The ambiance, music, lights, sound effects, pacing, and details are truly amazing, and they are even greater when you experience them as a whole, you can really feel how it would be to be in a post apocalyptic Moscow, you feel the fear, the sadness, the absence of hope, the guilty, and even greatly the profound message that lies within.

Metro is a game where stealth is frequently the best approach to most situations, so you'll be often shutting out lamps and knocking out soldiers, and theres nothing wrong with it until you realize that soldiers can be really dumb and clueless sometimes. You can take out guards that are actually talking at the moment you knock them without their comrades noticing it, or even make a soldier walk upon a dead body without any reaction, that makes the game lose some immersion, but really it isn't something to ruin the experience.

But if you choose the violent approach things go way better in what reefers to gameplay. Firing the guns at your enemies seems real and powerful, most humans cant survive more than a couple of shots and you can see how the impact moves them accordingly. The beasts are way more aggressive and resistant but the also can be stopped in their tracks by a well placed bullet, and you see how the impact makes them move back giving you precious moments to reload or find a better position. You have also to use several gadgets in order to survive that make you immerse even more, a pumped battery to keep the flashlight on, a pump for silent pressure gun, a clock and a mask to go outside, a firestarter to guide your way trough mutant spiders nests, etc.

So, in conclusion this is a awesome game, one of those that you will remember for a long time and it is because of the great story it contains and the amazing atmosphere this guys achieved.

Metro: Last Light is a light that burns twice as bright but does not burns half as long

4 years ago, Ukraine based developer 4A Games released Metro 2033, pleasantly surprising many gamers and critics with the richly eloquent and immersive ambience of the Metro experience. While the game was far from perfect, the community nonetheless basked in the distinct Russian flavour of the setting, characters, and outlook represented in its post-apocalyptic world, passionately adapted from Dmitry Glukhovsky’s novel of the same title.

In Metro, the metaphorical strife of humanity against its darker, self-destructive nature were often presented in true, unyielding gritty terms. Depictions of huddled humanity striving against the desolation of the new world, not for survival but for the basic sense of normality and security were disturbingly overlaid with images of violent fanaticism and unforgiving death. Death by the creatures of the new world and by left and right winged fanatics.

As a highly cinematic game, based on a series of novels, Metro: Last Light's meat is in the story. Almost the entirety of my commendation for this franchise originates from the story-driven experience, so discussing the way in which the story is told seems like the most appropriate place to start. The game prioritizes on the human experience as the lead method of story telling, making it a unique and enriching experience. From the very beginning in which the series’ protagonist, Artyom, awakens to his call to adventure, it is abundantly clear that an intricate level of attention has been dedicated to detail that could only hope to be achieved by a group of developers with a genuine love for their subject matter. Extremely excessive yet altogether human interactions, like the ability to play your musical instruments, or turn off the room lights before moving out, build a sense of empathy by allowing the player to project very normal impulses onto the first person perspective. Every time you find yourself in a surviving human settlement, there are a myriad of opportunity to take a break from the violent chaos of the unforgiving new world and listen to the personal stories and woes of the Metro survivors; All told in richly voiced and detailed animated discussions. These little things add depth and immersion to Metro: Last Light, all the while giving an insight of the life in the Metro. Even when you are out on your own traversing the wastelands, the bulk of the game’s survival mechanics are built around an immersive sense of physicality. For example, players will need to manually replace their gas mask filters, charging their kinetic powered torch light by using a pump and wipe dirt and mud from their visor.

The rich and detailed story is well accompanied by the breathtaking beauty of the game's graphics engine and art. The level of gaming design provides an ultra-realistic environment gives the player the added advantage of situational awareness. For example, tracking enemy numbers and movement by merely observing the shadows cast on the walls. Players will be able to traverse the underground Metro stations, both surviving human settlements and settlements which did not survive an attack by the creatures of the new world. Players will also be able to witness the quaint, post-apocalyptic beauty of the nuclear wasteland of what once was Moscow, the Red Square and Saint Basil's Cathedral.

