izigame.me

I was excited for this game. And now ive used it as a learning experience to wait for reviews. This game is a dissapointing mess, and honestly, i don't think any amount of updates could save it. This isn't just an undercooked game with a blatant lack of polish, this feels like a concept more than an actual game. All the pieces are in the game that couldve made it good, but it doesnt do ANY of them well.
STORY:
The story is incoherent at best and non-existent at worst. The most part of a story you can actually get is through notes and collectibles. The main missions are literally "go here, grab thing because we told you too, maybe kill a thing, and report back." There are few exceptions, but those are found in boss fights. I haven't completed the game to see the rest, and honestly, i dont think I can push myself to complete it. I know the game itself is short. You can complete everything in 12 hours. And some things are brought into the game that just dont make sense. Theres a third type of enemy thats like a private security, and it is never TRULY explained what their purpose is. Like at all. They exist, JUST to exist. And they play the EXACT same way as the cultists. In the notes, there is a DECENT story. But it is never given proper showing. There arent even actual cutscenes in the game. Not one single, actual cutscene in this game. Just models frozen in settings while the characters monologue over them.
GAMEPLAY:
Couldve been good. As i said, all the pieces are there, the just do NOT work. Its a generic shooter that doesnt reinvent any wheels. The loot system is NOT rewarding. You can find the highest tier gear with a 30% damage buff and use that for most of the game straight from the jump. The abilities are laughably bland. I found myself not using them, ever. And the skill tree is beyond pointless. It doesnt change things to cater to a playstyle, or do anything interesting. None of them do. Granted, i only played one character, but you only need to play one to see how little thought went into it. The AI is some of the worst ive seen in a AAA title. You kill an enemy right next to another one and half the time theyre not even aware of it. Constantly running into walls or standing in front of whatever theyre shooting only to get obliterated.
As for the vampires, the main focus of the game, once youve fought one, its the exact same fight. Over, and over, and over. There are a few "specials." and by specials, i mean they do one thing differently, or just have more health. They basically just rush you. In groups, its a little challenging. But more annoying than it is engaging. The CORE element of their game, feels like a chore to deal with rather than a rewarding aspect. And most times you can just avoid them. Just run through everything. Its insane.
I finished one boss fight, and it isnt even that good. Nothing rewarding about it. I have nothing to say on this end. It was just BORING. I imagine all boss fights feel the exact same.
There is weapon variety, but it doesnt matter. All weapons feel the same.
OPEN WORLD:
This is probably the worst out of all the things in this game. The open world is not only relatively small, it is EMPTY. Sure, enemies are fairly placed around, but when every fight feels the same, it doesnt matter. The loot system isnt rewarding enough to care after awhile. If you were expecting to try and search for specific chests that contain great loot, well i hate to tell you, that isnt the case. The "looter shooter" aspect of the game is as bare bones as it gets. There is nothing in this map. Aside from side missions, like "vampire nests." which are very short dungeons with maybe 5 enemies in it that are supposed to give you higher tier items, but again, when every weapon feels the exact same, it really doesnt mattter. No weapon has anything interesting going for it. Even the Highest tier weapons. They just look different.
ATMOSPHERE:
This is probably the only thing the game does well in. Its creepy. The music is actually pretty good. The setting and set pieces feel like a stephen king novel. And the core of Arkane with enviornmental storytelling is definitely there. If this game took a direction that Arkane was naturally good at, it could have been a decent game, and it shows.
MULTIPLAYER:
No matchmaking. Havent played with anyone but ive heard its constantly bugged. They advertised it as a 4 player co op and didnt even bother to cater to that. If you cant make it accessible and easy to play with others, then why do it?
PERFORMANCE:
AI, as I said, is atrocious. It doesnt make the game fun. You can steamroll through almost everything.
Stuttering is not CONSTANT, but it is frequent. FPS drops in almost every area with multiple buildings or enemies. There is a significant lack of polish in this game. It actually makes me question if this product was actually rushed or they just gave up.
Textures take awhile to load in, graphic bugs are frequent. It just does not feel polished.
GRAPHICS:
Not terrible, but for a AAA in 2023, could be better. This studio has other games that came out YEARS ago that look better. Prey, and Dishonored 2 GENUINELY look better than this game. Not to say its terrible, but for those of you that care.

OVERALL:
Again, i really wanted to like this game. and I pushed myself to try and complete it before making this, but honestly, it came to a point where I was pushing myself so hard I wasnt having any amount of fun. The first mission feels decent. They tell you to play your way when finishing the first mission, but there is no REAL way to play. The lack of choice at all is masked by the "open world" aspect of the game. Arkane has made absolute BANGERS in the past, and i genuinely cant see how they thought this game was anywhere near ready to come out. Even if they patch it over time and fix things like the framerate, the AI, maybe difficulty scaling, change the perk system, that doesnt fix the main problem with this game. The game has no identity. It has a bunch of elements thrown into it to cater to as wide of an audience as possible and does none of them well. I truly dont believe Arkane is to blame. I think Microsoft made them create the game in the safest way possible, at the risk of the studio itself to make as much money as possible before people realize how unfinished this game is. Ill say it again and again, this game isnt a finished product, it feels more like a CONCEPT of a game.
Rating: 3/10 Bad game, bad time, sad time.