I stand in awe of this game. It's like the developers said to themselves, "let's identify some gameplay mechanics that gamers really love and we'll throw them all together and make this super awesome game. It'll be like a love letter to our fans!"
So, yeah, I pretty much loved everything about the game, but a few things could have been even more excellent with the following tweaks:
* I feel like the enemies died too easily -- sometimes I was killing enemies with only 2-3 magazines from my gun.
* And what's a particularly great enemy type for third person shooters? Why, really fast enemies that love to close within melee range where it's difficult to target them because your character model obscures your aim! No problem, this game has you covered!
* Oh, and when they come within melee range? Take your pick from two awesome outcomes: either they explode or they trigger a super awesome QTE minigame! Awesome!
* And what's a really great way to design enemy encounters? Why, horde mode! Every single time! But unlike normal horde mode, let's make some encounters literally infinite! Now the good times never need to end! Whee!!!!
* The bosses were, if anything, too much fun. Gameplay that consists of emptying magazine after magazine after magazine after magazine after magazine after magazine after magazine of ammunition into the glowing weak spot while endlessly circle-strafing around the boss and dodging each time the tell-tale attack animation cue fires... runs the risk of overloading the fun centers of the brain.
* But wait! Just got done with one boss section? Here's another one literally 3 minutes later! Loved all these boss fights? No problem, you get to fight them again and again and again and again and again and again and again and again! You're welcome!
* The rig is simply too fast. I sometimes found myself crossing the same barren, empty area in a matter of minutes when to properly appreciate the adequate scenery, it should have taken hours upon hours.
* But wait, there's more! The rig is too sturdy and the weapons are too powerful. You may think, "well, Jim is armed to the teeth so I'm sure this rig will get some pretty great kit!" and you'd be right! From the super awesome "swing the arm left to right" to the super engaging, "press the button to drill straight ahead," the rig combat sections are as exciting as plotting a trigonometric firing solution by hand!
* Oh, a firing solution? "Sweet", you may be thinking, "I'm sure I'll be getting some ranged weapons for my rig any second now!' and you'd be right! I mean, who would make a game that focuses on mech combat without ever giving that mech guns? Who indeed! Nobody would do that! It would be ridiculous! So fortunately, you'll be getting those guns you wanted any moment now!
* Oh, and you said something about the rig being too sturdy? Indeed! You're in a giant mech built from some or the sturdiest alloys known to man! So of COURSE a bunch of organic life forms will be able to rapidly whittle away your armor by repeatedly punching it!
* Often times Jim/other characters will say something to the effect of, "You've got to be kidding me," "Not again!" and "Glad that's finally over!" It's great the game is sufficiently self-aware that it can recognize that the player, having had enough of a particular section, will undoubtedly be super pleased at getting to play even more of that same section again! Ha ha ha, you scoundrel, you! You got me!
So, yeah, this is one of the most aggressively excellent, most unrelentingly awesome, most unapologetically competent games I've ever had the indescribable pleasure of playing.
