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The Order: 1886 |OT| Gears of Yore

viveks86

Member
The game you described based on the reveal trailer doesn't really appeal to me as much tbh. I prefer a focused single player campaign to a co-op based one. Always feel campaigns that are made to accomodate co-op do not have the same quality of story or overall cohesion as some of those designed without. But in all fairness, the best thing to me would be having plenty of games that offer both. Got Gears etc for the co op orientated stuff, and Uncharted, The Order etc for single player focused stuff.

Wait a sec, when did I say anything about a co-op based game? I was merely referring to the AI and where you fought dozens of Lycans with the AI. I'm not a big fan of co-op either.
 
The game you described based on the reveal trailer doesn't really appeal to me as much tbh. I prefer a focused single player campaign to a co-op based one. Always feel campaigns that are made to accomodate co-op do not have the same quality of story or overall cohesion as some of those designed without. But in all fairness, the best thing to me would be having plenty of games that offer both. Got Gears etc for the co op orientated stuff, and Uncharted, The Order etc for single player focused stuff.

nib, not sure if it's the same as what's described by viveks, (avoiding his super-detailed review until I play the game), but my hope for the game based on the reveal trailer would've been...

I can't find it now, but I posted another thing, in regards to what I consider the 'aggregation' of what The Order needs to deliver in order for it to be a great game, which was all the factors shown in the initial reveal trailer.

Just like how Uncharted's train sequence/falling buildings was the aggregation of the game's strengths, in which traversal, dynamic gunplay, set-pieces and storytelling ( the ability for the story to make you feel invested in that Nathan Drake mass-murders an entire train sequence ), I wanted the final product of The Order to have that same aggregation of different gameplay pieces that matches together all of which made the reveal trailer.

Lycans that could leap from roof-top to roof-top and leap onto you in a single jump. Levels that took advantage of said enemy's verticality/horizontal abilities. Amazing atmospheric design that allows the game to feel both horror and action. Action that took advantage of the fact that you're a team of 4 knights with unique weapons, either by excellent AI, or mechanics that allowed for dynamic team-play.

At the end of the day, it does seem like the game really only delivered on the core shooting mechanics and the atmosphere. I can enjoy a game based on just that, but it definitely failed to achieve what I felt could've been an Uncharted 2 moment had they achieved all of the above.

As an additional point, what I mean by dynamic team play doesn't mean co-op or stuff, but rather core gameplay mechanics that allowed you to take advantage of your companion AI to do awesome things in-game.
 
Wait a sec, when did I say anything about a co-op based game? I was merely referring to the AI and where you fought dozens of Lycans with the AI. I'm not a big fan of co-op either.

The game was really lack set pieces , the ending of the first trailer they showed should have end being one.
The lycans would have made awesome ones or a 3 way battle set piece of the factions .
So much lost potential happen to this game.
 

nib95

Banned
Wait a sec, when did I say anything about a co-op based game? I was merely referring to the AI and where you fought dozens of Lycans with the AI. I'm not a big fan of co-op either.

Oh, in that case I definitely agree. Just realised I got your post confused with another that wanted/expected the game to be multi player co op based on that reveal trailer. But yea, Lycan combat in general was very underutilised.
 

sono

Member
I was just adding this to my wish list and noticed it is the #1 best seller in PC and Video games on Amazon uk at the moment.

ordersalesbrsai.jpg
 
Anyone using a good collectable guide? I scoured the game but didn't get any of the collectable trophies lol so will probably have to go through the game again
 

jonno394

Member
Just finished, now that was some excellent entertainment. I pray that we get a sequel as the world, characters and story were fantastic and I need more.
 

eFKac

Member
Got to chapter 4 yesterday, still waiting for the game sucking as the reviews told me.

Honestly it's even better than I have expected so far. Especially gameplay mechanics, I thought you'd be limited to walking, sprinting, getting in and out of cover and shooting. There's a lot more to the game, even if the secondary mechanics aren't heavily fleshed out.
 
If I were RAD I would, at the very least, patch in an 'Arcade Mode' that strings together all of the combat sections, adds a scoring system, and lets you play them in sequence. That couldn't take more than a months work.

