I've been playing for much of the day as
Deliver Us the Moon is one of my most favorite games in the last, oh, five years or so.
Deliver Us Mars has...issues. My quick summation:
The GoodThe first person portions are better than its predecessor.
The puzzles are just as interesting and engaging as its predecessor. They're enough to make you think but not so esoteric as to cause one to say "Nope, fuck this, I'm out."
The story is interesting as it is a continuation from the first and does nicely resolve some plot points from its predecessor.
The MehThe music is there but doesn't particularly stand out in any one specific moment. It's serviceable but not one you're going to want to buy and listen to the soundtrack on its own.
Frostpunk this score isn't.
Some moments of melodrama can get tedious as they stretch out just a bit too long. While they're supposed to deliver pathos, they really, really border on soap opera level delivery.
The whole "smart yet somewhat of a smartass" character has been done to death and better elsewhere.
The UglyThird person animations are universally awful. How do you make an 8 year old look 40? Why are child Kathy's forearms 4 times the length of her upper arms? Why does everyone jump like they're bouncing up and down on a stick? Why does the hair have as much animation to it as pipe cleaners on a still day? Have the animators never witnessed a real human being run?
Truly bizarre FPS drops in the weirdest places. During the first person part of the game, I received very few FPS drops and they were on the order of maybe 10-15FPS on truly effects heavy shots with all graphics set to maximum. Yet, in some third person sections, I wouldn't be moving at all and see 60-70FPS drops. Why? I have no idea.
Third person climbing controls are awkward at best which isn't great as you do it somewhat frequently. They require a combo of keystrokes and mouse clicks but the mouse clicks feel like they have a half second or so lag between when you click and when the action occurs.
"Just take a look around you, what do you see? Pain, suffering, and misery." -Black Sabbath, Killing Yourself to Live.
“Man was born free, and he is everywhere in chains” -Jean-Jacques Rousseau
Purveyor of cute, fuzzy, pink bunny slippers.