When I first read about Damnation, I have to admit, I was intrigued. You have combat that travels up, down, left, and right, a Steampunk story line, huge maps, and even a cool new vertical shooter way of playing, so it had to be interesting in the end right? Uh, oh so wrong. As a matter of fact, I would have to consider this title to be one of the biggest blunders of this generation, and ranking up there with the likes of “Todd McFarlane's” Evil Prophecy, Aqua Man, and even the famed Superman 64. But hey, I guess it takes just as much talent to screw up a game as it does to make it successful. Damnation is the total antithesis of what it takes to make a great game.
Visually, Damnation barely screams last generation, let alone even passable for this current generation cycle that is over 3 years old now. The textures are bland, uninspiring, and repetitive throughout the entire game. Lighting is very low res and there is no real time lighting taking place in the environments or even off explosions. The characters are crudely animated and move about stiff and jerky. The games most glaring of inadequacies comes from all this underperforming and still managing to run at less than 30fps.
Audio keeps the ball of crud rolling downhill with a forgettable score, poorly acted dialog…I mean…very…poorly…acted, sound effects that not only don't make an impact, but are laughable, and lastly the game is full of sound bugs such as misplaced enemy death cries and even sound cutting off when making jumps with vehicles.
Hey but at least the game plays fine right? Well yes and no. The controls are not broken per se, but it is the lack of excitement the game delivers that really makes for a ho-hum experience. What's more the A.I. is really, really dumb. I'm not just talking about the idiot enemies that stand there right in front of you as you shoot them, but your allies suffer from the same brain farts as they make a plan of attack, tell you to take cover, yet stand right in the line of fire, which leaves you having to help them out. Let's not forget the weapons of “ass” destruction, I mean where is it written that an enemy can take several head shots? Even the more “destructive” weaponry feels weak when needing to take down a horde of enemies or large immobile objects.
I will say one thing though; the game is a long journey for all you masochists out there. Each level is rigorously long and even when you think you've reached a turning point; the level just keeps on going. I thought it was just the game's mediocrity making the levels seem long, but the game does have an honestly long campaign for those who choose to endure it. For the two of you in the world who care, you can play each other online in a variety of multiplayer modes.
It pains me to write reviews like this. I thought we were far beyond this point in the gaming industry to green light such tripe, let alone at a full price tag to boot. If this is the best that Codemasters can produce in the action genre, please, let's hope they stick to racing.