I think they have to take some time to make these things (or say definitively that they can't do it) to stop the stigma of trade-ins - loads of copies on the second hand shelves is possibly more damaging than poor reviews. Not everybody sees the reviews, so I expect more will see the used copies on shelves and make a decision from that ('loads of trade-ins must mean it's shit').

As much as DLC is hated, we've seen how much life it can breathe into a game after the original sales, especially single player add-ons that expand the main game, and even more so if they're reasonably cheap, or free.

I think RAD could rescue things a little if they take the time to expand this game rather than race into the sequel. Giving away mercenary/score attack/horde modes would be a (relatively?) easy start like you say,
 

GHG

Gold Member
I would be happy with a driveclub like patch:

- option to permanently remove the HUD and tutorial popups.
- photomode
- some kind of arcade mode with leaderboards
- a higher difficulty level than hard

That said, even if they don't add those things in still having a fantastic time and they should be proud of the work they've done.
 

Wabba

Member
Just reached level 8, can't really see the bashing this game got, it is a very solid game in what it tries to achieve, the atmosphere is almost unmatched and the gameplay is really tight. I understand some of the critics this game got, but 1/5 star reviews are a shame and i feel bad for the developers because this game is so much better then that.
 
Loved it. I want a sequel that expands on it the same way Uncharted 2 did for Uncharted 1.

8.5 hours total, kinda sped through the last 2 chapters due to how late it's getting. Didn't bother much with collectibles, will check the guide and jump back in tomorrow for the Plat!

Only section I didn't like was in Chapter 11
that fucking stealth section was messy as fuck! Seriously need either more checkpoints or just allow you to stealth melee from the front. Was awful sneaking up on someone only to have them turn at the last second and ruin the QTE, leading to you having to restart the whole damn sequence lol. Surely easy enough to patch into the game, should have been done during play testing!
.

Oh actually the run mechanic being locked away at times was jarring in terms of immersion but it makes sense that Galahad wouldn't be jogging in certain circumstances lol.

Otherwise I loved it. Chapter 9 is my favourite.
 

Auto_aim1

MeisaMcCaffrey
Wasn't there a Necromorph in the Dead Space games that used to charge like the
Lycans in this game?

Not sure but the fight sequence reminds me of that.
 
Wasn't there a Necromorph in the Dead Space games that used to charge like the
Lycans in this game?

Not sure but the fight sequence reminds me of that.

Yeah, there was. Except those things were so much worse because they would generally come after you in larger groups, and the sound they made before they charged was horrifying. It was okay if you could track down who was about to charge before they did, but the moment you hear them screech and you don't know where it's coming from... *shudders*.
 

viveks86

Member
Surprised that so many people had trouble with the stealth sequences. I think I died once in total! It was so easy after all the training from TLOU. That's why I didn't even think of mentioning it in my review...
 

AJ_Wings

Member
Wasn't there a Necromorph in the Dead Space games that used to charge like the
Lycans in this game?

Not sure but the fight sequence reminds me of that.

That was Dead Space 2 and honestly judging from the footage I've seen of the Lycan encounters, Visceral does a whole lot more with the necromorph runners than RAD did with the Lycans.

The first time you meet them, it's in a really similar situation and area. Dark warehouse with crates that lead to different paths and enemy AI that can climb on top of them...etc. But in Dead Space 2, that first encounter was used as an opportunity to try out the Detonator that lets you lay mines on walls, floors and ceilings. There are also various physics objects that you can use to your advantage like exploding and stasis barrels. In later encounters, they even mix it up with those weird fleshy mine things that are an environmental hazard and that you can use to your advantage against said runners. The Order has no such complexity to its Lycan encounters from what I've seen. Heck, it's done in a much clumsier fashion since the Lycans don't have such an obvious sound cue like the runners from DS2 to let the player know that one is closing in on them. I've seen many players get smacked around from the side because they didn't see where they were coming from.

