Metro Redux - PlayStation 4

I never expected to actually feel the things that all horror games try to make you feel. The only other games that gave me such a keen sense of desperation and hopelessness were the Soulsborne games. The Metro has such depth, as both the physical 'home' of humanity and the constant reminder of humanity's mistakes, failures, and approaching extinction.The locations in both Metro 2033 and Last light were very unique, and stood apart from what I'd seen in other games. The atmosphere, lighting and ambience were amazingly immersive, and the Russian accents just put it over the top. At first I thought 'you'd only be able to do so much with underground train tunnels,' but I underestimated the Metro team's imagination. Cobwebs, flooding, fungi, monster nests, monsters, corpses, all amidst human depravity, rumours of war and the crumbling remnants of 'modern' society. And don't get me started on above-ground; beautifully bleak with those 'wonderful' air filter sections that 'tested your skills' and doomed the unworthy to repeatedly putting on and taking off their mask to preserve the 8 seconds of air they suddenly discovered they had - while fighting off packs of mutant wolves and praying for the damned cutscene to end before the protagonist choked to death and I had to do it all over aga-The gun sounds though... not the best. I'm no expert by any means - I only just started getting into fps this year with Bioshock and Far Cry 4, but I still noticed the satisfying clicks and clunks of those guns, which was a bit lacking in Metro. Most noticeable for me was the fact that reloading assault rifles reminded me less of gritty soldiers walking on a knife's edge between war and peace, and more of a 90's Nerf gun commercial. Having said that, the 6-cartridge shotgun had my favourite reload animation of any gun I've ever seen in any game. I didn't even care that it took 6 days to complete. If I died because of it, I deserved that death.Ah what else. Metro 2033 was good, but Last light was amazing. I'm still the noobiest of noobs when it comes to shooters, so no Ranger difficulties for me, but normal Sparta mode (I think) was hard enough and I died quite a few times. Some dlcs were hit and miss, but most were pretty good. Both games were relatively short compared to say... Far Cry 4, but then the story is pretty linear, and I still felt I got my money's worth in content. Actually, since I paid 16 bucks for this, I'd say I got many times more than that. So, if you like shooters, horror, and are a victim of this economy like me, give this a buy. You won't regret it.

As someone who knows Russian, the game is really good and the plot is more than great

First Person Shooters is my favorite genre of games for one simple reason: when done right, FPS games can be some of the most poignant, immersive, and significant pieces of media one can consume.There are of course games like Call of Duty (a personal favorite series of mine) that excel in capturing the feel of a Michael Bay type movie but don't offer much in the way of significant story. You feel immersed in the experience even if the story doesn't really register in any real way other than being a means to move the action forward.Then there are games like Half-Life or BioShock that offer a truly great story. In my opinion Half-Life and BioShock are fantastic games because of their story, despite their generic gameplay. The gameplay is not bad by any means, but what draws you to the game is the story, not how the game plays. The game play merely exists to give you the tools to drive the story forward.Somewhere in the middle of these two extremes (CoD - Half-Life) there exists the Metro series. Metro 2033 started life out as a book written by Dmitry Glukhovsky. A post-apocalyptic tale set in the Moscow Metro system chronicling the story of the inhabitants of the metro system. These inhabitants being the last known survivors of a nuclear bombing brought about by World War 3. The book itself is a powerful read in its own right. The game follows the books story in broad strokes, but there are instances of editorializing for the sake of efficiency in story-telling.So what makes Metro 2033 and Last Light so great? Aside from offering a story that is compelling if a bit fantastical, the games also offer the most immersive game play mechanics in any FPS. HUD's are minimal. There are various physical in-game objects that you can refer to track any number of important items like ammo or your gas mask filters. The dark and claustrophobic settings are enough to keep you on edge throughout your run. There are a number of systems and mechanics that you have to be aware of to succeed in Metro.For instance: anything that uses a battery charge (like your often used flashlight) has a limited amount of charge that you have to keep an eye on while using. You can manually pump more charge as needed, but this needs to happen during a break in action since it leaves you vulnerable to enemy attacks.Metro games stand toe-to-toe with genre giants because of the level of quality and care that is apparent in everything from the design of the world, to how the story is told. This is a labor of love, and I cannot wait to see how the series moves forward with Exodus.