective and a pretty fine line. I think if you're uncertain, go for the canon. If you like your setup already, keep it. A little better, but not something you should go out of your way to meet.” Upon completing the plot and seeing the difference between my non-canon friends and my switch version, I'm rolling alongside the canon company. Ultimately, I agree with their statement. Only adding follow your heart to suit your desire.Although, you should keep Dorn as a prospective acquaintance to recruit mhhm.
The Sword Coast is full of danger, excitement, and surprises. Gentle worldbuilding and clean-to-deep lore work wonders. Boosting the writing to levels near engrossing to read. I love it! Reminding me heavily of Lord of the Rings except if the fellowship decided to go off the beaten path and help those in need. Forget the ring! Anyway… a wealth of books you can buy in taverns, and shops presenting interesting backgrounds on religion, history, past historical events, legends, myths, etc. Never hurts reading! Connecting nicely in minor ways to my allies, citizens, and villains! Not pages of exposition. Mostly a couple of paragraphs or extra if you get a heavier tome. Granting informative knowledge on the races, items, and locales. Subtly nudging me to go deeper beyond the surface level “Oh that’s just an elf. Meh, a dwarf, bah a human?” Nay my marvelous friends! They’re more than meets the eye. For the elf could be a half-elf or a drow! Dwarves mistaken for gnomes! And humans themselves can prove resilient.though still squishy… And relations between people are not the norm such as jolly and peaceful. Reminds me of X-Men/Mutant/Brotherhood relationships with the common folk except fantasied. Racism, class hierarchy, and hidden factions are abundant. And I, the poor unlucky son of a gun, have to find answers?! Gimme a break. I’m only level one…
Sidequests feel natural and written well. I like how little down-to-earth they are and deal in relatable matters. One has you stop a man about to jump off a cliff! Search for a cloak to return to a dismayed individual. Clean a house of spiders for the owner to take up residence. May seem mundane and not offer much. Nevertheless, I appreciate the slightly monotonous tasks to slowly build up my user and partners' strengths. Sooner or later I was rolling level 3s party and higher. I was able to partake in extensively intricate activities. A certain thief's quest to pass a test. Passing judgment on a man brainwashed. Aiding or killing a crook who seeks to take advantage of innocent individuals and return a chicken to human life. I kid you not I’m in disbelief on the chicken side mission. A bit of RNG is involved. Incredible to see a quest fail by chance. Hell, you can sell the guy to a vendor and forget him. It wasn’t worth it. The vendor didn’t reward me enough gold… I enjoyed the progression of slowly increasing the complex quests as my friends grew stronger since they offer a realistic fantasy take in mixing inspiration from our lived experiences into a videogame and to the developer's credit I feel it works wonderfully. My members were rugged and dirty as I completed all objectives until my journal entries were tidy. The physical rewards were sufficient and lore-wise adequate. Mods restoring cut content I highly suggest checking out. I found their inclusion to not be out of place and fit superbly adding depth and giving life to the areas you visit.
In the interest of not gushing further, I must talk about my mixed feelings now. Not a positive or a negative, but for the sake of transparency I'm noting them down.
The base game without mods is a bit lifeless compared to my modded playthrough. Certainly there are moments NPC’s are designated, but the world feels sparse, has tiny reactivity, and is slightly oppressive. The absence of considerable mini/side quests and NPCs at intervals loses my interest in keeping going. I cannot send my companions to a specific place. The banter in my cabal is nearly non-existent. And reactions to story beats are missing. Voiced NPC lines are likewise gone. Identifying can be a pain. You’ll come across a sizable amount of magical items/equipment on your adventures. In demand of identifying either by a spell or by heading to a temple and having the priest identify the item to fully see their properties. Not a pain if we are given loads of unidentifiable equipment, and to BG1’s credit, a sufficient amount to tide us over. Not over-gorging amidst decision paralysis. The tediousness comes in the constant back and forth to towns to identify and sell stuff you accrue to offload the heavyweight. Being encumbered sucks. Different members can hold different amounts of carry load so it is kinda not a wonderful idea to make an associate of low weight capacity. The absence of a book bag is puzzling to a degree since decent materials are available to read and not having an ease of access hurts a bit. Sure a handful of items exist in the form of ‘bags of holdings’ to slot gems, potions, and scrolls. Their weight is not endless. Exacerbated by a considerably slow movement speed which boggles my mind as to why no movement speed slider is in the options to make our traversal faster.
