I played this game two times back to back, the second playthrough being on a higher difficulty with new game+ while only using the plasma cutter. I absolutely loved it both times through. I have never played a game that gave me a rush like this one did. It was incredibly fun yet incredibly terrifying and I adore it.
The atmosphere is one of my favorite things here. The dark halls of the Ishimura are unpredictable from beginning to end and I was still getting jumped even near the end of my second playthrough. The game knows how to shake things up whenever I feel just a bit too comfortable. I have so much respect for the fact that the scary music doesn't play during an enemy encounter until you physically see them. Before then all you can hear are the eerie noises they make. It's perfect for building tension. Even the way you fight them is insanely unique with how you have to focus on dismemberment rather than easy headshots. Each encounter felt like a puzzle and I never quite knew when they would end.
The story is also surprisingly engaging here as well. The characters weren't really that special but they all served the story well in their own ways. The fact that the game doesn't have many cutscenes that take control away and instead has a lot of interactable face to face/video conversations made them feel a lot more personal.
If I could change anything it'd probably be shortening some segments that went on a bit too long. Mostly rooms where you have to defeat all the enemies before leaving. That kind of broke up the pacing for me, especially in the last few chapters. I feel like the final chapter in particular is a bit too lengthy with all its enemy gauntlets. It could've been a lot shorter. Overall though, I think the game was paced pretty well.
Small nitpick: I wish there was a custom waypoint feature tied to your locator. There were times where I backtracked to look for doors I couldn't open until I had the right level of security clearance and I got lost a few times even following my map. Letting you place a destination anywhere and having your locator guide you to it would've really helped.
Other than that, I don't really have any issues with the game even after two playthroughs. My second playthrough was for getting the achievement for only using the plasma cutter, playing on hard mode, and getting the alternate ending. Overall I'd say it was worth it. Not for the alternate ending itself, it's nothing too special, but just for appreciating all the foreshadowing on the second playthrough. The plasma cutter only run on hard was surprisingly fun, although the tentacle enemies in the walls were incredibly frustrating during it.
I'd probably put this game on the same level as the Resident Evil remakes in terms of how much I loved it. I might even love it as much as 4's remake. This game just feels really special and I'm so excited to play the sequels.
The atmosphere is one of my favorite things here. The dark halls of the Ishimura are unpredictable from beginning to end and I was still getting jumped even near the end of my second playthrough. The game knows how to shake things up whenever I feel just a bit too comfortable. I have so much respect for the fact that the scary music doesn't play during an enemy encounter until you physically see them. Before then all you can hear are the eerie noises they make. It's perfect for building tension. Even the way you fight them is insanely unique with how you have to focus on dismemberment rather than easy headshots. Each encounter felt like a puzzle and I never quite knew when they would end.
The story is also surprisingly engaging here as well. The characters weren't really that special but they all served the story well in their own ways. The fact that the game doesn't have many cutscenes that take control away and instead has a lot of interactable face to face/video conversations made them feel a lot more personal.
If I could change anything it'd probably be shortening some segments that went on a bit too long. Mostly rooms where you have to defeat all the enemies before leaving. That kind of broke up the pacing for me, especially in the last few chapters. I feel like the final chapter in particular is a bit too lengthy with all its enemy gauntlets. It could've been a lot shorter. Overall though, I think the game was paced pretty well.
Small nitpick: I wish there was a custom waypoint feature tied to your locator. There were times where I backtracked to look for doors I couldn't open until I had the right level of security clearance and I got lost a few times even following my map. Letting you place a destination anywhere and having your locator guide you to it would've really helped.
Other than that, I don't really have any issues with the game even after two playthroughs. My second playthrough was for getting the achievement for only using the plasma cutter, playing on hard mode, and getting the alternate ending. Overall I'd say it was worth it. Not for the alternate ending itself, it's nothing too special, but just for appreciating all the foreshadowing on the second playthrough. The plasma cutter only run on hard was surprisingly fun, although the tentacle enemies in the walls were incredibly frustrating during it.
I'd probably put this game on the same level as the Resident Evil remakes in terms of how much I loved it. I might even love it as much as 4's remake. This game just feels really special and I'm so excited to play the sequels.