The gameplay is fairly straight forward and linear. The linearity of the game is well executed as it stays focussed on the story and tasks at hand, not deviating too much from the imperative nature of Artyom's mission. However, the game does allow room for exploration and rewards you for doing so. Such rewards include ammo, gas mask filters, and even new weapons. The combat system is very interesting because you are given a choice in play style. One way to play it is like a typical modern shooter with guns blazing. A ton of arsenal is still at your disposal. From the pre-apocalypse Kalashnikov rifles, to Metro engineered shotguns and submachine guns. The game also allows weapons customization like adding silencers, laser sights and weapons optics. However, it should be noted that ammo is very scarce in the Metro, so tactical approaches to any combat situations are a must, adding another level of realism into the game. Another way to play it is by sticking to the shadows like a ghost as you pass through enemy settlements. This is the way I recommend playing the game because it will grant you more instances to stop and listen to the characters' stories and gain further insights to life in the Metro. It will grant you a heightened sense of satisfaction and accomplishment at the end of your journey, should you choose to play it this way. However, there will be instances where you cannot sneak past the enemies, but this is where it gets interesting, because you are given to choice to either slit the enemy's throat or just knock him out. Do you think there is already enough death and suffering in the Metro? Or do you think the wicked should be cleansed from the new world? The choice is entirely up to the player.

Metro: Last Light possesses a wealth of passion for its subject matter that is promising for the future of 4A Games. Playing it is like reading a book, written in the first person, where the author uses incredible and poetic descriptive language for every little thing that the protagonist encounters. In a world that is filled with misery and death, it is up to the player to decide if Artyom should add more misery and death to the world, or to salvage the last remnants of good in the wreckage of humanity. Metro: Last Light does not want players to just enjoy the combat (or stealth), but also to learn something, to feel something out of it. What you ask? I think it wants us to question the human condition and ponder about the value and meaning of our lives before we inevitably succumb to our destructive nature.

Metro: Last Light is a linear, story-driven game with an incredible attention to ambient detail that really makes you feel the physical presence of its nuclear-war-torn world. This game is not without flaws at the creative level, and yet despite any problems it may have is incredibly well executed from a technical perspective. Speaking perhaps more to the limitations of heavily linear first-person-shooter game design than anything else, this game possesses a wealth of passion for its subject matter that is promising for the future of 4A Games. Here are some things to consider if you’re trying to decide whether or not to buy Metro: Last Light:

+ Did you play and enjoy Metro 2033? If yes, then you will probably enjoy this one, too. If not, you will probably find this sequel confusing and irrelevant. This goes especially for PS3, Mac, and Linux users who may have been excluded from playing the first game due to limited publishing.

+ Do you have a mid-to-high-end PC? If yes, then you should definitely grab this game at some point because the visuals are some of the best I’ve ever seen. There are several new and interesting graphics technologies built into Metro: Last Light that you can’t even run without top of the line equipment. Conversely, if you have a console, you are really missing out on this one, and even if you do buy it, the experience may not be nearly as visually compelling.

+ Do you have strong opinions against nuclear war? If you do, then you should probably play this game. Let’s face it, the idea of a Western audience playing a game made in the former USSR, set in Russia, about what a bad idea nuclear war is, has to be a good thing for everyone. If you are pro-nuclear war, you should also play this game, and maybe having your highly-immersive virtual face gnawed off by a giant mutant rat will make you reconsider your views!

+ Do you like the idea of a game that strongly favors storytelling? If so, you may have mixed feelings about this game. Playing Metro: Last Light is like reading a book, written in the first person, where the author uses incredible and poetic descriptive language for every little thing that the protagonist encounters, but fails to actually have very much happen in terms of the story, and what does happen all in all feels disjointed, a little confusing, and like it missed a lot of opportunities.

For a much more in-depth discussion, please check out the full review:
http://www.protagonistcomplex.com/metro-last-light-review/
If you like what you read, join our Steam group for updates!

Metro Last Light is often overlooked but it’s definitely one of the best games of the year.

Set in a post-apocalyptic Moscow which was destroyed by nuclear war. A small handful of the population managed to seek shelter in the subway tunnels beneath the city. Twenty years have passed, the world has become inhabited with mutants and the surviving population has broken up into various factions.

Featuring a strong narrative and great pacing, Metro will keep you immersed the entire time. The story is told through eyes of a ranger named Artyom and not through irritating and pacing-breaking cutscenes like a lot of other games. Journal entries can also be found and Artyom serves as a narrator who often talks about the events unfolding around him.

It’s the direct sequel to Metro 2033 but playing the first title isn’t required to enjoying the game.

Metro Last Light tries to do a bit of everything, it’s primarily a first person shooter but it incorporates stealth elements very well. It also feels like a survival horror at points and can be quite tense when you venture out onto the irradiated surface with a gas mask. The audio is great and the screams of mutants in the distance will always keep you on the edge of your seat. There is a fairly large variety of enemies which are all hideous, unique and well done.