Really weird how simplistic and half-baked the encounters with the Lycans turned out.
 

dark10x

Digital Foundry pixel pusher
Anyone else feel that the segments before the final showdown demonstrated some noticeably improved AI routines? Up until that point I felt that enemies generally held back during most combat sequences but, in that underground area, they were super aggressive and more interesting. The way enemies flooded into the room and immediately started encircling the player, forcing them from cover was fantastic. The shotgun and grenade guys on top of that made things really tense - you really had to focus on taking them out quickly.

The scenery was the least impressive in the game, really, but the battles themselves were excellent.

That was Dead Space 2 and honestly judging from the footage I've seen of the Lycan encounters, Visceral does a whole lot more with the necromorph runners than RAD did with the Lycans.
Aack, the Lycan stuff was such a misfire here. I didn't mind those sequences or anything but, man, they didn't do anything special with it. You basically did the fight three times in the same exact type of arena with the same number of enemies. It felt completely recycled. Wasted potential there.
 

Alucrid

Banned
Anyone else feel that the segments before the final showdown demonstrated some noticeably improved AI routines? Up until that point I felt that enemies generally held back during most combat sequences but, in that underground area, they were super aggressive and more interesting. The way enemies flooded into the room and immediately started encircling the player, forcing them from cover was fantastic. The shotgun and grenade guys on top of that made things really tense - you really had to focus on taking them out quickly.

The scenery was the least impressive in the game, really, but the battles themselves were excellent.


Aack, the Lycan stuff was such a misfire here. I didn't mind those sequences or anything but, man, they didn't do anything special with it. You basically did the fight three times in the same exact type of arena with the same number of enemies. It felt completely recycled. Wasted potential there.

i think it was that they sent in like...three armored guys at once. can't think of a time before that where there was more than one there. also the cover in that room wasn't that great. most fights in the game left a large gap between you and the enemy. here there wasn't anywhere to retreat to.
 

Creamium

shut uuuuuuuuuuuuuuup
Got my platinum, I'm done. I could see myself replaying this someday, was an enjoyable experience. I'm glad I listened to the impressions here instead of the reviews, because some writers take this game out to the shed for no reason. There are enough issues to be found in this game, but nothing that really warrants a total lynching.

My final impressions:

- for a game that has a heavy cinematic focus, the gunplay feels very satisfying and cleary got a lot of attention. Most of the Tesla weapons are really fun to use, but there aren't enough opportunities to. The thermite gun in particular is just a blast, but you only get it in two segments.
- The encounters themselves are fun enough, but the design isn't too intricate. If a sequel happens, I'd like to have some encounters where you can flank or at least try different approaches.
- Even though the game is short, in that timespan RAD managed to create an interesting world, one that really needs to be fleshed out more. Hoping for a sequel again.
- 'The Order'... of nosebreathers. Once you hear it...
"Breathe through your goddamn mouth!"

- Even though there are pacing problems here and there, I definitely think there was enough 'game' to this. There are some story and cutscene heavy segments, but never overly long.
- I'm okay with small text prompts, but the game kept doing it after the move/mechanic had already been explained. At least allow me to turn it off.
- The shotgun rushers are major assholes. These guys do not mess around. The shotguns in general are crazy powerful in the game, and they even deal high damage at a longer range.
- The lycan fights at first reminded me of the fights with the cave crawlers in Uncharted 1. Not the highlight of that game, but here it's worse. There's nothing to these fights, and every encounter is the same. They could've made these enemies fast, smart and scary, but they're neither of those. A real missed opportunity.
- The exact copy of
the lycan elder 'battle'
is a real shame and leaves a lazy impression. This is not a thing you want to cut corners on.
- Galahad has different 'modes'. I can see why they won't allow you to control guns all the time, but you should always be able to run.
- I have seen people complaining about the short chapters, or those with no gameplay in them. For me this is kind of a non-issue. The chapters are story beats. Some beats are long (like ch3 and 11), while others have important stuff happening in them, but in a short timespan (like 12-14). Books have 20 page and 1 page chapters, it happens. I do agree that having chapters with no gameplay at all is kind of lame though.
- Some people are going crazy over the OST, but I don't think it's that impressive. The only track I love so far is Agamemnon Rising.

Have the devs said anything about possible dlc? I'd love some tbh. I was bummed out after the epilogue, things were just getting interesting.
 