THAC0 & Armor Class minus '-' numbers values can be fairly confusing for newbies. How I usually play is seeing numbers of ‘plus’ meaning ‘good’ and ‘minus’ equalling ‘bad.’ Math is different in BG1. The rest is fine as far as I know. You’ll usually see if it is beneficial to apply if the numbers are highlighted in green for favorable/better and red being bad/underperforming. So equipping a weapon displaying a green highlight is best. If it's red don’t equip or else you’ll perform in a minor capacity. Furthermore, pixel squinting in a handful of sections may be necessary. One in a pretty big optional dungeon, a main plot segment, and to a lesser extent upon exploring multiple floors in buildings. Honestly, you probably will squint maybe 5-10%. To my absolute delight, a zoom function, and a highlight everything option exists. Doesn’t alleviate the squinting issue entirely, but a cool option to use. Interacting with objects in a room to solve puzzles or clicking a secret stash can be a bit troublesome without looking carefully at your surroundings.
Can be overwhelming to understand the 2E ADND ruleset for newbies of what you can and cannot do and how values are applied during clashes.At least it's not Pathfinder homework My friends who played alongside me reported similar confusion. I feel reading the manual can help in a certain way to receive a better understanding of the mechanics. Bit lengthy at a hundred-fifty pages plus, but the combat portion is the most important to remember in my opinion. So no obligation to read all of it. Lots of tutors in Candlekeep explain the most important things: Mechanics, features, tips, explanations, etc. Before venturing off, best to chat near cohorts. Thereby gaining a better comprehension of various obscure topics.
In effect, A dangerous, rigid, unforgiving land emerges. Creating a fascinating contrast from my original modded playthrough. The benefits inside the console port I appreciate. A big green outline to all accessible buildings makes access easier, decreasing squinting. Primarily used the controller due to being so comfortable than using a keyboard and mouse(KB+M). Plenty of options in the settings to tweak to your liking. The new CG replaces the old FMV, though I much prefer the original version compared to the new one. Heavier in visceral atmosphere, conveys a darker tone, and has longer scenes compared to Beamdog’s version. As a result, I feel without mods BG1 creates a partially slower, but acceptable version to play for newcomers and veterans alike.
Base game with mods is a completely different ballpark. Much of my mixed feelings are thrown out the window. Containing quality of life features across the board. The commitment to identify is gone. The default movement speed is tweaked to be faster to my preference. NPC banter is awesome, narrative beats hit a big splash, and interactivity feels very fitting and not out of place at all in my honest opinion. The cut content is a welcome addition to augment life in Sword Coast’s areas providing I would say 50-75% additional activities to do. Mini/side quests are not exempt. And subsequently not too out of place. UI tweaks make quick looting not a chore and display data during info/shop menus are very welcome. A tweaks anthology module goes above the heavens to tweak nearly every aspect. My buddy and I strictly kept our list small and light to enhance vanilla, keeping the balance as close as possible to the original. As long as it's fun, but fair then by all means mod away! Consequently, my modded playthrough experience became fun, exciting, and very enjoyable. I extremely recommend installing mods on PC if you can.
Before I forget, my thoughts on Siege of Dragonspear the expansion to BG1. Solid stuff and a prelude to BG2. We start weeks after the events of the first title. Caelar Argent and her army arrived near Baldur’s Gate quickly. For what purpose? No clue man. But I spend the rest of my questing life confronting her forces in skirmishes and dastardly deeds. She has the gall to send assassins to me!? Yeah, I’m done lady on the assassination attempts. So now you and your comrades set off to investigate her motives, her reasons for sending agents and why the bloody hell does she need an army!? Doesn’t take long to complete. You can finish it quickly according to HLTB in 18 hours or less. For me, I did all the sidequests clocking in under twenty-five hours. Bit of a step down in quality compared to the previous entry, in terms of dialogue and non-fighting. Most if not all of them consist of fighting. These are the moments, the expansion shines a great deal. Epic battles opposing Caelar’s forces. Imagine army vs. army. Defending our position against waves of enemies, infiltrating enemy camps, finding clues to unlock an alternate path, etc. I love it! Smaller maps and favoring a linear approach dressing down the large dungeons in favor of bite-sized portions alongside their puzzle segments. Super appreciate the change of pace from a grand scale in the first, to enhanced closer encounters to test our mettle. Companions chatter at various points to talk about their gripes, goals, or on their new adventures. So they’re not left in the dust for development. Heck, the new units are a treat too! Music again hits all the right notes. No major complaints to say, despite a wish for a sprinkle of nuance in the writing giving a heavier expanse to the world. And it does so to a certain extent. I would’ve liked a bit of extra lore-building to devour. I also wish one member had received extended screen time to develop. Still, Dragonspear is a solid one and I recommend it for those who want worthwhile content and can’t get enough of the Forgotten Realms universe.
