Rage Final Impressions

It only took me a week, but I have finally conquered the wastelands of Rage. I already gave my initial impressions, but what do I think of the rest of the game? Read on to find out!

READ ON HE SAID!

As I said before, I already gave my initial impressions of the game, which you can read here. All of that still holds true, so go read that if you are trying to decide whether or not to buy the game. I just wanted to do a quick follow-up now that I've finished the game.

I played on normal, and beat the game in a little under 15 hours, which is a good length for a game like this, in my opinion. I didn't do every side quest and wasteland sewer, so those may have bumped the playtime up to about 20 hours. Most of the side quests just involve going through previous levels backwards, or through new passages to accomplish a different objective, but overall, it still feels like padding. If you like the game though, it's not so bad.

One of my main complaints was the story, in that there wasn't really one. The story does eventually develop, but it's nothing mind blowing. It's your standard authoritarian government versus ragtag resistance plot that ends exactly how you'd think it would: with you and a chain gun defeating an entire army. 

You know. American-ly.

A minor complaint was the voiceless protagonist. I'm not saying it can't be done. The Legend of Zelda series is proof enough of that. I just couldn't get over how these people would ask you to do the craziest s**t and the main character doesn't utter a single word of protest.

"I want you to break into the bandit stronghold, kill everyone in it, steal their weapon plans,
then blow the place up. How does $200 sound for that?"

Also, the ending was a little weak, in my opinion. [Some Spoilers] With all of the build up about how the Authority is taking everything over and how this is the Resistance's last chance, you would think they would send more than one man to the city where no one has ever returned. And the final battle consists of you against a few waves of mecha-mutants, no epic boss battle, no stunning set piece, just you, a bland platform, a chain gun, and some mutants. Then it ends. The main antagonist, this "General Cross," is still out there. Hell, we never even see or even SPEAK to the guy, let alone defeat him in some kind of grand and final fight. Me thinks someone wants some DLC, or perhaps some sequel bait. [End Spoilers]

Small problems aside, I enjoyed the game. The environments were completely gorgeous, the gunplay fantastic, and the enemies diverse and challenging without being cheap or frustrating. Sometimes I let a weak story slide if the gameplay is fun, and vice versa, and this is one of those times. Overall, I'd recommend this game for fans of either first person shooters or the post-apocalyptic genre. 

Arbitrary rating: 5 Apophises