The atmosphere is amazing, same with the graphics. It’s worth noting that a somewhat powerful computer is required to running Metro Last Light. I was able to run the game at 1920 x 1080 on Very High at around 70FPS average with an Intel i5 3470K Processor, 16gbs of RAM, and an Nvidia GTX 560TI. I have heard that the game does have some issues with certain ATI cards though which can be fixed by turning off Physx in the settings.

Metro Last Light also has multiple endings and plenty of re-playability. It may appear linear early on but it quickly branches out later allowing plenty of room for exploration.

For a more detailed review, here’s a video my friend and fellow reviewer Trent uploaded:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XsPrciV5i2U

Metro Last Light also managed to make our Top 35 List for the best games of the generation. If you’re interested in seeing how it measures up, check out:

http://steamcommunity.com/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=196432004


If you enjoyed this review, feel free to follow me as a Steam Curator: http://store.steampowered.com/curator/4886473/

A near-perfect sequel to Metro 2033; this time round it has more action, more claustrophobia and an even better story to delve into.

This game has always challenged me in its well designed stealth levels, and has maintained its balance between full-on FPS and an RPG style survival with plenty of side-stories. In fact, the Metro (the main underground system where the inhabitants have settled upon) is full of personal stories you can eavesdrop on- these little details make this apocalyptic world a real joy to play in.

Character developments are fantastically done in Last Light. As the story progresses, you feel more as though you are in the protagonist's shoes. Unlike other games where the gameplay takes priority over the story, Metro intigrates the story and the gameplay into one forged entity. It is a hard feat to accomplish, but Metro Last Light has done it flawlessly, and I applaud them for doing so.

The game utilises its environments well to keep you on the edge of your seat. I especially loved the levels where you are alone in the dark tunnels of the Metro, and all you can hear is the harsh, heavy breathing in your gas mask and the devilishly eerie sounds that echo around you. You are constantly looking behind your shoulders, alert and ready for anything that will strike you from the darkness. But the real fear is of the unknown, and it is really emphasized in this game.

The graphics are yet again one of the most punishing and beautiful out there, but its lower settings have been optimized for lower-end PCs, so for all you budget gamers out there- don't panic if you have a shoddy GPU, because i've played through the whole game without any trouble on my integrated Intel HD 4000.

To sum up, I can say for sure that no game has ever made me play for so long without the desire to sleep. I've spent hours playing this game all the way past midnight, even though on most horror games I tend to steer clear of playing at night. This game is the perfect equilibrium between storytelling excellence and survival-FPS action. High replayability in Ranger Mode, great depths of exploration and amazing game mechanics makes this my favourite game of all time.

-----------------------------97/100-----------------------------

Hopefully i've put in enough words to convince you of buying it ;)
(If you're wondering why it says 0 hours played, I played this game non-steam before I bought it on steam to replay it)

Metro: Last Light Review

Video review can be found here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=v1GpyhKKnZg

In a world of insanely fast paced explosion-fests and wanna be insanely fast paced explosion-fests, I understand why so many people found Metro 2033 to be refreshing. It was a title made by Ukrainian developer 4A Games that came out in 2010. Based on the Russian novel of the same name, it was a first person shooter with atmosphere being the main focus instead of combat. While it did succeed with the former, I felt the game struggled to keep its said atmosphere due to the crutches of the latter. Stock sound effects, poor artificial intelligence, extremely linear level design and terrible stealth sections really brought down the game. Making it feel more like an amateur mod than a full priced game. However, I always did want to see a properly made sequel using the source material and thankfully that is exactly what Metro Last Light is.

It's obvious to see right when you start up Metro Last Light that 4A Games have learned a lot since they made 2033. The same wonderful atmosphere from the last game is carried over and looks and sounds even better than it did before. With an opening cut scene that grabs your attention right away, along with the top notch presentation, Metro Last Light is a game I could really immerse myself in. Its levels and NPC's don't feel as such, they feel like places and people. This attention to detail is also shown in the game's combat. Things like whipping blood and dirt off your gas-mask when outside or how the camera never leaves your characters eyes during gameplay are just a few of the games tricks. Many of these mechanics were in the last game too but the improvement in control really enhances the gameplay.

