Rage 2 vehicles7/5/2023 ![]() ![]() All of this with a map which is actually a fair bit smaller than most modern open world games: driving from the very southernmost point to the absolute north took me less than six minutes in the standard vehicle. This means that after completing a few objectives in one region it essentially dies, with only a few goons by the roadside and respawning vehicle convoys to keep you interested. There are plenty of locations to complete dotted around, but they are very much alike and do not repopulate once cleared. The biggest complaint I can see online about Rage 2 is about the open world: it's very boring. Unfortunately, that's about it for the good. It's designed in such a way that it feels like there's no need to grind because your upgrades are never tied to one action - it's quite liberating. One may think that so many currencies and systems is unintuitive and clunky, but I don't think so: rather than being tied to one experience meter and a level system - the standard of most open world RPGs - the player has freedom to pursue the upgrades that match their play style and interests. Your vehicle is upgraded with vehicle parts, your abilities with ability points (in turn rewarded by achieving targets for specific characters) and your base stats with combinations of items found in the wilderness or bought with the game's main currency. For example, tiers of weapons and abilities are upgraded with Feltrite, but perks and add-ons within these tiers are upgraded with separate tokens. There about half a dozen places to put your points - including but not limited to your vehicle, weapons, abilities and general skill tree - and several different currencies that span across and overlap different unlockables. Lots of weapons and powers, each exciting and distinctive, make combat a delight (though it's tricky to capture in a screenshot!)Īnother positive is something that bloomed at least to a small degree in Mad Max: an expansive upgrade system. It's full of flair and colour, sharpened by quick movement speed and short cooldowns, making combat a joyously gruesome adventure of destructive power. ![]() ![]() Despite many locations and encounters feeling like copy-paste jobs, the combat is so varied and free-form that taking out the exact same party of enemies could be a very different experience. Chaining up precision kills, weapon quick swaps and various ground-pounds and shatter abilities is immensely satisfying, making the meat of the game enjoyable and engaging. ![]() The gunplay feels an awful lot DOOM (2016), which is a good thing, and the addition of the Ranger powers turns it up to twelve. Let's deal with the positives first: id Software's handiwork shows though very strongly with a punchy, weighty combat system. For some of the same reasons, RAGE 2 feels very similar. With clunky brawler combat, frustratingly finicky controls and underwhelming vehicle mechanics, the game just wasn't as fun to play or easy to get sucked into as it should have been. There was no unforgivable sin or glaring oversight, no single factor that dragged the game down it just failed to float. Unfortunately, Mad Max missed the mark fairly resoundingly. Mad Max had plenty of promise, but just failed to stick the landing. It was also a game that could have really justified an expansive open world with wacky, inventive hives of enemies or hidden relics of bygone days, all viewed from the old leather of Max's iconic cruiser. Mad Max had the makings of a great game, drawing in strings of vehicle combat, exploration, resource hunting and a well developed visual theme that could have caught the eye of anyone passingly familiar with the franchise. It was completely by chance that a couple of weeks ago I started a game that has long been on my to-play list: Mad Max, by Avalanche Studios. ![]()
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