@Th3solution
Excellent write up Sol, thank you. Not sure it'll convince me to play the game but interesting food for thought. I especially enjoyed the quotes you include to begin each section, thought that was a touch of class.
“We are what we pretend to be, so we must be careful about what we pretend to be.”
@Sorteddan Thanks and I would definitely say that the game, although exceedingly well crafted, isn’t for everyone. But hey — there was a time when I thought these games weren’t for me, so you never know.
And I’ve always been a sucker for a good quote. Glad you enjoyed them.
@RogerRoger I appreciate your kind words and your positive feedback.
It is true that a lot of the history of the game is amusing in retrospect, but things could have easily gone south. And it’s easy to look from the sidelines after the fact and wonder why Sony dropped the ball and let the game go to other publisher initially. But for every classic that they miss out on, there’s a disaster they avert when they back out of a project. It’s just funny to look back in retrospect and think that they had a gold mine right under their feet with the Souls idea.
And part of the low expectations I had for the game stemmed from my attempt to play the first Dark Souls back on PS3. I found the lore and the narrative direction to be off-putting at the time, so I expected something even more underwhelming in Demon’s Souls. In actuality, I think I just wasn’t ready for the style of storytelling and gameplay that these games encompass. I imagine it would go better now if I tried DS1.
And I do suspect that these FromSoft games wouldn’t be in your particular wheelhouse, given the slight horror vibe they have. This game is certainly not on the level of Bloodborne as far as creepiness, but there is plenty of white knuckle fear going on during some of the levels. There are a few really disturbing creatures in the game, and one very ominous spider that I’m sure would cause some distress. But the photo mode is a pretty nice feature! I tried to take photos throughout and by the end I only ended up with about 8 screenshots. It felt like I took way more, but I didn’t. If the blasted picture uploading feature to the app was working properly then I would have included my own shots in the review, but I had to make due with grabs from the internet.
@RogerRoger So actually… there is a Dark Souls Remastered for PS4 already, so that would definitely be the way for me to go in the future if I decide to return to the game, rather than try to play it on PS3. I doubt a full remake will happen anytime soon. But I had picked up the complete edition of Dark Souls 3 for PS4 a while back, and I think that might be the next Souls I play, even though there is apparently a loose narrative thread that links the three Dark Souls games together and I would be jumping into the last entry. I believe DS 3 has a patch that has the game playing at 60fps on PS5, but I’m not sure is DS 1 has such a patch. And well, DS 2 is the most maligned of the group so I’m unlikely to play it unless I get desperate.
The photo mode for DeS is relatively bare bones, but it has all the basic features necessary. My screenshots don’t do the game’s visuals justice, but I did like the looks of the character I created, so maybe I’ll use one of those to enter into the annual competition. Like most of my screenshots, I miss the most epic and cinematic moments while I’m playing, and only remember to use it when I’m at the quiet places between.
“We cannot solve our problems with the same thinking we used when we created them.”
@Th3solution thanks for the tag about this review buddy… I waited until I had sometime spare as I was really looking forward to the read. It didn’t disappoint either, I think you hit on a large number of points that are intrinsic to the From Soft alchemy there, so congrats. Also, congrats on seeing this through to the end, I know there were moments where your dual-sense almost didn’t survive… you you made it 👏.
Also, I couldn’t help but chuckle at you including a Vitor Belfort quote. As a huge MMA fan, Vitor is an absolute oddity. Almost unbeatable at his TRT-drenched best… and also impossible to fully comprehend due to the genius of his derangement… or his deranged genius. An apropos yet quite random person to quote for this review… my favourite part! 🤣
@colonelkilgore Thanks for taking the time to read it. There’s a certain satisfaction and feeling of closure to writing my thoughts down. The quotes just sort of happened and I felt they were helpful to break up what became a rather long piece. The intent was to keep the review sections fresh with an intro quote and although I like classic sayings from people like Napolean and Churchill, the inclusion of Belfort and Woody Allen hopefully kept it from becoming too stuffy 😜
Glad you enjoyed it!
