A late, late Painkiller review

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Hellen
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Post by Hellen »

Yeah, I also consider the 1st chapter the worst in the whole game(why didn’t they include some cool levels in the opening part?).

Thanks god, they put Cemetery as the first level. Beautiful. Dark. And from this moment you understand your goal in the rest of the game: you have to kill bad guys as you’re locked in the closed space. No trigger/button pushing, no even DOORS to open – everything opens and closes by itself. Simple, doesn’t requires any brain activity. I love it!

Atrium Complex. Almost crappy level. But that satanic monks resemble very much of cultists to me. Thanks to them Atrium isn’t that bad.

Cathedral. Don’t know why, I didn’t fell in love with it. Yes, Cathedral, yes almost gothic… but where’s the altar, the rows of candles, crucifixions? The Cathedral is too big to include such little cute elements.

Catacombs. As said earlier. Too boring. Also I don’t like goblins with throwing knives in the
Catacombs.

Necrogiant – the big boy, huh? :) Rise your head to the heaven, strafe and shoot, shoot, shoot! ‘Till it’s dead.

The good part of the 1st ch. is the pleasure of painkiller massacre, ‘cause almost all enemies armed with melee wepons.

Opera House. Where did they seen such a huge opera house? Looks like the whole stadium. Compare it to the tiny old opera house in Blood. Also they do not perform ‘Phantasm and the opera’ here. I like this creatures, duuno how to describe, you know, crawling, looking like clown masks.

Asylum. Nuff said. I only have to add that the fighting space is a bit close, so you always have to watch your back :) Yes, and they surely should include some idea in the level, like doctor’s memos: “I don’t know why, but it’s getting harder and harder to control my patients. What is happening with them?” or crazy signs on the walls in blood: “Why do we hunger?”

Bridge. The level ran kinda slow, especially the fight on the slippery ice, I had nothing to do there, but run from end to end. Hmmm… I think, they almost right reflected the real bridge construction in the computer game :)

Town. Nuff said too. Leaves a desperate feeling.

Swamp Thing. Yes, the monster is beautifully done itself, but… I don’t get this ‘shooting on bubbles’ thing, I killed this boss in 4 min. only after 7 or 8 tries.

Train Station. They surround you, you’re alone against the whole army. Try to survive and not to collect any soul and you’ll be rewarded with the most useful card in the game – Soul Catcher.

Factory. Good. Well detailed factory equipment, all these machines, mechanisms, tanks and boilers. Industrial feeling. Also I laughed on cute funny dudes in s&m outfit :D


Military Base – I like it. ‘Echo of the War’ creates the atmosphere. All in all I like abandoned military objects(and I mean, in real life too). Also the ‘flying saucer’ with the sign ‘USSR’ and ‘Лайка’ on it in the last hangar made me laugh

Ruins. Sucky. Guardian sucks. But, weh-hell, it gives you a strange feeling of freedom when he strikes on the ground with his hammer sending you to the outer space. Very close to Blood TNT jump freedom.

Castle. Almost same as Town, but only with snow added. This is the only level where I tried to perform the miracles of jumping skills by trying to jump under the bridge. Sorry, but Hellen is not made for the Olympics… Also it costed me a lots of nerves, so I gave up that stupid jumping tricks.

Oriental Palace. Hmmm… Not bad, but all these traps leave a strange ‘Prince of Persia’ felling. Sorry, that’s my opinion.

Babel. ‘We built the city with the tower for the World…’ The level is kind of boring and doesn’t have any special thing in it.

Alastor. Yeah, I’ve already said. I love this dude.

Water town is not that bad, but this time I didn’t really managed to find all secrets. Just finished it and that’s it. And tell me, what are bikers doing in the water town???

Docks. You’ve already said everything, but I don’t consider this level the worst. Ships are good. Crane jumping is bad. Why do you have to climb the high dock crane just to get over the fence?

Monastery. The first part is awesome. The ruins of monastery on the lost island surrounded by the sea… Again that cultists-like folks. Again painkiller massacre. Just beautiful. The catacombs(caves) suck. I’ve almost got lost there, give me the map already! Yes I’ve got lost though the labyrinth is not that complicated.

Hell. As I’ve said, the one of my favorite. The panorama of war where everything’s mixed. Hell is not just a dark underground place with rivers of lava, where imps and daemons keep sinners.

