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First of all, I do see that BioWare have been trying to do their homework. I hope they don't die trying. Because the damage done in the main ME2 game is so grave, that it can't be repaired by any DLC. Now all the ME2 grudge aside, I'll just try to review the Overlord for what it is.
GAMEPLAY
The main problem is of course the Hammerhead. I can't definitely say anything as to if it's been improved or not, since I played it on casual difficulty on an X-Box (which was about the second time I touched a game console since 1995). But basically it's the same corridor levels and cliff hopping. All right, not unexpected. Until new surprises start to kick in. One of those is that to hop a cliff you now often need some sort of geyser to be placed with care by the
Then, sometimes a repugnant VI-ish voice would announce "Dear organic, look at the painting on the level wall!". This was simply beyond me. Now, I take it the devs listened to the fans and decided to throw in some picturesque content into the bargain. Well, thank you, BioWare, but that's not exactly what was being asked for. The beautiful wilderness, landscapes and skies of the ME1 uncharted worlds were not valuable just for themselves. In fact they were boring to many "fans" who were just entirely missing the whole point. But for everyone else, together and in addition to the gameplay elements, it gave you the feeling of exploration of planets in space, the immersion, the experience, call it what you will. Anyway it was something of which ME2:Overlord is still totally devoid. And even if it was absolutely necessary to lead the player by the nose to enjoy ("ENJOY IT, JACKASS!!!") this content, why it had to be the VI? I mean, yes, I'd absolutely skip the paintjob admiration moments if not for those announcements. But the last thing imaginable on a military vehicle is that it will be designed to somehow accomodate the aesthetic feelings of those who man it. It would be plausible if it was a human driver's voice. Actually, the idea of "the driver" is something that comes up at the very first meeting with the Mako in ME1. But as the Hammerhead is a move away from the Mako in the direction of nonsense in general, so is this VI pointing out the paintjob sites.
Next thing, the puzzles. Other people on this forum told me there would be some and I was kind of eager to find them. Well, if I didn't miss something, there were just two things, that could theoretically be counted as puzzles. First, the floor panels. It took me like three seconds to realize what's being required of me, and less than one second to come up with the two-move solution. OK, I'm such a genious. And the second puzzle, I suppose, was the one where you had to call an elevator, that was sort of malfunctionning. This one I never though of as puzzle, until it was over. I just summoned the elevator, entered it and only then thought "Oh, my, I had to push the button like three of hour times instead of one, that must have been a puzzle minigame!!!" So much for the new puzzles.
The Geth ship level was actually quite a good one, compared to most of the other ME2 level designs. But it was too obvious an attempt to be a survival horror thing. Therefore it wasn't scary a tiny bit. In ME1 the Peak 15 and Ilos levels were really creepy, because of the feel of suspence and uncertainty. I reckon it was because the writers called most of the shots back then. That Alestia Ialis attack was a real surprise to me. But the Geth ship in Overlord like had a sign in every other corner saying "Dear player, when you reach the remotest point of this level, every Geth trooper you see lying on the floor will start shooting at you, and you'll have to fight your way out." I actually started goofing around by taking shots at the geth "bodies", to "make sure", but of course they all stood up when the time came, and I had to kill them again. Geth zombies. Toyish.
ART
Certainly, this green and orange "computerish" colors of the final level were cool. "Cool". [airquotes]Cool[/airquotes]. Because it was only the second thought about them. The first one was: it's nonsense. Really, what was it supposed to mean? Was the hostile AI hacking Shepard's cybernetic implants? Or Shepard somehow got into the AI's mainframe, and all that was not actually happening, and was just like in the Matrix? I was hoping for the explanation or some hint to come up in the end. But what for? thought BioWare, the "Rule of Cool" should be the universal explanation for everything you see on screen.
The paintjob on the level walls I already mentioned. But I'll add that even with those HHVI's prompts I saw perhaps less than half of it, because the range-to-next-level meter (which took, it so looks, the place of Mako's minimap) urged me to finish this lousy Overlord business ASAP.