“We cannot solve our problems with the same thinking we used when we created them.”
@RogerRoger Yeah, the game’s character creation suite is pretty good. Not on the order of some of the more intricate ones out there, as you basically have just the option of two body types (what they call “A or B”, ie traditional male style or female style), so you can’t make your character taller or slimmer, etc. But the facial options, hair options, tattoos, skin and hair color, etc are all quite good. If I think of it I’ll post or send you a pick of the Sol Slayer of Demons. 😄
Incidentally, as I mentioned before, I’m likely to start Mass Effect soon and I’ll likely spend the first two hours with the character creator since I’ll basically be stuck with it for a while. When I played ME2 and 3 back on PS3 I did a bro-Shep that looked good in the creator suite, but looks slightly deformed in the cutscenes. 😂 Here’s hoping the Legendary Edition has a little better consistency.
“We cannot solve our problems with the same thinking we used when we created them.”
@Th3solution Impressive write-up! I really like how you situate your exploration of Demon's Souls within the wider context of From Software's unique and emergent game design philosophy (which, you're right, has been wildly influential in the medium). While I'm not a fan of some of their choices myself, it is impressive to hear that the game's designer was willing to engage in a bit of trickery to preserve design elements that he knew wouldn't pitch well.
While we know there's a market for the formula today, history has a way of disguising just how resistant people often are to change and new approaches. The common sense of today is often something that wasn't viewed quite as matter-of-factly even a few years back.
The cryptic elements don't surprise me one bit, but the World Tendency mechanic you highlighted definitely sounds interesting. It's one of those 'out there' ideas you'd probably never see from more established studios.
The replayability element is cool, although the game sounds a little long to really encourage that for most non-hardcore fans, based on your own reported playtime.
Interesting use of quotes in each section as well. Did you happen to have those on-hand, or did you need to do a bit of fishing for the perfect ones to compliment each part of your review?
Overall, it's cool to hear the game has held up so well over time, and it's a good thing Bluepoint helped to rescue this modern classic from remaining exclusive on very dead hardware.
And even if the loading isn't great compared to other PS5 games, it's certainly a visual spectacle on the system. All of the videos I've seen online look great. This must look absolutely splendid on a 4K set.
@Ralizah Thanks for reading and also for the praise.
Yeah, the world tendency bit was a neat idea, and one that works fine in the context of a From game where they want to make everything so hidden and mysterious. I thought about other games that might have tried it, and the best example I could think of was Dishonored, which is a game I never made it very far into, but apparently if you play more stealthy and non-aggressive then the world stays a certain way, but if you kill a lot of people then the world gets infested with more rats and disease and such. I’m not sure how much it affects the gameplay or story aspects, but my impression was it’s more cosmetic that anything. Whereas in Demon’s Souls there are clear changes in enemy types and placement, as well as NPCs, treasures, and entire storyline aspects that only show up when the world is at one extreme or another.
As far as the quotes, I had a couple in my back pocket, as I like to collect favorite quotes, but most of them I dug up from the internet to fit into my outline. I really enjoyed that and might use it again in future reviews. We’ll see.
And yes, the game is visually stunning. In fact, I see from the first impressions piece on Elden Ring that BluePoint set the bar very high with DeS and so From’s new game doesn’t quite impress as much graphically. Visual fidelity and performance aren’t everything, but they sure help me get into a game, and often can help carry a game if I’m struggling with it.
“We cannot solve our problems with the same thinking we used when we created them.”
”Begin at the beginning and go on till you come to the end; then stop.“
-Lewis Carroll
I’m not an expert on racing games. I need to start with that. So my analysis and breakdown of my experience with Dirt 5 is definitely open to skepticism.
Truth be told, I’m not really an expert on any genre of gaming. Come to think of it, I’m not sure I’m an expert on any single subject, gaming related or not. But I digress….
What I intend to share is personal insight into Dirt 5 from a casual players approach. During my 25 hour march toward the game’s platinum trophy, I accumulated the thoughts contained in this review. I won’t be going into too much detail about how it might compare to other games in its class, well… because I haven’t really played any. This is my first Dirt game and my first rally focused racer.