RamzaIsCool

The Amiga Brotherhood
Finished it. Kinda liked it, despite some baffling design choices. The game needed more gameplay parts in the first few hours. The downtime parts should have been more interesting, dunno only walking becomes tedious after a while. And the way it just ends is just wrong! When you introduce some things in the game atleast wrap it up in a satisfying way, you don't need to conclude it, but don't leave the player hanging like that. It just feels they cut out the last act of the game. Either the person responsible for this is really misguided in the way he/ she thought how to end a game or they saved it for the time they can sell us the DLC for the "real" ending.

That said, it's pretty good and not nearly as content starved as some people make it out to be. Hopefully they get the chance to have another swing at it. With some adjustments it could turn into a pretty special series. I am rooting for you guys at RaD! Good luck!

And yup best graphics I have ever seen!
 

Ricker

Member
Just finished as well,really liked it besides the usual complaints,like lenght and not having a few extra things to do and the tracking of the newspaper and stuff like that,also the tiny subtitles and hints,making some Lore hard to read...the QTE where generous enough time wise for me that even though I generally hate them,it was ok here...also a better variety with the Lycans and ''other'' supernatural stuff would of been nice...

But because of the gorgeous graphics,incredible atmosphere,amazing voice acting,great cutscene directing, and some great TPS sequences,if I had to put a number on it,I would give it a solid 8/10,I had a great,although short,time with the game.
 
Finished the game yesterday. It was a fantastic ride that had me hooked and I beat it in two long play sessions. I'm guessing it took me around 8hrs.

Presentation was flawless. The most impressive game visually ive ever seen and the art direction was also top notch.
Sound was top quality too. Great weapon sounds, ambience, voice acting and the music (although used sparingly) was incredible.
The game oozes atmosphere.
Gameplay was basic but fun, solid shooting mechanics and the cover system worked well, although it's been done better elsewhere.
The QTE werent overused but did sometimes feel unnecessary.

The game failed by not giving enough variety in its actual gameplay. It's basically - walking from place to place, QTEs, shooting segments and the odd hacking mini game and stealth segment. I would have also liked to see some big set piece moments. Surprised by their absence considering Uncharted 2 was a huge inspiration for the devs.

The story was pretty well executed, great dialogue, decent pacing and some nice twists. It did end on a very abrupt and anti climatic note though and was pure sequel bait.

Overall I'd recommend the game to fans of story focused, single player action adventure games. Just maybe not at full price. While I really enjoyed the game it felt like there was a lot of squandered potential so I'd agree with the scores it's been getting.
 

Auto_aim1

MeisaMcCaffrey
Yeah, there was. Except those things were so much worse because they would generally come after you in larger groups, and the sound they made before they charged was horrifying. It was okay if you could track down who was about to charge before they did, but the moment you hear them screech and you don't know where it's coming from... *shudders*.

That was Dead Space 2 and honestly judging from the footage I've seen of the Lycan encounters, Visceral does a whole lot more with the necromorph runners than RAD did with the Lycans.

The first time you meet them, it's in a really similar situation and area. Dark warehouse with crates that lead to different paths and enemy AI that can climb on top of them...etc. But in Dead Space 2, that first encounter was used as an opportunity to try out the Detonator that lets you lay mines on walls, floors and ceilings. There are also various physics objects that you can use to your advantage like exploding and stasis barrels. In later encounters, they even mix it up with those weird fleshy mine things that are an environmental hazard and that you can use to your advantage against said runners. The Order has no such complexity to its Lycan encounters from what I've seen. Heck, it's done in a much clumsier fashion since the Lycans don't have such an obvious sound cue like the runners from DS2 to let the player know that one is closing in on them. I've seen many players get smacked around from the side because they didn't see where they were coming from.

Really weird how simplistic and half-baked the encounters with the Lycans turned out.
Yup, the Stalker!

