gunsmoke on 1/3/2013 at 13:20
Ha!
I was got the 1st game a couple months ago, and I am now excited about this game. Mostly because I like the setting, but would like to see the gameplay 'tuned' a bit as I thought the 1st game was a little rough.
faetal on 4/3/2013 at 13:34
I must finish the 1st game some time.
Muzman on 16/5/2013 at 13:24
It's kind of amazing. It makes the Ukraine sound like it might as well be game designing in Afghanistan or somewhere.
faetal on 16/5/2013 at 15:00
Quote:
If 4A had been given a more competitive budget, in a saner environment, hadn't wasted a year-plus chasing the irrational requirement of THQ's original producers to fit multiplayer and co-op into the same deadline and budget(!), hadn't had to deal with the transition to a new publisher in the crucial few months before final, what could 4A have created?
Is it outside the realms of reality to wonder if this may have
contributed somehow to the game? It's a bleak game and it sounds like they had plenty to draw on.
Sulphur on 16/5/2013 at 15:54
Sure. Creativity's true potential is always unleashed when there's restrictions placed on it. Like the demo scene and the mindblowing things they do in a bunch of kilobytes.
Maybe all creative work would be better served by being bound and shackled instead of having imaginations given free reign? I dunno, I like a world where there's freedom to choose. Not having a proper chair to sit on at your workplace is ridiculous shit that calls for a union or some sort of oversight committee action.
faetal on 16/5/2013 at 16:03
Oh I didn't mean that I approve of their situation - far from. Just can't help but feel that maybe if they had a tonne of money thrown at them, that money would likely come with execs telling them not to take risks.
Vicarious on 18/5/2013 at 12:21
I'm encountering an annoying graphical bug. You know that heat effect usually used for fire and such? Well it looks like a bunch of blocky sprites with a jelly-like consistency. In addition each shot fired has a circular "shockwave" effect. Both of those look ugly and distracting. At first I thought that's how it's meant to be until I discovered that it all looks fine on Very High settings. It's messed up on all the others.
I haven't found a solution to that (although a couple of people have mentioned it as well). If anyone comes across a fix, let me know. I'll keep an eye out, maybe the patch will get it right. My rig won't handle Very High settings and playing with this horrible shockwave after each shot is not something I want to do.
EvaUnit02 on 18/5/2013 at 13:53
Listing your video card and its manufacturer would help.
You might have some stupid driver forced graphical feature(s) overriding the game's native settings. AMD Catalyst drivers in particular force stupid shit like that on by default.
Nvidia released a beta driver optimised for Last Light, v320.14.
Ziaeon on 18/5/2013 at 15:06
I am almost done finishing this game a second time in Ranger mode. Dont compare it to Stalker or Fallout. Their only relation is the theme.
That entire fallacy aside, the game is wonderful. Painfully linear, but wonderful none the less. The visuals are compelling but it's funny that the smaller details are what sell it for me. Having to replace your air filter, manually wiping your mask clean when you get blood or water or whatever on it. Charging up your flashlight. Using your lighter to burn cobwebs that otherwise slow you down. All in all it does a very good job of making you experience a nuclear wasteland, while giving you some fun shooting and an okayish story to follow. I mean, for the most part the story is good, but I have some gripes with the Dark Ones shift in the narrative. Probably only because there was no backstory to explain why, but I wont get into the details so that I dont ruin anything.
So, having said that, let me summarize: It's a very linear but none the less very enjoyable game that does a great job of making you feel as though you are experiencing what its like in a post apocalyptic wasteland. It's linearity and gameplay mechanics make it more similar to a shooter than it does to non linear games such as Fallout or Stalker, so dont make those comparisons. It's unnecessary. The visuals are... striking. I'm not one to prioritize graphics over gameplay (I still play Doom ffs) but the graphics in this game do a hell of a job of producing an engrossing environment that feels appropriate and accurate to its theme from end to end.
The game is short however. Took me a day and a half to beat it the first time around (over a weekend) and despite having to focus much more on extreme Stealth now that I'm playing it again in Ranger mode as well as exploring every last nook and cranny I'm sitll making a hell of a lot of progress towards finishing it a second time.
All in all, I would recommend this game to anyone who is a fan of the post apocalyptic setting, as it provides one of the most convincing worlds to experience. But if you go in expecting the mechanics of the aforementioned classic post apoc games you wont come out satisfied.
The game has tiny areas of non-linearity but the mostly deal with how you engage the enemy in the area, from what direction, etc. I think in terms of gameplay its most similar to Dishonored.
I'm going to go back and play the first one now, as I am left wanting for more.
Oh, and I forgot to mention: The game is suitably scary. It does have some jump scares but I am less affected by those. Its ambiance is frighting and stressful. Even on the second playthrough, where I more or less know what is danger and what is not, I still feel fear.
