See Video Review Below.

1. Short Game Biography

Metro Last Light is the sequel to Metro 2033 and picks up a year after that game ended. I did not play Metro 2033 so I cannot speak to that game. However, Metro 2033 ended with the destruction of a mysterious supernatural race of beings known only as the Dark Ones. Artyom, the main character in both games, was the one who pushed the button that supposedly evaporated the whole race of the Dark Ones. Metro Last Light finds Artyom, after the holocaust, feeling guilty and wishing to clear his conscience.

The Metro game series is loosely based on the novel "Metro 2033" and it's sequels written by Russian author Dmitry Glukhovsky. The games do not follow any direct story line from the novels but they do exist in that world. That world is a post-apocalyptic and very dangerous world.

2. Presentation, Story/plot

Metro Last Light takes you beneath Moscow, in the tunnels of the Metro, where the remaining humans are plagued by deadly threats from within as well as from outside. Artyom, a Ranger, must struggle not only with the Nazi Reich, or the Communist Red Line, but also with mutants that stalk the catacombs and hunt the poisoned sky outside.

Artyom is tasked by Colonel Miller to find and kill the last remaining Dark One. They were made aware of its existence by Khan. Khan is a nomadic mystic who wants to rescue the Dark One because he believes it to be the key to humanity's future. Colonel Miller, on the other hand, believes it to be a continued threat and wants the last Dark One eliminated. You play the game as Artyom on his mission and watch the story unfold as he battles with his duty to kill the Dark One, his guilt from destroying the Dark Ones race, and the fact that one of these factions has a weaponized doomsday virus that they wish to unleash on the remaining human race.

3. Characters, Voice acting etc.

The developers did a decent job of developing the characters. As the main character, you quickly begin to recognize and develop your opinions and emotions towards each character you encounter. Oddly, I found it hard to empathize with Artyom, the very character I was playing.

I think it probably has to do with the fact that you are forced to play Artyom in First Person at all times. I personally do not like playing in First Person view because your view of the game around you becomes very limited. In many cases you don't even get to see what your character looks like. Third Person, on the other hand, not only lets you see your character, but you can see what is happening around you a lot better. It makes it easier to see what threats may coming up behind you or from any direction for that matter. First Person, to me, is like one of those weird movies where you see everything from the Point Of view of the main character. It's just unsettling.

Right off the bat you are paired with Anna, Colonel Miller's daughter and the Rangers best sniper. She seems very arrogant at first but later in the game after not seeing her for a long time you are suddenly re-united with her and apparently you hook up with her. That fact is made obvious at the end of the game but I'll let you see that for yourself.

Next, you find yourself a prisoner of the Nazi Reich and a, what seems to be a friendly Communist Red Liner, by the name of Pavel, helps you escape. for a good chunk of the game you think he is a great friend and then he suddenly betrays you and you spend much of the rest of the game chasing him and the Dark One. You want to save the Dark One before Pavel gets his hands on him. After being betrayed, you can think of nothing else but finding Pavel and killing him. You run across Pavel several time but he seems to be able to escape your wrath until close to the end of the game.

Before you are able to kill Pavel, you find the remaining Dark One, bond with him, and he helps you find Pavel and kill him. After Pavel is dead, the Dark One leads you to the safety of your fellow Rangers where you participate in the final battle of the game.

I did find it odd that all the Russians spoke English with very bad Russian accents. I suppose that was for the benefit of us English speaking gamers.

4. Graphics/Artwork, Environment

I am always disappointed when you see the trailer for a game and the graphics are awesome, cinematic, but then when you actually play the game you realize that the trailer was edited from cut scenes and the cut scenes were all created and animated beautifully. During the actual game play, the graphics are less than what you expected from watching the trailer. After all, the game would be rough and skipping frames if the graphics are hogging processing power. Metro Last Light does not do this to you.

I was pleased to see that the quality of the artistic treatment did not diminish during game play. In fact, the only way you could tell you were going from game play to a cut scene was the fact that you no longer had control of your character and another part of the story was being fleshes out. Somehow the developers were able to strike a balance between cut scene and game play graphics. The results are much more realistic game play. What I mean by this is that there is not a stark visual contrast that jolts you from the experience of the game. You stay immersed in the presentation... you stay connected to the environment.

With that said, to maintain this feeling of connection and not hog all the processing power, something had to take a hit. That something was the cut scenes. Instead of the cut scenes being all dressed up with vibrant colors, super detailed textures, and polished color grading, they were treated the same as the actual game play graphics. This provided a seamless visual and emotional experience between cut scenes and game play. The upside is that the artistic treatment of the overall game is beautiful in its own right and with all these artistic decisions working so well together, Metro Last Light is one Gorgeous game.

5. Game play (Fun? Frustrating? Loading Screens?)

Not only is the game play fun and capable of keeping you interested but it has a very low frustration level. I hate games that get you into a groove and then try to change it up with stupid timed events or silly puzzles that you must solve before you can move on. That's what frustrates me more than anything in a game. Taking you out of your Zen like focus and making you jump through silly hoops just so you can get on with the game.

Thankfully, Metro Last Light does not do that to you. You learn the controls quickly, which is nice, and they stay consistent throughout the game. This makes using the controls second nature so you do not have to think about them while navigating the game. I don't remember experiencing one glitch or game play bug.

The battle mechanics of Metro Last Light were very fluid. Hitting your target was not difficult even under pressure. This was especially true when using the six shot shotgun. The six shot shotgun was by far the best gun in the game and the AK-47 was a close runner up. I got to the point of depending on those two weapons only. Grenades came in handy as well once I remembered I had them. There were other weapons available but being able to use only the two guns and the grenades throughout the game made it easier to concentrate on the tactics of my game play. I didn't have to waste time and ammo switching out weapons just to figure out what was going to work best on each new level.

6. Sawman's Final Verdict

Metro Last Light turned out to be a great Post-Apocalyptic survival game. Beautiful graphics, Effective, easily controlled weapons, intuitive consistent controls, and an immersive well told story made Metro Last Light a memorable game with a high replay value. Metro Last Light was glitch free and I can't remember any frame skipping or lag at all.

The developers handled loading screen in two ways. The first and most obvious was the bumper scene like breaks where the narrator's voice moved the story along as his words were written at the top of the screen for you to read. When the narration was finished you are given the option to move into the next level.

The second treatment for loading screens is very inconspicuous. When you get to those points in the game, your character segues from your control to an animation that moves you to the next level. It looks seamless and it adds something to the story. Once you are given back control of your character you are able to just continue on with the game. This technique is used sparingly in the game but very effectively.

The only weirdness in the game comes when the main character encounters some strippers and he's even given the opportunity for a lap dance. I don't know.. something about digital boobies just doesn't do it for me. Another strange twist is Artyom's relationship with Anna. Their first meeting is one of tension. She taunts him and talks down to him. Later in the game when he finally meets up with her again, she's got the hots for Artyom. The results of this encounter are subtly revealed at the end of the game. I'll let you figure that one out for yourself.

Anyway, all of this, quirks and all, makes Metro Last Light a great gaming experience. The story, the presentation, the graphics, the unfettered game play, all come together to immerse you in this Russian version of a Doomsday scenario and makes you really feel like the hero. I highly recommend this game to anyone that likes the genre. I highly recommend it to anyone that loves to play video games. If you haven't already got a copy of Metro Last Light... go get one now!