I thought this game was gonna be pretty mid when it got announced...God damn was I wrong. This shit was an absolute blast to play and It's an easy recommendation for those interested.
The gunplay is super fast, the controls are tight, and the weapons are all viable. The procedural levels and swarms of enemies can seem like a lot at first, but the more you play, the better you get, and soon you'll find yourself flying through the air, evading projectiles like it's nothing. Or you'll die 200 times, as the difficulty curve seems to affect certain people differently. Personally, I found it hard, but not too brutal, and ended with 13 deaths. But I can see where others might have a different result. Im my experience, the bosses (while visually stunning) weren't that difficult, and the bulk of my deaths came when fighting the swarms of elite enemies populating the different levels. Some of those guys are rat bastards, and they definitely gave me the most trouble. Despite only having 13 deaths though, it felt like more, because losing a 2-3 hour run really stings. But that's what made surviving that much more satisfying. It's a great risk-reward cycle.
The visual design of the game is what surprised me the most however, as I was not prepared for how cool it was. Clearly inspired by the works of H.R. Giger and Beksinski, Housemarque has crafted this incredible sci-fi world that feels as haunting as it is gorgeous, and the 2nd, 3rd, and 6th biomes are some of my favorite locations in recent gaming memory. Despite the fact that these levels are procedural, the design is that damn good that they are immediately memorable, even having to replay entirely new versions of them.
The music is also fantastic, with this droning, wailing ambience floating in and out while exploring, and some nice high-octane electronic tracks to push the pace during fights. It's all around great stuff, and the sound design as a whole is incredible. The world feels alive around you, the enemies shriek and holler in your ears, and the projectiles and pick ups have satisfying clicks, crunches and pops. It's top tier stuff.
As far as the story is concerned, there's not a whole lot to go off of, but what we have is interesting. It's a supernatural tale told through fractured and untrustworthy memories of our main character Seline. It's vauge, but it's interesting nonetheless and I think it's a solid narrative for the game.
I don't really have much to complain about aside from a few nitpicks, but if I did have a more sizeable complaint, it would be that the performance was spotty in some areas. A large chunk of the game is running at 60fps, but as more enemies come on screen it can definitely drop much lower, which is a bit of a shame to still see even on the PS5.
Aside from that however, this game is fantastic, and really blew me away. It's one of the best game's I've played in a while, and definitely one of the best we'll see this year.
9/10
The gunplay is super fast, the controls are tight, and the weapons are all viable. The procedural levels and swarms of enemies can seem like a lot at first, but the more you play, the better you get, and soon you'll find yourself flying through the air, evading projectiles like it's nothing. Or you'll die 200 times, as the difficulty curve seems to affect certain people differently. Personally, I found it hard, but not too brutal, and ended with 13 deaths. But I can see where others might have a different result. Im my experience, the bosses (while visually stunning) weren't that difficult, and the bulk of my deaths came when fighting the swarms of elite enemies populating the different levels. Some of those guys are rat bastards, and they definitely gave me the most trouble. Despite only having 13 deaths though, it felt like more, because losing a 2-3 hour run really stings. But that's what made surviving that much more satisfying. It's a great risk-reward cycle.
The visual design of the game is what surprised me the most however, as I was not prepared for how cool it was. Clearly inspired by the works of H.R. Giger and Beksinski, Housemarque has crafted this incredible sci-fi world that feels as haunting as it is gorgeous, and the 2nd, 3rd, and 6th biomes are some of my favorite locations in recent gaming memory. Despite the fact that these levels are procedural, the design is that damn good that they are immediately memorable, even having to replay entirely new versions of them.
The music is also fantastic, with this droning, wailing ambience floating in and out while exploring, and some nice high-octane electronic tracks to push the pace during fights. It's all around great stuff, and the sound design as a whole is incredible. The world feels alive around you, the enemies shriek and holler in your ears, and the projectiles and pick ups have satisfying clicks, crunches and pops. It's top tier stuff.
As far as the story is concerned, there's not a whole lot to go off of, but what we have is interesting. It's a supernatural tale told through fractured and untrustworthy memories of our main character Seline. It's vauge, but it's interesting nonetheless and I think it's a solid narrative for the game.
I don't really have much to complain about aside from a few nitpicks, but if I did have a more sizeable complaint, it would be that the performance was spotty in some areas. A large chunk of the game is running at 60fps, but as more enemies come on screen it can definitely drop much lower, which is a bit of a shame to still see even on the PS5.
Aside from that however, this game is fantastic, and really blew me away. It's one of the best game's I've played in a while, and definitely one of the best we'll see this year.
9/10