The tightened up controls are most notable when you start shooting. Right from the very start when you're testing weapons on a firing range it's immediately apparent that the developers have picked up a couple pointers since their last game. While the A.I does still have its quirks -mostly when you're sneaking around- it's a huge improvement from 2033. The other big improvement of course is being able to sneak around at all. In the last game, stealth was regulated to certain sections of the game, and they were... awful.

However, in Last Light, instead of using the outdated technique of forcing the player to stealth through a level, stealth in Last Light is completely up to the player. While it's not something you can do on the surface when fighting against monsters, it is something you can almost always do when fighting against other enemies in the Metro. With the ability to also add attachments like silencers and red dot sights to guns, stealth ended up being one of my main tactics in Last Light, mostly because it's a lot of fun, not only because the mechanics work but also because the unique setting makes it even more enjoyable. When you are able to stealth through an entire level with nothing but cramped underground spaces, it's pretty damn satisfying.

That's not to say that when guns start going off that it's boring. While the gunplay isn't the best on the market, it's still a lot of fun thanks to the improvements made from 2033, well designed levels and trademark immersive setting. I do have to say that fighting against other humans is more interesting than fighting monsters on the surface. These levels aren't bad by any means, it's just that there are less tactics you can employ when fighting against these things. Because of their shear speed and damage they take, the fights break down to waiting until they get close, shoot them in the face and if they don't stop, run away and repeat the process. It's just not as interesting as the underground sections and certainly a lot more frustrating when you're low on ammo... which I was.

Speaking of annoyances and ammo, that brings me onto the games currency. Just like the last game, currency in Metro Last Light consists of military grade bullets. These bullets can still be used as ammo for your guns though, as in you load them into your weapon and shoot them where they do more damage to their targets. While there's no denying that this is a cool concept, it ends up not working as well in practice, mostly because switching standard and military grade ammo types are tied to the reload button. There were plenty of cases when I was in a desperate fight for my life and accidentally held the reload button longer than I meant to, causing my gun to switch ammo types on the next reload. So I'd be happy to survive only to be disappointed when I saw that I just wasted twenty or thirty of my in game credits that I could've used buying more ammo or weapons.

Since we're on the subject of annoyances, this brings me onto some of the games negatives. While the pacing is very good for the most part, there are some slow sections, mostly at the half way point when you spend a little too much time by yourself in the underground tunnels. Characters also have a tendency to show up and then never be seen again for several hours, and lastly, the story has a couple problems. While it kept my attention the whole way through and has some really awesome moments, things like the contrived romance and brothel scenes and missed opportunities with the factions do bring the game down somewhat. Both of the game's endings feel a little abrupt as well, especially since there's not really any clue of there being a good and bad ending until some of the later parts of the game. If a game doesn't really have a moral choice system, then it shouldn't attach morals to the game's ending. There's also a section just short of the halfway point that felt like an experiment gone wrong. Basically it's at a point where the player character, Artyom, is by himself and is able to freely explore an area in a pseudo-sandbox style. But this ends up being the least focused and most unimmersive part of the game.

Ultimately, it's these flaws that keep Metro Last Light just a bit short of being fantastic. It's still got a little ways to go before it can stand next to Half Life 2 or Bioshock: Infinite. But even with all of its flaws, thanks its fantastic atmosphere, memorable gameplay and setting that will stick with you long after you've finished it, Metro Last Light is a game you should most definitely play.

Just as amazing as the first, the atmosphere isn't as engrossing as it was for me in metro 2033 nor the story as well written but still a great game. It improves on combat/guns/stealth and general gameplay yet still retaining the same feel of the original.

There's a few bits of DLC, I'd say most of them are good except for the tower pack which just seems like filler.

I would definitely recommend.

Great game. The DLC as well. However, the story does take you in a different direction. The DLC allows you to play as some of the other characters and lets you test your skills. In the end, it's still all about saving the Metro from both man & beast.

Beautiful visuals and rock-solid FPS gameplay make Metro: Last Light one of my favorite story driven shooters of the last years. The fun gunplay mechanics, stunning vistas and the dense atmosphere of Dmitry Glukhovskys postapocalyptic metro universe merge together for a great gaming experience.

It is to say though, that Last Lights campaign is rather short and while the story is good, most characters remain one-dimensional and thinly fleshed out.

My mother told me I'd grow up to be a good man. 'Artyom', she said. 'My light'. And I believed her. When I spared a life, I believed her. And then when I kill, believed her. It was a lie. These things I have done. My hands are blackened with blood. My soul is damned to purgatory. If I could have my time again, I would, and then maybe I could become a good man.