Evil West Review (Tamaster)
Sum-Up
In-depth analysis further down.
đŠ Pros
đĽ Cons
⢠Enjoyable combat system, that has enough depth and variety to stay fresh until the end.
⢠Highly-detailed locations with great art direction; each is distinct and feels unique.
⢠Good ability balance: none of your skills or combinations will be overpowered at any point.
⢠Despite its linear levels, exploration is yet compelling, for it awards much-needed upgrades and currency.
⢠Huge amount of bugs, some of which game-breaking, that force frequent lobby and game restarts.
⢠Lack of new enemies in the entire second half: bullet-spongy foes, copy-pasted and multiplied ad-nauseam, will be the norm instead.
⢠About half of all character and weapon upgrades are gimmicky or useless, as are certain core mechanics, like parrying, which isnât worth the risk/reward in most cases.
⢠You canât know when youâre crossing a one-way transition in a level, potentially locking behind unexplored areas permanently (due to autosave).
⢠Stale, generic âHard-boiled-gung-hoâ character that feels one-sided, has no evolution and little charisma throughout the story.
đ¨ Bugs & Issues
đ§ Specs
⢠Players can randomly glitch and be unable to perform essential actions.
⢠Desync issues such as dead enemies being seen alive, incorrect positions during animations and other similar ones.
⢠A specific level (âLightning in a Bottleâ) frequently crashes, stutters and has audio issues.
⢠i5 11400H
⢠16GB RAM DDR4
⢠512 GB SSD
⢠RTX 3060 6GB
⢠1080p
Content & Replay Value:
It took me, alongside my partner, around 18 hours to complete Evil West (EW) on Evil (Very Hard) difficulty, taking extra time to explore all levels and collect secrets / rewards when possible. Despite the presence of NG+ mode, the content is linear, so I donât see a reason to replay once finished.
Is it worth buying?
Not really. The price of 50⏠is rather steep even considering its AA production value, compared to the total content offered and its quality. The present issues simply donât make this game worth your money, compared to the many other, better, third-person action titles already on the market for a similar (or lower) price.
Verdict: Mediocre
Rating Chart Here
Despite a solid combat system that admittedly feels great, and a lot of eye-candy, Evil West canât pull itself out of mediocrity anyway; all other aspects prove lackluster.
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https://steamcommunity.com/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=3016541308
In-Depth
Writing & Worldbuilding
Set in an alternate late-1800s Far West setting, EW follows the story of Jesse Rentier, heir of the prestigious and mysterious Rentier Institute, the one-stop-shop for all things involving the supernatural - most importantly, keeping vampires and related monstrosities at bay. After decades of skirmishes around a fragile sort of peace, an upstanding vampire plots to spark an all-out war against mankind, and it will be Jesse and his companionâs duty to stop him.
This Van-Helsing-esque premise might sound exciting, and in some aspects - like the electro-punk technology and some quirky, no-filters side characters - it is. However, the main protagonist himself is, sadly, one of the flattest and least interesting toons of the bunch, not only following the âmusclehead-no-brainâ stereotype to the letter, but also not having any evolution whatsoever of its beliefs, personality or anything else during the story⌠despite there being events that would elicit such changes in anyone -remotely- human.
Exploration & Secrets
Each of the 16 chapters develops in a linear way, with exploration sections alternated with combat arenas and some simple puzzles from time to time. Thereâs a main path to follow, alongside a few side-areas that branch off and often house additional rewards, in the form of cash, collectibles or even unique perks and cosmetics. Itâs worthwhile to take extra time to find them, as youâll need every penny you can get, to stay up-to-par with the weapon enhancements youâll unlock as you progress. The puzzles often involve activating switches or moving parts in a specific order; theyâre simple even for those inexperienced with puzzle games.
A major flaw in the level design is how one-way transitions are often not highlighted in any way from regular ones - that means you may unwillingly take the main path, when side ones are still to be cleared, and be locked out of them forever when the game autosaves in your face after taking the wrong turn.
https://steamcommunity.com/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=3016541439
Combat System & Bosses
Being the main gameplay focus, combat is articulate, and plays out in third-person, with a fast pacing that rewards timing, quick reflexes and the analysis of enemy attack patterns. Jesse will have an arsenal of ranged and melee tools at his disposal, as well as passive and active skills to complement them further. Aside from the basic combo attacks, youâll eventually unlock electricity-fueled mobility tools that allow you to dash toward enemies or pull them to you, deflect projectiles, and unleash devastating effects by consuming Energy, gained from either E-drops or by simply hitting foes a whole lot. Most heavier guns and ranged options have cooldowns and gauges to fill before becoming available, while lighter ones like the basic pistol and rifle will just need a quick reload.
On the harder settings, combat is very high in stakes, as only a few hits will send Jesse to the grave - the same canât be said for enemies, especially elite ones and mini-bosses, which take a tremendous amount of hits to be dispatched. That will be fine while theyâre in reasonable numbers, however EW, from halfway onward, takes the habit of spamming a huge amount of mini-bosses and elites in each arena, alongside a mountain of trash adds.
This translates into two problems: the impossibility of using melee combos viably as long as there are so many enemies, thus having to kite them around with ranged weapons due to the lack of actual CC options, and also the fact that, while focusing on a single elite, all the others can attack you from range with impunity and without even an attack warning sign. Itâs a lot of fun to be in the middle of a combo, and get insta-killed because the other -four- mini-bosses decided to all perform their ranged attack on you at the same time from the other side of the map. This becomes so much of an issue in the latter chapters, that fights will become tedious kiting games where youâll use your comparatively puny ranged weapons because melee is a death sentence.
Bosses arenât as much cancer as normal fights, and some of them are quite enjoyable to fight, and reasonably balanced (mostly). They usually feature multiple phases that change their attack patterns significantly, adding more challenge and novelty to the fight.
Character Progression & Upgrades
The progression is linear, unlocking passive upgrades and new modules for your firearms as Jesse levels up. While some of these upgrades may only be gained from secret chests, the bulk will be obtained by reaching the correct level, and then paying the âfeeâ in either Skill Points or Cash. Thereâs free respec once in a while, though, so if you figure out some skill is crap, and trust me, a lot of them -are-, you can change that right quick.
https://steamcommunity.com/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=3016541763