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LTTP: Days Gone | Drifting through the apocalypse is actually cool

Nankatsu

Member
So I just recently finished Days Gone on PS5, a game that I always dodged without any given reason, and I gotta say it is one of those games that caught me by surprise.

In a videogame industry more woke than ever, Days Gone appeared before me as a breath of fresh air, in a sense that, personally, it manages to that stand on it's own two feet without giving any shit about political agendas and social trends from the real world (the very same reason why it got bombed hard review wise...seriously, having people getting triggered because of that "ride me like your bike moment, is legit nonsense...specially because later on the narrative Sarah herself jokes about that).

More than anything, it's a fun videogame, in an apocalyptic scenario, with a good narrative, a great lead character, followed by an interesting cast and an extremely interesting setting / setup for a potential sequel, specially if you played the Syphon Filter games before.

The plot twist after the main ending is great at setting up things for the future.

Gameplay wise it offers stealth, direct approaches and more inventive ones, specially to face the hordes. It's simple, tight and it works and it has margin to improve even further on a potential sequel.

The mechanics around the bike are interesting and the actual driving is solid (it's a bit weird and stupid that almost every character rides a bike though. I get it that Deacon as a former MC member, rides a bike, but everyone?).

Anyway, thanks for coming into my TED Talk GAF and I sincerely hope Sony doesn't sleep on a sequel for this just because they have another title in a similar setting - The Last of Us.
 

Muffdraul

Member
When I saw the first preview, announced/unveiled at an E3 Sony showcase, I thought "Looks mediocre as hell." But I figured going up against huge zombie hordes would actually be pretty fun, so I was there on day 1 when it released.

I lasted about 10 hours, then just stopped out of pants-peeing boredom. Every once in a while I see someone praising it as some ignored gem and I think, "Hmmm... nah." But knowing me, I'll give it another try someday.

I think it was quite some time ago one of the lead devs said publicly that they proposed a sequel to Sony, and they said no thanks.
 

SkylineRKR

Member
I played it on the PS5 when the console launched. I was floored by how fun it was. I platinumed it and no regrets.

I liked everything about it, the only few nitpicks I have is that the game could've been shorter. Some missions are just there to pad it all out, at some point I was ready to move the story further. But I liked how the game drip feeds information through NERO missions etc. I found the story engaging enough to continue it. Another issue I had was the skill tree, a war veteran shouldn't be such a bad shot. Good aim is gated behind upgrades as well.

The bike feels good and the upgrades really make a difference. While there is no real shortage of gas (stations have infinite supply, cans respawn), its kind of cool to have to refuel though. If you upgrade the bike far enough you are fast enough to make some jumps in the open world that lead to secrets. It really goes from some lame ass cross bike thing to an actual chopper.

Hordes are intense too, and actually the ones you need to clear for the story are the most intense.
 

Elysium44

Banned
Yes it's outstanding tbh, I platinumed it on PS4 and then got it on PC when it came out and completed it there too. I can't heap enough praise on it, everything from the graphics, gameplay (bike physics are perfect, third person shooter / stealth / aiming etc. is excellent too), music is fantastic, voice acting, characters, story... it really caught my imagination massively. Such a shame there will probably never be a sequel.
 
enjoyed it my first time through, tho it went on much too long for its own good (imo, everything beyond iron mike's). recently attempted a replay, & deek's bizarre freak-out/rants eventually resulted in me bailing (i realize they kinda go away eventually, but i just couldn't hang in there long enough)...
 

Camreezie

Member
I do think we will get a Days Gone 2 its just gonna be a while. I get why they havent announced it around any of the last of us multimedia push tbh
 

Clear

CliffyB's Cock Holster
In hindsight, I really enjoyed spending my time with the characters.

Its basically an 80's action movie mash-up, so not saying its Shakespeare, just really good tropey fun.

Mad Max in Zombieland basically! What's not to like?
 
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violence

Member
I somehow managed not know this game existed till the PS plus collection with the PS5. I think I always assumed people were talking about Until Dawn. 🤣

Very enjoyable game to play. But I can see them not making another one since it’s a bit redundant. Sony is kind of covered on zombie and open world games.
 
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Pff, tell that to all us Bloodborne fans!
Seriously. Instead of the over-rated (outside of the first game on ps3/ps4) last of us, they need to make new sequels to Days gone and Bloodborne. 2 of the greatest games from last gen.

Oh and speaking of last of us - I would love for Druckman to leave naughty dog and it go back to making other original games or nathan drake uncharted ps5 original story. (why they want to kill him is fucked up).

Days gone 2 probably won't be as good. It will be about a feminist subverting the patriarchy or some bs shit , seeing as how the team and Sony bad mouthed the lead devs who have been making games for decades.
I'll be surprised if we actually get a legit good sequel, if any at all. And bloodborne , I wish.
 
