Marking this as "abandoned" is a bit of a misnomer, as I simply didn't defeat the final boss in what I can only describe as the most asinine, fuck-you-player fight concept ever created. I'm sure I encountered far worse as a kid sitting cross-legged in front of a CRT playing some misshapen licensed game on the SNES, but by 2014 fights as bizarrely abstract as that with Deathshead is tantamount to a criminal act.
That said, without the immersive and cathartic tale of BJ Blazkowicz, once avatar for the fragile male id recontextualized in a world of self-identified incels and gamergaters as someone surprisingly relatable, there's plenty else to dislike here. First person stealth is pretty much never a good idea in my book, but the enemies hit like sacks of concrete thus necessitating its pursuit at nearly every turn. Likewise, the game isn't a huge joy to look at being from that era when blacks, browns and greys were favored for console optimization, making trudging through it even more of a dull and uninspiring activity.
That said, the story hints at all the shenanigans and clever adventures MachineGames would get up to with this game's follow-up, steadily toeing the line between a modern times allegory and a blow-em-up romp with something approximating finesse, or at least considering what finesse might look like in the context of mech-driving Nazi war dogs.
Just a shame this is a truly middling game to play, an opinion I have to imagine I share with many others considering its relatively high trophy rate for story progress and impressively sparse acquisition of gameplay-related accomplishments.
That said, without the immersive and cathartic tale of BJ Blazkowicz, once avatar for the fragile male id recontextualized in a world of self-identified incels and gamergaters as someone surprisingly relatable, there's plenty else to dislike here. First person stealth is pretty much never a good idea in my book, but the enemies hit like sacks of concrete thus necessitating its pursuit at nearly every turn. Likewise, the game isn't a huge joy to look at being from that era when blacks, browns and greys were favored for console optimization, making trudging through it even more of a dull and uninspiring activity.
That said, the story hints at all the shenanigans and clever adventures MachineGames would get up to with this game's follow-up, steadily toeing the line between a modern times allegory and a blow-em-up romp with something approximating finesse, or at least considering what finesse might look like in the context of mech-driving Nazi war dogs.
Just a shame this is a truly middling game to play, an opinion I have to imagine I share with many others considering its relatively high trophy rate for story progress and impressively sparse acquisition of gameplay-related accomplishments.
There is no game I've wanted to give 5-stars to more than The New Colossus. From its incredible (and incredibly timely) story to the ferocious creativity in its world building, level design (okay, Manhattan is a bit ponderous) and characterization, The New Colossus was a titanic achievement of feel and style.
I mean, I played 18 hours of this, the campaign portion practically straight through. I earned my first trophy just after Noon on November 5th, my last trophy (of the campaign) just after 2PM on November 6th, then dabbled in toe Übercommader stuff for about a week and walked away. That's fucking DEVOURING a video game!
Unfortunately, it doesn't always feel great to play. The previous game had a heavier dose of stealth than this does, but those roots are still lain and thus at times this game incentivizes anything other than laying waste to Nazi scum at the most brusk pace possible. I get it, the Nazis won and are very dangerous - I still would rather feel like a lawn mower than a field mouse! Speaking of danger, the A.I. itself isn't particularly robust, but this game has a hard time communicating damage as well as its source, leading to many frustrating deaths wherein you can't be entirely sure you were actually playing the game poorly.
There's a side of me that says, ah whatever, this has syphilitic Hitler, pregnant women double wielding uzis, weird secret Jewish space tech, character deaths* just as shocking as anything on Game of Thrones and one of the single most empowering, feel good endings to a video game there's ever been.
If anyone's ever told you that The New Colossus can be a frustrating experience, believe them! After two of these I'm actually not entirely convinced MachineGames are excellent video game designers. But they are certainly some sort of visionaries, daredevils beyond measure, and I really hope we get to hear from them again soon.
I mean, I played 18 hours of this, the campaign portion practically straight through. I earned my first trophy just after Noon on November 5th, my last trophy (of the campaign) just after 2PM on November 6th, then dabbled in toe Übercommader stuff for about a week and walked away. That's fucking DEVOURING a video game!
Unfortunately, it doesn't always feel great to play. The previous game had a heavier dose of stealth than this does, but those roots are still lain and thus at times this game incentivizes anything other than laying waste to Nazi scum at the most brusk pace possible. I get it, the Nazis won and are very dangerous - I still would rather feel like a lawn mower than a field mouse! Speaking of danger, the A.I. itself isn't particularly robust, but this game has a hard time communicating damage as well as its source, leading to many frustrating deaths wherein you can't be entirely sure you were actually playing the game poorly.
There's a side of me that says, ah whatever, this has syphilitic Hitler, pregnant women double wielding uzis, weird secret Jewish space tech, character deaths* just as shocking as anything on Game of Thrones and one of the single most empowering, feel good endings to a video game there's ever been.
If anyone's ever told you that The New Colossus can be a frustrating experience, believe them! After two of these I'm actually not entirely convinced MachineGames are excellent video game designers. But they are certainly some sort of visionaries, daredevils beyond measure, and I really hope we get to hear from them again soon.
2016
I don't play a ton of first-person shooters, so take what I'm about to say with a grain of salt, but...
DOOM 2016 is the greatest first-person shooter ever made, and it may forever more define the format for me. The greatest trick it pulls is presenting itself essentially as a satire of the entire enterprise of storytelling in first-person video games - a genre firmly established way back in 1993 by this very franchise - for nearly half its runtime before pulling back the curtain and admitting, completely straight-faced, that this iteration of id Software still deeply cares about DOOM lore and is convinced they can make you care too.
