If I said I was hyped for another zombie game, particularly one that appeared to be a rip off of The Walking Dead and The Last Of Us thrown into an open world formula; I'd be lying to you like your dad lies about our relationship. Frankly, the only reason I even gave this game a go, was that its mechanics and gameplay seemed like they could be pretty fun. What had me most interested was that it included many human enemies for normal firefights; as I am a bit sick of zombies as a whole. Ok, I am sorry Days Gone, they're called Freakers aren't they, isn't that a clever little twist; Freakers because they are freaks and freaking out, how middle school subtle of you Days Gone.
Well, that is as much trash as I can talk about the Freakers, because while lone freakers are none too difficult to fucky uppy, when they amass together as the game's horde, think World War Z, minus the whole human ladder bit; they present quite a challenge, one I was not expecting. They molly whomp the fuck out of you if you are even the slightest bit unprepared, and then even when you are kitted out like Arnie in Commando. Yet, they are not impossible to defeat, even in their greatest numbers, there is still that chance at success. Dear God, is this what the From Software fanboys rave about, that slim chance at success, that constant need to throw yourself at a wall till you smash it, or it smashes you. I have played those games and never got that sensation before, then again different holes for different pokes I suppose. As a matter of fact, the entire game seems to be doing what a lot of other games do quite well, but instead of failing to be a copycat, it succeeds in being its own beast.
It is not that the game is more satisfying in its challenge, or even better balanced than a game like Dark Souls or BloodBourne; it is that the challenge, while similar in theory, is totally different in action. Yes, you need good strategy, tactics, and timing, but, in this game, you need to do all that far faster and yet, it seems to flow more easily. Perhaps it is due to the game being forgiving in that it lacks any punishment to failure, other than reloading your last quick save; and to save, you must be near a bed or your bike. Speaking of your bike, that is one of Days Gone shining features, and here's the thing, I was not expecting to care one way, or the other about it. I thought it would get me around, but I would never really care that much about it, let alone scream out Wii, PS3 and Xbox 360; at least I think that is what you scream while having fun, it's been so long, it's hard to remember. Drifting around tight corners, blasting enemies off bikes, or nailing a wolf before it bites your nuts off, that is the type of action I play games for. That sense of fluid control during breathtaking cinematic action, it's worth the price of admission alone.
Yet, there is more to the game than those incredible chase scenes; there are the games perfectly balanced survival mechanics, which gives you enough items to look for so it feels realistic, while also never being so many that it becomes cumbersome to manage. Seeking out gas for your bike feels necessary, but never like an obligation; I enjoy scavenging for scrap to repair my bike or melee weapons, I enjoy seeking out cop cars for sweet stashes of ammo, most of all, I love that the game ensures those items respawn in similar locations, which may not be realistic, but aids in the game maintaining its fun. The world is large enough that you never stay in the same place for too long, while being small enough to not exhaust the player, and best of all, to keep all the action flowing at a perfect pace. There are plenty of missions to undertake, with extended storytelling sequences being well spaced throughout the experience. Some take the form of normal cutscenes, others have a slightly more interactive approach to them; but in all cases, they never take too much time, and are sporadic enough, that the ones that take a little more time, feel quite welcome as opposed to grinding the game to a harsh stop. The story is also quite captivating, as I could give less than a nugget of shit about bikers, yet, I fucking love Deacon and his family. Just as I grew to love my bike, and the game's mechanics as a whole; I was not expecting to care about the game's story or characters, yet, I ended up being totally invested in the narrative. I came because the gunfights looked dope as hell; it looked fun to light those freaker nests on fire, and because it seemed like the mechanics involved were tight, fluid and weighty. Yet the entire experience surrounding those moments is as good, if not better.
I loved exploring the world, no matter if it was roaring on my bike, or traversing on foot; there was always supplies to be found, freakers to kill for profit, and intense moments that are unlike any other game on the market. The atmosphere the game's mechanics create, is just something I have not experienced before; there may be games that do similar things, in similar settings, but none of them play like Days Gone. The fat has been trimmed, instead of throwing a ton of mechanics at you to make the world feel more alive; they picked a hand full of diverse, fun, useful and intuitive mechanics that each lend themselves to immersing you into the overall experience. Bend Studios understands that you do not need an exhausting amount of things to do, you just need the Crème de la Crème, the best of the best, and that is what you get with Days Gone. Yes, I did notice the game's many black screens before and after cutscenes, no they did not impact the experience in any way. Nor did seeing a head come off a freaker in combat, only for it to have one still attached, it was odd, but it never made the experience any lesser. I found it highly amusing that it is compared in a negative way to Red Dead Redemption 2, because I found myself enjoying it far more than that game on a personal level. Your bike is similar to your horse in RDR 2, you do visit camps that you can aid, but, that really does not make the game's similar in any meaningful way. They may both be open world action games, that immerses you into a highly interactive world, with a plethora of actives to do, but that really is where the comparisons end.
At first glance you may think it is similar due to some features, but once you start to play, you'll notice the subtleties and nuances that make the game it's own freaky beast. I will say that I enjoy it more than RDR 2 though, yet it is not better or worse, the game was just more fun for me. At the end of the day, I find the mechanics of this game far more enjoyable, I find the gameplay loop it provides more engaging and captivating; that does not make it better, it just means this is my kinda game. This game butters my biscuit, I did not expect it to, in fact, it damn near made me drop my croissants in shock of how I adore it. Just remember, no matter the game, the question is not, is the game good or bad; the question is, is it the game for me?
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