DaveHill
09-04-2005, 05:03 AM
I just downloaded this mod, and felt compelled to write a mini-review...
http://www.hylobatidae.org/minerva/index.shtml
http://www.hylobatidae.org/minerva/curtain.shtml
http://www.hylobatidae.org/minerva/phosphenes.shtml#metastasis_1
Well what can I say? It's a mod for HL2... It's like a level of HL2, but with a few changes. No gravity gun, no Alyx, Kliener, Barney etc... Combine are the enemy - Still controlled by Breen. No one interacts with you, with the exception of the person giving you instrustions via on-screen text.
As soon as the game starts you're in the action.
Now, the gameplay was a pretty much the same as HL2. Nothing notably special - shoot, find cover, reload. Action packed, and quite intense at times. At some points, I found it to be slightly creepy... Dark passages, bloodied floors... However, it's still the norm for HL2. Nothing exceptional so far...
Then the music kicked in...
Jebus. Had I just been listening to the soundtrack of the mod I would have been scared witless. I'm not joking. The music just gave the game another dimension. The music, the ambient noises... They both surpassed most commercial games I've played. Not joking. It is amazing. You have to play it to understand what I mean. The atmosphere it adds to the gameplay is just incredible.
MINERVA: Metastasis
Pros -
MUSIC!! (and ambient noises...)
Fairly stable gameplay
Action packed
Surprisingly large map
Leaves you wanting more...
Cons -
Because it ends at such an innappropriate moment...
Only takes about 30 minutes to an hour to complete
Since when have combine taken a whole clip at point blank to kill?!
Gameplay: 7/10
Graphics: Identical to HL2
Originality: 6/10
Music + Sounds: 10/10
Overall: 8/10
(just having a read on the website now, and apparently it is being released in stages... woohoo! I might write another review when the full thing is released... maybe.)
http://www.hylobatidae.org/minerva/index.shtml
http://www.hylobatidae.org/minerva/curtain.shtml
http://www.hylobatidae.org/minerva/phosphenes.shtml#metastasis_1
Well what can I say? It's a mod for HL2... It's like a level of HL2, but with a few changes. No gravity gun, no Alyx, Kliener, Barney etc... Combine are the enemy - Still controlled by Breen. No one interacts with you, with the exception of the person giving you instrustions via on-screen text.
As soon as the game starts you're in the action.
Now, the gameplay was a pretty much the same as HL2. Nothing notably special - shoot, find cover, reload. Action packed, and quite intense at times. At some points, I found it to be slightly creepy... Dark passages, bloodied floors... However, it's still the norm for HL2. Nothing exceptional so far...
Then the music kicked in...
Jebus. Had I just been listening to the soundtrack of the mod I would have been scared witless. I'm not joking. The music just gave the game another dimension. The music, the ambient noises... They both surpassed most commercial games I've played. Not joking. It is amazing. You have to play it to understand what I mean. The atmosphere it adds to the gameplay is just incredible.
MINERVA: Metastasis
Pros -
MUSIC!! (and ambient noises...)
Fairly stable gameplay
Action packed
Surprisingly large map
Leaves you wanting more...
Cons -
Because it ends at such an innappropriate moment...
Only takes about 30 minutes to an hour to complete
Since when have combine taken a whole clip at point blank to kill?!
Gameplay: 7/10
Graphics: Identical to HL2
Originality: 6/10
Music + Sounds: 10/10
Overall: 8/10
(just having a read on the website now, and apparently it is being released in stages... woohoo! I might write another review when the full thing is released... maybe.)