T̲̅h̲̅e̲̅ B̲̅a̲̅c̲̅k̲̅g̲̅r̲̅o̲̅u̲̅n̲̅d̲̅
”The background reveals the true being and state of being of the man or thing. If I do not possess the background, I make the man transparent, the thing transparent.”
-Juan Ramon Jimenez
I won’t get much into the Dirt 5 development background, as it’s really not that noteworthy. Probably the most interesting aspect is that it’s made by Codemasters, the maestros of the compound word (starting with their studio name), who made Onrush and include many members from the defunct Evolution Studios team that made Driveclub and Motorstorm. And surely they missed an opportunity to carry on the tradition here by not calling this game “Driftdirt” or “Dirtspin.” Or maybe more fittingly “Rallyroar”, or “Roadshift” because contrary to the game’s title, you spend half your time on surfaces other than dirt — namely ice, snow, water, mud, and asphalt.
The second amusing thing about the game’s background is that they certainly spared no expense on the voice acting. The game stars none other than the high-nobility of the voice acting world, Troy Baker and Nolan North. I know… there really is no escaping these guys. They have invaded even the games that don’t have playable characters. And the thing is, I’m not really sure we even needed that kind of star power here. This game doesn’t require the breadth in performance of an Uncharted 4. …Alas, I’m getting ahead of myself.
T̲̅h̲̅e̲̅ P̲̅r̲̅e̲̅m̲̅i̲̅s̲̅e̲̅
”I'd like to think that most of what I do is self-evident if you're listening to it or seeing it. But I don't mind the fact that it's hard to describe.”
-Jon Brion
The game is a racing game. What more is there to tell? You drive mostly in circles and go vroom, vroom. Ah yes, it has a storyline. Sort of.
The career mode where you’ll spend most of your time (unless you delve into the online competition or the “Playground” where you can create tracks, share, and play others’ tracks) has a semblance of narrative to tie together your grind through race after race (after race, after race…) and it functions as a way to motivate further engagement, but just barely. The story is told through “podcasts” between racing chapters where commentators try to interest the player on an ongoing rivalry between racer “A.J.” and “Bruno” (Baker and North, respectively) and the two smack talk back and forth and a third party, John Pumphrey, serves as an intermediary. Kind of. It’s all a bit of a mess, and despite good acting performances, the premise is a little silly. More on that later.
I don’t know much about it but the fictional Donut Media podcasts that play as the story diversion are based on an actual real-world Donut Media YouTube channel for which Pumphrey is one of the primary hosts. Not being a racing or pop culture aficionado, I have no idea how popular or beloved this channel is, but the whole thing smacks of corporate pandering and backscratching.
Speaking of, during your career, you can enlist with a variety of sponsors. Many are household names like Oakley, Michelin, Good Year, or Monster. Some are companies I’ve never heard of. Regardless, the corporate sponsorship portion of the gameplay is largely secondary and I mostly ignored it.
Overall the game plays out as a progression of races, which culminate in a couple championship races. I can’t believe I’m saying this l, but — I’ll hold back more detail to avoid spoilers. That feels weird to say. I mean, the storyline is as thin as air, but I don’t want to rob someone of the chance, if they would rather experience it themselves.
The only other significant thing about the gameplay is the inclusion of “Gymkhana” events into the competition. For the uninitiated, these events aren’t races, rather timed events on a course where you rack up points for performing tricks with your car. It sounds funner than it actually is.
”The best part of the journey is the surprise and wonder along the way.”
-Ken Poirot
Where does the game really shine? Primarily two aspects of the game come to mind — the variety of surfaces you race on, and the dynamic and colorful racetracks.