Compared to Dead Space 2, the Lycan fights were poorly implemented. Honestly it's a missed opportunity because they looked pretty menacing but were so easy to kill.
 

funkypie

Banned
I am truly disappointed with this game, just finished it and I am already putting it on ebay.

game is far too short and just went it starts to get interesting, it is over. To many cut scenes disguised as chapters to trick the player into thinking the game is longer than it is.

chapters 12 to 14 are nothing but cut scenes and the final chapter where you actually play the game is short. The game is essentially finished at the end of chapter 11.

game positives are the main character, the visuals (obviously) and the sound. Everything else is boring. Feels like half a game, cut short where they will probably finished the rest with DLC or a sequel.
 

Ricker

Member
Another thing that I found strange are the trophies..usually I get a bunch of Bronze trophies and a few Gold and Silver(never got a Plat yet),but in this game I got no Bronze just 5 Silver and 3 Gold,just thought it was funny.
 

sobaka770

Banned
Finished the game, so here is my opinion.

Good:
- Graphics, sound and immersion are all unparalleled and I don’t think I need to repeat what everybody knows already. AC: Unity can reach this level of brilliance at times on my PC, but the quality of presentation and consistency in the Order is on a different level. The UI (or lack of thereof in some cases), the attention to detail are masterful.

- Gunplay: Guns are loud, fun to use and are all actually good. The weapons like Termite Gun and Lightning Gun have great design and actually feel unique. Some people said that “Special” guns are used rarely, but I found it not to be the case, since you can pick them up from tougher enemies. Firefights, combined with astounding graphics are a joy, with smoke traces from bullets, juicy explosions. There are moments where it just clicks together and the firefight becomes a brilliant mess. Also, blind shooting from the cover is awesome and needs from now on to be like this in every TPS game. Black Sight is undercooked a bit, in my opinion it needs a stronger slow-mo to really show off the kills, but it’s still cool to pull it off.

- Setpieces and other cool stuff: there is not too many of those, but what works, works brilliantly leading to some of the greatest moments in gaming. The Agamemnon aircraft descent is mesmerising to play through (even though it’s obviously scripted), as are several other scenes in the game, like the beginning.
I enjoyed the Elder Lycan fights as well for its overall choreography and a good use of QTEs.

- Overall experience: before I go to bash the game, it needs to be said that overall the game is engaging and is a fine diversion for 9 hours it took me to beat it on Hard. Also, it may be ridiculous to mention it, but still, the game has no apparent bugs. Therefore you can actually play it and not be pulled out of the experience by a sudden glitch, stutter or pop-in unlike some recent AAA releases. In my opinion, when certain games are fixed only when they are already on sale, it’s more of a waste of money. I didn’t feel that my money was wasted on this game, since I don’t care for multiplayer and the campaign length is adequate.

Bad:
-Plot Exposition: I didn’t find the plot to be bad in the game overall, it’s actually quite engaging, but the first 2 hours of game are all exposition, and during this exposition there are still key questions which are left unanswered. The story really lacks a proxy-for-the-audience character who would ask stupid questions, like:
Where do Lycans come from? What do rebels want/who do they rebel against exactly? What is Blackwater? What does East India Company do? What is the backstory or Lafayette or Percival Etc.?
The game starts in-medias-res which is fine, but considering that all the cast including the main character are in-the-know about everything, there is no one to lay down the basics of the universe for the player. Some games replace this exposition with collectible items (e.g. Bioshock: Infinite) which help shape the world. However the amount of collectibles left by RAD is far too small and they don’t add much to the narrative. Speaking of collectibles:

-Collectibles: the guy who suggested that newspapers must have tiny text and not be kept transcribed in the library like audio messages needs to be flogged. WTF, man?

- Player agency: I liked the cutscenes since they are well-done with excellent camerawork and lighting. However, in early-game there is a cutscene for everything, from opening the door to going down the stairs. This is unnecessary and it’s boring for the player, why not let me just approach the guy/open the door myself? It’s the same thing with other actions, like melee or jumping. Don’t wait for grenade to be close to make me jump and let me use my knife at all times. Some areas where you can walk around, especially in the beginning of the game, really needed some NPCs to talk with and just more options for exploration.

