Yeah, that was me
.
That statement certainly holds up even further into the game -- I would even argue that the gunplay is far tighter than Uncharted (The Last of Us' gunplay is uncomparable)
Couple more impressions:
The one major disconnect from reviews I've had personally is the dismissal of a strong creative vision for the game, I believe every element comes together, the "blend" as you said, is nigh on flawless. This is probably the first time I've seen in a game that cutscenes have really had the confidence to pace themselves appropriately, alot of videogame cutscenes feel rushed or push flash cinematography for it's own sake (looking at you, Japanese devs!)
The only problems I've had with the game so far are;
A: The Lycan fights; the first of the two I've seen being awkward, with the small playspace and reliance on the roll mechanic. The second being sort of a gimmicky melee fight, although a well choreographed set piece. (very minor instances in the grand scheme of things)
And B: The inspection mechanic, when it's an optional item it works great, but when it's a progression item, inspecting something for a non-descriptive amount of time (usually too long) before having the cutscene continue, really disrupts pacing, if the game just had you "Press O to stop inspecting" (like the optional inspections) at any point during these it would be much improved. It just feels a bit too masturbatory as is. (Again, super minor issue, not a major detraction except when carefully analysed).
Finally -- Anyone actually bothered by the black bars? The gameplay scenarios seem to be designed with them in mind, because compared to something like The Evil Within (a game I did actually enjoy) The camera has never got irritating, I've never felt like I've had to fight with it. Honestly this might sound crazy, but I'd like other similarly cinematic games like this to have this aspect ratio, just to increase visual fidelity wherever possible. Until Dawn, telltale style games and David Cage games would benefit greatly from it, if implemented as well as they are in The Order.
