I remember Metro 2033 being announced around the buzz of Fallout 3, and figured it was cashin in on the craze, but now that I've played it, I think it may be better than Fallout 3. I bought it on a whim a few weeks ago on a whim after seeing a few videos of this LP, and I've been hooked on it since. The gist is that humanity had a nuclear war, and what few survivors there were in Moscow escaped to the vast, labyrinthine Metro tunnels. Over the years, new enemies to humans including neo-humans, mutants, ghosts, neo-nazis, and neo-commies threaten to wipe out what few normal people are left (all without a hint of schlock, nonetheless). As a fan of single-player FPS's, I have to say that it does a lot of things well, namely:

-The first good first-person stealth gameplay since the old Thief days
-Great voice acting, writing, and general plot
-A distinct, interesting world with great art design.
-WEAPONS. After years of boring, gun-nut hardware, it's fun to just pick up a Van Helsing-style revolver crossbow, a super-charged pneumatic BB Gun, or one of the imaginative, home-made weapons that looks like a bunch of random 20th century tech slapped together.
-One of the few games whose "good ending" is worth getting just for the story's sake.

Anyone else play this? After going through it about three times now, I can't wait for the recently announced sequel.

Vaenamoenen wrote:

I've read Dmitry Glukhovsky's book by the same name. It's excelent! A bit slow-paced, and he likes to describe the hell out of things, and dialogues are long as shit, but genrally the book works very well. Haven't checked out the game yet, but definedly will. I hope it's equally atmospheric.

I haven't read the book, but with how good the game is I imagine the book is very good. The atmosphere is still there, I assume. It's amazing how ridiculous, yet believable (except for maybe the enemies in the military base section) the game's premise is. It doesn't overexplain like you say the book does, leaving a bit of mystery for the gamer to ponder (something a lot of games could do these days). One thing I like that it does is it makes the player feel tense. You never got a pop scare, you only get the feeling that just around the corner is an insurmountable goal, which really drew me in.

Atma wrote:

I was going to check this out until I read a review on it saying it was beautiful, but the AI was completely Retarded, and that the super linear path sucked. Are they being too critical? Should I shut my mouth and Jump aboard?

Depends. I thought the AI was really good (friendly and enemy), and things aren't terribly linear- some of the stealth sections are easy to get lost in. The rest is pretty linear, but so are most games.

Black Zarak wrote:

Not to completely necro this, but I just beat the game and I have to ask; did we play the same game here? I found no revolver crossbows or homemade weapons, never got enough clean ammo to be able to afford a single gun from the shops, got murdered constantly by hordes of enemies I had no ammo to fire at with and got caught trying to seek through the frontline level that I wanted to fucking kill somebody. I never really understood what the hell was going on with the story since they like to give you visions and crap but no real explanation as to why you are the one these super humand speak to and why some of them want to kill you but most just help you? I got the bad ending but don't know how to get the good one. And if it's "refuse gifts/give people your crap" route, no thanks, I never have ammo as it is, I need that stuff. I don't know how you can even compare it to Fallout 3 as it's a fairly short, linear FPS not a huge RPG with a ton of shit to do.

It was compared to Fallout 3 because of the settings, with really no other reason behind it, I don't support the comparison much at all. Ahead, I address the problems you mentioned.

1)Revolver crossbows and such can be found in the frontline level if you take the low route, or purchased cheap in the Armory (commie station
2)To get clean ammo, you have to search every corpse, nook, and cranny. Even on hardest difficulty, if I find a good amount of hidden ammo caches and look in every corner, I'm usually overstocked with money. Also, sell everything that you won't need, such as extra ammo for guns you don't want, or partially-used filters. The game also uses a trade-in system, so if you find a powerful gun early on, sell it for a smaller gun to get a net profit.
3)Part of the allure with the story for me was the mystery. I hate JRPG's and MGS-style games where everything is explained in excruciating detail, and the mysterious aspects of the story relate well to the fact that humans in the story know almost nothing about the Nosalis. Maybe they realize just how important Artyom is and that their destruction will come down to his decisions, and try to either stop him or steer him into coexistence between both races
4)Frontline is hard unless you have throwing knives, the Helsing, or the ball-bearing gun. If you listen to the man about to be executed for treason, he mentions a lower path where he painted arrows that will help you sneak around. Also pay attention to your night-vision goggles, as there are three squares at the top that tell you how well-hidden you are. Watch your feet for debris and try to shoot out/turn off any lights you see.
5)For the good ending, there's a "tunnel knowledge" system. Every time you interact with a background object (closed doors, stuffed animals, musical instruments, etc.), find a hidden body, perform a positive moral act (give a bullet here or there, refuse a gift), do side quests (like broadcasting Cursed Station's warning), go towards Nosales with blue auras around them in dream sequences (avoiding red aura ones), listen to conversations, etc. you'll see a quick white flash followed by a quick "droning" noise. That means you discovered something important, and if you get around 8-10 total (with around 30 possibilities in the game, you don't really have to always give away money), you are presented with a choice at the end of the game.

The game is hard on the first playthrough, but if you search off the beaten path, you'll find good hidden weapons, more money, and opportunities to make the game a little easier for yourself (which encourages you to explore the cool world as well).