- (Some) QTEs: I don’t mind the QTEs when they are done well. In the Order it’s a hit-and-miss kind of thing, some QTEs are fine and fun, but sometimes you get a long cutscene and then a QTE flashes for a split second leading to a failure state if the player is not 100% focused. This is just silly design.

Ugly:
-Lycan fights: what was that??? This was the first thing advertised for the game so I assume it’s not that they ran out of money to design the fights properly, but this is lazy. You fight lycans 3 times in the game, in the same “room” and it’s a bloody game of shoot-at-them-then-dodge repeated ad nauseam. Just don’t have them in-game if these encounters are the worst thing in it, it’s not like in terms of narrative having these fights was even necessary…

-Wasted opportunities: The biggest disappointment and probably the reason why the reviews are so harsh is that there are so many things in the game which are on the verge of being great. When you play the game and you’re hyped for something and then it turns out simply OK, bah… what a mess.

The lycan fights didn’t need to be so dull. Why is Galahad always alone in these fights? Why can’t the lycans be less dangerous, i.e. manageable in melee fight but allow for them to come in groups and have awesome horde mode shootouts against a dozen of them or close-combat knife QTE encounters?

I talked about how cool the airship setpiece was because it really matched the hype and the chapter overall was awesome.

On the other hand, that bomb drop scene and lycan appearance overrunning the building, how awesome is that? Well it’s actually not really cool at all, since it’s not explained what the bomb does (although it seems that it makes lycans flee, fine), you have little agency in the whole bomb-dropping cutscene. Why not let the lycans rabidly attack us forcing the previously mentioned horde mode while you hold the line until the bomb drop? Instead, there’s just a cutscene and after the bomb removes all the threat, you then proceed to yet another sewer level only then you don’t fight a single lycan but the boss who is still there for some reason.

For every awesome shootout, there is a messy one with ridiculous enemy spawning mechanics. For every fair and challenging shootout, there’s one with 2 shotgunners spawning in wave 5 from a side door forcing you to restart the whole thing. The game opens up with a great view of London only to then lead you into sewers and lifeless alleys for the first couple of hours.

It’s cool to pick up collectibles and see them in-game, don’t force me to hold them for 5 seconds, I didn’t think it would be an issue, but actually it’s extremely noticeable, as the gameplay just halts while you twist Galahad hands.

-Game pacing and end: The game starts slowly and boringly, mostly because of the points above,. Then you reach chapter 3, and it kicks into overdrive. I actually don’t see why people say that there’s not enough gameplay, if you don’t think in terms of chapters (some of which can take an hour and others only consist of a 5-minute cutscene), there’s a lot of shooting, traversal and Heavy-Rain-QTE to do. You’ll get a lot of action, but it’s paced horribly, as it really opens up in the middle of the game with the airship
and the awesome bridge sequence
only to once again dial it down towards the end without any final escalation in terms of gameplay. The ending isn’t ugly just because it’s obviously a set-up for the sequel. Narratively, I didn’t mind the game ending because a major plot line was closed with it, and if you bought into the universe, into the characters, it was a defining moment for Galahad. However, the final mission, and the final few chapters overall revert to the slog and uninspired shootouts from the beginning of the game.
The last major shootout is just a fight against guards in the sewer, come on!

Conclusion:
So here we go, the game is not bad, it certainly is fun and I really hope that sequel gets made, because by God, if RAD fixes some of the silly stuff in this game and makes it a bit more “conventional” in terms of having more open gameplay, we can have a stunning game on our hands. As it is, the Order is a solid 7.5/10 for me, personally.

RAD really needs to trust the players more in certain places to make this game a gem. Naughty Dog really makes great set pieces in which you can play, like a moving train or crashing airplane. RAD had it with the airship and Elder fight, but sometimes, you really want to “play” the cutscene instead of watching it. Naughty Dogs also make linear levels which appear more open than they are and don’t have a dozen dead-ends, and let’s not forget that RAD needs to get the pacing right with climactic, cinematic, frenetic shootouts towards the end of the game and not in the middle of it.
That’s my 2 cents in 1500 words 
 
Surprised that so many people had trouble with the stealth sequences. I think I died once in total! It was so easy after all the training from TLOU. That's why I didn't even think of mentioning it in my review...