There are minor quibbles to be had, sure - the holographic map is not the easiest to read being most prominent - but I wasn't bothered by most of them. Some say it's too easy to just rely on the Super Shotgun from the moment you acquire it; I say you should just let yourself use the other weapons, chase down the challenges for armament upgrades and stop choosing to be bored. Some say it's too frustrating to platform around the arenas after combat tracking down the collectibles; I say it's a welcome respite from the high-stress encounters that precede the calm.
I would ding a half-star for that, if only because I can envision a world in which this was a tight seven-hour thrill ride to hell and back and that's quite tantalizing, but...whew! DOOM 2016 is about as close to perfect game design as we might ever see, especially considering I don't often play FPS and loved it so viciously.
I never considered touching the multiplayer.
DOOM 2016 is the greatest first-person shooter ever made, and it may forever more define the format for me. The greatest trick it pulls is presenting itself essentially as a satire of the entire enterprise of storytelling in first-person video games - a genre firmly established way back in 1993 by this very franchise - for nearly half its runtime before pulling back the curtain and admitting, completely straight-faced, that this iteration of id Software still deeply cares about DOOM lore and is convinced they can make you care too.
There are minor quibbles to be had, sure - the holographic map is not the easiest to read being most prominent - but I wasn't bothered by most of them. Some say it's too easy to just rely on the Super Shotgun from the moment you acquire it; I say you should just let yourself use the other weapons, chase down the challenges for armament upgrades and stop choosing to be bored. Some say it's too frustrating to platform around the arenas after combat tracking down the collectibles; I say it's a welcome respite from the high-stress encounters that precede the calm.
I would ding a half-star for that, if only because I can envision a world in which this was a tight seven-hour thrill ride to hell and back and that's quite tantalizing, but...whew! DOOM 2016 is about as close to perfect game design as we might ever see, especially considering I don't often play FPS and loved it so viciously.
I never considered touching the multiplayer.
2019
The key to Death Stranding's success is it's sound design. Everything from the sound of Sam's footsteps on wet grass to huge variety of confirmation pings during a delivery resolution feels highly specific, and in the case of those menu pips absolutely tuned to wring as much dopamine response out of the player as possible.
As you progress through the game and begin unlocking Reverse Trikes, big trucks (I love me a big truck, loaded with six or seven deliveries for a long haul) and stronger courier frames a lot of the nuisance of the early game begins to fall by the wayside and what you're left with is a mostly very pleasant, relaxing game about bringing people new underwear, lightbulbs, pizza and toys to keep them healthy and occupied as they live out their days in underground bunkers cowering under a disease-ridden Earth's surface.
While that side of the experience would have been worthy of Game of the Year nods, the other side of the Kojima coin really drops the ball. While there is some fun to wring out of his absurdly allusory tale of a fractured country and isolation as a connection to (or facsimile of) the afterlife, so much of the dialogue is laughable in a tragic way that'll leave long-time Kojima fans longing for the animé trappings of the Metal Gear series.
Likewise, where his need for the lore to have a tangible effect on gameplay usually leads to wildly inventive gameplay scenarios, everything involving the BT fields and resulting mini-bosses if caught (which, if you mostly drive trucks around like me, means a lot of getting caught) is nothing more than a timesink. Escape the field of oil that bubbles up from the ground and represents a battlefield just once and you'll realize it's far easier to just make that mad dash, watch the boss evaporate on its own then return to your items than actually engage in the ponderous combat system - which, again, is far more clever in concept than execution.
In other words, Death Stranding is a perfect delivery game with some truly gorgeous vistas and an incredible core feedback loop mired by nigh incomprehensible storytelling techniques and all manner of minor gameplay baubles that distract the player from what it does so well. Death Stranding was certainly the most 2020 game, and it's been nice to see some critiques circle back to it during quarantine and discover a newfound appreciation for its comforting qualities but it does have some serious flaws that are about as bad as the good is great.
As you progress through the game and begin unlocking Reverse Trikes, big trucks (I love me a big truck, loaded with six or seven deliveries for a long haul) and stronger courier frames a lot of the nuisance of the early game begins to fall by the wayside and what you're left with is a mostly very pleasant, relaxing game about bringing people new underwear, lightbulbs, pizza and toys to keep them healthy and occupied as they live out their days in underground bunkers cowering under a disease-ridden Earth's surface.
While that side of the experience would have been worthy of Game of the Year nods, the other side of the Kojima coin really drops the ball. While there is some fun to wring out of his absurdly allusory tale of a fractured country and isolation as a connection to (or facsimile of) the afterlife, so much of the dialogue is laughable in a tragic way that'll leave long-time Kojima fans longing for the animé trappings of the Metal Gear series.
Likewise, where his need for the lore to have a tangible effect on gameplay usually leads to wildly inventive gameplay scenarios, everything involving the BT fields and resulting mini-bosses if caught (which, if you mostly drive trucks around like me, means a lot of getting caught) is nothing more than a timesink. Escape the field of oil that bubbles up from the ground and represents a battlefield just once and you'll realize it's far easier to just make that mad dash, watch the boss evaporate on its own then return to your items than actually engage in the ponderous combat system - which, again, is far more clever in concept than execution.
In other words, Death Stranding is a perfect delivery game with some truly gorgeous vistas and an incredible core feedback loop mired by nigh incomprehensible storytelling techniques and all manner of minor gameplay baubles that distract the player from what it does so well. Death Stranding was certainly the most 2020 game, and it's been nice to see some critiques circle back to it during quarantine and discover a newfound appreciation for its comforting qualities but it does have some serious flaws that are about as bad as the good is great.