Okay, you can kinda see the formula id Software went with here. Let’s take the fresh, wildly popular DOOM 2016 butter we cooked up and spread it over an open-world slice of bread. We have no idea how to make an open-world game? No problem - hire a contractor. Enter Avalanche Studios. They do those kinds of games, right? They made that Mad Max blockbuster. The RAGE world is basically the same.

What a combo that should have been, right?

The result? A pretty soulless impostor project. Sure, we’ve got the gore and weapon porn, and the music/sound design is DOOM-ish as hell (pun intended). And hey, there’s an open world! Well… it’s only technically a world, and it’s kinda open (also really dead and underwhelming). This is a textbook case of horses for courses, in my opinion. Both studios should stick to what they do best: id Software with their badass, adrenaline-fueled corridor shooters, and Avalanche Studios with ACTUAL open-world action games - designed with that concept in mind, not bolted on like a mod to unsupported hardware.

And let’s not even start on the story - it’s crap. Too 90s, dripping with I’m-a-man-with-big-balls-and-big-guns energy. We don’t roll like that anymore.

The VO, though? That’s a win. Somehow, we got Carla Tassara and Jason Hightower in one game before CP2077. How crazy is that? Sam Riegel also delivers, though I’m not convinced this is his kind of role. He’s got way more soul and character, and that overqualifies him for something like this in my opinion.

Don’t mind the hours - I played through the remastered version but wanted to review the standard copy, focusing on the core aspects.

One of the best open-world games ever developed? Note that I didn’t just say “games” or “Action-RPGs.” It took me three attempts to really get into it because, initially, the characters and overall story didn’t grab my interest. The opening hour felt as though it broke all the best practices in game design - no compelling points of interest, no exciting action to hook you in. You’re introduced to an odd tribal storyline, led through the dullest dungeon imaginable, and asked to take down some of the game’s simplest machines. I had better things to do at that time.

But once I got through those early hours in the remastered version, I fell in love with the world and the incredible machines designs. The story itself didn’t captivate me much, but the core gameplay loop was highly addictive. You’re out there exploring stunning biomes, learning how to exploit the unique weaknesses of various machines, and occasionally diving underground to solve puzzles and uncover the lore of the world. It felt like Red Dead Redemption 2 without the emphasis on narrative. Throughout, it had strong vibes of The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild - the story wasn’t the main draw for me there either, but the sheer sense of exploration was almost tangible.

And I have to call out the insane snow tech in the DLC - though that might be a remaster-exclusive feature.

I’ve heard the developers are working on an MMO, and I can see how it could succeed. The world is insanely rich.