Painkiller

Rating:
Summary: Entertaining
Review: I was unsure whether to give this 3 or 4 stars. First, I never played Serious Sam, but I did play Will Rock, and I can say that this game is exactly the same type of game. You move along, hords of baddies pop up, and you run around blowing them away. And of course, at the end of each level, is a boss to a kill. It is as simple as that. For me, although I did enjoy this game, it does get a little boring, I prefer a litle more depth to my games.

As for the good things, the graphics are excellent. This is the by far the best part of the game, so I hope you all have a good system. The baddies are very cool, and there are loads of different kinds. It sounds good, and the background music is a nice touch.

The biggest problem I have with the game, is that it is limited by only itself. This game could have been really awesome if there was more too it. The story behind it is unique, and the game sets a very compelling, and dark mood. The 4 or 5 cutscenes are very well done. This game has all the tools and potential to be great, really great, but lacks any substance to get there.

All and all, this is a good game, worthy of purchase as long as you know there is nothing more then running around shooting things, and from time to time that can be relaxing. I also have had no problems technically with this game, and I know a lot of people are complaining about it. I will not say the game is technically perfect, but for me it works fine.

Rating:
Summary: Stupid you!
Review: I was wary to buy the game after reading several negative reviews, but thankfully I did anyway, and am fully satisfied. It is exactly what was promised, fast paced, mindless killing, That's even part of the damn story! "Kill everything you see!" It says to use CD #3 to start up, what the hell's wrong w/ that? And it runs perfectly, smooth and crisp. Just lower all the detail. A unique idea they added, which I love, is to completely customize your cross hair, minor but fun. The multiplayer is great. What else do you want for the genre? If you don't like mindless killing, go buy SOMETHING THAT ISN'T MINDLESS KILLING. There ya go, problem solved. dumasses

Rating:
Summary: Just below Doom 3
Review: I write only a few reviews, but feel that this is one of those "hidden gems" of a game that is getting overlooked or ignored in the glut of first person shooter games that are on the market today.

This is not a team based, tactical shooter like the Battlefield games, Joint Operations, Ravenshield, or Counterstrike. Its just a simple "shoot everything".

This game is a throw back (and I mean that in a good way) to the early days of First Person shooters. The game reminds me more of the original Doom than any other game out there, except with incredible graphics and an amazing ragdoll physics engine. I would have called this game the true successor to the original Doom except that there is a Doom 3 now (another great game).

This game is made for single player, not Deathmatch (although there is a DM option). The storyline is far fetched, but then again so was Doom's, but that didn't stop the game from being addictingly fun, did it?

Rating:
Summary: Best Game I have Played In A While
Review: Massive, creative levels! Music rocks! Awesome monsters! Hours of non-stop, kick-ass fun! Nuff said.

Rating:
Summary: Uninspired, boring game play
Review: ok. Most of us expect some cliches when playing a FPS. It's part of the genre, fair enough, but there is no excuse for unispired level design, creatures, lame enemy A.I. and boring game play. Do the graphics look nice? Sure. Is the sound decent? It's ok. It won't scare the wits out of you like System Shock 2 or Doom, but it'll do. Is it fun? Absloutely not. Most of the attacks can be avoided by side stepping (strafing). The enemy is far from engaging and the levels have a rehashed "boring been there done that" feel to them ...

Rating:
Summary: Think "Quake Re-Imaged"
Review: One of the highlights in this game for me is running head-on into a mob of undead with your primary weapon; The Painkiller! This weapon has a set of rotating blades that literally plow their way through any opposition (both as a melee type weapon, and as a "twirling projectile of death"). Aside from the ensuing carnage the weapon produces, you're also treated to creatures flying through the air, smashing into walls, or just dropping straight to the ground, all courtesy of the awesome "rag doll" physics generated from the twirling spiral of death. The alternate fire of the weapon allows you to shoot out a kind of projectile, that if lodged into an enemy, will pull them through the air in an amazing "ballet of death" as the weapon's projectile returns via a laser like beam (which will do additional damage if any creature crosses through the beam while it's activated).

