Review of the PC version. This ignores both of the expansion packs, and also cuts other ties that might have been expected, thus offering it enough slack to go where they wanted it to. And I couldn't be happier about that. In spite of the title, you are no longer working for the organization that you were in the first, and you are also playing as someone else. You even get a name, and that is unprecedented for this franchise. That is as far as this goes in supplying you with an identity. Thankfully, the rest of the cast of characters have plenty of personality, and every last one of them is credible. The ones who are meant to be are likable, none of them are irritating... and the comic relief one is, my god, *actually funny*. That hardly ever happens. This is extremely cinematic, similar to Half-Life(I haven't played the second one; it is reminiscent of AvP2, as well, at points), only upgraded. Bloodstains and drops of water can get on your visor(yes, all the tech's in the glasses... think Ghosts of Mars), your vision blurs when that is appropriate, and your "hearing" is impaired for a while if there is a loud noise near you. This high level of realism has been raised since the 2005 one, and the effects are immensely superior. Water, light, everything looks astonishing. The brand new graphics allow for incredible, detailed, photo-realistic faces, and the gore is also considerably more convincing. This aids nicely in the building of atmosphere(one of the best that I've tried in any game, it may be up there with Silent Hill), and the sound is again carefully orchestrated(pardon the pun), with surgeon-like precision and skill to make this a thoroughly creepy experience that you won't soon forget. The score is amazing, though I did find one piece to be out of place... heavy metal? In this? It wasn't bad, just was surprised to find something like that here. The rest of the music is subtle and adds to the psychological horror. Every voice is spot-on, and the acting is impeccable. Animation is smooth and beautifully done. Every movement feels natural. The camera sticks to 1st person perspective throughout, exactly as it should. It takes the intensity of the whole thing through the roof. Everything that was an issue in the earlier three is fixed here. This does not grow stale at any point, Reflex Time can be turned on or off without standing still(and it is rather useful, foes get a "hue" so they are easier to spot), and I could go on. I did not figure out the ending before it came, and it didn't come out of the blue, either. This doesn't have to be the last in the series, and yet it gives you a sense of accomplishment. The plot is compelling, and you want to get further, want to see where it is going. Level design is marvelous, and while they are entirely linear, it doesn't bother you, because it's so exciting to play. The story is told through in-engine cut-scenes and scripted sequences, so you are at no time forced out of the immersive state this puts you in. This begins right before the end of the original VG(and you don't need to have tried that one to be able to follow this), and takes the consequence of what happened in that one. It's awesome. This is engaging from start to finish, a perfect mix of the elements, switching between battles and paranormal phenomena so that you never get bored of either. It is focused on the action aspect, but can you have something that is centrally about enhanced clone soldiers and simply rely on setup? And since the encounters with the things not of this world has been given a solid dose of adrenalin, they are a source of thrilling combat as well. The weapons are cool(and they clearly went for them being mind-blowing and memorable this time), with an unorthodox Flamethrower, the Hammerhead that allows you to literally nail opponents to the wall, a Pulse-firing thingamajig that reminded me of the ol' BFG, and a Laser that means serious business. You get to "drive" an Elite Powered Suit, essentially a mech, equipped with Gatling guns and missiles. Oh, and it's got Thermal Vision, and like every single other addition to your arsenal, it has zoom capabilities. For your throwing pleasure, there are Frag, Incendiary and Shock grenades, and Proximity Mines that will stick to the majority of surfaces. You can create your own cover now, by sliding a desk to the side, or tipping over a table. Enemy types are diverse, and they are all fun to fight. The AI for both them and the allies that you are sometimes assisted by allies is excellent, flawless. They can spot you by as little as the beam of your flashlight, and they will take cover and use tactics against you. In spite of your slow-motion, the apparitions and such remain terrifying. You can't save when you want, instead this relies on a checkpoint system to store your progress(and it does so unobtrusively). When you load, you will get a brief description of the most recent events to remind you and bring you up to speed. Multi-player includes six different modes... Deathmatch, TDM, Control(capture specific points in the field), Armoured Front(like the previous one, with other rules), Failsafe(think CS, plant a bomb) and Blitz(CTF). I have found no bugs or glitches in this. In fact, my one complaint about this is that it is short. Yes. Very. It took me one day and maybe a few hours to complete. Half a weekend. I will be going back to it... I haven't earned all of the Awards yet. There is frequent gratuitous swearing, constant brutal violence, and a ton of disturbing content in this. I recommend it to anyone that enjoys terror-packed electronic entertainment, served with a mystery that will instantly get you interested. 10/10
