just finished it. up until i got to the red forest, i was ready to mark this down in my all time favorites. the atmosphere is pretty much unmatched, i loved every second of trudging through the countryside getting into skirmishes with bandits and dogs. i loved the horror atmosphere of the bunkers as well, incredibly done.

really did not enjoy the final three maps though. the hardest difficulty setting felt good up until the red forest, where suddenly nearly every piece of cover is radiated, you can be fighting a dozen enemies at once coming from all angles, and any bed / vendor is a good 15 minute walk away. the final two maps, while still having a relatively wide arena, turn the game into one long hallway packed with too many human enemies and too many invisible enviornmental hazards. i played through the final two maps at night as well, where there was basically no visibility whatsoever. this is probably my fault, but a twenty minute walk to find a bed to sleep in to pass the time just did not seem fun to me at all.

that being said, i think this is a fantastic game that is worth a playthrough. i've made at least 4 attempts to get into this game over the years, and i'm glad that i found the patience to appreciate the jank. can't wait to check out the rest of the series.