One last thing before I head out. Special thanks to the following people who played beside me. Kairoch for completing a modded playthrough. Mango and Jag for finishing the Switch version and granting me an interesting insight into their experiences and finally Donkeyworld for clarifying and providing awesome CRPG insight. This review would not be possible without their thoughts, company and countless laughter sharing our experiences. I also apologize for this long review. It has been in the works for weeks and I’ve nearly gone crazy about whether to publish this longer or shorter. Ultimately cut pages as a result. Nevertheless, I'll allocate them in a Pastebin link below for those curious.
And so after defeating the final boss, seeing the end credits, and doing everything possible plus completing Siege of Dragonspear over the course of my seventy-five hour journey. I can only say Baldur's Gate Enhanced Edition is a refreshing CRPG to try out. Despite some hurdles and bumps on the road during my travels, I believe BG1EE is a fine entrypoint. An above-average effort to keep the game modernized enough for consumers today. Hold’s up nicely. Consequently, I believe the Switch copy and by extension console ports is a serviceable version to play if you don’t desire to tinker around on PC. 98% of my hours were conducted blindly. Meaning no walkthrough was used. The normal difficulty was fine for me. No story points caused me to slam my head on the wall repeatedly. I never got tired of exploring uncharted areas to fulfill my cartographer’s wish to map every nook and cranny. Sure I died. And yes I will admit to reloading countlessly. The save and loading times are fast and I didn’t mind retrying again and again until I advanced further. The fantasy setting is rich, full of wonder, chaos, order, and plenty of world-building to devour. Writing is flavorful. Full of seriousness and humorous lines. Stabilized to not throw my suspension of disbelief into a state of confusion. I completed every side quest and didn’t tire, so I can say they’re pretty satisfying and worth investing your effort in. Because you’ll require the experience to level up. I admire the slow-burn narrative approach to losing newcomers to Sword Coast, embracing their inner curiosity to explore, fight, and discover secrets. Satisfying gameplay loop in not just the combat, but in the dialogue. Installing mods fixed most of my mixed feelings to a certain extent. A likable large cast of companions to recruit and the sheer customization at my fingertips to outfit as we see fit is splendid. Graphics, music, and improvements the remaster tries to implement are commendable of Beamdogs' attempt. I applaud 90s Bioware in creating an incredible CRPG. It is a titan of role-playing and fantasy. Full of nearly everything I thirst for. An easy recommendation for any newcomer or veteran in the genre to sink their teeth. And one I can safely say shot up to my top ten Western RPGs. Can’t wait to start BG2! After a CRPG break…
Base game without mods: 7.7/10
Base game with mods: 8/10
Additional Material:
BG1EE Mods list used & Proper Mod list order
Adventurer’s guide AKA Manual on BG1EE
BG1:EE Before I play Tips
Kairoch’s Extra tips for BG1
My Cut pages from review, Final thoughts on the ending, Durlag’s tower. - Cut pages are fine to read for any newcomer and spoiler free. My thoughts on the ending, final boss, Durlag's tower - should only be read by those who finished the game.
CRPG Book Project - Felipe Pepe made the book free to download. But if you want to support them buy a copy of the book!
As someone who didn’t grow up with Fallout or Baldur’s Gate. Two franchises continued to surprise me to no end during my ventures playing their older catalog over recent years. Fallout 2, being the last old CRPG I beat, I figured it was high time to see how much BG1 holds up, so I can familiarize myself with the universe before eventually starting BG3 down the road. First, I must confess to completing both the base game and Siege of Dragonspear with mods. I say this earlier on to not confuse my experience of a modded playthrough against a non-mod experience. As a consequence, I’ve gone the extra mile to play my switch copy to see how vanilla is to compare the two. Not to completion, but enough to grant me a fair grasp. I’ll discuss this in detail later, but I figure a warning would suffice early on to prevent any misconceptions between vanilla and modded content. I’ll talk about mods later and if I don’t discuss it, please assume I’m discussing vanilla.
