| Platform | OVERALL |
|---|---|
| PC | 8.30 |
| Overall | 8.30 |
|
From the creator of Rick and Morty comes a surprisingly great FPS with inventive levels, solid gameplay, and a humorous story with memorable characters. This could have easily been some cheap poorly designed comedy game but the developers really went all out to create a game that feels like a FPS from the early 2000s with inspiration from games like Oddworld Stranger's Wrath. This game isn't going to win any awards for inventing new gameplay mechanics but they way it uses plenty of tried and true mechanics in creative ways makes the game a joy to play. At the center are your weapons which are sentient beings, played by various voice actors, one is the comedian JB Smoove. Each have multiple uses, Kenny the standard pistol gets the ability to spray juices which send enemies into the air for air combos. One weapon freezes enemies in a time bubble and is more like a needler. One gun is shoots small babies that attack the enemies and can even turn them on your side. These weapons aren't just used for combat, they are used to solve environmental puzzles as well. That combination between action, exploration and puzzle solving is what works so well with this game. Levels are medium sized with plenty of space to explore and discover secrets. Plenty of times you will see an item out of reach which requires a new skill to find to access, the classic Metroid/Zelda formula. Some secrets hold some really clever and funny side content. The game was just fun to play and explore, I found so many levels to have inspired design, this could easily be just a run of the mill FPS but man they tried to have some fun moments and they succeeded. The action isn't exactly Halo or Doom, it's not even Half-Life but it works well for the game. Enemies come in a standard set of bad guy types like the grunt, the brute, the sniper, the crazy run at you like Serious Sam guy. Not the most inventive enemies but the way the weapons let you attack in various ways makes the combat scenarios fun. You learn a grapple power at some point which lets you swing around the battle field and that is always a big plus for me. Boss battles are a highlight, almost all are well done with great patterns to learn and really fun dialogue throughout. The comedy is hit and miss, if you know the stylings of Rick and Morty you know a lot of the comedy is just GUY SCREAMING REALLY LOUD PROFANITIES!!! HAHA ISNT THIS FUNNY!!! That could get old really quick but thats not the only kind of comedy. Surprisingly this game has a lot of heart as well as the characters you meet all come with backstories which lead to a sort of rag tag group of misfits trying to save the world. High on Life is the total package, production values are great, story is interesting, gameplay is fun and it's a perfect length at about 15 hours. I am shocked at how great this game is. Again, it ain't going to win any awards for originality but there is still a place for games that use tried and true mechanics so well. |
|
Posted by Dvader Thu, 16 Nov 2023 03:21:40
Log in or Register for free to comment