METRO EXODUS
4A Games has been working hard on the continuation of the Metro Series in recent years to bring us a new look at the devastated world by Dmitry Glukhovsky. He worked on the game and led a vision of the world beyond Moscow.
In the first game, the authors told us the story of Arthom, a young subway tunnel in Moscow, outlined the events that happened and showed how people lived in 2033. The continuation placed in 2034 broadened this concept even though it did not move far. However, it was a preparation for the third game, which is placed in 2035 and moves us forward.
The game will bring us out of Moscow and show us the situation outside it, on the background of a group of people discovering the world and looking for a safe place. Their journey will not be easy. Like in Moscow, in other places, people have entered communities, each with different goals and lifestyles, and trying to survive in their own way. Travelers never know what to expect from them. At the same time, they do not know where they are going. They only know that they can't come back. They have to go forward to a part of the world that is not infested. Where they have a future.
The whole story goes on with Arto's attempt to capture the signal outside of Moscow. He had done it once and still hopes to catch him again. He knows there's something there. He is still testing and testing until something unexpected happens. Something that has not happened before and what will change.
The game will gradually guide you around a dozen areas that the authors have divided into four seasons during which your post-apocalyptic express travels through the country and solves its problems. It meets communities and seeks a safe harbor. In addition, the authors will introduce you to a variety of environments, including different tunnels and enclosures, as well as outdoor environments where there will be several large maps, even if only two are fully open. Nevertheless, this means massive openness compared to the literally tunnel of the previous two games. You will go through forests, desert, river or swamps.
Open environments will allow you to move freely in the environment, offer major missions that will complement a few optional ones. While they will primarily be storytellers and have to meet them to move on with the train, the side will be more of a favor to the crew than to bring, liberate or solve the issue. On the other hand, the other, albeit vast environments, will be closed, you will go in one direction and with one gradual goal. It's not a bad combination and it reminds of Tomb Raider's style, although there is little surprisingly open environment. They are still nicely complemented and, together with the changing environment, offer a variety of gameplay. Here, however, I do not know why, 4A seems to be enjoying maze designs of levels or small rooms with platforms stacked so that you walk through them for 10 minutes (while you shoot through the rush of enemies). Often, it feels like the authors are trying to artificially extend the scope of the game, but it doesn't even need it.
However, the game will not be easy, it is not Far Cry or something that leads you directly to the displayed goal. Here you have to find everything yourself. No markings, just a handy map with a goal indicator and a description of where to get or what to do. It's a rough approach and sometimes you get stuck and you have to think about what the game wants from you. It is, on the one hand, a good thing for players who want to discover, on the other hand it can be frustrating if you can't find the exact place in the maze to get to keep moving.
FPS itself is just as harsh - even if it depends on the difficulty you choose. You can go reading mode for players who want to enjoy the story or four other settings that gradually reduce the number of rounds in the environment. It is harder to find them, there are fewer stocks to produce items, the enemies are stronger. It will be up to you to make a simple straight adventure game or a hardcore survival. Finally, as in previous games.
But there will generally be more ammunition here, you no longer have to fight everybody. But you can't even scatter them again. You'll have to search each enemy, discuss their weapons on parts, search through lockers. Everything to get more gun accessories and as much inventory as possible. You can then make simple things with your backpack, such as mask filters or weapon upgrades. However, for more complicated tasks like making cartridges, you already need a desk that you can find on your train or sometimes in the environment. It's clear and deeply elaborated. But what you may miss is the character's abilities that the authors did not.
The number of enemies will not be high after the previous games, you will not mow them with a series of advice, rather a combination of tactics and a high stealth approach. Often it will be up to you how you make an attack, sometimes they can be nicely avoided and slowly murder one enemy after another, otherwise the game in action scenes will release dozens of enemies at once. Once in a while, he adds a challenging boss, in which you can find out what is the need for ammunition on lower levels of difficulty. Forwarding will always be a good idea.
The offer of enemies will be varied and different in each area, you will find enemy groups of people with different equipment, there will be new types of mutants where you will meet other, either land or water, in every part of the world. Everyone will prepare for you unpleasant moments and it will be appropriate to tact.
Finally, the game is built on it, it is slow, you are not rushing and you are enjoying the atmosphere as well as the story, which will be there again. Every character will have something to tell you, bring the world closer. Some will not stop for ten minutes, you will get other information in briefings and it will be supplemented by tickets, notebooks and tapes scattered around the world.
The story itself will go in about 15-20 hours, for those who want to complete the whole 30 hours. But we cannot say that the authors deal extensively with the side tasks and only two open environments, where some side tasks are added. But there won't be much. However, you can still collect all the collectibles in the environment. Personally, I would say that the game two-three environments would come together in order to get some things that had been suppressed in the story, but apparently the 4A games are not that big and have to dampen it. There are hundreds of pages of monologues there (fortunately there is Czech localization), but the main motivation and destination of the trip is very flat and surprisingly the Dark Ones are missing, or at least more mysterious. It's so different from previous Metro games. Likewise, there are other goals of Arto, which are now more important to him.
Graphically, the title is impressive, though not as detailed in textures as the original games, but apparently it is both a combination of game size and 50 GB console limitations. In any case, the world is captured great in all the areas you visit, from tunnels, through underground bases, forests, desert, and frozen cities. Authors have really played with the diversity and details of the environment and enemies. Regarding optimization, it's not perfect, but even the GTX 970 didn't have a problem with 1080p on the ultra settings (not extreme, it wasn't there anymore). there are only overall details from low to extreme, with no further adjustments to texture or detail. At the same time do not expect any extra stable framerate and it will fly differently, 4A is not just a champion in this direction.
This time, the authors have also included a screenshot capture feature, but unfortunately, without the main character, you won't see it in the pictures. They also added support for more advanced image capture with Ansel function on Nvidia cards. They have also added it to the hairworks for dynamic hair, which no longer looks like helmets and has incorporated advanced PhysX physics, which will add to the game's physics. Now they were also playing with the ragdoll, and the characters were finally flying for interventions. The fighting looks so dynamic and not stiff.
Similarly, the creators played with vehicles, where you can now control the old van across some environments and even a small boat in the water. Control is more simulated and thus deliberately clumsy and fits the overall style of the game. However, do not expect any vehicle damage models or anything deeper. They are just a supplement to a faster move.
It also uses new raytracing and DLSS features for the new Nvidia cards from the PC's visual add-ons, where raytracing used to illuminate and shade makes the environment more realistic. From the audio options, the authors have worked with Dolby Atmos, but even without it wait for impressive processing, from the sounds of the environment, to the tones of spoken dialogues.
With Metro Exodus, the authors of the 4A games have nicely expanded the universe of the series, demonstrated what is beyond the borders of Moscow, how the world looks, but at the same time have proven that they can also open gameplay and take it out of the tunnel style. Maybe somewhat clumsy and some things from the gameplay point of view, as well as the basis of the story that is missing mysterious, but the mix of discovery, action, narration is very good and creates an impressive ride across the ruined world.