First and foremost, there is a certain joy when driving on all the varying terrains in the game. When you drive on dirt, it feels distinctively different from driving on snow, ice, or on asphalt. Even hitting puddles and sometimes streams of water will give the player a different sense of speed, acceleration or deceleration, and traction. This is all magnified significantly by the DualSense. The haptic feedback is really great and when I say you “feel” the road under your car, you really do — through the controller. Many tracks have more than one surface you drive on through the race, and to instantly tell the difference when you hit a patch of ice, or make the transition from dirt to asphalt at 80 mph is really an impressive feat.
I turned off haptics and adaptive triggers after I completed the career mode and needed to grind for mileage for trophies and there was a real drop-off in the joy of driving when you can’t feel it through the controller. It takes a good fun experience and makes it so-so.
The second impressive feature of the game is the visual flare that the races contain. While driving there will be flashing lights and laser shows in the background, fireworks and confetti when you cross a finish line, and airplanes flying overhead leaving spectacular plumes of colored smoke. Some of my favorite appearing tracks were the ice stages at night where there was neon lights shining from under the ice and colorful displays of pyrotechnics from the sidelines. And if the race occurred during a thunderstorm, the lightning effects while driving were quite dazzling.
On that subject, the day-night cycle and changing weather was another really impressive aspect of the races. Often the road and weather conditions would evolve over the course of the race. When you start it might be sunny and daylight, but by the time you complete the third lap it might be raining, snowing, or nighttime. Or a combination of a sudden rainstorm at night. It could make a single race feel like a completely different experience when you finish, compared to how it started.
”Mediocrity is the first enemy of prosperity”
-Henry Ford
Several aspects of the game were merely “okay” and fell short of their potential.
I mentioned the voice acting, storyline, and audio commentary that is sprinkled throughout the career mode. Although Baker and North perform admirably, the storyline is full of cheese and cringe. Honestly I just skipped the podcasts and didn’t even listen to all of them. However, there was something awesome about booting up the game and being greeted by Troy Baker saying, “Welcome back, Maverick.” Made me feel pretty cool, for a short moment.
Another mediocre aspect was the technical performance. I played on PS5 and yet the experience was not completely without flaws. Most of the load times are decent enough, and the visuals look fine, but nothing on par with what I’m seeing from GT7 videos and pictures. The fidelity is certainly passable, and probably above average. The game mostly ran smooth, but the frame-rate hiccups happen too often to make the game top-tier. I played in performance mode, and I felt like I shouldn’t have been having frame stutters but I had them about once or twice per play session. I don’t know how many fps I was getting, and I think I saw 120 fps is supported, but it didn’t feel that way to me. I’m not sure my set up supports 120 fps, but it should hold steady at 60 fps in performance mode, I would think. But it’s definitely dropping at times.
I spoke of the DualSense features above, and although the haptic feedback was really good, I’d say the adaptive triggers were less impressive in their usage. You could feel a slight locking of brakes when you hit them and skid, as well as a softness to the accelerator when you’re trying to power through a corner on the ice, but the effects were just too inconsistent. Sometimes the triggers just felt weird too. Like when hitting a puddle of water at 80 mph the right trigger would click and give way, and I’m not sure it really felt authentic with what it was shooting for.
A fourth aspect which felt mediocre was the racing gameplay itself. There is a certain approachable nature to the game, and it does have a nice balance of “arcadey” with a small dash of “simulation” in the racing. The inclusion of difficulty sliders made winning races less frustrating. But overall the driving part didn’t ever really excite on the level of other racing games I’ve played. There wasn’t quite enough satisfaction to taking a turn and drifting past an opponent. After about 10 hours with the game it begins to feel a little stale.
And finally, the music. It’s a mixed bag. A lot of the music is annoying, and a lot of it is catchy. Most of it is somewhere in-between. I did grow to like a few of the tracks and even looked up the OST on Spotify to listen to. I selected about 3-4 songs that I put into my playlist rotation, so I guess that’s saying something. In fact, one song took me quite a bit of effort to find and is probably my favorite from the game. For some reason it’s not included on any of the soundtrack albums online, so I had to literally Shazam it quickly when the song came on so I could find it and add it to my playlists. It is by a band called Child of the Parish and called “Thread the Needle’s Eye” and I just dig it.
