4. Its Also Fun But Suffers From An Identity Crisis
Guerilla Games clearly designed Shadow Fall with a goal in mind; to once again offer a more strategical and challenging shooter experience. Shadow Fall definitely sets itself apart from the mould of linear, cookie-cutter, aim-assisted twitch-shooters such as Call of Duty, but its still an equally mixed bag of good and horrific ideas. Guerilla Games had a goal but no clear and concise vision on how to achieve it with maximum thrills. First off, every level couldnt be any more different than the last in both gameplay mechanics and level structure. Chapter 2 is a completely wide open forest full of objective markers, eliciting an impression that the game will offer a large amount of freedom with tackling each scenario. By Chapter 5 however, you realize that it was all an illusion and that youre now just funneled down a path, mowing down Helghast. I actually dont mind that though, because whether Im in an enclosed area or a forest the AI of the Helghast is almost humanly intelligent. Very few shooters can naturally create moments as tensely dynamic as knowing theres still one enemy left somewhere trying to outmaneuver you. If you make a break for a ladder to which the enemy immediately seizes the opportunity, firing bullets off at your ass climbing said ladder, do you keep climbing or drop off and run? One of the neatest additions to the franchise is a buddy drone dubbed the OWL that you can send out at will to shoot enemies, hack consoles, act as a zipline, shield you, and more. Its such a diverse mechanic with unparalleled options that it actually enhances the intensity of every shootout. I cant count the number of times I activated the OWL in an attempt at levelling the playing-field in what is actually one challenging shooter. The last third of the game is entirely bizarre and where it ultimately just stops being fun. I can commend Guerilla for attempting to mix it up, but stealth missions do not belong in a Killzone game. Free-falling in first person with brokenly frustrating controls do not belong in a Killzone game (regardless of how gorgeous that sequence is). And for the love of God, platforming does not belong either! Furthermore, there is either a nasty bug or baffling design choice that does not save the game when reaching checkpoints. You actually have to play chapters from start to finish and take your breaks between chapters, which is asinine and unacceptable considering some chapters can last over an hour. Seriously, shame on Guerilla Games for this one. Killzone: Shadow Fall is engaging when the game is playing to its strengths, whether thats linear or open ended combat. When Shadow Fall is actively using these strengths to create intelligent and exhilarating battles, its a blast.