I've finished the game and it was AHMAZING!
- it took me between 11-12 hrs, but I did not measure it precisely. I've cut one or two chapters to be shorter intentionally, but I've respected my choices, no going back
- best visuals on PS3, really really stunning in some parts. UI and gameplay were much better than in HR [especially Aiden]
- journalists trashed that military section in Somalia, but in my playtrough
I EJOYED IT A LOT!!! They did not receive gameplay training required to play that section. It was really fun and tactical, and it had one action sequence manged to visually trash similar Uncharted section! [Team ICE was mentioned in ending credits
]
- technical problems were very minimal, they did not have impact on my experience at all - very rare texture streaming [UE3 fade in of HQ texture], slight fps drop during savegame icon when HDD was in heavy use [few secs]
- 2.33:1 ratio served the game really well, I barely noticed it.
- great music
- very streamlined story that kept me very engaged, Cage really knows how to keep player wanting for more, with perfect ups and downs in terms of intensity. Ending was... surprisingly epic.
- Page/Dafoe gave 110% percent, their characters were great. Some side-characters did not get much depth (those who appeared only in 1-2 chapters), but this game is fully focused on the story of Jodie. Page/kid actor delivered, year of strong female characters continues to shine.
What to say.... except that HR and Beyond are two very different game in term of style (dark noir tale vs exploration of one strange life), but Beyond managed to be better in every aspect I can think of... HR was one of my favorite games in PS3 1st party offering, and Beyond is better and way more accessible to non gamers. It has to be played by everyone.
And for the sake of everything holy GAF, try to avoid spoilers AT ALL COSTS!!! Ending and some other important aspects of the story are really easy to be spoiled.
