2010 and 2013. Later, 2014. Now, 2020. But, always, with the calendar set in 2033. Few could have told Dmitri Glukhovsky that that novel that launched to the Internet for free would end up becoming a best seller and, moreover, that would shape a whole saga of video games that, now, share catalog with plumbers who chase turtles and monsters that fit in balls .
Metro: Redux, the remastered compilation of Metro 2033 and Metro: Last Light, arrived in 2014 for PlayStation 4, Xbox One and PC. Years later a Metro Exodus has arrived that follows the saga and leaves us with one foot in the new generation; but, before, we have another stop on the Moscow metro line with a relaunch. By magic, and with a little witchcraft, the Ukrainian studio 4A Games has tied the blanket to the head to adapt this compilation to Nintendo Switch, and has done so with a surprisingly good result.
Metro 2033 and Metro: Last Light, the germ of the saga
The Third World War, an Earth plunged into an eternal nuclear winter and a humanity that decides to go deep into the planet to survive. In the midst of this bleak panorama, much of Russia has decided to dive into the subway lines to form a new life, and there is already a whole generation that has never seen sunlight.
That is the context of the Metro saga, which puts us in the shoes of Artyom, someone who was born before the nuclear catastrophe and who plays a crucial role for the future of humanity. Its history takes place in both installments, and it will continue to develop for a long time, in games that combine with great mastery the narrative with the gameplay, which are able to make you feel one more in this destroyed world and on the edge of another great conflict warlike
An underground humanity
Heaven is the earth, freedom is underground and bullets are money. Going outside is exposing yourself to mutants and all kinds of dangers, it is to have to manage filters of a gas mask so as not to die because of the toxicity of the atmosphere and the inclement weather. Humanity has taken over the extensive and branched lines of the Moscow metro to survive, although it still has time for its own conflicts.
Along the Metro 2033 and Metro: Last Light, the argument leads us to the presence of a most special race, the Dark ones, and the connection between them and Artyom, the protagonist. A mixture of human drama with paranormal events and nuclear apocalypse in which every decision tells and builds the story, in which there is also room for intrigues, spy plots and factions that face each other.
Metro surprised years ago by how he was able to make us feel part of his world. Stop, when the game allows, to listen to the dialogues of the characters, to hear the stories of broken families, of curious young people to know what is beyond the darkness of the tunnels and how the world was decades ago, is all a joy. But we cannot forget that at the center of everything is know what happens with a certain shelter and with that strange race that wants to establish contact. That we can sentence or save, although Last Light is determined to start from a very clear path.
Stealth or action?
And we have not said it, because it is no longer necessary, but Metro: Redux is a compilation of a saga that revolves around the concept of SPF, but giving it certain nuances that they differentiate it from anything else of the same genre with which they shared time.
The fact that the ammunition is a payment currency already makes it clear to you that it does not fire first here and wonders later. It is true that there are times when you have to get carried away by the smell of gunpowder and adrenaline, especially when you meet the monsters that populate this world, but in most cases, always offers the possibility of moving with stealth and observing, to take advantage of the shadows so as not to plunge into a chaos of gunfire, caps and covers.
It is true that, on Switch, face the Metro shootings: Redux is halfway between the ends of PS4 / Xbox One and PC. The motion pointed It helps to get that extra mobility ideal to fine-tune aiming or quickly hit your goals, although the idea of spending the right and necessary ammunition at all times remains the main premise, especially if you play in the classic mode. There is another game option, available at the beginning, in which the bullets are not so scarce and everything pushes you to focus more on the action than on the planning and strategy.
Choose the option you choose as a game mode, both Metro 2033 and Metro: Last Light they shine and falter at the same points when it comes to combat. There are many options of weaponry, customization of the most interesting and even throwing objects, but the AI shines by its absence, in addition to some mutants quite little inspired in general lines, and with a too mechanized behavior.
Different routes, different endings
But what Metro: Redux removes on the one hand, gives it on the other. Although there are shootings that are not perfect to keep as a memory, especially when, as we mentioned before, we face those mutated creatures that hide in the shadows or that swarm outside, the argument manages to play a really important role.
So much so, that your way of playing and behaving with the rest of the characters will end determining your way forward in the end in any of the two games. We are not going to gut details, because it is possible that for many there will still be room for surprises here, but we must clarify that Last Light starts from the “bad” end of 2033, however much both games arrive together and there are plot connections between them ( not in vain, one is a direct sequel to the other).
Therefore, get carried away by this story that begins with a simple expedition and ends with the discovery of the Dark, the conflict between the Order, the Red Line and the Empire, and the possible need to sacrifice for saving humanity, is something that surprises a lot for a genre like this. The argument is opened and branched, although not too much, according to the path you choose, and it is always there taking you by the hand to immerse yourself fully in both its history and the world on which it is based. One, also, brilliantly built especially in the second installment, capable of wasting hours just listening to dialogues of completely random characters.
A superb adaptation
Of course, we can't go on without talking about how the Metro version works: Redux for Nintendo Switch. 4A Games has managed to adapt its engine perfectly to the hybrid, making both games perfectly playable both in Portable mode and in TV mode.
The graphic improvements of remastering they are patent at all times, noting especially when playing the first of both titles, Metro 2033. It goes without saying that a certain degree of detail has been lost in general with respect to PS4 and Xbox One, especially in terms of textures and certain particle effects and lighting; but, in general, it is a really superb work done by the Ukrainian study.
A frame rate that remains sturdy like a rock in 30 frames per second, resolutions well adapted to both modes of play in Switch to show a sharpness more than remarkable and, to top it off, compatibility with the gyroscope to give more agility when aiming. Probably, this is one of the best versions you can play of both Metro, even more if we take into account that, in addition, it gains even more with its portability.
Metro Redux, or how to always have Artyom with you
We did not imagine that it would end up coming, nor that the 4A Games itself, authors of the original, would take care of this adaptation. Be that as it may, now we cannot do anything other than recommend it. If you have not played the Metro saga until now, it is time for you to step forward, charge your flashlight, prepare your Joy-Con and enter the complex underground network of Moscow.
Feeling Artyom in the hybrid is a real joy. The adaptation is sublime, and the world to which we are transferred is one that demonstrates that SPFs are more than aiming at heads and holding the trigger. Polished, careful and with everything that made the original games great, this compilation is a mandatory purchase if you like the genre and enjoy different stories than usual.
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