Painkiller: Battle out of Hell

"So good it hurts."

For any who have played Painkiller this is pretty much the same affair, if you liked the original then you will doubtless find nothing of fault in the expansion. However should you have been in the opposing camp all I can ask is 'Why are you reading this?'

From the original we learnt that Serious Sam style action was neither dead nor forgotten, we saw that gigantic monsters and outlandish weaponry still thrilled, and we learnt that it could all be done with superb graphical flare. In the expansion well, it's expanded. There are new monsters by the dozen, enormous mechanical spiders that stride across bleak cityscapes, pirates who have been melded to their ships cannons and the damned souls of orphans gone wrong. The weapons have two new additions, each sporting the dual use such as the others form the original were renowned for, firstly a flamethrower crossed with a sub machine gun, allowing for the player to torch a room leaving smoldering remains in their wake only to turn to short bursts of high powered gunshots when their fuel runs low. Secondly is the, err, the only way to say it is new stake launcher I guess. Yes the original favorite is back as a new weapon with some improvements. The latest model sports five simultaneously firing steel bolts, an alternate fire mode which launches a terrifying barrage of explosive ball bearings with heat seeking capabilities, the five bolts it fires not only do tremendous damage but also have absolutely no arc. Finally to top it all of they addressed the much maligned lack of a sniper rifle by adding a zoom function to their latest baby. Neither of these weapons are to be trifled with and both are more than capable when it comes to driving back hells legions. The flamethrower scorches the flesh and burns the souls of any demon foolish enough to misjudge its power, and the new bolt gun will turn just about anything into a hedgehog and bloody chunks thereafter.

And of course, as through the original, all the weapons retain their functionality throughout the game. So you need not always be playing with new toys sometimes it is far more prudent to renew friendships with old ones, for example I personally still prefer the stake launcher, even with the revamped version available, it's all about personal taste and you don't have to downsize on efficient killing to juggle hells legions with the shotgun.

The graphics which the original boasted were quite beautiful, but with the expansion pack they are instead phenomenal. New effects have been added such as warping around fire (like the heat wave you see above a bonfire.) along with some of the most astonishing water effects I've ever seen. Just wait till you've finished the lab level, if you don't believe me by then I would suggest an eye test. The graphics are not up to the benchmark set by games such as F.E.A.R. or Doom 3, but they surpass Half Life 2 easily.

In the original the environments exploited the Gothic and religious nature of the storyline, in the expansion they have solidly done so in the atmosphere and enemies allowing for more outlandish environs such as a carnival, an orphanage and Leningrad. Neon signs and merry-go-rounds fade away at the loading screen soon to be replaced by expansive underground cave complexes filled with poorly constructed wooden walkways hundreds of feet above the floor. The futuristic laboratory houses denizens of the space age, with demons oft sporting garb which on closer inspection can be seen as the descendent of modern space suits (Though don't worry they are neither oversized nor white,) going back to the Roman era in the Flavian Amphitheater (The Coliseum,) fighting the restored souls of long dead gladiators, armed with terrifying weaponry and displaying some rather fetching lighting effects. The grand modern metropolitan is a sight to behold, with enemies ranging from zombies spawned from people who throw themselves from buildings as you pass, whose corpses first spatter upon the asphalt before reconstructing, to giant muscle bound crazies who toss cars at you and ending in the rather enjoyable cybernetic bees (tip try freezing them.) And of course the mandatory level in hell.

The sound track stays intact from the original, soft ambience giving way to pounding heavy metal when situation dictates. The screams of children throughout the whole orphanage level, the explosions and crashes the calls of all the monsters. It just brings it together, melds one thing to another, stops you questioning it, makes you want more.

A new breed of frenetic first person shooting. Gorgeous in both appearance and utility the weapons are unique, simply sublime in rendering and imagination the environments conveys neatly the games underlying feel, terrifying in both concept and practice the enemies tower above you and lay waste to those around you. I think this and the original are both must have games for any first person shooter fan, or for a gamer looking for something with atmosphere.

Sound 9/10:- The in game music cannot be faulted there is plenty of ambience and the weapons sound great. But more variety in enemy noises would have been fun. And yes I have marked this down because I don't want straight tens.

Graphics 9/10:- When this came out I would have defiantly said ten, but since then there has been Doom 3's expansion pack which though I haven't seen is apparently quite the looker, and F.E.A.R. Which is now the cutting edge, though this still beats the majority of the market, easily beating the very shoddy graphics (in comparison) of Half Life 2, so its not something to be sniffed at. Again cutting down so as not to simper.

Story 10/10:- A lot of people disliked the story as it had very little substance and wasn't tied into each level as tightly as some games. To these I say boo. The story is there and it is quite a nice change from …

[generic bad guy] trying to get [generic evil aim] through terrorism, you [generic overpowered lone marine] must fight [hordes of generic evil doers] to save the world (Or
in many American games just America.) get the girl and deliver a quip.

… In fact there are even twists in this story which is nice, they have some good characters and overall works.

Weapons 10/10:- No argument, the painkiller arsenal is simply unmatched.

Atmosphere 10/10:- Incredible environments and music coupled with the beautifully sculpted weapons and enemies leads to an undeniably well crafted atmosphere that never gives up nor slows for breath.

Simple, silly, mindless, demon slaughtering FUN!

Reviewer's Score: 10/10, Originally Posted: 12/19/05