This game could be really good except for some critical issues. 1. The brakes are REALLY bad and there is no way to adjust them to make them better. You can upgrade them over time but they are still bad even then. I was a truck driver back in the day and, thankfully never drove a truck with brakes this bad! 2. The steering is very hard to get adjusted correctly for using a controller like Xbox 360. Fiddling with the controller options does help some though. 3. I have encountered a very annoying glitch were the cops pull you over randomly, like in the middle of the interstate where there are no lights, giving you a fine for running a red light. I finally had to research how to turn off the cops so this didn't keep happening as it was doing it every minute or 2 in my game play. At least they do allow you to do so by modifying the config file. I don't mind realism of having cops pull you over if you break the law but not randomly like that. 4. I like that they have mirrors and where they put them in the game so you don't have to turn the view to see them but then they have the map covering the right one up so you have to toggle it off and on to change to a right lane if you are using the 1st person view. They could have put it lower so it didn't blow the mirror. The mirrors could have a bit closer up view. It isn't easy to back using them as they are. I have to change the camera view to back properly and see where I'm going. Compensating for the above issues, the game is decent. I do wish they had put more work into it, patching the glitches, instead of just moving forward with so many different games in the series.
A lot of other games do a lot of things better than this one but one thing this one excels at is vehicles! Grounds, Air and Water, you want it, you got it. Unless you blunder, accidently or on purpose, into another gang's activity or go in to a mission, etc, you can drive, ride, fly as much as you want without being harassed. That is a big plus for me and the reason this game will be on my computer indefinitely. There are a bunch of customizations you can do to "acquired" vehicles as well. I am having great fun with this game! If you're all about the story or combat, this game has it but no better than most other games with combat. The story line isn't as good as others I've played either. They could have had more loot to gather also but overall, I am enjoying this game quite a bit!
First, I'll say I like to play in sandbox mode so this will apply. This game is fun to play until later on, when your colony has expanded quite a bit and into space as well. Pros: Great graphics. Some of the worlds are fantastic, colorful, full of beauty. There are quite a few challenges to getting started on some of the worlds where earth food doesn't grow so it never gets boring. The menus are easy to find and work with. I have a gaming computer which more than covers the max specs of this game but.... Cons: When I have more than 800 colonists and expand into space, no matter what settings I use in options, the game engine can't seem to keep up, with freezes (not my computer, just the game) , jerky movements, etc. I have to pause it to continue placing buildings and other items, then let it run to do the building. It is almost as if they didn't expect the player to build large cities, even in sandbox mode.
For a FPP , open world game, this is one of my favorites so far in that you have so many vehicles, for that time and place, to choose from and great realism for a game that came out in 2008. I even found out you can hit and kill deer or perhaps they are Eland (Not really up on my African wildlife) with your vehicle if you're not careful! Drive down the road in a car, see a truck with a gun mounted on top you want to drive instead (might have to fight your way to it) hop in and go, 4 wheelers, boats, whatever unoccupied vehicle you see, you can use. The boats and 4 wheelers are my favorites in this game. Unlike many others I've played, in this one, you can drive a boat to any bank along the river, hop out, swim across the river, go wherever you like. The boats have guns mounted on them so if you get shot at, you can use the mounted gun to shoot back or one you carry yourself. Vehicles can be blown up and fire is amazing in this game. The malaria illness part of the story is unique also. Perhaps it isn't what everyone is looking for but for me, this has almost every element of a game I could ask for.
This is a very graphics heavy game so buyer beware. I have a computer with plenty of RAM, CPU speed but integrated graphics, which lagged quite a bit. I purchased a gaming computer with a dedicated graphics card, which works much better. Pros: Great, realistic looking graphics, and in normal mode, features such as under water view and hunting vision so you can see where the fish are. Several DLCs so you can fish in many different areas across the world. I haven't used the level editor yet. You can walk around within the maps a bit if you like and some of them include boats. There are some limited streaming radio stations you can use while fishing if you like. Cons: Boats. The boating features in this game are not great. You can barely see where you are going when driving and can't go far in them. It seems like they were an after thought. Good idea, bad execution. The baits are unrealistically high priced in this game. Who pays $2 or more for 1 worm? Overall, I enjoy playing this game when I'm in the mood for a relaxing experience.
If you like 1st person RP games, this is a good one. It has some very interesting scenery, game play is typical of RP games with a storyline to follow, plenty to explore, loot, etc The characters have some amusing "personalities" and quips. Many of the male characters look a lot alike, as if they are related to one another. Over all, I find this to be a very enjoyable way to pass time. It does have a few issues which I think could be improved. 1. Unlike other RP games I've played, there is no way to play it in a 3rd person view. The only way to view your character is by just stop playing and don't touch the controls for awhile, or if you just want to see what your character looks like, pause and look in the inventory menu, etc. 2. You just get to choose between a few different controller set ups. I have not seen a way to reset each button to your liking but I can work with this. 3. There are times I find aiming with a mouse to be easier and more accurate than with the controller. It takes clicking the mouse button to switch from the controller to the mouse and the controller will often take back over in the middle of an action, which I do not like. I prefer the way other games do it or to completely disable the game's controller option and reroute keyboard keys to the controller using a 3rd party software. If there is a way to do that, I haven't found it yet in this game.
* Great graphics (can't complain about the scenery as the name says it all). * Great action, plenty of fighting if that's what you're into and if not, there's a way to enjoy the game without having to worry about being killed. * Controller support - XBox360 though I use a 3rd party software to map they keyboard to my controller for the way I prefer to play it. * Almost endless options and hundreds of hours of game play, depending on the choices you make throughout. * Numerous quests. * Interesting, maze-like tunnels and buildings. I use a large sketch pad and keep a note pad handy for mapping and jotting down tips.... and so much more that makes this game fun to play over a long period of time. I really don't have anything negative to say about this one. If the scenery ever gets to me, I just go play something like Avatar game to brighten my mood but that seldom happens. Very well worthwhile but not for kids if you are concerned about language.
Though I find the scenery interesting and the music is ok, but a bit dark in the graphics. I am finding the controls to be less than satisfactory, slow to respond with key bindings but too quick with the mouse. There are not enough controller options and not enough save options in this game. There are 2 key bindings which show "none" at the bottom of the list but will not allow me to change them. I had to check the system requirements again just to make sure my system is strong enough and it is well over what they require so that isn't the problem.
I have tried installing this game on both Windows 10 and Windows 7 computer. I had issues with the keyboard controls not working, other than the WASD portion. I have played many games and this is one of the worst I've played as far as the controls go. The keys they say work for spring, jump, etc hasn't worked. It's not my computers because all of the other games I play currently work just fine.
