After Wolfenstein 3D was released in 1992, many legends of FPS were born in the video game world. Legends that, of course, gradually faded from the radar, but are still ingrained in the hearts of gamers and developers today. For this reason, 3D Realms, the creator of the excellent 1996 Duke Nukem 3D, in the company of KillPixel, decides to take up arms to offer players in need of thrills Wrath: Aeon of Ruin, a title with a candy that has a retro scent, the is strongly inspired by the experiences of the past: Quake, DOOM or the already mentioned Duke Nukem 3D.
About the Early Access Tests:
The Wrath: Aeon of Ruin test assesses the strengths and shortcomings of the title’s Early Access and in no way represents a final opinion. This test, valid for March 4th, 2021, will change in the course of game development before testing the final version.
Wrath: Aeon of Ruin was recently pushed back to summer 2021 and has been in its Early Access version for many months Lately several new features have been introduced in the title, starting with a new level, a more complete bestiary, additional artifacts and of course new weapons. So we took advantage of this recently particularly important update to delve deeper into this game that we stopped during an episode of Refund or Not.
Back to the 90s
In just a few seconds, Wrath: Aeon of Ruin achieves its primary goal: to immerse nostalgic players in the 1990s. The creation of KillPixel, edited by 3D Realms, does not deal with a nanardesque scenario, but offers the opportunity to begin an adventure with a magnificent sword in order to destroy the living dead and other particularly invasive demons in locations that are in the Fast-FPS -Genre common are: crypts, catacombs, ruined castles and ruined landscapes.
To further bolster its retro side, the title takes an engine as old as the world, namely the id Tech 2 … and what we can say is that the engine was created on the occasion of John Carmack and Michael Abrash’s 1996 The first quake always works miracles. The game, surprisingly beautiful and absolutely fluid, offers great panoramas, supported by dynamic lighting. What is even more astonishing is that it manages to hold a bestial and spectacular tournament between your anonymous hero and the various monsters that occupy the locations. The creatures don’t hesitate to explode under the charge of your double cannon, and the blood sprays constantly have fun repainting the mazes of this Gothic world. Unfortunately, despite having mastered the engine completely, we regret too much classicism. The developers of KillPixel wanted to take the formula of the FPS of the past literally and forgot to add a touch of originality. As a result, the production does not surprise either by its artistic direction or by its construction.
Demons and a double cannon, a formula that explodes
Where the title shines are its clashes, which perfectly manage to pay tribute to its main models. Before starting a fight, Wrath: Aeon of Ruin offers players like a DOOM Eternal the opportunity to study the terrain in order to gain the upper hand over opponents who often attack in numbers. Therefore, in addition to using the hero’s range of motion, the player must primarily eliminate the imposing beasts or the projectile launchers in the hope that they don’t end in fluff before the end of the adventure. To help our protagonist in his search, the title of course also and above all offers various weapons with an amazing design. Even if we could only get our hands on six of them (around nine in the final version), we can already announce that we are conquered on this side. Every weapon with two shots, a main shot and a side shot, brings with it its share of sensations. Unfortunately, some of these quickly fade into the background, like the particularly ineffective pistol that we rarely pulled out after receiving the shotgun.
During their journey, the player can also count on the presence of a handful of artifacts that can be activated at any time to get out of a bad patch. These bonuses, inevitably reminiscent of the various items to be collected in Quake and DOOM, allow players to save after an assassination, regain life, breathe underwater, ideal for crossing large water tunnels or even monsters to collect for his cause. While these little elements are far from important (with the exception of the artifact the game was saved with), they can add to the already well-oiled gameplay by allowing players not to be stuck in the same area for long. Long minutes. Despite a solid performance, we would still have been happy to see a few additions to add a little punch, starting with implementing a certain key to dodge enemy fire, or even a band worthy of the name. The various compositions by Andrew Hulshult (DUSK, Quake Champions) fit together perfectly and are for the most part perfectly anecdotal.
Is there early access without bugs?
With Wrath: Aeon of Ruin, players don’t have to worry about title stability. Whether in 30, 60 or 120 fps, Sagittarius never suffers from slowing down. Better, during our long session between 7 and 8 hours of gaming time, we just didn’t run into any errors. We can therefore applaud the work of KillPixel, which has not waited to deliver a final edition to offer players a version that will last.
Anger: Aeon of Ruin – The Well of Fools!
Is the cartridge empty?
In the end, where the title fishes, it is definitely in its content. Granted, the game is still and still in its early stages – the final version of the game will land this summer – of course the full version of the title offers a total of 15 levels for almost as many hours of gameplay, but that is relative without the presence of a one count thin bestiary. Successfully building the various levels of the maze all goes to help solve this main problem, but unfortunately to no avail. Due to the fact that an inconspicuous number of monsters (11 in Early Access versus 15 in the final version) are to blame, the player will quickly feel as though they are facing the same situations.
The other main concern of Wrath: Aeon of Ruin lies in the artificial intelligence of the various opponents. The latter, even if they remain aggressive, are slow, not very agile and, above all, are regularly blocked in front of a decorative element. Therefore, sometimes in the most difficult moments of the game, the player who is aware of the weakness of the FPS does not hesitate to seal in tighter spots in the hope of cornering his many opponents in passing. Obviously, this won’t detract from your gaming experience, but it will make your progression much easier, even in the most difficult of difficulties.
The notes
+Good arguments
- Good feelings
- Nice and fluid, despite an engine as old as the world
- A nice homage to yesterday’s productions
- A varied and efficient arsenal
- Long and comfortable levels to navigate
– –Negative points
- A deepened soundtrack
- Sometimes a little punch is missing
- Some weapons can quickly become obsolete
- A limited bestiary
- An artistic direction without identity
- AI is not always up to date
It only took us a few minutes to understand the full potential of Wrath: Aeon of Ruin. The realization of KillPixel, edited by 3D Realms, is successful and offers an experience at the height of its many models. The FPS, however, using a particularly aging engine, therefore uses all the codes of its ancestors with courage to allow players to evolve in intelligent levels, participate in joyful and dynamic clashes and observe sublime panoramas. If you take the old formula literally, however, the title lacks identity. It will then be necessary to face a universe that has already been crossed 100 times. Unfortunately, that’s not the only problem with retro production. The title also suffers from a certain repetition, the fault of a particularly shy bestiary.
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March 06, 2021 at 9:34:19 PM
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