My short level-by-level review.
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Post by mouth »

wow, I found the game to be a bit boring so I never went further than the first boss. :)
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Gila
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Post by Gila »

Atrium Complex. Almost crappy level. But that satanic monks resemble very much of cultists to me. Thanks to them Atrium isn’t that bad.
are you crazy? one of the coolest levels. i played it on max graphical settings - it's superawesome! those numerous arches... love 'em!!
Cathedral. Don’t know why, I didn’t fell in love with it. Yes, Cathedral, yes almost gothic… but where’s the altar, the rows of candles, crucifixions? The Cathedral is too big to include such little cute elements.
i hate almost everything gothic and goths i hate with a passion. this levels sucks in my opinion.
Catacombs. As said earlier. Too boring. Also I don’t like goblins with throwing knives in the Catacombs.
those are supposed to be somewhat like were-trolls or somethings. :) this level is great!!!
Necrogiant – the big boy, huh? Smile Rise your head to the heaven, strafe and shoot, shoot, shoot! ‘Till it’s dead.
his balls is his weak spot, yea, it was hard to kill him cuz i kinda understand his pain, being a male myslef :))) i f*** HATE HIS happy TORNADO ATTACK!!!
Opera House. Where did they seen such a huge opera house? Looks like the whole stadium. Compare it to the tiny old opera house in Blood. Also they do not perform ‘Phantasm and the opera’ here. I like this creatures, duuno how to describe, you know, crawling, looking like clown masks.
this levels is very beautiful, TRY SHOOTING THE BIG LAMP IN THE HALL!!! WHOA FIREWORKZ!!!!! bad thing about it - numerous stairs, f*** lame.
Asylum. Nuff said. I only have to add that the fighting space is a bit close, so you always have to watch your back Smile Yes, and they surely should include some idea in the level, like doctor’s memos: “I don’t know why, but it’s getting harder and harder to control my patients. What is happening with them?” or crazy signs on the walls in blood: “Why do we hunger?”
nice level... atmoshperic. reminded me of redneck rampage's nut house for some reason unknown. sick enemies - love puking amputees and these fat tied dudes wearing electical helmets banging their heads against the doors...
Bridge. The level ran kinda slow, especially the fight on the slippery ice, I had nothing to do there, but run from end to end. Hmmm… I think, they almost right reflected the real bridge construction in the computer game Smile
gigantic level, again, i hate stairs and stuff. and that "slippery combat on bridge" really p*** me off. also i didn't use that damn tram instead i walked on the rope!!1
Town. Nuff said too. Leaves a desperate feeling.
classical "episode 4 quake" setting. love it. if not for repetitive enemies...
Swamp Thing. Yes, the monster is beautifully done itself, but… I don’t get this ‘shooting on bubbles’ thing, I killed this boss in 4 min. only after 7 or 8 tries.
haha you suck! just kidding. it's the EASIEST boss. but i love it the most. i mean the best boss level.
Train Station. They surround you, you’re alone against the whole army. Try to survive and not to collect any soul and you’ll be rewarded with the most useful card in the game – Soul Catcher.
reqs for card are insane here and i HATE these sado/maso commandos. they p*** me off.
Factory. Good. Well detailed factory equipment, all these machines, mechanisms, tanks and boilers. Industrial feeling. Also I laughed on cute funny dudes in s&m outfit Very Happy
yea but i f*** got lost here couple of times and this level is pretty buggy.
Military Base – I like it. ‘Echo of the War’ creates the atmosphere. All in all I like abandoned military objects(and I mean, in real life too). Also the ‘flying saucer’ with the sign ‘USSR’ and ‘Лайка’ on it in the last hangar made me laugh
well yea but this level has one place where you can't get back to the already completed half (the closed silo). therefore i hate it.
Ruins. Sucky. Guardian sucks. But, weh-hell, it gives you a strange feeling of freedom when he strikes on the ground with his hammer sending you to the outer space. Very close to Blood TNT jump freedom.
well the way he crushes these massive colums is DAMN IMPRESSIVE but you can't navigate in that rubble.... i hate this boss. killing him in 1:20 is a pain in the ass
Castle. Almost same as Town, but only with snow added. This is the only level where I tried to perform the miracles of jumping skills by trying to jump under the bridge. Sorry, but Hellen is not made for the Olympics… Also it costed me a lots of nerves, so I gave up that stupid jumping tricks.
this is very easy level, if you know how to easily kill the fat dudes who live 5-6HP red souls. f*** hate these bones!!!!!!1
Oriental Palace. Hmmm… Not bad, but all these traps leave a strange ‘Prince of Persia’ felling. Sorry, that’s my opinion.
BEAUTIFUL LEVEL, ESP. INTERIOR at the start and AT THE END ITS MASTERPIECE OF ARCHITECTURE.!!!
Babel. ‘We built the city with the tower for the World…’ The level is kind of boring and doesn’t have any special thing in it.
this is where i agree.
Alastor. Yeah, I’ve already said. I love this dude.
alastor is a lame happy and got owned really fast. this level sucks.
Water town is not that bad, but this time I didn’t really managed to find all secrets. Just finished it and that’s it. And tell me, what are bikers doing in the water town???
it's very good and i love the big skeletons buuuut the CONE SECRET!!! I HATE IT!
Docks. You’ve already said everything, but I don’t consider this level the worst. Ships are good. Crane jumping is bad. Why do you have to climb the high dock crane just to get over the fence?
too big, too hard, secrets are too lame.
Monastery. The first part is awesome. The ruins of monastery on the lost island surrounded by the sea… Again that cultists-like folks. Again painkiller massacre. Just beautiful. The catacombs(caves) suck. I’ve almost got lost there, give me the map already! Yes I’ve got lost though the labyrinth is not that complicated.[/quote
this is the only level i like to get lost in.
My short level-by-level review.
you forgot to mention prison and forest!! =)
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Hellen
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Post by Hellen »

