Good review, and very thorough. I was keen to hear an opinion from someone who wasn't overly impressed by the first game.
Book me today! I also review weddings, funerals and bar mitzvahs.
"It's like that Miyazaki movie but with more racism." is probably one of the most accurate descriptions of Infinite I have heard.
"Blows Bioshock out of the water" ... Is that a pun?
The PC port had several problems with its controls. I spent quite some time rebinding the keys to find something that worked for me. The V key for meelee? There are plenty better keys for that.
"On the outset the place is Disney World: full of life, cheer and colour. On the inside, however, the place is also Disney World: full of toil, resentment and xenophobia". Truer words have never been spoken.
I adore the title!
How is limiting the amount of weapons you can carry, dumbing exploration down, and removing different ammo types ighting certain enemies blowing the original out the water? I swear, casual gamers these days.
Leave a Comment:
Blows Bioshock out of the water
I wasn't fond of Bioshock. Sure, it had a strong opening and a brilliant twist but otherwise the writing was pulpy, the combat leaden, the moral-dilemma stupid, the enemy-variety lacking, the fetch-quests obnoxious, the RPG elements clunky and the endings cornier than dog crap. Thankfully this sequel fixes the above by being a fun and exciting ride instead of an over-pretentious slog.
PLOT
You play Booker DeWitt, a disgraced detective, who is tasked to find a girl called Elizabeth, who is imprisoned in the flying city of Columbia. On the outset the place is Disney World: full of life, cheer and colour. On the inside, however, the place is also Disney World: full of toil, resentment and xenophobia. It's like that Miyazaki movie but with more racism.
The plot can be a mixed bag at times. There are loads of brilliant ideas, enough for a dozen games, but not all of them get attention. The last act is brain-scratcher territory, full of time-travel and dimension-hopping, but the very last scene gives us a glimpse of a happy ending for our heroes.
GAMEPLAY
The combat is solid and punchy. The guns have weight and feedback and the powers aren't overly contextual. The art direction is superb and the pacing brisk. Hacking is gone, as are the Little Sisters, though the Big Daddies are back as Handymen; massive agile bastards who will completely ruin your day. Vending machines return and are less annoying than their Rapture counterparts.
The rail system is fun, easy to use, and makes use of Columbia's aerial nature. There's no inventory so you'll spend some time eating food off the ground like a hobo to restore health. The game works wonders with a voiced protagonist, and while your AI partner isn't ground-breaking or anything her presence adds to the game, giving it a human element. The RPG elements are streamlined to no great loss.
NEGATIVES
The auto-save only system is a load of old wank. You'll need one eye on a walkthrough if you don't want to miss any collectibles.
The PC port, while excellent, still has issues. I couldn't play the game without an Xbox 360 controller.
The over-the-top gore will bother some players.
CONCLUSION
This game isn't the second coming of Christ, although Christ never made a video game, but it is worth every silver eagle. The game clocks in at 15 hours and has few ties to its predecessors.