The Blogtastic Blogfest That Is Getmeoutofthis.net!

Brer says I’m totally wrong, but man, I got really frustrated with Metro 2033 on easy. Luckily, thanks to the power of Gamefly, I just sent it back. Take that game!

There’s no doubt that Metro 2033 is a unique game. It’s got a very interesting setting and a fairly interesting story. The dialog and such isn’t like, the best in the world, but it was enough to keep me hooked and wanting to continue. Various mechanics, such as your quest log being an actual piece of paper you have to look at in the game world, were really immersive and interesting. That’s just not something done in many games, besides, I suppose, something like Far Cry 2. Of course, this isn’t a game like Far Cry 2, it’s a linear shooter, along the lines of Call of Duty in its pacing and construction. Not so much in the combat, but in the story presentation, I mean. There’s no doubt in my mind that there’s something really neat here for someone with more patience.

However, I’m not currently that person. I’m stressed and tired, and when I want to game, I just want a fun experience. I don’t want to replay sections constantly, and I don’t want to be lost. Metro 2033 did both of these things to me. The combat, even on the easiest setting, is not forgiving. Enemies take tons of bullets to take down (except, strangely, the monsters and mutants, which go down without issue) and are often in places you wouldn’t think to look. They also don’t just throw a few enemies at you. It’s either a giant arena full of people, or nobody. Bigger combat scenarios would require me to replay them over and over, which is frustrating for me, especially when the game checkpoints just slightly less often than it should, causing me to have to replay hard fights at times. It seemed, to me, that the only thing Easy did was up the drop rate of bullets. I was told that bullets are fairly scarce in this game, but on easy, I was drowning in them. I was not being particularly careful with my shots, but halfway through the game I had stockpiled like 800 AK bullets. This did help and remove a potential worry, but it was not enough to actually make the combat easy so I could just breeze through and enjoy the story.
For a game so linear, too, I shouldn’t be lost as often as I was. The game has a compass, that works as a guiding arrow. It’ll lead you right where you need to walk, over stairs, and so on. Sometimes, though, it’ll just randomly decide that, no, it’s just going to point in the general direction of an objective, and let you figure it out. Giving me help, and then taking it away from me is frustrating, especially when it takes it away in the most confusing environments where I need it the most.

It was these facts, plus the fact that Brer was constantly telling me I missed important things (Sorry love! I’m not mad or something, but that really did hinder my fun), that caused the game to become a chore instead of a destressor. For those more willing to deal with a bit of clunkiness, and who love that European PC game mentality that the game has will probably find tons to love about it. For me, though, it was just the wrong game at the wrong time.