Orphaned at a young age. Unknowing of their parentage. Adopted by the kindness of a stranger. Grew up sharing a loving childhood along a playful lass. Taught discipline and care by your father. Lived safely in the confines of the library fortress of Candlekeep for many years. What more could they want? Well… Such halcyon days must come to an end when suddenly you’re attacked by mysterious assassins! Questioning them leads to no answers. So we ask our stepfather later on for any information, However, he evades your queries in favor of leaving the bastion of respite and comfort you’ve known for twenty years. In search of finding answers to these unprovoked attacks in the Sword Coast of the Forgotten Realms. A campaign setting inside Dungeon and Dragons.
I adore the slow story approach to gently albeit dangerously letting the player go off to the coast and encounter whatever lurks behind the shadows, paved roads, and unbeaten paths. The unrestricted freedom is a major plus and to my delight, I found worthwhile discoveries across my travels alongside my horrible luck being attacked by foolish bandits or powerful creatures. Early on, I was scared yet excited. I came across another kind soul offering tips and directions. Yet unknowingly I wonder if such a person may have a hidden motive to backstab me. Anxiety, dread, and vigilance were my constant internal ruminations once I saw unfamiliar creatures patrolling. Even neutral bears are no exception. Capable of dealing massive damage to my comrades should I provoke one half-heartedly. Beyond the regular horrors of animals and insects, I was able to fight different manners of goblins, ogres, variants of ghouls, ghosts, etc. No shortage of interesting enemies to fight. And my axe cleaved through them viscerally. A dangerous yet fine balance emerges. Granting parties a fighting chance, and safety and instilling a sense of vigilance. I could’ve bumped the difficulty lower time, but I kept the normal difficulty throughout to give me a sense of challenge and excitement. I deeply appreciate the open freedom whilst encountering dangers and opportunities wherever I tread, reminding me heavily of roaming the Wastelands in Fallout 1 and 2.
Enjoyable isometric RPG gameplay. Dialogue choices do a good job of giving you a variety of options to be witty, sarcastic, no-nonsense, blunt, dismissive, etc. In effect, they augment conversations. A visit to the tavern to buy alcohol teases points of interest to travel and investigate. Conversing with the common folk results in similar outcomes. Innocent conversations may lead to potential side quests and multichain ones providing increased incentive to witness the outcome of an ailing NPC. Forget the conversations? Simply scrolling up on the text box reveals past lines said. A handy journal is equipped too which is interesting and provides the player character(PC) monologues of his/her/their internal thoughts about the quest or information sought. Therefore, depth to the world of Forgotten Realms is an alluring prospect. A search function is included too! I habitually checked my journal constantly to read my inner PC’s thoughts on a quest or journal entry. Occasionally to my amusement my dialogue choices can be quite witty, sarcastic, brisk, blunt, or gentle and helpful. The internal monologues are shared without remorse. And I welcome these thoughts and relish the lines.
For those not inclined to the hustle and bustle of speaking. One can dive deep into combat. No, not turn-based. No need to grind to level 100 like a JRPG. BG1 uses advanced dungeons and dragons 2nd edition(2E ADND) ruleset. This means you start at a measly level one, working your way to ten. Utilizing real-time action with pause fights they’re the main meat of the fighting aspect. Mouse over an enemy, click, and bam! Your whole party will auto-attack the individual. You can also initiate battles whenever you please. So attacking a shopkeeper or nearby civilian who’s off doing their errands is not exempt from your blade or spells. Hell, the AI will work its magic! No input is required! If the AI isn’t up to snuff. Tinker their script and check each unit’s actions. An aspect that surprised me greatly and the innate options to change their AI to your preference is excellent. Though to be fair I didn’t tinker too much! The default settings are adequate to suit my fighting playstyle. To BG1’s credit, plenty of customization options are at your disposal. Aside from the regular equipment, you can outfit each member: equip two rings, cloaks, amulets, belts, and extra weapon slots! Changeable in the heat of battle. I’m astounded by the sheer options at your disposal in 1998! Making build variety worth experimenting like a madman. Min-maxers will find no shortage to increase their stats or change spells in their spellbook to suit any occasion.
