Painkiller Black Edition

I'm not going to describe the game in great detail. There are other reviews doing that better than I could ever. I'm only going to say, that this game still holds up. You see, I was just playing with the latest installment of Modern Warfare, and got really frustrated at a certain level, where I died way too many times. I said myself: enough is enough, and wanted to play something to relieve the stress. I reinstalled Painkiller Black Edition to do a few levels, I remembered how much I liked it. I breezed through almost the entire game in one sit. It was just as good as I recalled. Since that I tried the other installments: Overdose, resurrection, Insurrection Oversurrection, etc. They all suck. Terrible, terrible games. I also Completed Painkiller HD. And you know what? It wasn't very good either. I don't know what it is exatcly about this game which makes it stand out this much. The concept is seemingly simple, yet noone but the original developer would be able grasp it. I hear comments like, "Great, this is such a simple game!". Well, it might be simple to play, but underneath the surface, this is a masterfully executed, and carefully calculated work of art. This game stands the test of time. I bet it'll hold up for a long time.

Enter room, doors close, kill anything that isn't you, continue (just be careful to step on the trigger, or you can get stuck). The only way you could get the idea to compare this game to the Id-Engine ones is if you haven't played either... The levels are pretty fun, except for the problems with the triggers, and enemies on high ledges or towers that have the tendency to stop attacking resulting in a game of hide and seek to progress. But the bosses...are random, cheapshotty garbage with awful hitboxes. Their difficulty being all over the place isn't helping, either. Worst example is the 4th boss, which has unavoidable falling damage on every transition, climaxing in the last one that will kill you at 100 HP and 60+ armour (when playing on nightmare at least), unless you happen to stand in the correct spot to land on a pillar. Which you can't see until you fall, and then it's too late.

This game brings to light all the things that made older games fun. Lots and lots of shooting and a variety of enemies and weapons that made every single level more and more entertaining. I'd recommend this game to any fans of oldschool FPS's (think Doom, Duke Nukem, Quake, etc.). The also includes the expansion pack, which makes it an even better deal. A great way to spend 10 bucks to keep you entertained for weeks!

Only three levels in and I know this game is exactly what I'm looking for.. They just don't make stuff like this anymore. I really wish games like this would come back, games that don't f**k around and just stick to core game design principles.. But more importantly than that, sticking to FUN gameplay. Everything has to have a twist now, which can be cool, but it's often times overthought and the game gets old quick. Like Mario jumping on Goombas, giving me a gun and monsters to kill in a cool and well designed environment, will NEVER get old.

I love fast-paced shooters along the likes of Blood, Doom, Duke Nukem 3D and Quake. But my favorite kind, are the ones that eliminate the maze-like level designs. The likes of Painkiller and Serious Sam are what I'm talking about. Walk into a room, kill everything and move on to rinse and repeat. It's straightforward and easy dopamine. Some of the bosses do suck though, so I suggest looking up a guide for those ones. Ok, you can go buy the game now. Just don't listen to the boomers who hate this kind of shooter. They seem to really hate arena combat for some reason. Oh, and don't play the horrid expansions after Battle out of Hell, they suck.