The
time has come, and I must admit a bit earlier than expected but Metro
2033’s sequel has finally seen the last light of day. Poor pun aside,
Metro: Last Light is here for the diehard followers and the many that
missed the cult hit, Metro:2033, in console and PC form. This shooter
comes in the form of survival horror, with great emphasis on the the
survival, by providing a very limited supply of bullets and air filters
in post apocalyptic Moscow. The story once again unwinds in the tunnels
of the Metro and you find yourself battling internal power struggles for
a weapon of mass destruction to wipe out humanity and once again taking
on the role of Artyom, you hold the key to humankind’s fate.
I
have to start by saying that Metro:Last Light looks amazing on the
Xbox, the 4A Engine did a great job in creating an apocalyptic world
with some great lighting both topside and in the Metro. On top of
looking great it had a story most any sci fi fan would enjoy while
introducing characters in which you grow to like and hate throughout the
story. Like the first, the story is what makes Metro so enjoyable and
playing as Artyom, the lead from the first, I picked up just after the
first as a true sequal and not that hipster prequal or crappy diiferent
main character crap. Ranger Mode was what I was looking forward to as a
reward for my first playthrough at an easier difficulty and what the
mode features is a much more difficult and realistic play mode that
makes you want to refrain from wasting precious bullets.
It
is still a bit buggy, improved over 2033, but buggy nonetheless. My
most frequently encoutered bug was when my mission locator would point
me to my comrade Pavel, but when I approached, it was just akward
staring into each other’s eyes waiting for my next instructions. This
would usually end up with having to restart the chapter as when I loaded
the previous checkpoint I ofter still encountered the same issue. While
the premise of bullets as an important form of currency and survival is
a unique aspect introduced in Metro 2033, while the gameplay is
somewhat bland and does not do a lot to stand out over the number of
other shooters in the market, luckily it has personality and loads of
it.
Metro:Last
Light was a great adventure, the premise of the story had me from
start, all the way through the bugs, and up to the finish. It does have
it’s blemishes, not on the surface as the Metro was exquisite looking,
but on the inside with the occasional chapter restarting bugs. However,
if you are like me and more of a fan of the story than some of the more
mainstream shooters, than you owe it to yourself to check out Last Light
as I have not had this much fun playing a single player shooter since
Bioshock, mainly for the dark worlds and enjoyable cast. There is a lot
of fun to be had as the story takes between 10 and 12 hours to complete
and Ranger Mode is something that should definitely be experienced after
your first playthrough if you want to experience punishment as it was
intended.
