This is, hands down, the most atmospheric game I have ever played. It has a soundtrack bordering on perfection, with a blend of gothic and industrial music both ambient and “regular”, featuring artists like Lacuna Coil and Ministry – I’m not gonna develop on that statement, I just needed to get it out there. You play as a vampire belonging to one of 6 different clans, each with their own unique set of abilities and traits (all of which are incredibly cool), and during the course of the game you venture through the political maze of vampiric society, interacting with different factions and a myriad of colourful (and often disturbing) characters ultimately reaching one of the games three different endings. In a society where vampires have been degraded to tools used to induce aphrodesia in 14 year-old girls, VTMB is a game that is rapidly becoming culturally invaluable. Sadly, a lot of people probably don’t know what he means by “books” anymore… This is the pacing I was talking about moments of calm observation or methodical problem solving are juxtaposed with adrenaline-pumping action sequences throughout the entire game. Then, as you start to process all those first impressions, you suddenly have to run from these faceless antagonists as they shoot at you. There are playgrounds without children, streets without people, a city without noise – unsettling, is how I’d describe the Half-Life universe. It is a marvelous way to help the player appreciate the unique atmosphere present in the Half-Life games.Īs you listen to citizens discussing food rations, the propaganda being spewed out of the screens adorning every other wall, and the machine-like voices of the Combine soldiers, the sense of wrong just grows stronger and stronger. As you don’t have any weapons, you can’t really make any decisions (considering that armed guards are monitoring you) and therefore, you have to walk through checkpoints and whatnot, simply observing this disturbing, Orwell-esque world. You start off on a train, with no weapons, with nothing at all in fact, and thus you arrive in City 17 – in a world where humanity is subjugated and ruled by the mysterious and intimidating Combine. The folks at Valve may be slow when it comes to third installments, but no one could ever hope to beat them when it comes to pacing. Half-Life 2 is, without a doubt, the most well-paced game out there, even to this day, and it is one of my favourite games of all time. Gordon Freeman, the man who weaponized the crowbar – physics at its finest. Even as I found new weapons, and plasmids which put fire and lightning in the palm of my hand, the shrieks and insane mumblings of the splicers, the moan of the Big Daddies, and the echo of my footsteps kept me ever-alert. I still remember my first hour of Bioshock – how vulnerable I felt as I made my way through the dark and damp with my trusty wrench. It’s a wonderfully original setting, and that does wonders for player immersion in Rapture, beauty and horror walk hand in hand, and you simply can’t tear your eyes away – though you’ll have to, if you want to stay alive. It’s an ironic concept, and makes for an amazing game. Of course, by now there are a lot of experienced players who have formulated effective strategies for dealing with almost any situation and can coordinate their defense in a way that makes Rick Grimes look like a child playing with toy guns.ĭespite this “evolution of the player” being a fun way to enhance the gameplay experience, nothing will ever compare to those first steps you take into the dark, zombie-infested nights of L4D, when you don’t know what the hell is making the yucky gurgling noise in the shadows, the surprise of the first zombie-horde rushing mindlessly towards you, and of course, the first time you hear “TAAAANK!”, and run for your life while your voice quickly reaches a falsetto that would make Ian Gillan jealous.Īhh, Rapture – the underwater city dedicated to the achievements of man, now filled with psychopathic, deformed junkies who’d kill you (and anyone else) for a fix. It is one of the few games out there where teamwork is necessary for success – cover your teammates while they reload, give pain-pills to the most wounded so they can keep up, rescue incapacitated teammates from the “special-infected” and, well, I could go on. Probably the most engaging and satisfying multiplayer experience out there 4 people against thousands of zombies. Thanks to the marvelously revealing title, this entry doesn’t require an introduction at all really, but in essence, these are some of the games that I would want to re-experience for the first time primarily because of their marvelous atmosphere and the sense of awe that evoked in me as I first engrossed myself in their respective worlds. The unfortunate truth is that I can’t always play games, and sometimes duty calls me away. HUAH! It’s been a while since my last post.
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