A wholly unsatisfying experience.

User Rating: 6 | Pariah PC
Pariah is one of those soulless glitterfests that attempt to compensate for lack of purpose with special effects. And while it relies on well-trodden FPS-clichées it still doesn't get them quite right.

At the center of the plot is some kind of virus, but exactly what it does, where it comes from or why isn't really obvious. Instead you trod around a broken world painted in staple sci-fi cyan, orange and grey, being railroaded through pointless assignments. Disable this turret, open this door, and so on.

Exactly where you go or why isn't obvious, you'll have to make do with the fact that there are people out to get you. Soon you are in the thick of some kind of factional war, only this time all the factions are against you. You're a pariah alright.

The gamespot review already explained the serious lack of oomph in the weapons as well as the frustrating reload/ammo issues. Add to that stupid features like severe motion blur when you attempt to run and an inexplicable watery effect on your vision whenever you carry the plasma gun. Exploding barrels, repeating taunts, recycled ambient sound effects and empty set-pieces such as dams and prisons add to this stale impression.

The game really takes the cake when the inevitable plot twist comes up near the end, this time the instigator of said twist is you! Suddenly for no reason it is revealed to you that you yourself have a personal agenda, only you played through the entire game without knowing it. This really isn't Total Recall.

Overall you can get a few hours of decent gaming out of it, but I cannot think of a single reason as to why it should be endorsed.