There was also this new DLC armor on the character I played, and I take it that the built-in Christmas Tree lights are all the rage of the latest space marine fashion in 2185. After playing ME2 modded on my own PC, I almost forgot about it, and the lights on Shepard's back were like blinding me. And the "red veins"! OMG, oooohhh!!! Getting hurt in ME2 is truly authentic. Because it hurts you IRL.
MUSIC
Was there music? I didn't hear it. Maybe it was, but I didn't notice. Or maybe I did, but now, two days later, I can't remember it.
PLOT
Two words: IT & SUCKS. Full of holes like the damn Swiss cheese.
Another Cerberus project blown up in their faces. OK, we already know that being inept is a requisite for all organizations to register in the ME universe, especially for the most powerful and enigmatic ones.
And TIM sends in Shepard, who is a well known Cerberus project clean up worker and space station blower. OK, a moron leader is what it takes to keep the inept organization in business.
After the first conversation with the scientist we can't just rescue him and nuke the whole place by the rule that "it's better be safe than sorry". OK, it would make too short a gameplay time.
But how come that EDI, who has the "anti-Reaper protocols" that have been proven effective on at least two occasions, is unable not only to win the hacking battle, but even to detect and withstand a viral attack coming from this amateur rookie AI? Why is this Overlord threat so much more super-duper-formidable than the entire Collector threat? And still with all that super-duper formidability the AI can't prevent Shepard from getting through all those doors to its mainframe. Or it just wants to play with Shepard, so that the latter wins only because the super-duper-formidable AI is stupid? Not that it brakes any ME2 plot traditions though. Afterall, the Collectors that were almost as formidable as the Overord AI were almost as stupid too... I wonder, why do so many people miss Saren? He wasn't even half as stupid as The Best Game's Ever foes...
And why do I have a feeling that the main premise of the Overlord's plot was just courteously shared by Drew Karpyshyn and his upcoming Retribution novel? Is that some kind of spoiler for it or what?
Must notice though, that this little "punishment cutscene" instead of just a "critical failure - reload screen" was a nice touch. However tiny, it is a move in the right direction - implementing the element of "unwinnable by design" into the game, which I still believe (but, sadly, don't expect) must be a part of ME3, and play out depending on the "BIG CHOICES".
FINAL CHOICE
OK, we have this poor handicapped guy being abused by Cerberus mad scientists for the greater good. So we can either save the guy or the greater good. But, for the love of Mickey Mouse, why is the Renegade Shepard portrayed as some sadist psycho again? I mean, if he thinks that the scientist is wrong, he has to take the guy away, and if he feels that the scientist deserves some additional character development and/or permanent treatment for the insane experiment mania, Shepard has to nothing less than shoot him in the forehead. But if he thinks the scientist is right, why beat him? What for? Shepard is a trained and, as of late, cybernatically augmented soldier, and the scientist is a skinny civilian. Don't get me wrong, shooting off a couple of Balak's limbs before turning him over to the Terra Nova magistrates felt like a prudent call - so that he could not just run away from them. But punching the reporter was a grossly lame option, and particularly unmanly demeanor for the male character. With the Overlord it simply grew old. Ancient, in fact. What happened to the "shortest interrogation ever" clean and confident style of the Renegade? The Renegade is perceived by the audience as villain anyhow, so why not let them be at least of the refined type? And let the paragons feel cool by brutalizing the small time crooks and the squadmates they don't like (they love it soooo much)?
On the other hand, why not a kiddy krog3nz headbutt, BioWare, why?
CONCLUSION
The single really no doubt one hundred percent good thing about the Overlord DLC is that it will result only in a crappy "Thank you" e-mail in ME3. And, better yet, I won't be even getting it. Because in *my* ME universe it never happened. I don't need another pile of plot holes (see "Plot" paragraph) and I don't want *my* Shepard to have behaved like a psycho. And I don't need the friggin' Hammerhead to exist in *my* ME (Thanks, BioWare, for making all the HH content optional. Hope you're NOT going to include this crap in ME3.)
Overall, it was great. For a couple of hours I felt myself a drooling ten year old again playing Super Mario on an 8-bit device. With the X-Box controller, the immersion was complete.
Modifié par Zulu_DFA, 23 juillet 2010 - 06:52 .
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