Rage 2: 10 Reasons It's A Crushing Disappointment
As a followup to DOOM... what the hell happened?
Rage 2 should've been incredible. A momentum-heavy, arena-style shooter with iD Software handling gunplay and Just Cause's Avalanche Studios stitching everything together with arcady driving and open-world goals, how could it go wrong?
Well... at almost every opportunity. Besides the marketing selling something that's far more anarchic and free-wheeling than the bizarrely self-serious tone the game actually has, gameplay and structure tends to get in the way of each individual element at every turn.
As I attempt to gather my thoughts and break down precisely why I think Rage 2 is one of the most disappointing titles of the year so far, you'll see how even its base components can't coalesce. There is absolutely an immaculate combat model in terms of gun-handling, in-motion feel and environmental interaction here, but everything else either doesn't hold up under scrutiny, or actively gets in the way of your enjoyment.
After a handful of hours with Rage 2, you'll have experienced one of - if not all - of the following issues, and though I'm a MASSIVE iD Software fan (DOOM remains one of the best shooters of the generation), it's increasingly deflating how much this completely misses the mark.