...why did I convince myself there was a chance I wouldn't enjoy this? From Software just won't miss.
It's unbelievable to think they made giant metal beasts that both feel like giant metal beasts AND also control extremely well simultaneously. How is this possible? Whether it be sliding along the ground, soaring through the air in ANY direction, gliding to a specific location, or dodging at the last second over and over... these metallic machines make movement maximally magnificent.
Not only that, but all the weapons are super fun to experiment with. From canons to lasers to shotguns to snipers to grenade launchers to swords to machine guns to pistols... everything has a use, and everything feels good. It's wild. Having 4 weapons on you at once seems overwhelming but once you get use to the flow of combat it feels natural. I loved getting up close and using swords and shotguns. Sometimes that really did not work though, so I usually had some cannons or lasers on hand to deal with enemies further away. Also, one of the sniper-like rifles was a big part of my toolkit, as well.
This game is easily a 10/10 in the game-feel department, but it also shines when it comes to the management of your parts. This was the area I was concerned about not enjoying. At first, it was absolutely overwhelming and I was doing my best to ignore it and force my way through without editing things too much. Bad idea! About half way through the game there are some major roadblocks that require you to rethink the way you've played up until that point. It wasn't until then that I realized how special the game was. I was actually interested in switching up my build, and did so for most missions in the second half of the game.
The mission structure is such a breath of fresh air. I could totally see this game for some reason being open world and you having to traverse to different objectives. Being kicked back to the hangar where your mech rests makes things so much more snappy. There's no forced down time. Quick conversations, quick menus, and quick mission breakdowns that lead to mostly quickly completed missions. I love it. This game is very respectful of your time. That's something I saw more in 2023 than I have in the past decade - I think a lot of developers are catching on to the fact that "padding" and "filler" is very noticeable nowadays. From Software has always been good about this, imo, but it shines here even more so.
The voice acting is surprisingly awesome! It's probably emphasized due to the fact that you never actually see any human faces - just voices attached to a codec call or a mech. It made the voices shine even more because they had to do some heavy lifting to get you to appreciate the characters.
It's very grey, but it's actually quite nice looking. The theme of red throughout the game really pops. Also, the colour customization of your own mech is extremely detailed - possibly more detailed than the combat customization! I rocked a bright orange/cyan mech the whole time and loved every second of it. The designs of some of the other mechs are really cool, too. Visually, despite being literally 90% grey - this game stands out. The massive scale of the game and some of these fights certainly plays a part, too.
It's not my preferred genre, and I like their Souls games better, for sure, but this is still an absolutely fantastic video game.
It's unbelievable to think they made giant metal beasts that both feel like giant metal beasts AND also control extremely well simultaneously. How is this possible? Whether it be sliding along the ground, soaring through the air in ANY direction, gliding to a specific location, or dodging at the last second over and over... these metallic machines make movement maximally magnificent.
Not only that, but all the weapons are super fun to experiment with. From canons to lasers to shotguns to snipers to grenade launchers to swords to machine guns to pistols... everything has a use, and everything feels good. It's wild. Having 4 weapons on you at once seems overwhelming but once you get use to the flow of combat it feels natural. I loved getting up close and using swords and shotguns. Sometimes that really did not work though, so I usually had some cannons or lasers on hand to deal with enemies further away. Also, one of the sniper-like rifles was a big part of my toolkit, as well.
This game is easily a 10/10 in the game-feel department, but it also shines when it comes to the management of your parts. This was the area I was concerned about not enjoying. At first, it was absolutely overwhelming and I was doing my best to ignore it and force my way through without editing things too much. Bad idea! About half way through the game there are some major roadblocks that require you to rethink the way you've played up until that point. It wasn't until then that I realized how special the game was. I was actually interested in switching up my build, and did so for most missions in the second half of the game.
The mission structure is such a breath of fresh air. I could totally see this game for some reason being open world and you having to traverse to different objectives. Being kicked back to the hangar where your mech rests makes things so much more snappy. There's no forced down time. Quick conversations, quick menus, and quick mission breakdowns that lead to mostly quickly completed missions. I love it. This game is very respectful of your time. That's something I saw more in 2023 than I have in the past decade - I think a lot of developers are catching on to the fact that "padding" and "filler" is very noticeable nowadays. From Software has always been good about this, imo, but it shines here even more so.
The voice acting is surprisingly awesome! It's probably emphasized due to the fact that you never actually see any human faces - just voices attached to a codec call or a mech. It made the voices shine even more because they had to do some heavy lifting to get you to appreciate the characters.
It's very grey, but it's actually quite nice looking. The theme of red throughout the game really pops. Also, the colour customization of your own mech is extremely detailed - possibly more detailed than the combat customization! I rocked a bright orange/cyan mech the whole time and loved every second of it. The designs of some of the other mechs are really cool, too. Visually, despite being literally 90% grey - this game stands out. The massive scale of the game and some of these fights certainly plays a part, too.
It's not my preferred genre, and I like their Souls games better, for sure, but this is still an absolutely fantastic video game.