Metro 2033 Review

Oh, you'll be wintering in Moscow? Have you got a gas mask? What about a gun? You'll need them: the winter is very dangerous, and it lasts all year round.

It's 2033, and it's been twenty years since a nuclear apocalypse blasted the Earth, leaving the surface a barely habitable wasteland. Under the city of Moscow, survivors of the catastrophe scratch out a difficult life in the stations of the metro network, sheltering from the frozen, irradiated surface and battling strange, aggressive creatures. For many sunlight is a faded memory; for others it is better known through photographs and stories than first-hand experience. This is the setting for Ukrainian studio 4A Games' Metro 2033, a tunnel shooter based on a novel of the same name by Russian writer Dmitry Glukhovsky.

The bleak setting is a critical part of Metro 2033, much like the STALKER games. This is no surprise, as 4A Games was formed by employees of STALKER developer GSC Game World who left prior to the release of STALKER Shadow of Chernobyl. However, despite a strong tonal similarity, the core game play of the two is quite different: whereas the STALKER series is characterised by wide open areas in which the player is free to roam about, Metro 2033 is a strictly linear, tightly scripted progression from frozen, irradiated point A to frozen, irradiated point B.

The player takes on the role of Artyom, a young man who has lived almost his entire life underground in the metro. In his shoes, you'll creep through dark, dank tunnels, venture up to the hazardous surface, fight alone, fight with allies, run, sneak, shoot, avoid traps and scavenge for supplies such as gas mask air filters and ammunition. Artyom's journey follows a regular pattern – the main action is punctuated by visits to friendly stations where you can soak up a bit of the atmosphere and trade weapons & ammo before heading back out into the dangers that lurk beyond the safe enclaves.

The stations which shelter the struggling remnants of the Moscow population are one of the highlights of the game. They are packed with NPCs, hanging around or tending to their business: trading, cooking, drinking, begging, tending to wounded. Only snippets of a greater society are glimpsed, but it's very evocative nonetheless.

Metro 2033 does a lot to pull the player into the setting – almost the entire heads-up-display is integrated into the game world. Objectives are written down on a clipboard that Artyom carries with him at all times, and he keeps a lighter handy to illuminate the board in dark environments. A watch on Artyom's wrist keeps track how much time it will take for the filter in his gas mask to degrade, and also displays how well lit he is via a set of red, yellow and green LEDs, for stealthy purposes.

Supplies are short in the post-apocalypse economy. Crucial gas mask filters are desperately rare outside of a few trading spots, especially in the latter sections of the game, and there is a dearth of quality weaponry and ammo as well.

To start with, you'll have to make do with low-grade, handicraft guns cobbled together in the metro, though you will get Artyom's gloved hands onto some more effective gear as you progress. Most of the bullets in the metro aren't much cop either – the most common rounds are low-gunpowder cartridges with low stopping-power. There is a reserve of pre-blast military-standard rounds in the metro however, and you can load these into your gun in order to pack a little more punch into your shots. Military-grade rounds are rare and precious though, and they have more than one function in the post-blast metro – they can also be used as currency.

Vodka and chips? That'll be a bullet. A new revolver? Twenty bullets. Escape to paradise? Haha. It's a mechanic that stems from the game's fiction, and it creates a curious dynamic: do you shoot the more effective rounds in combat, or spend them in trading posts?

It's hardly a winter wonderland in post-apocalypse Moscow then. 4A Games have created a world which feels genuinely dirty, desperate and constantly threatened. Bullets and gas mask filters are constantly in shorter supply than you'd like, but critically the game is very well paced: the next safe zone is never completely out of reach for the Muscovite who moves quickly and shoots accurately.

The arsenal of weapons is made up largely by an array of FPS standard issues – revolvers, shotguns and assault rifles fill out the bulk of the roster. There are also pneumatic weapons which must be pumped up before shooting, and throwing knives which can be used for stealthy take downs (of course no-one ever makes a sound when they are struck by a flying knife). Flame throwers make an appearance or two.

Battles against human enemies tend to be more tactically interesting than fights against monster hordes, but both are exciting in their own ways: you're always a little more desperate to get that shotgun reloaded when there is a vicious, toothy predator about to pounce. The NPC opponents have an odd habit of repeatedly running between pieces of cover, but otherwise display a sound tactical sense that makes fire-fights against them decent fun. They will, if you are quiet and stick to the shadows, lose track of your position as well. In a few sections this makes sneaking past groups of enemies possible for the patient or ammunition-challenged tunnel-rat.

Inevitably given the setting, most fire-fights take place in dark, confined spaces with little room for maneuver, but the action is mixed up regularly enough that it never becomes outright repetitive. Trips to locations on the city surface provide a change in scenery, and the different sections of the game each have some unique aspect that marks them apart from other chapters.

The story escalates at a fast pace, from the opening minutes right up to the finale, and Artyom is constantly moving, going from one challenge to the next. At about ten hours length, Metro 2033 is a tight experience and no given section is stretched out beyond tolerance. There are a lot of thrills to be had along the path: creeping past a patrol of enemies, flash light off, gas mask on, with the sound of Artyom's stressed breathing breaking the silence; exploring dilapidated Soviet facilities along side a group of allies as one of the troop rings off a series of bad gallows-jokes; blasting monsters and scrambling to reload before Artyom gets his face chewed off. It's is confidently executed and for the most part well crafted.

There are slips ups however – it is all too easy to switch from the cheap dirty rounds to the valuable military grade ammo by holding down the reload button for too long. Without intending it, you may very well blow half your cash reserve into the faces of a few monsters; not always a wise financial strategy.

The game also uses a check-point based save system – if you die, or for whatever reason you cannot spend the time to make it to the next check point, then you will have to replay sections you've already finished in order to progress. The check points are not especially generously spaced, either, generally falling in line with story beats. It can be a pain. Furthermore, the default field of view is terribly narrow, giving a 'zoomed in' feeling when playing with a PC, sat close to the moniter.

And there are quick-time events - at a few spots, the game will play a first-person cut scene, and demand that the player hit buttons on the keyboard at exactly the right time in order to advance. There is effectively no gameplay interest in these moments, and the requirement to tap away at the keyboard serves mainly to distract you from whatever is happening on the screen.

Moscow 2033 then - frozen, irradiated, and crawling with hostile monsters; the nightlife is quite something. Not exactly picture-postcard stuff, but looking in through a monitor, it's not a bad place to visit. And it is the place - more specifically the mood of the place - that's the major attraction of the game. The stations of the metro network, the dangerous tunnels, and the desolate, ruined surface; every locations on Artyom's path is wonderfully atmospheric.

What's more, the action itself is not an unwelcome distraction from the guided tour: the core FPS game is solid and the encounters through the game are often thrilling, if not on the same superlative level as the environment and sense of place. As scripted shooters go, Metro 2033 is up with the best.

*Tunnel shooter!

4/5

PLUS:
-Fantastic atmosphere
-Outstanding graphics
-Solid gunplay

MINUS:
-Check point saves
-Quick time events
-Narrow default field of view