Νίκος Τσιάνος

It might seem like an interesting concept, but it fails atrociously. First, it is a half an hour story (max!) stressed to ~90 minutes by omitting... editing! Have you ever played a video game where you need to travel across distances until you discover fast travel? Same thing, just pointless walking. people slowly untying knots and whatnot - it almost drives you crazy because it kind of becomes evident that they were either out of ideas or budget. Secondly, there is absolutely no explanation for anything. Can things be deduced? Sure, after all it's like a Resident Evil 4 (and hundreds of similar games) rip-off, with a cult in the woods worshipping dark entities and blah blah. But nothing concrete at all, nothing even remotely original, and run-of-the-mill symbolism at the end. Third, it is clearly low budget, but fine, acting can fix this - oh wait, nobody talks in the movie or does anything that makes ANY sense. Is this because of the trauma caused by the Rapture? Who knows - at least, the actors were lucky enough to go through this ordeal without having to learn any dialogue lines.

An ideal combination of old school and modern gaming. It is not perfect (NOTHING is, at least for everyone), but for what it is, it is as good as it gets. I did not consider myself a fun of RPGs and turn-based combat, but I felt that I had to at least try such an acclaimed game; now, I simply cannot wait to put more hours into the game (thankfully my girlfriend understands). The strange thing is that If you break the game into individual components, you cannot really identify what makes it so good (or addictive); as a whole, however, it's so impressive and (most importantly)... pure fun!

Played it on PC in 2022, having put ~70hrs (incl. the DLC). Though I was initially very reluctant to try HZD because I thought it had a predominantly tribal theme and seemed soooooo long, having now completed it, I can say it's one of the best games ever made (ok, I've ever played), for the following reasons: 1. Visually stunning, and with all patches released, it runs flawlessly. High settings with 60 fps is easily achievable even on a decent gaming laptop. It has unbelievable art that really shines on PC (no idea if there's a PS5 remaster). Never ever had I used photo mode in a game before, but... 2. It allows you to take down machines (and humans, though this is arguably less impressive) in many different ways - sometimes, you are only limited by your imagination. The best of all is that in lower difficulties the game does not force you to go stealthy or guns blazing at any point - it's up to you to decide. So, it kind of keeps everyone happy. Higher difficulties require planning, preparation, and maybe trial and error. 3. It does not redefine the sci-fi narrative, but it's as decent as it can get without being groundbreaking. Very well woven story, and you pick up the pieces as you go. No plot twists just for the sake of (cheap) surprises, but a gradual understanding of the story as you play. Not all NPCs and side quests are captivating, but for the most part (as well as the main story) it is well crafted. Acting, in my opinion, is also great. 4. Epic battles against huge robots, with unbelievable details (assisted by impressive lighting effects) popping out during frantic situations. You cannot exclusively rely on melee or ranged attacks, and it was fun for me to keep using both approaches amidst chaotic situations. 5. It's the ONLY game I've ever found "platforming" to be really fun. Climbing and jumping is impressive and spectacular. In terms of negative aspects... it is a large game, and 100% completion would take a lot of time and a few (or quite a few) tedious side quests. Thankfully, I never obsess with such things. Also, perhaps there could be a little more information regarding certain aspects of the story; it's great as it is, but it's also evident that they've made room for the sequel. Overall, what a great AAA game this turned out to be (ok, only after the patches)... Such attention to detail is second only to RDR2, and I guess very few other games.