Metro: Last Light
As one of the victims of THQ’s financial fallout last year, Metro: Last Light had to overcome several hurdles in the lead up to its eventual release; including considerable delays and alleged controversy over the game’s budget. This tumultuous development had a residual impact on the final product, with the studio opting to bypass multiplayer and cooperative modes, choosing instead to pour all of the resources available into the game’s single-player — and quite frankly, it shows.
Though they’re considered a mandatory add on, single-player campaigns within modern first-person shooters are often the weakest point of the overall product; undercooked narratives that are shoehorned in purely to dot the i’s and cross the t’s. Metro: Last Light, however, is a commendable exception. 4A Games’ immediate sequel to Metro 2033 continues the unforgivingly bleak storyline with great effect. Similarly to its predecessor, players assume the role of Artyom, a grizzled ranger who harbours a lifelong connection with the Dark Ones — mutated humanoids that act as the overarching villains.
Metro: Last Light is a strictly linear foray; one that has you exploring the bowels of Moscow’s sprawling metro system. Having said that, this concentrated formula doesn’t detract from the overall experience. What gives the game its distinctive sense of novelty is the palpable sense of atmosphere that the studio have melded into every nook and post apocalyptic cranny in the surrounding environment. The game wasn’t necessarily poorly received. Its primary flaws included uneven gameplay and numerous technical glitches — which I wholly concur with. Outside of critical circles, though, it felt as if the game was underserved through lacklustre advertising and its conscious choice to omit multiplayer and co-op modes, which in turn impacted its innate appeal for gamers who took it at face value.
Hype can be a cruel mistress. For a game that remains loyal to a single-player story, touching upon emotional, humanitarian themes with interesting precision in the process, Metro: Last Light deserved a greater shot at a mainstream audience. And though 4A Games plan to bring the title to the PlayStation 4 next year, its latest outing will remain as one of the most underrated games of 2013.
Seeing as a lot of people I’ve spoken to haven’t even heard of this game, I’ve decided to include the trailer since I’m sure that many of you aren’t familiar with it.
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