are you crazy? one of the coolest levels.
Yes, slightly crazy actually. I don't like Atrium - that's all. Nothing personal.
i hate almost everything gothic and goths i hate with a passion
I hate everything gothic too(except for my dog who is gothically black), thus I love Blood :twisted:

I commented only on basic levels.
O’k, speaking truth I can’t say anything ‘bout the Forest, cause I didn’t played it. Damn, I stuck on the Riuns, than gave up, got rid of the game and now I want it back, understanding my mistake(Who will ever understand me?). Actually, it wasn’t suitable time for kids’ toys, besides my brother was walking around like “When do you stop playing this crap?”(he plays Sam sometimes).
I heard Painkiller gold edition is coming soon. Will I be able to get it?

And so, Prison. Good, but they surely could make it better. More prisonic atmosphere, I’d say. Cell complex is too dull, but in the end of the level, when you understand that ‘they’re doing brain tests on the prisoners!’ and see that dude on the electric chair(similar to Duke’s ‘Death Row’) – that’s it, cool. I just wanted to see “Caution DO NOT drop the soap” sign somewhere in the showers, that would be the best part of the level :D Prison is somehow connected with the Asylum.
Yes, and I forgot to tell about one thing I don’t like about Painkiller – no connection between levels. Just from place to place, assorted locations. The only similarity between two ‘neighbor’ levels are opponents: ninjas and samurais in the Opera and Bridge, WWI soldiers in Train Station and Military Base. Nothing more than that. It seems like Satan himself chooses your battlefield by pointing his claw to the map of the world.
Once again: too assorted. And they even pushed a ‘love story’ in it (Daniel meets a nekkid woman, he has to choose between her and heaven, he obviously chooses the nekkid woman, and so on…). Oh, I like ‘love stories’ sooo much, especially in violent games… :)
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Gila
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Post by Gila »

the whole story and that eve character and othe ones are retarded. and it's kinda obvious why no level connection - cut it's all some locations and you just teleport there using that... thingy which that happy pussy faggy gothy white haired dude gives to you.

gold/black edition is a ripoff, in russia there is a good pirated version of painkiller+addon both on dvd for like, 5$. very handy. :)

again, everyone can say what he'd like to see in painkiller. but PK is great for just what it is... i mean it does it's job to be fun and addictive. if only the motivation for replaying it again and again was better, not just two (only two!) levels and tarot cards and vERY LAME 'TRUE' ending.... which kinda messes everything up and did you see the movies from the addon? f*** UGLY!!
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Post by Damien_Azreal »

Hellen, have you seen the True Endind? It's pretty cool, my girl friend likes it.

