Image credit – IO Interactive
Author’s Score
12/20
If GTA 6 is like this, then Rockstar should delay it
During the first gameplay of First Light on the PlayStation 5, it felt like playing 007 Legends on PlayStation 3. The gameplay felt very slow, and it felt as if they had not put any effort into the gameplay. There is some reluctance to buy the game in the first place because the trailer did not impress, and even the images that were shown by IO Interactive were not remarkable.
Although some of the social mechanics are nice, as players can shoot on sight when they are in a place where they should be, it also feels like players are playing older games like Splinter Cell or Hitman. The voice of the James Bond character is very monotonous, and it does not strike players as someone who is a special agent. It feels like they have just recorded him in a room where there are no sound pads. Sometimes, his voice is loud, and then it is monotone, which is annoying.
The graphics should be good, as it is on a next-generation console, but sometimes it feels that they could have taken their time to improve some of the facial recognition for the extra characters. It just feels like they have mixed a bunch of games together that were created by IO Interactive to make First Light work, which is again annoying because there are a lot of Hitman references throughout the game. This gives the impression that they did not take their time making this game.
Most reviewers who have reviewed this game so far do not like the gameplay, and the player can agree because the gameplay is very clunky, and it feels like the player is putting more pressure on the controller whilst playing the game. Some gamers have even called it “aggressive hand holding” or suffering from “AAA diseases”. The colour-coded labelling of items is very loud and, at times, gives the impression that IO Interactive was being overly cautious and did not want users to complain. However, it overpowers the gameplay.
There are a lot of things that need to be rectified quickly, particularly with the driving simulation in the game, whereby the controls feel like the player is using a vehicle without power steering. The enemy AI is also very strange, as soldiers are running around like “headless chickens”. The licence to kill also feels conditional, as Bond only draws his weapon when the enemy AI shows intent to kill, which feels a bit controlled.
Overall, the gameplay is very childlike, but it does have a robust storyline, and sometimes it does not feel like playing a next-generation console game. If GTA 6 is like this, then Rockstar should delay the game for another year. IO Interactive has not taken any pride in developing this game, and the CEO of IO Interactive stating that they have sold three million copies seems like corporate spin to get investors off their backs. It is a game that never lets you make mistakes, and this is very weird because stealth games should allow players to make mistakes, as that is how they learn. This game has very complex mechanics, and it lets the player play the game without fully understanding or engaging with them.
