They threw out the original writer and composer, and seem to have changed most characters and the whole script. It also apparently plays more like Dishonored now.
While I admire the ideas behind patient gamers and think it probably works out really well for some people, I personally also enjoy participating in the zeitgeist from time to time. Playing Elden Ring on launch was fantastic - you really felt like you were exploring the world alongside everyone else as you’re finding Ashes and weapons that don’t even have wiki entries yet.
One thing I forgot to ask last post was the music, in particular the between-chapter songs. They were all written specifically for the game by various artists based on poems about the story Sam Lake gave them. I’ve seen lots of streamers just immediately skip and go to the next chapter, but I really recommend listening through each song. They’re all amazing, and it kind of makes me sad it didn’t get the award for best music.
I’m sure they are and I’m sure they’re doing their best, but such a huge part of why the original has become a cult classic was Brian Mitsoda’s script. They had him on board and threw him out. I really wish I knew what was going on behind the scenes. Did he piss someone off? Was the functional parts of the game not… functioning? Or was the script really that bad? They seem to be keeping basically none of it, but the characters in the Chinese Room trailers have none of the charm of Hardsuit Labs trailers…
I think we’ll get a mediocre Dishonored-like with a Vampire theme that is Bloodlines only in name, and fans will forever wonder about and mythologize that Hardsuit Labs version with Mitsoda and Rik Schaffer (which may well have sucked in reality).
It’s become one of my favourite games of all time, I think it’s a masterpiece. I love the Remedy connected universe, and as someone who played and loved Max Payne back in the day I got a huge nostalgia kick from the cameos in AW2. When you first see Casey in the Max Payne 1 outfit I squealed.
I also think Alice’s actress is absolutely killing it and am surprised she didn’t get more recognition.
I really need a behind the scenes documentary about the development of Bloodlines 2 in the future. They had literally the game fans of the first wanted: Brian Mitsoda writing and Rik Schaffer composing (which itself was a miracle since he’s previously said he never would).
What the hell happened? Did Brian piss someone off? Was the gameplay completely unplayable? How bad was the script? Did they choose to throw away everything Mitsoda wrote or did he not let them use it?
That’s only possible if the game is a rough diamond. Rik Schaffer might publish his unused OST for modders to do something with, but I doubt Brian Mitsoda’s script is accessible and looking at the changes here compared to the Hardsuit Labs trailers it doesn’t look like they kept much of it in.
I have literally zero hopes. But then again all the things I wanted from the sequel are the things Paradox threw out when they handed the game over to The Chinese Room. And looking at the character changes in this trailer compared to the Hardsuit Labs trailers I can’t say I’m hopeful things have changed for the better.
I missed that you’ve started on Alan Wake 2 now, but I’m glad you’ve got it running somewhat acceptably! It’s a very demanding game, when I first played it I didn’t have my new PC so I’m intimately familiar with struggling to be able to run it.
I’m glad you spotted the signs, I love the work on all the signs and graffiti in the dark place.
Finished Metro: Last Light last week. Have to say I didn’t really like it. Spoiler warnings below. The good bits were good, to be sure: the populated stations of Bolshoi and Venice were phenomenal and there were parts that harked back to the highlights of the first game - the early parts with Pavel for instance and some nice levels in the tunnels. Playing on Survival Hardcore there were passages that were phenomenally immersive and enjoyable, and I do love the world building around the communities in the metro.
The story just didn’t land with me. The political war left me completely uninterested and the love story with Anna was so half-baked I almost wanted to stop playing right there when the sex scene happened. I also didn’t really like the overly supernatural stuff like the River of Fate. It was also kind of hard for me to follow the logic of the narrative at times as it felt like Artyom was just kind of drifting around and happened to end up where he needed to be regardless. He also should have died like a dozen times, but I guess he’s a superhero.
The moral system left me frustrated more than anything now that I knew about its existence (I played 2033 completely blind). Finally, the boss fights felt terrible and really out of place in a game that should be about tension, loneliness and stealth. Artyom was too much of an action hero here for my taste. There wasn’t really anything like the great Library level in 2033. When he picked up a gatling gun at the end like a russian Rambo and fought off a horde of enemies I was rolling my eyes.
Still, I’m glad to have gotten through it finally - this was my second attempt - and I am interested to see what they did in Exodus as I’ve heard nothing but good things.
For now I’m taking a breather and tackling Bioshock 2, another backlog game to get through before being able to play Infinite, which is the game I’m really looking forward too.