”Whenever things go a bit sour in a job I'm doing, I always tell myself, 'You can do better than this.'”
-Dr. Seuss
So speaking of audio, the use of 3D audio in this game was woeful. I played most of it with the Pulse 3D headset, and there was really a large inconsistency of the sound quality. When you choose to enable 3D audio in the menu, I think its supposed to make the music sound like its coming from the stadium speakers as you drive by…? I think? What it does is make the music clip in and out randomly during the race and sounds really choppy — like a vinyl LP skipping on an old phonograph. Which then makes the sound effects of the cars and the tires on the road choppy too. There is a complete lack of audio balancing and its just a missed opportunity. So I turned off the 3D audio and then it made the music a consistent volume, but that volume was so low you could hardly hear it. Which is fine if you don’t like the song being played, but it also seemed to give the environmental sound effects less of a punch too. So there was no satisfying setting either way.
Now we need to talk about the art style. I praised the colorful designs of the different tracks and environments earlier. But the overall art and color palette of the game is too overstated. The menus and time between races feels too edgy and Fortnite inspired for my taste. You can decorate your cars and your racer tag with patterns that look like a unicorn threw up on them. Its all a bit over-the-top. Unlocking (and paying for) different skins and stickers for your cars is intended to motivate you to keep racing and earning (or spending) money, but for me, it was all just background noise.
The last disappointing aspect is the cars themselves. There is a real lack of variety or identity felt when you switch cars. You can feel the difference between how a Mini Cooper drives compared to a Ford Pickup, but the nuance between different cars within the same class is very slight. I completed the game by using the same dozen or so cars over and over, with little motivation to buy or try others. Since this isn’t a pure driving simulator I can’t fault the game for not allowing me to change the tires and mufflers, but a Porsche should drive differently from a Mustang. And RWD should feel different from AWD. There’s just not enough authenticity or attention paid to some of those unique aspects of your car.
Relatedly, the game’s physics is inconsistent, as is the other drivers’ AI. Crashing into other cars and guardrails is sometimes detrimental to maintaining your speed and momentum, but sometimes not. The cars do show damage overtime, but you don’t feel much negative impact of driving recklessly. There is dreaded rubber-banding in some races, but it seems absent in others. Overall, it is a knock to enjoyment when you don’t feel like your actions in the game translate into consistent consequence.
T̲̅h̲̅e̲̅ F̲̅i̲̅n̲̅i̲̅s̲̅h̲̅ L̲̅i̲̅n̲̅e̲̅
“The person who starts the race is not the same person who finishes the race.”
-Anonymous
Apologies to my British and European comrades, but I can only summarize it thus: If Dirt 5 were a restaurant, it would be Chili’s. Perfectly passable when you’re hungry for something. And there’s plenty to like on the menu, but it only does a few things really well. Most of the entrees are better at other restaurants. You could eat there twice a week for a while but eventually you’ll get sick of the handful of dishes that you really like and you’ll lose interest with trying anything new there and move on.
6̲.̲5̲ s̲k̲i̲d̲ m̲a̲r̲k̲s̲ o̲u̲t̲ o̲f̲ 1̲0̲
“We cannot solve our problems with the same thinking we used when we created them.”
As with most racing games, Dirt 5 isn’t a game that’s very fun to discuss in a review setting, so I’m glad it didn’t come across as too boring.
As far as the game being a good segue into a more intense simulator like Gran Turismo, I think it could fit the bill, but it depends. The game has a more simulation qualities than a lot of the entry level racers or Kart racers. But I think if someone went from Dirt 5 to GT they would really have to be ready to micromanage their set up and it might take a lot of time. You can get away with running a poor racing line from time to time with Dirt 5, whereas in my experience with GT you’ll regret it if you don’t hit the turn at the right angles and speeds.
