Home
News
Reviews
Features
About


Search for:


Rune Review Rebuttal
2001-03-15 Chet Page 1 Page 2 Page 3 Page 4 Page 5

 90%

The Firing Squad review was long.  Real long.  Too long for me.   So if there's something at the end of the review that I missed, it's because I only read the first couple pages of it.  I didn't get to the end to see if Thresh himself took a break from burning through his $11 mil or if one of his overpaid staff wrote it.

Despite the numerous jump puzzles in the game,
we never found ourselves particularly frustrated

There you go.  More puzzles.  And Erik said there were no puzzles.  According to Firing Squad, the game is filled with puzzles!  Not only are there jumping puzzles, but there're tricky running puzzles and cerebral fighting puzzles!

Yes, it is linear and involves lots of jumping, hit the switch, find the key sort of stuff. However, the levels are interesting because in many of these puzzles, the goals aren't obvious. The switch might be a torch you have to pick up - one such puzzle kept me stuck for an hour.

More puzzle action!  Erik said there are no puzzles, yet Thresh's puzzle list continues with no end in sight.  When was the last time you played a game that made a random ordinary object in a level an important switch!?!  Ingenious!  Each and every object must be considered.  Look at the gameplay value!  An hour just spent looking for a torch.  Human Head is all about value for your money!

The levels range from these underground caverns to the hellish underworld...

Go back and read Erik's childish rant.  He claims there is no variation in the game's art-direction.  "It all takes place in a sewer," he said, more or less.  According to Thresh, Rune's got everything from underground caverns to hellish underworld caverns.  In fact, I don't see anything about a sewer.

This next review is from a German site.   I have no idea what they're saying.  All I know is that they gave Rune the special award pictured below.   I believe it is their coveted 85 Award, which is metric for 100.  I'll say this about Germany's rating system: It scares me that the Germans have no word for gameplay.  Maybe whoever the new Fuhrer is could take one of their ten thousand derogatory terms for Jew and make it mean gameplay.

Up next is Gamespy's Rune review:

90%

From the get go, Rune's story unfolds like an Oscar winning film, luring you into its tale of Vikings, paganism, and high-fantasy.

I have a confession to make.  I must not see that many Oscar winning films because I have yet to see a movie lure me in with its tale of Vikings.  But if I did see one, it would get my Oscar vote!  It'd be great to have a guy dressed like Thor thanking "the man upstairs, Odin" and his agent for the Oscar.  

Rune's kickin' level design somewhat compensates for its lack of opponents. Although about half of them consist of aforementioned "find the switch" routine (with the exception of two specific instances where I wandered aimlessly for a while before finding the switch's trigger point), roving through them was extremely fun.

Take that FAKK 2!  When gamers say we want more mindless roving, do you people at Ritual think we're kidding?  Hey Ritual, thanks for ruining your levels with a clear purpose. Nitwits.  Raise your hand if you wish Roller Coaster Tycoon had a freeform build mode instead of all the scenario-based play.  Whoa, put your hands DOWN!  We all wish that.  And how many times have you wished modern action games gave you more of a chance to wander aimlessly?   Nothing to shoot.  Nothing to do.   Just "chillin'", hunting around for a switch cleverly disguised as rock.   The guys at Human Head are listening to you.

If you're a fan of the Oscar winning film Braveheart, you're sure to like Rune.  

It kinda seems like Gamespy is really sucking Oscar's dick, here.  Not that I blame them.  When the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences decides to start handing out statues for reviews of games vaguely similar to award-winning movies,  I think Gamespy might be laughing... all the way to the bank! ... the Oscar bank!!




Page 1 Page 2 Page 3 Page 4 Page 5


Hosting Provided by POEHosting.com
Copyright 1997-2003 Oldmanmurray.com