Post by husky199370 on Aug 20, 2013 12:13:16 GMT -5
Painkiller: Hell and Damnation is a reincarnation of the classic shooter, filled with chaotic action, insane weapons, a wide variety of monsters each with different methods of attack and all of the other things that made classic shooters so great. I bought this game for a whopping £20 in my local game shop and got it in a collectors edition box, which was full of goodies. Upon watching the making of DVD I found that Painkiller Hell and Damnation was a remake of a 2004 game called Painkiller. I took it home and unboxed it, found posters, an art book and even a CD with the soundtrack. When I looked through all of this, very happy with my purchase so far I decided to pop the game into my PS3. After a couple of playthroughs, both single player and co-op I had time to think about the different aspects of the game and decided to make a review of it. I warn you now there may be spoilers, turn back while you can. Without further ado let's begin.
Plot
I'll start by saying that this game is not meant to be known for it's plot and if you came here looking for a thrilling storyline with good acting, you came to the wrong place.
The game revolves around a man called Daniel Garner, who died along with his wife in a strange car accident. Daniel is trapped in purgatory, the place between heaven and hell, he is separated from his wife and is trapped fighting for his survival in this desolate land. The game begins with Daniel sitting in a grave yard with his shotgun, he is approached by the grim reaper and is offered a deal: Daniel will be reuinited with his wife if he brings seven legions of souls to the grim reaper. Daniel accepts this deal and is given s new weapon, a weapon called the soul catcher, which can drain the souls of his enemies and even fire saw blades, upon being given this weapon, he begins to go to work, from there you are plunged into the action. The cutscenes are played out pretty badly, meaning shoddy voice acting and a cheesy dialogue, making it sound like some B-movie, but that doesn't mean it's shite, in fact it's rather funny and leaves you wondering... Are they doing this to be funny or are they serious? But as I say, in this game, plot is the least important part.
Gameplay
The gameplay itself is rather simple, you travel across the map and you kill whatever the game throws at you, whether it be skeletons, zombies, undead soldiers from world war 1, the usual things. I know it sounds simplistic and boring the way I described it, but believe me when I say it is pretty damn fun. You collect a brutal array of weapons which all have their own unique functions, but I'll get into that later. You don't get given any special objectives and there isn't much in the way of exploring although there are secret areas and things to collect, but this does not matter as the mass swarms of enemies in some areas are more than enough to keep you busy. Unfortunately the fun but simple combat system isn't used to the best of it's ability, meaning that it's rare for you to get attacked by large hordes of enemies and the game generally feels too easy. It's not very often you get the feeling of satisfaction after killing a swarm of monsters. The game also lacked the amount of blood and gore that was shown in the original, but I won't start comparing. Despite the flaws, the levels are very fun and the combat is enjoyable.
Levels
The level design is linear but the scenery is quite varied, you slay monsters from cathedrals and graveyards, to dungeons, temples and even subway stations, theatres and a carnival, each area has different types of monsters and a different soundtrack.
Boss battles
I honestly don't know how to explain how awesome they are. The first large boss is an example, the motherfucker is the size of a skyscraper. There's no special way to kill them or any special places to shoot, you just shoot the hell out of it until it's dead, but it's not that easy, the more you damage them, the more pissed they get and the harder they are to kill. They each have their own attack methods, maps and they each require a different tactic to kill them depending on their method.
Soundtrack
The soundtrack is one of my main reasons for liking this game, it is forged from the same furnace as the weapons, with heavy metal. That's right, the combat is made more enjoyable and awesome due to the fast, energetic heavy metal music that plays when combat begins. The only way you can know how awesome it is is to listen to it yourself.
Multiplayer
The multiplayer of Painkiller: Hell and Damnation is honestly brilliant when you can actually find a server to play online, otherwise you can still play split screen. The game modes consist of Co-op, Survival, Duel, Deathmatch, Team Deathmatch and Capture the Flag. My favorite is survival, as it is just slaying endless hordes of monsters, in some pretty good arenas of which were used in the campaign, the multiplayer is best experienced on split screen with a few friends, but you can play survival on your own.
Verdict
Painkiller: Hell and Damnation isn't the worst game I've ever played, nor is it the best, it's not bad but it ain't that good, it's one of those where it's just meh. If you're a fan of retro games and don't care too much about melodramatic plots and realistic gameplay then I recommend buying it and giving it a go, it's quite cheap. I'd give this game a meh. (6/10)