As for whether I am prone to jump into GT7, I’m not sure. Part of me feels like I’ve had my racing fill for a while. So I’m planning to wait a few months. However, I will say that a racing game seems to have fit perfectly as a companion game to play alongside my other traditional action RPGs. It’s different enough to get a nice break, yet not too complex where you lose where you are in the game, or forget the controls if you’re away too long. When I’ve tried playing two 3rd person action games concurrently then I always get my muscle memory wires crossed when I go back and forth. But with Dirt 5, I could take a nice break from Demon’s Souls, or more recently Mass Effect, and not miss a step. So I might have to pick up GT7 just so I can have the nice diversion companion game. Maybe I should try Sonic Team Racing? I have no connection to the world or characters, but if it’s mindless racing fun, then it might stick.
“We cannot solve our problems with the same thinking we used when we created them.”
@Th3solution That was pretty thorough for someone who isn't particularly experienced with racers! Good write-up for a genre that's traditionally a bit difficult to review. It's cool to hear about the effective use of the DualSense's advanced haptics. Shin'en did something similar with the HD rumble in the NS launch title Fast RMX, where different terrain would make the controller vibrate differently. It didn't really stand out to me at first, but when I'd play with the rumble turned off, I always got the distinct impression that some aspect of the experience was missing. I imagine the effect is even more vital to the sense of immersion in this game, given the more advanced haptics in the PS5 controller. Pity to hear about the ineffective use of 3D audio, though.
Yeah, in my experience, sports games with licensed soundtracks usually tend to be a mixed bag overall, so not surprised to hear the same is true here.
I just realized it has been five years since I last went to a Chili's!
@Ralizah Thanks for reading and glad that as a fellow American you can relate to the restaurant analogy. Chili’s is really good when you’re in the mood or are with a group where you need a place with a large variety of options because usually everyone can find at least something they like on the menu. It’s perfectly safe. But just like how you haven’t been there in 5 years despite it being me of the most ubiquitous franchises in the States, most of us don’t really seek it out or list it as a favorite. Which is where I felt Dirt 5 was too — Not bad, not special, just satisfying in short bursts.
“We cannot solve our problems with the same thinking we used when we created them.”
@Th3solution Awesome Review for Demon Souls Friend. Providing different aspects from your POV as well as generalized was just great. Overall a very well written review.
@RogerRoger Indeed It was a great write-up flowing into positives & negatives , pin-pointing various details & also the snap in the middle , the elephant machine one.. is just awesome. Its actually very well timed & is crazy in good sense(Machines in their Glory)..a superb image.. but the icing on the cake is that how you captured the Aloy running & her expressions making it completely funny & hilarious also if one focus on her. Its special & rare because its A mix of Awesomeness & comical(if one focus on Aloy)
@RogerRoger Thanks so much for the Forbidden West review! It was a pleasure to read and captivating beginning to end, despite the fact I knew from the game’s thread that your general thoughts on the game evolved dramatically as you progressed through it.
Sounds like the input and control criticisms are still valid, even after the acclimation period, so it’s too bad it mars an otherwise splendid experience. Regardless, your high praise for the game shines through despite it having that little quibble.
Sometimes convoluted control schemes are part of the developers gameplay vision and the awkwardness is intentional (What Remains of Edith Finch comes to mind), but in an action game like this, you just need the controls to flow in the most reflexive and unobtrusive way possible. Did you experiment with any button remapping options? I’ve always been averse to changing the default button layout out of fear it will mess up the experience, but lately I’ve been trying to from time to time when it’s an option. It sound like some of the issues here are deeper than just changing which button performs what action.
Lovely shots too, by the way! This game is sure to make up a large volume of the screenshot comp entries this year.
“We cannot solve our problems with the same thinking we used when we created them.”
@RogerRoger I don't really have time to read it all right now, but I will later probably. Is it relatively spoiler free? I'm still way behind a lot of people around here. If it is, I'll definitely read it.
I did jump to the end of the review though. It's nice to see that it ended up being so positive for you, being one of the greatest games ever, with the shaky start you had with the game.
PSN ID/Xbox Live Gamertag: KilloWertz
Switch Friend Code: SW-6448-2688-7386
@RogerRoger 2 naps, a shower break, a dinner break, and a couple bathroom breaks later and I finished your review...