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StereoVsn

Gold Member
The game just didn't click with me. Found the main character and the side kick not very interesting, the story a bit cliche, the environment too drab and the zombies were just not quite there for me.

The hordes were pretty darn scary and sometimes the environment looked darn good though. I think I was just tired of open world games at the moment and maybe was a tad prejudiced against the game. Might give it another shot in the future.
 

Dynasty8

Member
Ended up really enjoying this one. It has its flaws, like the main character constantly spouting some nonsense dialogue at random times...which got very annoying, but the game itself, the story and intense moments were very good IMHO.
 

Katatonic

Member
I played Days Gone straight after finishing Last of Us Remastered on PS4.
Days Gone was everything I was hoping Last of Us would've been like.
I recently booted this game up on PS5 with the free upgrades and holy bananas does it look amazing.
This game was the victim of a successful attack campaign where the word "generic" was repeated ad nauseam as if it came off a memo.
 

IntentionalPun

Ask me about my wife's perfect butthole
I played Days Gone straight after finishing Last of Us Remastered on PS4.
Days Gone was everything I was hoping Last of Us would've been like.
I recently booted this game up on PS5 with the free upgrades and holy bananas does it look amazing.
This game was the victim of a successful attack campaign where the word "generic" was repeated ad nauseam as if it came off a memo.
Yup it's gorgeous and runs great.

Also the horde mechanic is really unique for a Sony game. It's not generic from a gameplay standpoint because of that. You truly develop a "skill" over time to handle them and it's incredibly rewarding. I couldn't even imagine beating a medium sized horde at the beginning of the game but by the end I was taking out big hordes without even having powerful weapons lol
 

KaiserBecks

Member
The game kind of grew on me but it was ultimately way too long and wasted a lot of potential. Now that it’s been a while since I finished it, I kinda wish there was a sequel.

I don’t get the compliant about everyone being a motorcyclist though. When every major street is filled with car wrecks, what kind of vehicle would you use?
 

Nankatsu

Member
Very enjoyable game to play. But I can see them not making another one since it’s a bit redundant. Sony is kind of covered on zombie and open world games.
Same setting but different vibes and mechanics in comparison with The Last of Us. Honestly, there are things that for a post-apocalyptic game I think Days Gone does it better.

I honestly think both can perfectly coexists within the same ecosystem.

About the secret ending...

I was kind of expecting along the games story for a freak to evolve to a point where it would be able to talk...But being O'Brian... Holy shit. Top writing moment right there.
 
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A great game released into a time period where the games media went out of their way to try to convince everyone that it was terrible because it didn't bend over backwards to be woke.
 

kiphalfton

Member
A great game released into a time period where the games media went out of their way to try to convince everyone that it was terrible because it didn't bend over backwards to be woke.

I don't know about that, BUT I don't know how it's considered bad when it's like every other open world game.

I think the best section was the forest, and to expand into crater lake like area and desert area was a mistake. Yeah it's supposed to be the PNW, but ask anybody who lives there and they never go out there.
 

Killer8

Member
It had a rough launch but after a few patches, I really liked it. Running from the hordes are still some of the most intense parts of any game. I also liked the thought that was put into the fuel management when using the bike, scavenging fuel from abandoned cars and gas stations and letting it coast downhill to save gas.

It's too bad that the directors acted like such whiny bitches ever since it bombed. Their ongoing pity party has almost pushed the good memories I have of the game out my mind.
 
OK, I'm playing this right now and I'm enjoying it very much (20+ hours in), something about the rural redneck setting really does it for me, having said that, and especially after finishing TLOU2 there are many things where it just can't compare with the rest of Sony's AAA hitters which are.mostly due to having a lower budget compared to the others (at least , I assume so) :

- Terrible fade to black/fade in cutscenes which takes you out of the immersion that the game is trying to create.
Arrive at the start of the mission on foot ? Screen fades to black, deek appears on his motorcycle (also a lack of detail).
About to trigger a cutscenes ? 1sec fade to black , cutscene plays, fade to black again, it just feels archaic compared to better/more polished games.

- Terrible dialogue/VO system where people talk on top of each other/while a recording is playing in the background .

- Terrible Voice acting and VO quality for the main character : Besides sounding like a schizophrenic 99% of the time with the constant teeth grinding and outbursts, Deek - for some reason - is also always screaming - a character will talk normally /softly only for Deek to go/reply " MAmBlRrr, WHy BO0zeRRR, GODDammIt AZDAGGAHDJF YOU HEAR ME AZDHAHGRR" , it's just so...weird and feels like during the VO recordings they didn't take into account the proper emotions/acting the actor should display depending on the scene, again, it's the.most bizarre thing ever, basically, VO direction is...not good and takes you out of the scene(s) because of it.

