So I refunded Darktide, and I suggest anyone who is pissed off with the state of Darktide to do the same, even if after the 2-hour mark of playtime since launch. There are critical feature missing with no ETA for delivery on those (the fact that you can’t play solo could be used for example).
Since I refunded Darktide, I decided to play more more Necromunda: Hired Gun. It’s been a while since I last played. A few brief thoughts:
First, Hired Gus is without a doubt the epitome of “jank” when it comes to things. However, there are some great ideas in the games, and if you’re willing to put up with some jank it’s pretty damn fun actually.
Second, Hired Gun isn’t a “horde shooter” in the way the 'tide games are structured. The combat is much more like DOOM (new Doom that is) where you enter an bigger space during a mission and fight waves of enemies. Lots of running around, use of cover/chokepoints, etc. Clearing the room you’ll move through the level fighting through roaming enemies and exploring until you get to the next chamber/arena fight area.
You might only have 15-20 enemies you’re fighting at once (and more will spawn in as you eliminate others) but it’s still lots of frantic action as you duck and dodge and juggle your weapons and cybernetic abilities. It can be quite a challenge on harder difficulties.
Third, there isn’t much focus on melee at all. You can go into a “strength mode” where you bust out your power sword and can go full melee slaughter machine for a bt. But the same is focused more on ranged combat.
That said, there are a few other key points to highlight:
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Weapon mod’ing is what I would wish Darktide had. You can freely configure all manner of sights, accessories, lasers, scopes, barrel attachments, etc. to a wide range of guns based on mod parts you find or buy. It’s awesome. Darktide - take note. Similar to modding weapons from Payday 2, except 40k.
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Loot from missions is great. You can pick up gear you find in chests during the mission (you’ll also find stashes of cashs around) and after the mission you can decide which of the found gear you want to sell or keep in your inventory. You can hold up to 6 weapons (kind of a bit over board, but it’s FUN), you can wear different levels of armor, trinket slots, etc.
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Your character is fully “moddable” through cybernetic augements that unlock various crazy abilities (bullet time, auto-aim hacks, blink charges, etc.). It’s fun.
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You also have a cybernetic dog you can augment. Yes please.
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Movement is high on jank but really quite fluid and FAST. Fast movement speed, dodging, sliding, a grappling hook, wall running, double-jumping. Many of these are tied to mod unlocks.
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There is a cool hub area with vendors that sell you stuff for in-game credits. No MTX shop (there are cosmetic DLCs you can buy). You can go into a side area and practice weapons on enemies (that actually shoot back at you to, so you can practice defensive maneuvers!).
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There’s a whole series of main story-missions you can work through, in addition to a mission board with a range of side missions you can run. Side missions can be repetitive (but you could say the same about Darktide missions to be honest).
I played it a few years back when it came out, and it definitely feels better than I recall from back then. Still a bit Janky but it performs well, looks reasonably good, and can be pretty fun and challenging to play. Take a look (and/or wait for a sale to grab it).