I felt super joy in clearing the nearby lands of evil and helping poor souls along the way. Despite ironically being an allegedly evil paladin. Builds and classes are plentiful and deep. I could assign any of my members in dual classes(within reason), learn spells for my mages, or slot any manner of weaponry as long as the class allows them to. Use ranged weaponry, a sling to hit enemies, and casting spells using wands. By the last chapter, I was running a six-man crew consisting of A Blackguard who is an evil paladin, a thief who is a ranger, and my childhood friend. A vengeful half-orcish Blackguard, A red wizard who begrudgingly joins our motley crew, a neutral evil drow cleric, and an unlucky wild mage who can’t control her powers. A dysfunctional group, full of uneasy alliances and explosive personalities, stayed together through thick and thin. Many fights ensued and yet. We. Did. Not Falter.
Companions are plentiful. Twenty-four plus allies you can recruit and four exclusive ones in the enhanced edition. My feelings of satisfaction permeated once I saw a potentially new member along the horizon. Asking for genuine assistance. By random chance in a building. Stumble on unique encounters. Where any battle may ensue or a unique script may play. Choose to help, attack, or run away. These instances never rinse and repeat in a tiring formula. Instead, they felt natural. Moving on the question may arise to utilize canon units before importing to the following expansions/sequels. According to my CRPG veteran friend of mine. The individuals or other party members you choose are “subjective and a pretty fine line. I think if you're uncertain, go for the canon. If you like your setup already, keep it. A little better, but not something you should go out of your way to meet.” Upon completing the plot and seeing the difference between my non-canon friends and my switch version, I'm rolling alongside the canon company. Ultimately, I agree with their statement. Only adding follow your heart to suit your desire.
The Sword Coast is full of danger, excitement, and surprises. Gentle worldbuilding and clean-to-deep lore work wonders. Boosting the writing to levels near engrossing to read. I love it! Reminding me heavily of Lord of the Rings except if the fellowship decided to go off the beaten path and help those in need. Forget the ring! Anyway… a wealth of books you can buy in taverns, and shops presenting interesting backgrounds on religion, history, past historical events, legends, myths, etc. Never hurts reading! Connecting nicely in minor ways to my allies, citizens, and villains! Not pages of exposition. Mostly a couple of paragraphs or extra if you get a heavier tome. Granting informative knowledge on the races, items, and locales. Subtly nudging me to go deeper beyond the surface level “Oh that’s just an elf. Meh, a dwarf, bah a human?” Nay my marvelous friends! They’re more than meets the eye. For the elf could be a half-elf or a drow! Dwarves mistaken for gnomes! And humans themselves can prove resilient.
Sidequests feel natural and written well. I like how little down-to-earth they are and deal in relatable matters. One has you stop a man about to jump off a cliff! Search for a cloak to return to a dismayed individual. Clean a house of spiders for the owner to take up residence. May seem mundane and not offer much. Nevertheless, I appreciate the slightly monotonous tasks to slowly build up my user and partners' strengths. Sooner or later I was rolling level 3s party and higher. I was able to partake in extensively intricate activities. A certain thief's quest to pass a test. Passing judgment on a man brainwashed. Aiding or killing a crook who seeks to take advantage of innocent individuals and return a chicken to human life. I kid you not I’m in disbelief on the chicken side mission. A bit of RNG is involved. Incredible to see a quest fail by chance. Hell, you can sell the guy to a vendor and forget him. It wasn’t worth it. The vendor didn’t reward me enough gold… I enjoyed the progression of slowly increasing the complex quests as my friends grew stronger since they offer a realistic fantasy take in mixing inspiration from our lived experiences into a videogame and to the developer's credit I feel it works wonderfully. My members were rugged and dirty as I completed all objectives until my journal entries were tidy. The physical rewards were sufficient and lore-wise adequate. Mods restoring cut content I highly suggest checking out. I found their inclusion to not be out of place and fit superbly adding depth and giving life to the areas you visit.
In the interest of not gushing further, I must talk about my mixed feelings now. Not a positive or a negative, but for the sake of transparency I'm noting them down.
