bakerJul 8, 2023

FPS titles with great environmental world-building? e.g. Alien: Isolation, Metro, DOOM '16, even Portal 2 counts -- games that feel like real, lived-in places and not just a series of arenas.

https://sh.itjust.works/post/851447

FPS titles with great environmental world-building? e.g. Alien: Isolation, Metro, DOOM '16, even Portal 2 counts -- games that feel like real, lived-in places and not just a series of arenas. - sh.itjust.works

For example, I didn’t fall in love with Titanfall 2’s environmental art design—it felt a bit generic to me, like it was meant to be the backdrop for a shooter, as opposed to the Sevastopol in A:I or the station in SOMA that felt like existing locations. Even Borderlands 2 has great world-building: the corporate history that can be inferred from the level design, the weapons & the NPCs makes it one of the richer games I’ve played. Would love to hear others’ thoughts on your favorite FPS environments!

Show threadFrogFloggingJul 8, 2023

S.T.A.L.K.E.R.

All three base games. So many mods.

The zone feels vast, lived in, dangerous.

The ai is dynamic, moving through an area once you mind find a group of friendlies engaged in a firefight with a powerful psychic mutant, and other time find an eerily peaceful vista.

It’s not a power fantasy. On harder difficulties you’re always on edge when you’re exploring even with end game gear. A single bullet from a sniper or a random pack of wild dogs can easily end your run.

Highly recommended of you’ve never experienced it before.

Show threadbaker

I actually have SoC & CoP in my backlog. I tried SoC once, but admittedly didn’t give it the time it deserved.

Would you recommend playing SoC before CoP, since SoC is newer, or is it best to play SoC first?

Jul 8, 2023 at 5:59pmWeb
Show threadProdigalFrogJul 8, 2023
SoC is best played first. You could skip the second game if you wanted since its largely a re-tread with some new mechanics, then move onto CoP.
Show threadFrogFloggingJul 9, 2023

Pripyat is the more polished game mechanically. SoC has the best story. They’re more or less equal in atmosphere.

I bounced off SoC the first time I played it, but after I finished Pripyat the first time I gave SoC another go and I got totally immersed.

It’s hard to recommend one over the other. They’re both great.