Crusader: No Remorse™

Ohne Erbarmen und Furcht. Gnadenlos. Das ist der Crusader auf seinem Pfad der Zerstörung. Ein fesselnder Titel. Gut gealtert hat er nichts von seiner damaligen Atmosphäre verloren.

There's not even a loading screen

This game is really a mixed bag for me. On one hand the asthetics, concept, story, setting, etc. are really interesting. On the other hand, the game mechanics and controls are some of the worst in the industry. Let's start by looking at the good. Disclaimer: This game came out in 1995, so I'm rating it by those standards. Audio: The music. Not only does it fit the game, it is also very good. The sound effects are also well done. The story is interesting enough to keep you wondering where things will go next. Visuals: The cut sequences are well done for the era and the budget, both the live action and the 3D. The level design does a good job not being too repetitive, and makes good use of a limited amount of objects. Better yet, you can destroy or seriously damage most of the objects in the game! Combine that with the ability to deliver different death animations to your enemies, and you have an added level of realism. Conceptual: The story is standard, but interacting with different characters and going on different missions adds depth. To sum it up, its like sci-fi Diablo without the RPG elements. Now onto the bad... Controls: These cripple the game and are easily some of the worst in any mainstream game. You turn slow, you ready your weapon slow, sometimes your character fails to react, and I don't feel that all of the controls are intuitive. Game Mechanics: Again, horrible. The movement is choppy and you don't scroll screens, rather the screen "jumps" to the next location... surprise, there's a robot right in front of you that instantly kills you! The 3D layers can be difficult to see properly, and thus jumping is a major problem, not to mention the strange stutter when you fall. Enemies are shooting you, but you can't shoot them back. Auto-aim fails often and/or you can't shoot the small target you want. The concept was great, but this game didn't have the technology to match its ambition. I would avoid this game unless you really love older games.

While it may be a little clunky at times, I still think the game-play is fantastic. The FMV cut-scenes, acting, and voice acting is well done (especially Weasel). Also the soundtrack for this game is just... Amazing. One of the best video game soundtracks for sure. Go listen to it right now.

I remember buying this "off the shelf" long ago. Only thing that would have made it even better from GOG, would be both Crusader games together. ;)