Yeah same here. I'm in the minority that I actually enjoyed that section as it felt just like TLOU in a way. I didn't have any trouble with the QTE's as I made sure I was watching the guard movements before I did anything. That part was oozing atmosphere too.
 
Another thing that I found strange are the trophies..usually I get a bunch of Bronze trophies and a few Gold and Silver(never got a Plat yet),but in this game I got no Bronze just 5 Silver and 3 Gold,just thought it was funny.

Yeah they didn't give a flying fuck about the trophies in this game. Proper half arsed it. I managed to get my platinum about 5 minutes ago after just one playthrough and grabbing a few missed collectibles. No skill involved in any of them to be honest lol.
 

cormack12

Gold Member
Oh yeah one thing they do need to fix is the stealth takedown not relative to the speed of the player. It was frustrating creeping quickly and hitting the back of the NPC as the QTE was still waiting to hit the sweet spot.
 

mujun

Member
I'm up to chapter 9 or 10 after getting the game yesterday and putting 5 or so hours in (guesstimation).

There isn't enough gameplay. It is a decent TPS but the meat of the game (for me, anyway), the shooting is spread out too much between lots of cutscenes, sections where you have limited control (oh, I'm on the verge of death again!), check out the surroundings sections, etc. I find it hard to get a feel for the game because of the way it is structured. I need a whole lot of shooting (or whatever the core gameplay is) in comparison to the other more peripheral stuff to, a) enjoy the game and b) be able to vividly remember the enjoyment I had playing it.

Even if this game were to do this it still only has decent shooting and the level design doesn't fill me with hope that RAD could do bigger or longer sections with any proficiency.

I dig the setting and find it to be fresh and original. The backstory is definitely doled out sparingly and intriguing. The actual story though is not very well written and makes some weird concessions seemingly for the sake of gameplay or to use a certain setting.

You expect me to believe that a giant zeppelin maneuvers above another huge zeppelin without drawing any attention and then you are forced to stealth through despite the fact you brutally dispatch every guard you sneak up on with a flurry of blows from a machete? Also why don't Galahad's people back him up when he's going after the rebels. They are lying dead all over the place, armed to the teeth, enough evidence that they are a threat and yet continuing across the bridge is some huge act of betrayal, especially when no other forces seemed to be dealing with them camped out metres from the HQ of the knights. I found the story hard to fathom at points in terms of motivations and the logic behind different decisions by the characters.

The game is certainly beautiful but the level design doesn't do it many favors. There are a lot of corridors and small areas combined with little in the way of chances to enjoy exploring.

The setting reminds me of Dishonored, I wish that the actual gameplay and ability to immerse yourself in the world was there with this game, too.
 
Yeah same here. I'm in the minority that I actually enjoyed that section as it felt just like TLOU in a way. I didn't have any trouble with the QTE's as I made sure I was watching the guard movements before I did anything. That part was oozing atmosphere too.

Yeah that part was fine. And you had a crossbow..
 

Jito

Banned
You expect me to believe that a giant zeppelin maneuvers above another huge zeppelin without drawing any attention and then you are forced to stealth through despite the fact you brutally dispatch every guard you sneak up on with a flurry of blows from a machete? Also why don't Galahad's people back him up when he's going after the rebels. They are lying dead all over the place, armed to the teeth, enough evidence that they are a threat and yet continuing across the bridge is some huge act of betrayal, especially when no other forces seemed to be dealing with them camped out metres from the HQ of the knights. I found the story hard to fathom at points in terms of motivations and the logic behind different decisions by the characters.

These things really confused me as well,
they say that a few rebels have infiltrated the airship then proceed to brutally murder every guard on board, including the pilot and his crew in the cockpit. Then at that bridge section, how did the rebels set up sandbags and launch an all out assault on Westminster in the heart of London? And all the rest of the knights get pissed because Galahad wants to kill rebels that are attacking Westminster? What?!
Such brilliant story telling.
 

levitan

Member
I can't help but feel that this game is going into a kind of
new world order
story in the sequels...if you think about
shipping vampires to the new world
, the Order, Tesla and all that stuff.
 
