Ive had an hour or so's play on this today already and have some very brief early impressions.
Ill be the first to admit, I was highly sceptical of this game. I found SH3 to be someway short of SH2, albeit still a great game, my fear was that it was running out of steam and ideas needed to keep the series on track. A hour spent with SH4 though has fortunately set my mind at ease somewhat, so far its very promising indeed.
The premise is that you play a character called Henry, haunted by a recurring dream of a nightmareish world. His reality is little better however, as Henry is a prisoner in his own apartment, the doors and windows are sealed (although surreally he can still see normal life outside) and things dont seem quite right. Not to mention a large hole in his bathroom leading to another world.
The hallmarks of SH are all here, the brilliant and atmospheric music, the haunting sound effects (what is that chatter coming from that hole?), and of course the grimy, dark graphics. Character models appear to of been improved somewhat also, whilst the central character Henry is initally appealing. So far Ive only met one other character, the alluring and (it has to be said) luscious Cynthia, being a strong point of the SH series Id expect character development to feature promininntly in this game. I wont spoil the monsters, but Ive already jumped out of my skin at one point, gone are the slow, meandering dog(things) of the last game, in their place comes lightening quick enemies which can also take a right beating. Thankfully, once downed, Henry is able to stamp on them whilst on the floor to improve his chances and kill time.
You start the game in first person perspective, which is a first for the series, and is used whenever Henry is in his apartment (as opposed to in 'another' world). Controls seem the same as before, you do have a quick select option for changing weapons and using items which should serve to make the game flow better than before. Combat is also the same initially, slow and cumbersome movements, all the more noticeable when facing enemies such as the one mentioned above.
Ill be playing this most of tonight Id expect as its one Ive really been looking forward to, id suggest already that fans of the series will enjoy this as much as I am right now. The idea in itself is unique enough to make the game different, Im hoping that what has started off as a good game will finish upd up as a great one.
Its completely import friendly also, as the option to switch to English text is available, whilst speech is also in English.
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