Metro: Last Light has its great moments, but ultimately falls prey to its deficiencies that hold back its potential.
The story follows on from Metro 2033. Based on the novel by Dmitry Glukhovsky, Metro: Last Light follows protagonist Artyom who, following a nuclear explosion that levelled the majority of life of The Dark Ones in the original, is sent to the surface by leader of The Order, to find and eliminate the one remaining Dark One. Meanwhile, there are three factions vying for control of an underground bunker called D9 – The Nazi Reich, the Communist Reds and the current holders of D9, the Ranger faction, of whom Artyom is associated. While Metro 2033's plot was weak, the story here is a lot more intriguing. The political side of the story is what pulled me in, and there are some interesting twists along the way. Characters are written relatively well, but the story ends up veering into the supernatural, making the political ambitions of the game feel in vain by comparison.
The character development is mixed. I personally didn't feel much of a connection to the characters, and it also doesn't help that Artyom is a silent protagonist. Some characters are interesting, especially those who help Artyom along the way, but others aren't that interesting, and it makes the game a little harder to invest in. Metro: Last Light also immerses you, though. It's the little details that impress for this, like Artyom looking at his journal with a lighter, wiping dirt from his mask when water or blood is on it, or the minimal HUD. The immersion is great and will pull you into the experience.
The visuals, specific to PS3, are a mixed bag. There are some moments of beauty, particular with lighting and the surface can look nice when standing still. Otherwise, you are going to witness a lot of screen-tearing on the surface, a janky framerate, muddy textures and some pretty poor animations. Character models are improved, but the AI glitches are just as immersion-breaking as they were in Metro 2033. The Xbox 360 reportedly looks a lot better and runs more stable, and the PC version is the one to get, but on PS3, Last Light looks decent at times, but ultimately falls prey to technical issues. In addition to said problems, there were also instances where my PS3 crashed and I had to restart it. It happened only a couple of times, but for a 2013 shooter, this shouldn't be the case.
The audio design is the biggest strength of the game, however. Though voice acting is decent but not amazing, the sound effects are a substantial improvement over the first game. Guns sound a lot better and are more convincing, now pitting the sound effects against some big-budget shooters. Creatures sound creepy, and their designs are good, and the soundtrack is one of hope and wonder. Metro: Last Light builds on what made Metro 2033 unique, which was its atmosphere. The mood is compelling and believable throughout the experience, and wandering through the surface, in the face of danger, is engaging and eerie. The quiet density and wind swirls and overall ambience create a great sense of tension.
Gameplay in Metro: Last Light is divisive in some ways. Firstly, the stealth aspect has been improved considerably, and is undoubtedly the best point of the game. The controls work a lot better and the sequences involving sneaking past enemies are great. Artyom can shoot out lights, as well as unscrew them, which is a neat feature. Taking out enemies will no longer alert every enemy, which was a fatal flaw of the game's predecessor. Enemies respond well to the stealth, and their patterns are interesting and challenging. However, if you are spotted, gunfire is the only way to progress. Thankfully, this aspect has been tightened too. Gunplay feels great overall, and there are some interesting weapons to use throughout the adventure. Aiming and picking off enemies feels nice, and enemies put up a decent fight in every situation. However, there are issues with the artificial intelligence. Sometimes they will fight you, but they will also sit in obvious places of cover, fail to notice your presence and other strange forms of behaviour.
Though fighting enemies is fun, the mutated creatures on the surface are a different story altogether. Fighting these creatures is tense, for sure, but also very frustrating. Damage detection is an issue throughout Metro: Last Light, and enemies can often overwhelm you, hitting you from every direction without so much as a chance to escape or open fire. Stealth is possible against these enemies, but there are bats and other creatures strewn throughout levels that detect your presence with ease, forcing you to spam grenades or just run to the exit. It makes fighting them tedious and annoying, opposite to what it should have been.
The feature of using military grade ammo to purchase weapons, trade and sell was a really half-baked concept in Metro 2033, but it feels a lot more grounded and informative in Last Light. It still needs improving, but now its easy to know what attachments to buy, how to trade and what to sell in order to gain the best arsenal. Ammo – and items – are found throughout levels, so exploring every inch of the environment is rewarding enough. Eavesdropping on different conversations also yields interesting information regarding the ongoing problems and situations in the Metro. It's interesting to witness people being effected by the conflict, and it really sells the feel and believability of the game's world.
The overall level design is still frustratingly linear, though. The player can never veer off the beaten path to explore the surface, and most areas are inexplicably blocked off by tree trunks and broken pathways. It's a fascinating place, but it never lets you realize this, always pushing you to narrow corridors or open interiors of buildings. I wish 4A Games would let us experience this world fully, because it still has the potential to be something special. Unfortunately, they fail to do this, and it never realizes that potential because of it.
There are also some boss fights in the game, but these are ultimately more irritating rather than enjoyable. Enemies take forever to go down, they deal large amounts of damage, and one fight took nearly 10 minutes to end. 4A Games never really explains how to defeat some enemies, so you are often left scratching your head wondering what to do. One fight towards the end of the game, which I wouldn't really count as a boss fight, is bland and poorly designed, and felt cheap. It was basically an interactive way to progress a particular plot point, but it felt poorly implemented. This AI imbalancing between humans and mutants doesn't help matters, either.
Metro: Last Light had the potential to be a great gaming experience. It certainly has the atmosphere, premise and audio presentation going for it. 4A Games clearly has the passion for detail, ranging from the metro populace itself down to the surface. Unfortunately, those details are for nought if the game doesn't hold up. Sadly, it mostly doesn't. The stealth and gunplay are leaps and bounds above Metro 2033, but the vast technical issues, poor imbalanced AI and cramped level design hold this sequel back from being a fantastic game. In spite of that, you may find a lot to like in Metro: Last Light.
SUMMARY
Presentation 7.5 – A great premise, presentation and atmosphere sell the mood of Metro: Last Light's world, but the story is ultimately disappointing.
Graphics 7.5 – There are some moments of beauty, but its all overshadowed by a sloppy framerate, frequent screen-tearing and iffy animations and glitches.
Audio 8.0 – Solid voice work, great sound effects and a thematically fitting soundtrack.
Gameplay 7.0 – The stealth and gunplay are definitely the bright spots, but the poor AI, dull boss fights and linear level design make this a disappointing sequel.
Replayability 7.5 – You can play through twice (stealth/guns blazing) but Metro: Last Light doesn't have that replay value of other great gaming experiences.
Overall – 7/10