Call of Juarez

I just played this for the first time having no idea what to expect beyond "old shooter". This is an extremely linear, story based FPS. Normally those words are my kryptonite but this one pulls it off. The story is actually good, and the voice acting is too. I didn't check the credits but one of the main characters sounds like Arcturus Mengsk. You alternate between two characters, so you see the events from two different points of view. The story is delivered in a very natural way. Most of the spoken dialogue comes during the loading screen at the start of a level, and cutscenes are brief and to the point. The game does not waste your time like so many other games do. It is not trying to be an interactive movie. There are some very questionable platforming and stealth sections but for the most part they don't take long to get through. The shooting mechanics are pretty old school and very satisfying. For the most part I found the game very easy due to the over-powered slo-mo mechanics and an over-abundance of health and ammo pickups, however I still died multiple times because of how the game can throw tons of enemies at you, and the occasional insta-kill trap. I don't think this detracted from the game though because there is a quicksave system and plenty of auto-saves. Overall I think the game while not perfect is not as clunky as reviews make it sound. It kept me entertained and is about the perfect length. Graphics and animation are great by the standards of the day, and it runs like butter at 4k on modern hardware.

Bound in blood is good and so is Gunslinger but they feel somewhat limited in their range. You'll have fun with them but after you finish them you'll probably forget about them very soon. They simply put the most effort into the first game. Unlike its successors the first COJ has a memorable and coherent story spiced with some mystery and it does not feel like a rail shooter. It is cheesy, cliched and it is overall a great adventure with a good amount of variety in missions and enviroments. I was never bored. Apart from typical shooting missions you'll be fistfigting, sneaking through outlaw camps, hunting rabbits, climbing a mountain and eventually even searching for a hidden treasure like in a Good, Bad and Ugly in Indiana Jones style! There is always something interesting ahead. It is not an open world but the game does not make it look too obvious as you are often surrouned by huge areas so you have still that feeling of somewhat open world and there are few levels they let you explore little bit. The biggest flaw I can see is they went over the top with the main characters. Ray is just a cartoonish character and Billy just isn't too likeable partly because his dubbing is not very good. I wished someone just remade this. Duelling is not great either but it is not really as bad and boring as in the following games. These are just minor flaws in otherwise very enjoyable game. If you like westerns this one will certainly not disappoint you.

+ Good plot; + It is the chronological sequence to Bound in Blood; + Graphics are not too bad; + It is possible to use reshade; - Controls are imprecise; - It hasn't controller support; - Puzzles are quite nice... but they breaks the mood; - It is not that cool when you play with the indigenous guy.

I want to start by stating that it was my first time with the game and with the series. I think my experience was enjoyable but it's a game that shows its age. Some of the mechanics are a bit outdated or at least they feel somewhat clunky, i.e. the "parkour" episodes. If come here expecting a current FPS like experience, I don't think you are going to find it here. There story was ok. The game presents it as chapter and the summary is done with a quick voice over before each mission. One of the strong points in the game would be the different settings the characters go through. The team did a good job with variety. Again, I think the game is enjoyable for a first run but I wouldn't go straight for a second run. After finishing the game, there is not much to do as for the campaign. I wasn't able to test the multiplayer so I cannot give my opinion about this.

Bugs and timed mechanics, poor gunplay and level design. Take Gunslinger instead