One, who is introduced in the later stages, feels particularly redundant, and is there purely to cause conflict rather than exist as a fully realized character in his own right. The human antagonists, on the other hand, are as interesting as cardboard cutouts: they’re virtually all roughly sketched bad guys who are bad for bad’s sake.
There’s also some flavor to the world-weariness of the older survivors Deacon encounters, particularly the former prison guard Tucker and all-around hard-ass Iron Mike. Deacon’s primary relationship with his best buddy Boozer (aka “Booze-Man”), is heartfelt, and their bro dynamic is one of the more affecting in Days Gone. Mixed in with the crowd are some enjoyable supporting characters. It’s hard to be invested when its drama is so tied up in cold, numerical achievement. Its desire to elicit emotion is also constantly at odds with the decision to structure even non-interactive story delivery as missions: there were a couple of times I had an extremely brief conversation with another character that would net me XP. It doesn’t help that Days Gone takes itself almost religiously seriously, and story missions are wrapped in dramatic importance that they don’t earn. Story missions are wrapped in dramatic importance that they don't earn. Of course, one cutscene played out for me entirely in slow motion, without audio, so maybe I missed it. Days Gone insists on tedious, barely interactive flashbacks of Deacon and his wife Sarah which play out like bad high school drama - her demand that he “promise to ride me as much as you ride your bike” at their wedding is a line that sticks in the mind - and repeating missions which begin and end with a stationary Deacon spouting overly-long monologues about their love.įor the first half, this storyline at least forms a consistent emotional throughline and motivation for Deacon beyond simply staying alive, but it loses its direction in the second, where the focus shifts toward new characters and changing relationships with old ones, and I was left confused as to why I was meant to care. Sadly, Deacon’s charisma and bitchin’ bike aren't enough to carry Days Gone story, which is clumsily handled. For a game that’s so centered on riding, I’m glad that developer Sony Bend nailed that fundamental mechanic. Drifting around a tight corner is a lot of fun, as is sailing over a break in the road.
His bike is your constant companion, and it handles well and feels great to ride – especially after several damage-absorbing upgrades and the addition of power-boosting nitrous. His gruff charm and unassuming ‘I ain’t no leader’ demeanor is mostly well voiced by Sam Witwer (AKA Darth Maul on Star Wars: The Clone Wars), aside from moments where he inexplicably yells during stealth missions and an occasional tendency to over-act in more frantic sequences. John is an endearingly gentle and sweet-natured protagonist. When you slow down for a minute or two, these issues combine with a dreary, uninteresting open world and add up to an uneven and mostly toothless zombie experience.įor a gruff biker dude traveling through a zombie-infested (okay, they’re technically virus-infected humans called Freakers, but functionally the same thing) Oregon, Deacon St. Yet through its 60-odd-hour ride, Days Gone loses its focus with repetitive missions, a meandering and thematically unsatisfying storyline, and an excess of bugs and busywork. Sometimes, there are spectacular hordes of them. Days Gone kicks off relatively simply: you play as a biker riding through an open-world zombie post-apocalypse, seeking answers around his dead wife and smashing enemy faces in with crunchy, weighty melee weapons.
0 kommentar(er)