I'll "bottom-line" this review in one sentence: If you liked the original Quake, you'll love Painkiller.

Rating:
Summary: Gorgeous But Only Average
Review: Painkiller has some gorgeous graphics, an initially compelling story, and decent (but in the end tiring) gameplay.

The game's graphics, in my opinion, are its principal strength. The gameplay can be accurately compared to Serious Sam--LOTS of enemies, crazy weapons, and repetitive (but fun). Though personally I think Serious Sam SE is, overall, more fun.

Painkiller, in my opinion, had a lot more potential. I initially got into the story--holy warrior with an attitude--but I do feel it fell short in a number of critical areas--story and gameplay. To some, the gameplay is the best thing about this game, but I found it mind-numbing at times. I suppose the difference in gameplay between Serious Sam SE and Painkiller is Serious Sam is more creative in its level design and weapons.

Painkiller,depending on personal preferences, could be given four stars. For someone like me, however, it's more of a 2.5 or 3.0 star game. Good but not exceptional.

Overall: Would recommend at a lower price (30 USD). If you have a broadband connection, then download the demo and make up your own mind!

Rating:
Summary: A cool game but $40 is too much money!
Review: PainKiller is basically Serious Sam in the occult world.

Unique weapons, unique monsters and an almost fully destructible environment is what this game has going for it.

It is a typical first person shooter, the enemy AI is predictable, you have the typical objectives and undynamic levels to finish. This game definitely has the been there, done that 1st person shooter feel to it.

Your main weapon is called the PainKiller. If you master this weapon and its abilities, it is basically the only weapon you will need. To get to some hidden spots and secret areas you will need to use the alternate mode of this weapon and an object(like a table, coffin, cart) to climb or jump higher to the secret spots and hidden goodies.

The weapons and weird monsters make this game fun. There is nothing like using your stake gun to nail a zombie to a wall only to beat him to death with your PainKiller. lol

In summation -
This game is worth playing, especially at night in the dark with head phones on. Don't skip this game...but don't blow $40 either!
I got a copy from a friend that did not want it any more. If I had paid $40, I would have been very PO'd! Don't spend that much. Wait till it goes on sale or hits the discount rack. If you are going to buy it, make sure you download the update 1.15 because this game did have some serious issues right out of the box!!!

PainKiller has potential. If the developers see where they went wrong in this game and correct those issues, a PainKiller 2 could be a wicked product to look forward to.

Rating:
Summary: A frag fest with a great physics engine
Review: Painkiller is little more than a platform to show off cutting-edge game physics. There's no AI, no puzzles, and not much story--but that doesn't mean it isn't a blast. It's just one big frag fest, but it's one big frag fest done right. And that's coming from someone who didn't like Serious Sam (too repetitive). I never got tired of seeing how the baddies react to the weapons in Painkiller. The stake gun yanks them backwards and pins them against walls, the electrical weapon leaves them sizzling and jerking after they're dead, and the painkiller weapon (imagine a big horizontal blender blade) grinds them down to ever smaller chunks. It's not a "great" game, but it is a very good game that pulls off its modest goals with great success. Hopefully upcoming games (and you know what they are!) will have physics this good along with their more ambitious AI and story elements.

Rating:
Summary: well executed mindless mayhem
Review: Painkiller isn't a particularly sophisticated game. However, it does one thing very well: mindless mayhem in realistic and gorgeous settings. It's got a nice variety of monsters and settings that keep the mayhem from getting repetitive. The weapons have a range of effects that give them all their appropriate place. All in all, it's a blast to play.

The only complaint I have about this game is that it is very picky about hardware. The minimum machine requirements are accurate and the game is able to bring even a new machine to its knees on some levels. It's also a bit picky about CD-ROM drives (due to the on-disk copy protection) and can have trouble with even officially supported video cards. Older RADEON cards, in particular, are an issue. See the forums at dreamcatchergames.com for details. Be sure to patch the game before playing it (the patch fixed nearly all of my RADEON video problems).