The base game without mods is a bit lifeless compared to my modded playthrough. Certainly there are moments NPC’s are designated, but the world feels sparse, has tiny reactivity, and is slightly oppressive. The absence of considerable mini/side quests and NPCs at intervals loses my interest in keeping going. I cannot send my companions to a specific place. The banter in my cabal is nearly non-existent. And reactions to story beats are missing. Voiced NPC lines are likewise gone. Identifying can be a pain. You’ll come across a sizable amount of magical items/equipment on your adventures. In demand of identifying either by a spell or by heading to a temple and having the priest identify the item to fully see their properties. Not a pain if we are given loads of unidentifiable equipment, and to BG1’s credit, a sufficient amount to tide us over. Not over-gorging amidst decision paralysis. The tediousness comes in the constant back and forth to towns to identify and sell stuff you accrue to offload the heavyweight. Being encumbered sucks. Different members can hold different amounts of carry load so it is kinda not a wonderful idea to make an associate of low weight capacity. The absence of a book bag is puzzling to a degree since decent materials are available to read and not having an ease of access hurts a bit. Sure a handful of items exist in the form of ‘bags of holdings’ to slot gems, potions, and scrolls. Their weight is not endless. Exacerbated by a considerably slow movement speed which boggles my mind as to why no movement speed slider is in the options to make our traversal faster.
THAC0 & Armor Class minus '-' numbers values can be fairly confusing for newbies. How I usually play is seeing numbers of ‘plus’ meaning ‘good’ and ‘minus’ equalling ‘bad.’ Math is different in BG1. The rest is fine as far as I know. You’ll usually see if it is beneficial to apply if the numbers are highlighted in green for favorable/better and red being bad/underperforming. So equipping a weapon displaying a green highlight is best. If it's red don’t equip or else you’ll perform in a minor capacity. Furthermore, pixel squinting in a handful of sections may be necessary. One in a pretty big optional dungeon, a main plot segment, and to a lesser extent upon exploring multiple floors in buildings. Honestly, you probably will squint maybe 5-10%. To my absolute delight, a zoom function, and a highlight everything option exists. Doesn’t alleviate the squinting issue entirely, but a cool option to use. Interacting with objects in a room to solve puzzles or clicking a secret stash can be a bit troublesome without looking carefully at your surroundings.
Can be overwhelming to understand the 2E ADND ruleset for newbies of what you can and cannot do and how values are applied during clashes.
In effect, A dangerous, rigid, unforgiving land emerges. Creating a fascinating contrast from my original modded playthrough. The benefits inside the console port I appreciate. A big green outline to all accessible buildings makes access easier, decreasing squinting. Primarily used the controller due to being so comfortable than using a keyboard and mouse(KB+M). Plenty of options in the settings to tweak to your liking. The new CG replaces the old FMV, though I much prefer the original version compared to the new one. Heavier in visceral atmosphere, conveys a darker tone, and has longer scenes compared to Beamdog’s version. As a result, I feel without mods BG1 creates a partially slower, but acceptable version to play for newcomers and veterans alike.
Base game with mods is a completely different ballpark. Much of my mixed feelings are thrown out the window. Containing quality of life features across the board. The commitment to identify is gone. The default movement speed is tweaked to be faster to my preference. NPC banter is awesome, narrative beats hit a big splash, and interactivity feels very fitting and not out of place at all in my honest opinion. The cut content is a welcome addition to augment life in Sword Coast’s areas providing I would say 50-75% additional activities to do. Mini/side quests are not exempt. And subsequently not too out of place. UI tweaks make quick looting not a chore and display data during info/shop menus are very welcome. A tweaks anthology module goes above the heavens to tweak nearly every aspect. My buddy and I strictly kept our list small and light to enhance vanilla, keeping the balance as close as possible to the original. As long as it's fun, but fair then by all means mod away! Consequently, my modded playthrough experience became fun, exciting, and very enjoyable. I extremely recommend installing mods on PC if you can.
