XIII - Remake

XIII was borderline unplayable on PC due to issues with mouse support and a lack of any gamepad support to speak of. The remake has functional controls, which already makes it the only feasible way to enjoy the game. I encountered no bugs in my playthrough, or none that would affect gameplay at least. The visuals suffer a major downgrade only when it comes to the character models. The levels look more or less exactly how you'd expect a modernised verstion of the classics to be. The biggest issues with the game are things that actually carry over from the original: the absolutely awful checkpoint placements (critical fault of the original) and some sections where you can't tell what triggers a fail state (some NPC can't see knocked out or dead guards, but you're not told what body they noticed and they're out of your view). This game has a terrible reputation, but it really is just okay. A 3 star rating sums it up exactly.

Nostalgia is a blade that cuts both ways. On its own merits, I'd give this 3.5 stars. Since it's update by Tower Five, this version of XIII is a tidy little FPS with an excellent aesthetic. It's not particularly deep, but the gameplay is fast-paced and fun. Each level flows nicely, and there's enough variety to keep things from getting stale. Where it falters is in its reverence for the original. Clunky cutscenes and dialogue drag the player back to 2003, and not in a good way. Also, while a lot of gameplay elements have been updated to modern FPS standards, some things (like fire from cover mechanics) are missing. The game doesn't quite stick the old-school landing. In my opinion, it should have either remained completely faithful to the original, quirks and all (like the Vice City remake), or have been completely overhauled (like the Mafia remake). Having said all that, as someone who played the original when it came out, I have to give this an extra half star for the rush of nostalgia. It's been really fun blasting through this game without having to deal with the original's crunchiness. Is it perfect? No. But neither was the original. So yeah, the next time this goes on sale, do yourself a favour and add it to your library!

I got this remake on steam but also wanted to leave a review here. DO NOT BUY THIS GAME. The original XIII is so much better than this. The remake is full of bugs and glitches. This game is just a cash grab on fan nostalgia.

I just finished this game and yes, with the current updates the game is definitely playable and you can get through the game from start to ending despite the bugs. That doesn't however make it a very enjoyable time. The voice acting is still solid and the music has a nice vibe to it that reminds me of NOLF. The story is still a fun adventure romp and very comic book-esque. Visually, the game looks pretty nice and I think the flak it got for the aesthetic choice of toning down the cel shading style is a bit undeserved. The visuals of the remake isn't the problem - the wonky gameplay is. It's stiff, it's awkward and it often isn't very fun. Your enemies are dumb as bricks, until they spot you and starts spraying bullets with almost perfect accuracy - even if they're running past a corner they can open fire instantaneously as soon as they see you which makes it impossible to avoid damage. The developers have compensated by nerfing the enemies weapons and giving you body armor and health packs in abundance - I played the campaign on medium difficulty and rarely did I die from enemy fire. The gunplay is sadly very stiff and the weapons lack impact. The game is also crap when it comes to notify you of what it wants you to do in certain situations. Small details, like a key on a table, is very easy to miss without any waypoints and you will need to holster your firearm and play detective more than once in order to trigger the scripted events that moves the story forward. And so the bugs - a few times I fell through the floor or got sucked up through the roof. Sometimes the sound of your guns disappear and during one late level where you are supposed to use bottles, broomsticks and other tools to eliminate guards in a non-leathal fashion, the game suddenly stopped allowing me to pick things up. There are more bugs but honestly, I wouldn't mind them so much if the gunplay was more fun. Finally, the current price tag is beyond absurd considering the quality of the remake.

Ran into a progression-blocker bug about halfway through the game. It's been out for more than a year, so this is the one kind of bug that should have absolutely been resolved much sooner. Picking up a new weapon stalls the game for a full second as it begins loading assets. Enemies often see you behind cover when you're sneaking around. I was really hoping I could recommend this remake to people who haven't played the original. I will have to recommend the old one instead.