I think People Can Fly did a great job with Painkiller, everything about this game just gushes creativity. Level, weapon, enemy design... it's all brilliantly original. I love it. Not bad for a first time developer on their own home buit tech.

And with the ending of the expansion... there is definitely hope for a Painkiller 2.

And I believe that People Can Fly and Monolith could make a perfect Blood 3. :D
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Gila
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Post by Gila »

blood3 can be done only with the full assemblance of the original blood team + some real talents from blood2 team

pk2 is going to be s*** imho, i mean EVE IS EVIL? wtf??
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Post by Damien_Azreal »

Well, I'm more excited about a Painkiller 2 because of the enhancements they can make to the engine. And new weapons and levels, better enemies and overall gameplay. Let's face it... story isn't the strongpoint of Painkiller, it takes the backseat so you can have a blast staking, blasting, freezing and splattering anything in your way.

Hell, I'm my opinion they could make the story about how Daniel turns evil from collecting the demon souls from his first battle. And how he turns against God because he wasn't let into Heaven in the first place.

As long as it has the same level design and original ideas the first had... I'll be happy as hell.

And about Blood 3... well hell yeah, the original team that made Blood using the new engine from F.E.A.R. would be just kick ass!

But hell before there is a Painkiller 2 and loooong before a Blood 3 ( :cry: ) there will my next anticipation... Serious Sam 2. That is my next big craving.
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Hellen
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Post by Hellen »

gold/black edition is a ripoff, in russia there is a good pirated version of painkiller+addon both on dvd for like, 5$. very handy. :)
Nah! Not I my live. Not in my life I gonna spend 5$ on the DVD. Wtf, gonna burn it myself :)
it's kinda obvious why no level connection - cut it's all some locations and you just teleport there using that... thingy which that happy pussy faggy gothy white haired dude gives to you.
He’s an archangel. Archangel should look like a bundle of sticks, cuz he’s neither man, nor a woman. And this thing he gives you is some sorta map. Magical map, he-he :) This teleport thing using system, yes, this is something I dislike…
Hellen, have you seen the True Endind?
Yes, I've seen. I have RAD Tools, don’t worry ;) “And they ‘lived’ happily ever after”… Nonsense.
Daniel turns evil from collecting the demon souls from his first battle. And how he turns against God because he wasn't let into Heaven in the first place.
Against God? Hmmm… Who we’ll be slicing then if Daniel takes evil side? Angels? Saints? No way, I totally dislike this idea. You can invent as much daemon species as you like. And good guys? Just few of ‘em. Besides using unholy power in holy quest is cool. Should they leave everything as it is?
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Post by Drakan »

Damien_Azreal wrote: You can turn of the battle music, and even replace the MP3 tracks with your own. Just make sure you rename your tracks with the same name of the track your replacing.
Can you replace MP3s for other aspect of the music as well? I usually leave that stuff as is, then like to throw other stuff in the mix when playing again.

Sooo.... can you? :)
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Post by Willis »

Gila wrote:gold/black edition is a ripoff, in russia there is a good pirated version of painkiller+addon both on dvd for like, 5$. very handy. :)
Some people want to support game makers, especially ones who make good games :)

I own both regular and expansion, and I would have boughten the gold edition if they would have retailed it as a DVD-Rom, but since its still just CD-Roms, I'll stick with what I have. I'm getting really sick of 5 CD games when DVD drives are as cheap as they are, and getting cheaper.

On a side not Damien, how is SP in Pariah? I've seen everybody say just play UT2K4 instead of MP Pariah, but I haven't heard much on the SP aspect of it.
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Post by Damien_Azreal »

Against God? Hmmm… Who we’ll be slicing then if Daniel takes evil side? Angels? Saints? No way, I totally dislike this idea. You can invent as much daemon species as you like. And good guys? Just few of ‘em. Besides using unholy power in holy quest is cool. Should they leave everything as it is?
I think that's a terrible idea as well, I was just stating that the story for Painkiller 2 could be s***... as long as People Can Fly maintain the feel and originality of Painkiller, it would still kick ass.
On a side not Damien, how is SP in Pariah? I've seen everybody say just play UT2K4 instead of MP Pariah, but I haven't heard much on the SP aspect of it.
It's not bad. It gots a pretty solid, old school feel to it. In some ways it does feel like a profesionally mod for UT2K4... but there's nothing wrong with that.
The weapons are pretty cool, my fav is the grenade launcher. Tossing a grenade right in someones face and sending them flying is too much fun. The weapon upgrades are a very cool idea as well... some of them kindof suck, but most of the upgrades are nice.
The story is okay... but it kindof takes the backseat and becomes a little confusing towards the end.