Before I forget, my thoughts on Siege of Dragonspear the expansion to BG1. Solid stuff and a prelude to BG2. We start weeks after the events of the first title. Caelar Argent and her army arrived near Baldur’s Gate quickly. For what purpose? No clue man. But I spend the rest of my questing life confronting her forces in skirmishes and dastardly deeds. She has the gall to send assassins to me!? Yeah, I’m done lady on the assassination attempts. So now you and your comrades set off to investigate her motives, her reasons for sending agents and why the bloody hell does she need an army!? Doesn’t take long to complete. You can finish it quickly according to HLTB in 18 hours or less. For me, I did all the sidequests clocking in under twenty-five hours. Bit of a step down in quality compared to the previous entry, in terms of dialogue and non-fighting. Most if not all of them consist of fighting. These are the moments, the expansion shines a great deal. Epic battles opposing Caelar’s forces. Imagine army vs. army. Defending our position against waves of enemies, infiltrating enemy camps, finding clues to unlock an alternate path, etc. I love it! Smaller maps and favoring a linear approach dressing down the large dungeons in favor of bite-sized portions alongside their puzzle segments. Super appreciate the change of pace from a grand scale in the first, to enhanced closer encounters to test our mettle. Companions chatter at various points to talk about their gripes, goals, or on their new adventures. So they’re not left in the dust for development. Heck, the new units are a treat too! Music again hits all the right notes. No major complaints to say, despite a wish for a sprinkle of nuance in the writing giving a heavier expanse to the world. And it does so to a certain extent. I would’ve liked a bit of extra lore-building to devour. I also wish one member had received extended screen time to develop. Still, Dragonspear is a solid one and I recommend it for those who want worthwhile content and can’t get enough of the Forgotten Realms universe.
One last thing before I head out. Special thanks to the following people who played beside me. Kairoch for completing a modded playthrough. Mango and Jag for finishing the Switch version and granting me an interesting insight into their experiences and finally Donkeyworld for clarifying and providing awesome CRPG insight. This review would not be possible without their thoughts, company and countless laughter sharing our experiences. I also apologize for this long review. It has been in the works for weeks and I’ve nearly gone crazy about whether to publish this longer or shorter. Ultimately cut pages as a result. Nevertheless, I'll allocate them in a Pastebin link below for those curious.
And so after defeating the final boss, seeing the end credits, and doing everything possible plus completing Siege of Dragonspear over the course of my seventy-five hour journey. I can only say Baldur's Gate Enhanced Edition is a refreshing CRPG to try out. Despite some hurdles and bumps on the road during my travels, I believe BG1EE is a fine entrypoint. An above-average effort to keep the game modernized enough for consumers today. Hold’s up nicely. Consequently, I believe the Switch copy and by extension console ports is a serviceable version to play if you don’t desire to tinker around on PC. 98% of my hours were conducted blindly. Meaning no walkthrough was used. The normal difficulty was fine for me. No story points caused me to slam my head on the wall repeatedly. I never got tired of exploring uncharted areas to fulfill my cartographer’s wish to map every nook and cranny. Sure I died. And yes I will admit to reloading countlessly. The save and loading times are fast and I didn’t mind retrying again and again until I advanced further. The fantasy setting is rich, full of wonder, chaos, order, and plenty of world-building to devour. Writing is flavorful. Full of seriousness and humorous lines. Stabilized to not throw my suspension of disbelief into a state of confusion. I completed every side quest and didn’t tire, so I can say they’re pretty satisfying and worth investing your effort in. Because you’ll require the experience to level up. I admire the slow-burn narrative approach to losing newcomers to Sword Coast, embracing their inner curiosity to explore, fight, and discover secrets. Satisfying gameplay loop in not just the combat, but in the dialogue. Installing mods fixed most of my mixed feelings to a certain extent. A likable large cast of companions to recruit and the sheer customization at my fingertips to outfit as we see fit is splendid. Graphics, music, and improvements the remaster tries to implement are commendable of Beamdogs' attempt. I applaud 90s Bioware in creating an incredible CRPG. It is a titan of role-playing and fantasy. Full of nearly everything I thirst for. An easy recommendation for any newcomer or veteran in the genre to sink their teeth. And one I can safely say shot up to my top ten Western RPGs. Can’t wait to start BG2! After a CRPG break…
Base game without mods: 7.7/10
Base game with mods: 8/10
Additional Material:
BG1EE Mods list used & Proper Mod list order
Adventurer’s guide AKA Manual on BG1EE
BG1:EE Before I play Tips
Kairoch’s Extra tips for BG1
My Cut pages from review, Final thoughts on the ending, Durlag’s tower. - Cut pages are fine to read for any newcomer and spoiler free. My thoughts on the ending, final boss, Durlag's tower - should only be read by those who finished the game.
CRPG Book Project - Felipe Pepe made the book free to download. But if you want to support them buy a copy of the book!