Anyone using a good collectable guide? I scoured the game but didn't get any of the collectable trophies lol so will probably have to go through the game again

i just wish the game had a collectable checklist, can't be bothered to play through it all over again to make sure i've touched all newspapers etc. :E
 
So I finally bought the game today and played it until chapter 5. So far so good. Graphic wise I think the game really set the bar when it comes to cinematic games. Amazing stuff right there.

Really liking the game so far but I'll save my final thought until I actually finished the game :)
 
i just wish the game had a collectable checklist, can't be bothered to play through it all over again to make sure i've touched all newspapers etc. :E

Yeah it's pretty annoying. Although if you just whack up a guide on youtube and go through chapter select it doesn't take very long. Talking a few hours max even if you got bugger all of them during your first playthrough.
 

JohngPR

Member
I beat it in a little over 7 hours. The gunplay actually got more fun as the game went along. The thermite gun and arc rifles were neat and felt very powerful, which is probably why they limited your use of them. Overall it was solid, and had a nice weight to it but nothing you haven't seen before.

That's the game's biggest problem really, there's nothing really remarkable about it outside of the visuals. Everything is either well done or serviceable. My biggest complaint really ended up being just how little there is for you to do when you're not shooting at guys. The game could have done a lot better for itself if they gave you more to do when you were walking around its environments. It almost felt like an adventure game during those parts, but they didn't go far enough with it. It felt a bit like a super stripped down Heavy Rain during the non shooting parts. The game would have been a lot more interesting if they leaned into that more.

But man, those visuals. I'm pretty sure it's the best looking game I've ever seen...PC or otherwise. The amount of times I was surprised that I had control of the game was crazy. :p

At worst it's a fun rental so you can gawk at how pretty the game is (and holy shit does it look pretty). At best, it's a fun shooter with an interesting atmosphere/story that needed that something extra in the gameplay to make it special.

I liked my time with the game.
 
I've just completed it. I enjoyed the game overall, despite the myriad of flaws it has. It definitely picked up in its last few chapters and restored a lot of my good will in it in the process. I'm not too surprised by the muted critical response, but it's in no way deserving of anything below an average score.

Brief impressions...

+ Cor blimey, those graphics. There's no denying this is the best looking game I've laid eyes on. Couldn't help but stop dead in my tracks at some of the vistas, particularly during the airship chapter.
+ Impeccable sound and art design.
+ Strong acting. A lot of the dialogue was well written and engaging too.
+ The gunplay is exquisite. The game shines through some of its more exotic arsenal. A shame then that some of the better weapons are terribly under-used. How do you create the GOAT in the thermite gun, and then give the player only three or so opportunities to use it? That gun was SO good.
+ Understated and likeable lead character.

- Terrible lycan encounters. Just... unspeakably bad. I'm simultaneous amazed at how far in the background the lycans are pushed throughout the course of the game, yet supremely thankful that I didn't have to tolerate too many of those fights.
- Too much forced walking.
- Gameplay is interrupted too often.
- Story only gains traction in the last few chapters.
- Ends far too abruptly. Too many loose ends.
- Overpowered shotgun enemies can get fucked.

7/10. Grayson (character spoiler)
really needs to bang the hot Indian chick in the sequel.
No futzing around RaD - make it so! Seriously though, I would really love a sequel. It has the potential to be great with the right person manning the team this time.
 

Apt101

Member
I only just started playing this morning. Obviously it's amazing looking. I knew it was going to look good but it's kind of surprising just how great it looks and feels. I like how it feels a little Heavy Rain like punctuated with periods of varied action-oriented gameplay. It feels competent if stilted at times, and then other times I find myself moving about fluidly and taking down enemies with a bit of variety. I'm digging it. I want to get more into the story, interesting so far.
 
Surprised that so many people had trouble with the stealth sequences. I think I died once in total! It was so easy after all the training from TLOU. That's why I didn't even think of mentioning it in my review...
Yeah, there were a non issue for me as well. I just sniped everyone with the
crossbow
as soon as they were on their own (no one else around). I was really struck by all the lanterns in the garden grounds... incredible lighting.
 
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