Russia...The Dark Ones...Barely Habitable...Metro 2033

Metro 2033 is a game based on Post Apocalyptic Russia, where the Human race is trying to survive. However the hidden dangers lurk through the Metro and can take you by surprise at any moment and at anytime. Whether it be the rugged Nosalises, or the Demons that ravage the skies. Not even the after life shadows will allow you to live and let them be alone. Where a beggar must beg for a bullet in order to get a nice warm meal to survive. These are the dangers everyone must deal with in order to survive.



You are Artyom, a survivor who lives in the Metro in the now dead world of Moscow. He has never seen the light of day, and can only imagine life with post cards that are posted amongst his room, showing him how our world used to be. He journeys from one area of the Metro to the other in hopes of finding help to protect his home, which seems to be threatened by the termed, "Dark Ones" and their creatures. He has been living with his Step Father who is no slouch and knows how to protect himself with his rifle. He introduces you to Hunter, who is a firm believer in killing anything that is threatening. The three of you are attacked, and thus begins your journey, to a Station known as Polis, in which you are going to ask for help, to fight against these Dark Ones.



Graphics: 8 out of 10
While the games creatures and environments are deeply detailed and toned for the environment. The game sometimes lacks some extra polishing in some of the objects that are around. However the Character and Monster animations are very good looking. The Lurker Monsters are probably my favorite to mention as they look like an oversized skinned person running around, ready to bite your head off. You will also notice, the hair on the creatures is apparent, and the blood seeping out of the mouths of each creature that has made a kill. The gas mask you have to wear to protect you from radiation poisoning is very detailed. You can see sweat and cracks in the mask from use, which is a nice effect. The world of the Metro is what you would expect, very run down, and beat up due to the barrage Moscow had taken. The many different monsters you run into fit their environments, whether it be a skin color change, or a whole new monster altogether, and Metro 2033, shines in that aspect big time. I will say though, nothing is ground breaking, but from what it does have, they seem to have a good grasp on it.





Sound: 7.5 out of 10
The game takes advantage of the horror genre, and throws at you some really good scares thanks to environment the music and tone sets. You can be in a quiet area, and put your head next to a pipe and hear something so creepy, it makes you get the jitters. The sounds of the weapons, sound authentic, and sound familiar to the weapon as opposed to some games, where the sounds of the gunfire do not match the weapon. The music if you run into it, via record players and so on, have the same classic 40s tunes that set the era up correctly. The voice overs also seem to be okay, but a lot of the actors seem to be overused and can be noticed quite easily. The children all have one voice in what it seems, and I have seen no children that are female, which is odd. But all in all, the sound is okay, and works well with the game.





Controls: 6.5 out of 10
Now this is where I begin to get irritated with the game. The movement with the left stick, seems to be the only correct thing done in the game, and possibly aiming with the right. However, everything seems to be off a bit, and I have noticed no snap aiming, which would have been welcome in this title. One of the biggest problems, I have noticed is when your changing between weapons in gun fight, things seem to get mixed up. Also when reloading and being attacked, this process seems to take very long time, if it gets completed at all. You also get very confused trying to pull out your battery charger and turning on/off your light. At one point, you begin helping a child and your controls go to this slide mode, where you turn one way and let go and it keeps going. Other than that, everything else seems to be okay.



Story: 9.0 out of 10
The story is very strong in this game, and has had me glued through 2 completions of the game. Just imagining what life could be life in that type of situation (minus the monsters of course) would be just insane and has you thinking, what would you do. Not to mention, Artyam is on a path to save the world and doesn't even know it until things wrap up in the end. All you see is one stepping stone, followed by a bigger one. The creatures Artyam battles, add to the element and make things that much better. He has to overcome so much, whether it be the creatures, such as the Librarian or the undead shadows of the past, he has to stay on focus and maintain while being badgered by the Dark Ones, in finding out the meaning of Artyom. I can go on and on, but I advise just to play through the game and find out what I am talking about.



Achievements Difficulty Rating: EASY (.25 bump in overall score)
This game has some very base achievements that are easily gained just by playing through the story. Get EX amount of kills with certain weapons, or meet certain requirements in levels, or finding gold bullets.. Also some are based on how you act in the world of Metro 2033. I advise to be the good guy, and give bullets (money) to every beggar and kid you run into, except the hooker. Also having to explore everything in game, leaving no stone unturned is part of this list. What is also nice, is if you have to mop up certain achieves on levels, you can just load up that level, after completing it the first time, and do it up. This game can net you the full 1k, in one playthrough, but I advise using a guide, so you do not miss any bullets, or hidden areas.

All in all, I like Metro 2033 a Lot and recommend it as a definite rental, because of the easy of achieves. But if your just into a good old scary first person shooter, than I advise picking up a copy of this game immediately!

The overall rating I give this game is an 8.0 out of 10!

Thanks for reading!

Gabriel