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blazingwaters.neocities.org
Fully up now so I can share my thoughts after being almost done with Arid Badlands, effectively the first act completion, and it being years since last playing this

I'll likely keep going cause it doesn't ask for much brain activity, but I don't see it getting more than a shrug from me at the end
+ Well-known, but this not being what the later entries are like in humor makes a it lot more palpable on the senses. It has jokes, but it's dry and mainly contained in the menu logs + Actually feels like an Action-RPG instead of "Shooter with lite RPG elements"? I don't remember 2 that much but I've been constantly aware of my kit to swap around when necessary, Proficiency means the lil perks each one has from randomized crafting means you'll at least want to keep and try out, and ability building does feel rather impactful this time. Rarity system and how the gun-crafting works BTS also means you're not always and inherently getting strict upgrades. + Speaking of - and say what you will about the series as a whole - the loot system really is one of the better draws. You'll always find something cool, and the "rarity" system doesn't inherently mean strict upgrades - I've rocked with White items more than the Green ones! I've had a friend compare it to how Diablo does its loot stuff, and that feels apt + The sandbox element here, while needing some work (one of those being a flaw I'll say next), works just fine enough. Each area bridges to each other neatly, and there being no minimap means conveyance and mental mapping are very easy to do. Movement being as "floaty" as it is also leads to personal shortcuts or height management for those crates, which is cool (though the platforming sucks LOL). - I know people prefer it this way compared to later on, but this is just. Way too fuckin dull for my liking. Not much happens aside from "go here, kill things, get/activate item, repeat". Really could've used some space, and you can at least tell they knew this cause 2 got to the point better and faster - It does not help enemy variety is shockingly poor. Humanoids are Grunt/Charger/Brute/Kamikaze types, and you're always facing Skags which are just two different flavors, Chargers or Bulldozers. Wish there was more stuff like the Rakks or those Crab Worms around. Also the way zone spawns are configured makes it pretty fucking weird? - Also not helping, having *accuracy* be so reliant on stat-building and levelups makes the gunfeel so lopsided. Either I get a nice, clean shot with a satisfying soundback, or I somehow whiff it and get a meek-sounding meatshot or a subdued wall hit. Not great! - ALSO not helping, the color palette is way too muted and focused on a specific set of Wasteland tones for my liking. It should not have taken until Sledge's Safe House for the lighting and overall set design to feel inspired. Again, you can tell Gearbox knew this was a problem because 2 has better coloring, and the harsher cel-shading and detailing makes the graphic novel look pop out much harder - I'm appalled at how bad driving is. There's no weight on this damn thing, and getting stuck means its effectively done since there's no meaningful reverse or 'unstuck' button like in other shooters. Scooter you bitch, I thought you were my friend.
September 13, 2025 at 2:44 PM
hurtonaudio.bsky.social
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May 4, 2025 at 9:32 AM