Seriously though, that was a pretty good write-up. I would say it raised my expectations for the rest of the game even further, but they were already pretty much at the absolute limit, so in the end I just hope the game continues to deliver on those already extremely high expectations.
My biggest issue so far gameplay wise would be the climbing. Games such as the Assassin's Creed Origins/Odyssey/Valhalla and even the Uncharted series have much smoother climbing. I almost feel like it worked better in Zero Dawn, as it doesn't always do what you want it to do, and then adding in having to hit the circle button to jump behind you just makes it all a bit overcomplicated. It doesn't ruin the game obviously, but does add a bit of frustration at times when you struggle to climb a bit or only make it up part of a mountain or whatever and then not be able to climb any higher just because the game says you can't.
Hunting would be another, as you have to kill way too many animals at times just to get one specific thing. You get meat way too often when you should just get the hide, bone, or whatever from whatever animal you have to kill to finish your Job to upgrade something. That was an issue in Zero Dawn as well, so it's a shame they didn't make it any better in Forbidden West.
Thanks. I still am right now. I don't remember exactly how far I am statistically (hours, %, etc.), but I think I'm around Level 25, so I still have A LOT of game left. I'm not complaining at all though of course, as while I have plenty of other games to play too and want to finally play Cyberpunk 2077 afterwards, Horizon Forbidden West is the main reason why I own a PS5. I have a feeling I will enjoy the ending.... whenever that will happen.
PSN ID/Xbox Live Gamertag: KilloWertz
Switch Friend Code: SW-6448-2688-7386
After owning the game for over 10 years, I've finally finished No More Heroes 1 on Wii today. Managed to get both the normal and true endings, whereof the latter wasn't as hard to get as I thought.
Personally, this is a huge achievement for me, especially considering how discouraging it was to play this game due to its structure. The gameplay loop is simply awful. You have to do boring side missions like collecting garbage or mowing the lawn in order to earn enough money to unlock the next story mission. There were also assassination missions, but they were basically about killing everyone in an area and then moving on. It just wasn't fun at all and every time it felt like a grind. The developer needed some way to pad out the game since otherwise it would only be like 4-5 hours long (I finished it in 9 hours).
The story missions themselves start out great and they're definitely the highlight of the game as you go through varied levels and at the end, fight an interesting character. The problem here is that each story mission gets gradually worse and worse. At first you have fairly sized levels with different objectives in them, but later on the levels became much simpler and shorter. For example, in one level later in the game you're just walking down this long corridor for a couple of minutes and then you've arrived at the boss. On top of this, there are some difficulty spikes introduced rather early on, which I experienced even though I was playing on the easiest difficulty setting.
The game has quite frankly lazy level design and you could tell they ran out of time over the game's development. They spent so much time creating an open world where there's basically nothing to do in it. They could've just made a world map and have you choose where to go and then you just fast travel there, kinda like in the Persona games. In fact, this is something they did implement in the sequel and that game was so much better than the first one.
Yes, I did play through the second game without playing through the first one back in the day and I remember loving the second game much more. It had no open world but it delivered much better story missions with great level design and excellent boss fights. And instead of doing boring chores to obtain money in order to unlock the next story mission, you play fun 8-bit styled mini-games. In fact, I don't think you even need to play any mini-games in order to unlock story missions. The pacing was simply much improved.
So overall, I didn't like the first No More Heroes. There are some good aspects, such as the fun motion-controlled combat, which works great with the Wii Remote and Nunchuk. But the awful gameplay loop and stagnating story missions left a poor taste in my mouth. I would not recommend starting out with this game if you're new to the franchise. Instead, I highly recommend starting with No More Heroes 2, even though it's the sequel. You will miss out on story references, but the first game is simply not worth playing through just to understand the story references. These games focus more on fun gameplay and the story isn't that serious or captivating anyway. So I wouldn't recommend ruining your view of this franchise because of its first entry since the second game delivers a much more satisfying experience.
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Topic: User Impressions/Reviews Thread
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