- General lack of detail when it comes to...anything really :
Coasting the motorcycle doesn't produce any sounds under certain scenarios/terrains, buggy/silly animations when enemies attack you/you kill them - especially with melee weapons, almost inexistent blending of animations (i.e : some actions look very jerky/buggy) etc etc.

- Witcher Deek vision is busted since it doesn't necessarily show items since... you'll also get shown triangles for Door entrance points and/or trash-cans (where you can hide) making you lose time in the thick of things.

- The whole motorcycle thing is weird : I get that a vehicle is vital in a post apocalyptic scenario and that the character should take care of it by fixing it/putting gas in it but it works detrimentally towards the gameplay since many times you'll be going in circles on foot trying to find a Jerry can making you - again - lose time, having to leave the bike behind as to find a Jerry can and then get back to it (again, making you lose time), being stuck in the wilderness on foot because of it, trying to see on the map which routes take you through gas stations when trying to teleport /make longer trips to distant destinations and so on so forth, you can upgrade the tank but it's still a ball ache.
Also : there's a gameplay system which actually let's you teleport the bike to you but...only works if you dumped the bike in a lake etc or when visiting the mechanics in a settlement after having left your bike behind...WHY ?
Again, I get the whole bike thing but it just gets annoying after some time.

That's the thing, game is very atmospheric and does have some production values but...it's not as polished as other ones.
It's badly directed, badly voiced and it's mediocre when it comes to animations and general details.

Still, it's a fun, slow burning game where you can kinda of "chill" and enjoy the beautiful locations, I already know I'm gonna miss it when I'll finish it, it just can't compare though with games.like TLOU2 for example when it comes.to.animations, animation blending, sound production, voice acting, voice direction, general attention to detail and so on so forth.

It runs really nice on the PS5 but it's the most 7/10 game of the last few years.
 

Gamerguy84

Member
What's funny is this is the game that made me quit listening to user reviews and gaming sites.

I only heard bad things about DG from release so even though I bought it I didn't play it.

I decided to play a bit and got hooked. Absolutely awesome game. In my top 5 from PS4 gen. I played on a PS4 PRO then again PS5.

In the earlier parts hordes freaked me out lol. By the end I loved seeking new ones out, crafting items, looking st the landscape, getting my strategy ready and then kicking their asses. Laughing at the last ones twitching.

Also cruising on the bike. I didn't even fast travel because I enjoyed it so much.
 
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Melfice7

Member
Should have been 15 hours shorter and have hordes much earlier in the game, other than that its a decent game
 

LimanimaPT

Member
I'm currently playing this game, and I'm liking it!
I love the shooting. It just feels rewarding making some head shots, haha.
Driving the bike is great, graphics are fantastic, great character models, very good animation and I could go on.
And those zombie hords... so cool.
I don't know how good this game did, but if it didn't sell well then the game is under rated. This game deserves to be praised.

At time the atmosphetic effects can be jaw dropping. When there's a lightning storm for instance with rain and the wind blowing on the trees and vegetation...well done!!
 

Chuck Berry

Gold Member
Top 10 of all time. We’ll never get this type of game for a long time, if ever. The drama, the writing, the acting, the gunplay. Witwer’s best performance by a country mile. Misunderstood and underrated as all hell.





 

Famipan

Member
Once you go Days Gone, no other game gets the same kind of pure gameplay satisfaction IMO, except Bloodborne.

I finished it 7 times and feel content but still catch myself day dreaming about playing it.

The arcade mode ‘Challenges’ is one of the best free DLC I have ever seen since RE4 OG Mercenaries Mode
 
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Ozzie666

Member
Those who waited a while got the better version of the game for sure and the better experience. It had issues at launch. Almost night and day.

The game deserves a sequel but there must be something more behind the scene or the scores were good enough for Sony or something.

The bike as a character was a decent idea and Sam is always great in his work too.
 

bitbydeath

Member
Those who waited a while got the better version of the game for sure and the better experience. It had issues at launch. Almost night and day.

The game deserves a sequel but there must be something more behind the scene or the scores were good enough for Sony or something.

The bike as a character was a decent idea and Sam is always great in his work too.
Sony loved it too and are making a Days Gone movie.
 

Heimdall_Xtreme

Hermen Hulst Fanclub's #1 Member
I'm going to play it one day....

But my annoyance about Days Gone was that it was shown at E3 and not Gravity Rush 2, which was close to its release date.
 

wipeout364

Member
I enjoyed it but I found I started losing I interest around 20 hours in and never finished it. I should go back and play it but I have found my interest in the Ubisoft/Sony open world type games to be decreasing in the last few years. I definitely would recommend it to someone who was looking for that open world experience.
 
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