Game Name: Metro 2033 Redux
Developer: 4A Games
Publisher: THQ and Deep Silver (Redux edition)
Release Date: March 16, 2010
Platforms: Microsoft Windows, Xbox 360, PlayStation 4, Xbox One, Linux and OS X
Introduction
I have been wanting to play this series for a very long time. I never really noticed it until people were talking about it. This year Metro Exodus was released and I figured this would be the best time to play the trilogy.
I bought this game really cheap on the XBOX Store. It was 9.99$ for the Bundle which includes both Metro 2033 Redux and Metro: Last Light Redux. These are basically remastered games.
The redux series takes Metro 2033 and remasters it in the graphics and gameplay modes of Metro: Last Light. As for Metro: Last Night the difference between the regular game and the Redux version is very minimal.
Let us see if this game is as good as everyone makes it up to be.
Story
This game is based on the novel by Dmitry Glukhovsky's called Metro 2033. There were sequels to the books called Metro 2034 and Metro 2035. You can see these books scattered throughout the world in Metro 2033 video game.
It has been said that Dmitry Glukhovsky chose to make a video game over a movie due to its creative freedom. In his eyes, they could do a lot more with the video game than with a movie which is usually restrictive.
You play a character named Artyom. You are living in the post-apocalyptic world. Moscow has become and wasteland and you are confined to the Metro system, where people have learned to survive with limited resources. The surface is too toxic to be habitable.
There is still a war so to speak within the Metro. Nazi's and the Communists (Reds) are against each other to promote their own version of what the metro's should be like. So obviously going through the metro tunnels will not be a walk in the park.
You are tasked with going in metro tunnels and try to find help to defend your station. You meet his Spartan Soldier called Hunter. He has given you dog tags and is advised to go to Polis where he will be able to ask for help. Hunter at this point continues his Exhibition to find the Dark Ones.
There is a lot of close combat in the metro tunnels. As you travel you meet a few new characters that help you along the way (Miller, Pavel, Ullman). It always seems, as if, every time you need something, someone can help you to get through a tough patch.
When Artyom ends up in Polis, the leaders there, deny his request for help and will not help save your station. At this point, a character that you meet called Miller (Colonel at Polis) is willing to help you. Now the goal is to go to D6 which is a military installation to launch missiles that could destroy the Dark Ones and bring peace over Russia.
Until now we know very little about the Dark Ones. In fact, we seem to think that they are bad alien types and need to be destroyed. Until now, we do not know why we need to destroy them. Although, it seems that it is more out of fear of the unknown more than anything else.
Finally, you end up in D6 and you put in the plan to launch the missiles. Through your travels it seems that the Dark Ones are able to talk to you telepathically. They are advising that you need to be stopped and you cannot continue. Of course, Artyom being the hard head does not obey.
***** Spoilers *****
Here there are 2 possible outcomes. I only learned about them when I researched for this review.
The first outcome is the "bad" ending. This is where, you destroy the Dark Ones' hive with the missiles. There is a big explosion and Artyom contemplates if he made the right decision when launching the missiles. If feels like something is not right. Then the game ends.
The second outcome, "good" ending, is that you decide not to launch the missiles and not to destroy the Dark Ones.
In the end, the good ending is not the one that is kept for the second game in the series, Metro: Last Light. Basically, if you want to have the true ending, the bad one is what the game creators decided to go with for the continuation of the story.
Metro 2033 (XBOX One) - Sample Gameplay
Bottomline
I think that this game is good but it is not perfect.
The gameplay options in Metro 2033 Redux are the same as in Metro: Last Light. You have a Normal setting which has more plentiful ammo laying around and enemies take less bullets to kill them. Then you have Ranger difficulties which basically take away the hints along the way. So you will not know what can be interacted with what so on.
Then there are 2 other options, Spartan and Survival modes. Spartan is playing the game in a less stealthy way with more ammo. Whereas Survival mode, is more stealthy and you have less ammo to work with. It mentions that it is the way Metro 2033 was meant to be played. I chose Normal and Spartan settings. It suited me just fine and the action was good. If I have a second go, I would probably choose a harder difficulty.
I played the redux version of the game which is the Metro 2033 game in the Metro: Last Light engine. The graphics even on my original XBOX One look crisp.
On the first or second night that I played this game, a chatter on my stream advised that this franchise was the Fallout game that everyone wanted. I do not completely agree but I see where he was coming from with his thoughts. The game itself is a post-apocalyptic world after a huge explosion wiped out everyone. That sounds very similar to Fallout. In addition, you are confined to metro tunnels underground. Does that sound familiar? May be the vaults in Fallout? Although Fallout, does have the player explore the outside world a lot more.
The other game that I think the gameplay is similar to Dead Space. The premise is different but the combat is very much the same. The environments are dark and you need to fight creatures in very dark and confined places.
The length of the game is also very reminiscent of the first Dead Space. It takes about 10 to 15 hours to complete the main game.
There were a few negatives that I took away which did not change my overall feeling of the game but it made it more frustrating that it had to be.
There were many times during my treks where I was stuck in an area because the game did not hint at what was needed to be done in order to advance. Some would say it encourages exploration, but in the end if it is not something that the game hints at at least once in the game, it can be frustrating. Here is an example.
There is a part in the second chapter where you are walking with Khan. You walk in to a metro cart and you get to a point where you are met with a wall of spider webs. Khan just looks in the air not really helping. It took me 45 minutes to figure our that I needed to use my lighter in order to burn through the webs. Until this point, spider webs slowed the player down but did not stop him in their tracks. I found that to be disappointing and it would not be the last time something like that would happen.
Another gripe that I have about the game is that there is not much in terms of information about the guns. In most cases, you need to equip it to see what it uses in terms of bullets. In addition to this, the upgrade system is not super great either. I barely upgraded anything. I am sure there there was a gun with good ammo that would do a lot of damage, but I did not bother doing that. May be on the next play through.
I did not get all the notes. There were some I did not get as I was scared to run out of air. I think this was done on purpose, but there have been players that got stuck in the game because they ran out of air and there is no way to get around it.
I did really like the combat. It is satisfying when you get a jump scare and you kill the creatures. It has that similar feeling to Dead Space when you are stuck in an area and you end up getting through. You get a sense of accomplishments.
The checkpoints are annoying. I guess that I am used to being able to save a game whenever I want. Metro 2033 still uses an old way of saving which is not great. There are times that I died and I had to go back 30 minutes because I was trying to play stealthy. I hope that this is fixed with Metro Exodus.
In the end, this is a good starting point for the series. The story was good and engaging and I really liked the characters that I met along the way. They feel genuine and you want to route for them as well. The gameplay is up and down depending at what aspect that you look into, but on the whole it is a satisfying experience. I think by today's standards it is quite a short game but there was no long sequences that last forever. The game is to the point.
I think if you are looking for a game that is not too long but that can quench your fps itch, this one would be worth a try. Especially now that the redux packages are dirt cheap, it is worth the investment.
What do you think? Did you like the game? Let us know.
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