World War I saw little territorial gain / movement so trekking through trench after trench would lead to a severely monotonous experience. Therefore The Farm 51 have done the logical thing and added the undead, vampires and the gates of hell. It is a conventional game design that harks back to Wolfenstein 3D, only this time it has DX10 visuals and lacks those pesky Nazis.
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We had seen NecroVisioN during the summer at 505 Games Summer Showcase so it makes sense to refresh your memories. We’ll fill you in on the basics (that weren’t included in our playable code). Everything starts as you’d expect. Hell’s breaking loose (at this stage, purely as a figure of speech), the whistle’s been blown for you to go over the top and No-Man’s Land beckons. Only, No-Man’s Land is known for two reasons. It’s not long before the dead are rising and you’re tasked with kicking their asses back to hell.
There were two levels available in the preview demo. The first is of pre-vampire-locality. You’re still above ground, fighting with human weapons ranging from an American-issue pistol, German Lugar, shotgun and melee shovel. Your enemy: generic undead soldiers. A combination of destroyed bunkers, wooden trenches and rubble successfully set the scene. Lightning brightens the sky, thunder rumbles the subwoofer. It’s a strong first impression. Everything is well rendered with shiny presentation. It’s exactly how Painkiller would look if it was developed under DirectX 10.
With everything maxed out, the build we were playing was still a tad unstable. There’s a substantial amount of optimization needed before release, but with a month to go that should be sorted without any problems. Combat is your typical FPS affair. There’s nothing groundbreaking on offer, just simple, mindless fun. You’ll work your way through swarms of enemies, fighting bosses and undertaking linear objectives. The game’s story is told via cut scenes and letters (which are displayed in the loading screens - which are quite long at the moment). The gunplay is responsive and the level of violence satisfying. There is the ability to chain together melee combinations. It works well with frenzy, NecroVisioN’s take on bullet time.
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The second sample level was taken from much later in the game. Gone is the mud of the surface and in return we have gothic architecture, vampiric beings / weapons and mechanical goliaths that fire rockets at your face. The weapons have switched to supernatural versions of their top-side counterparts and the pace increased. Anyone who’s played Painkiller will have a severe case of déjà vu. That’s not a negative point, just a valid observation.
It’s an addictive game idea that worked 20 years ago and still works in the modern era. Engine stabilisation / Optimisation willing, NecroVisioN should appeal to the majority of gamers. There’s nothing particularly outstanding about it, just good old fun. Review coming soon.
