Unironically the best game I've played this year, and it's gonna be a hard one to top, this isn't just one of the best coop games ever made, it's truly great as an experience in and of itself.
Stellar environment design, outstanding music and a legitimately interesting story are what first stick out from this game, which are on show most during the mind-boggling on-rails setpieces that put uncharted to shame and make sonic look like absolute tripe.
But what about the gameplay? Nothing falls short there, this is a game that has so many ideas and perfectly executes each one. The base traversal mechanics are satisfying, responsive and fun, and each level's unique gameplay mechanic for each player feels evenly split between you and every single one feels more fleshed out than it ever needs to be.
The game switches between three types of levels, on-rails setpieces, used to move between environments, linear puzzle platforming segments, the main bulk of the game, and open hub areas for those linear puzzle levels. Each one of these hub areas is choc full of minigames and secrets to find, and one of the best features of this game is that you can jump into any of the minigames you find straight from the main menu without having to go back into the levels and find them.
I really can't stress enough the ridiculous level of polish every single thing in this game has, every level's mechanic could easily have been used for an entire game of it's own, every minigame is fleshed out to the point where they could be easily released individually (there's a fully functional Chess game, and that's one of the more basic ones).
This game looked at the least interesting leading up to release, but has completely blown me away on every level.
Negatives: Other than some poorly written lines or slightly-off voice acting, or at worst some uncanny-valley moments, there honestly isn't anything to complain about, likely thanks to the TITANIC quality assurance team that takes up a decent amount of the credits. If I were to pick anything I'd say that the ending doesn't hit as hard, emotionally, as it should have, which is a shame, but didn't really take away from the experience.
I really can't complain, as much as I try to think of things that could be wrong with this game, beacuse how could a game that EA clearly doesn't care enough about to advertise well, made by the team that made the 'just good' A Way Out, be this outstanding?
Well, here we are.
This game has something for everyone, and is for everyone, and the best part? If you buy a copy then your friends can play for free, any number of friends you like, using a similar system to 2019s Wolfenstein: Youngblood, which makes this phenomenal experience hugely more accessible.
Please play this, I don't care who you are or who uninterested you are, you won't regret it.
Stellar environment design, outstanding music and a legitimately interesting story are what first stick out from this game, which are on show most during the mind-boggling on-rails setpieces that put uncharted to shame and make sonic look like absolute tripe.
But what about the gameplay? Nothing falls short there, this is a game that has so many ideas and perfectly executes each one. The base traversal mechanics are satisfying, responsive and fun, and each level's unique gameplay mechanic for each player feels evenly split between you and every single one feels more fleshed out than it ever needs to be.
The game switches between three types of levels, on-rails setpieces, used to move between environments, linear puzzle platforming segments, the main bulk of the game, and open hub areas for those linear puzzle levels. Each one of these hub areas is choc full of minigames and secrets to find, and one of the best features of this game is that you can jump into any of the minigames you find straight from the main menu without having to go back into the levels and find them.
I really can't stress enough the ridiculous level of polish every single thing in this game has, every level's mechanic could easily have been used for an entire game of it's own, every minigame is fleshed out to the point where they could be easily released individually (there's a fully functional Chess game, and that's one of the more basic ones).
This game looked at the least interesting leading up to release, but has completely blown me away on every level.
Negatives: Other than some poorly written lines or slightly-off voice acting, or at worst some uncanny-valley moments, there honestly isn't anything to complain about, likely thanks to the TITANIC quality assurance team that takes up a decent amount of the credits. If I were to pick anything I'd say that the ending doesn't hit as hard, emotionally, as it should have, which is a shame, but didn't really take away from the experience.
I really can't complain, as much as I try to think of things that could be wrong with this game, beacuse how could a game that EA clearly doesn't care enough about to advertise well, made by the team that made the 'just good' A Way Out, be this outstanding?
Well, here we are.
This game has something for everyone, and is for everyone, and the best part? If you buy a copy then your friends can play for free, any number of friends you like, using a similar system to 2019s Wolfenstein: Youngblood, which makes this phenomenal experience hugely more accessible.
Please play this, I don't care who you are or who uninterested you are, you won't regret it.