Also the cutscenes are very low quality... looks like they were transfered straight form the Xbox version. I really like it... there is a single player demo out there. I got it from a copy of MaximumPC magazine, but it's got to be on the web somewere.
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Post by Daedalus »

Quite awkward that a PAINKILLER topic gets more attention than Blood ones... but I'll keep quiet.

Alright. Finished on Trauma. Good stuff. A lot of fun, the movie wasn't worth the effort, but it was cute. I suppose I'll give my quick opinions on all the levels.

1.1 Cemetery) Great kicking off level. Sets the mood and pace of the game. It's all good.

1.2 Atrium Complex) I actually really enjoy this level. Those monks are a little bit too monstrous for my tastes (not human enough), but I love the appearance of the level together with the ambient music and the very gentle rain. Beautiful.

1.3 Catacombs) Very fun. Love the skeletons, but this level just feels like there's something missing.

1.4 Cathedral) Beautiful, but the areas are far too large for my tastes. No cathedral is THAT big!!

1.5 Enclave) Necrogiant. What a cigarette. Easy to beat with cards, but as Gila said, that Tornado is f'ing happy.

2.1 Prison) Very cool feel to this level. That room with all the X-rays is kind of creepy. The enemies with the tazers are interesting.

2.2 Opera House) If you ask me, this level has a significant amount of Blood 2 atmosphere. Those sounds that can be heard are quite unnerving.

2.3 Asylum) I've already made my opinion quite clear.

2.4 Snowy Bridge) Quite a happy level, but I like the combat music theme of this one. The wind effects are nifty.

2.5 Town) It rocks. Great atmosphere, a cool combat tune and I like those necromancers. A Painkiller level that tells a story. That's one for the books.

2.6 Swamp) This bad boy is easy. Looks real.

3.1 Train Station) Love the ambient music, but the level is a bit too large.

3.2 Factory) Big and dull. Whoopie.

3.3 Military Base) Lags like a bitch on my machine because they feel the need to show you the entire level (and an army of enemies) in one screen. Not cool.

3.4 Ruins) I like this guy. Easy to kill and the level has a lot of effects.

4.1 Castle) Good stuff, good atmosphere, but it could've been a lot better. Holy items are in happy locations.

4.2 Palace) A pleasant setting, but fighting those arabian knights gets really repetative and those crossbowmen can get tedious.

4.3 Babel) A beautiful level, but very dreary.

4.4 Forest) Aha! I got to play it, Gila! Good fun and I love the combat theme. This may sound crazy, but those annoying witches' laughter makes for an interesting atmosphere.

4.5 Tower) happy happy happy!!! Alastor is really easy, but who the hell thought it was clever to make the character take massive amounts of fall damage in this? :: Sigh ::

5.1 City on Water) Interesting location and I like kicking those biker guys' asses, but the Tarot card requirement will make you scream.

5.2 Docks) Big, dull, laggy and russian sailors (sorry Gila).

5.3 Monastery) Good stuff, really good stuff. Made me smile often. Gila's point was interesting, in that it's a pleasure to get lost in this level.

5.4 Hell) An eternal war as Hellen said. Interesting and creative. Lucifer is a bit silly though.

That's all from me on Painkiller. I'm not certain on the game's replayability, though. If the whim to kick ass strikes me, I'll run it again, but for now, it's back to Blood for the ÐÐ :twisted:
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Gila
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Post by Gila »

those aren't russian sailors... those are either thugs-wharfmen from the great game kingpin, but on steroids. or for some reason, i felt they were some sort of angry norwegians from hell or something.

on a side note i notice this board doesn't censor the words. no more "pregnant dog" and it's always a good news. even if they're old.

now now dd, i liked your level by level desc - too short, but what the hell, i agree with you mostly. now you gotta play battle out of hell. you just have to!
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Post by predator »

I like the first level of Battle out of Hell - The Orphanage.
It is really good.
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