Reviews - MagnumPI

Literally impossible to play without noclipping, and even then the game crashes so much you still might not make it.

Pros: The mod looks great, especially for Source. The graphical improvement from Dissolution is just amazing, and everything looks professional. The soundtrack is great, and even the AI seems to work better than in Dissolution. The XTerrier story is pretty engrossing as well, and voice acting was pretty good. I also like how the pistol is so powerful, which gives both weapons value (which is a big improvement from Dissolution, where the pistol and axe became immediately obsolete). The combat in general seemed pretty satisfying, because your character is not immortal, and you do need to collect medkits. There were a lot of cool little features like the door hacking, which did add a small element of exploration to the mod. I also appreciated the continuity between Dissolution and Lunar Descent (with the 581C memorial and return of Bell).

Cons: The gameplay is pretty 1-dimensional, with only 1 type of enemy and the extremely short time limit with the bomb defusal section (especially the one in the church) was pretty frustrating for me. I think 30 seconds was appropriate for the credit exchange level and apartment complex, but way too short for the church. I also wish those defusal sections had been spaced out, as opposed to one after another (after another). Additionally, the whole game experience was pretty short, and so many plot elements were introduced with no real cohesion/resolution (the aliens, the ancient book, ghost lady). I understand that this is setting up a sequel, but to me it just seemed to end way too abruptly.

Some nitpicky things might be that the whole colony is deserted, which seemed weird to me while I was walking through the (beautifully rendered) lunar colony. When the citizens' bodies did show up, it did take me out of the experience just a little bit because they were recolored HL2 citizens (while the rest of the mod is custom content). Another thing might actually be that there are way too many supplies available in this game. I never had less than max ammo for the AK47, and ended the game with 10 medkits since there are so many other health pickups available. If it weren't for the brutal time limit, the game would otherwise be extremely easy. Story-wise, I just don't understand why Bell was given another chance to exist in society instead of being imprisoned (which I assume will be explained in the sequel).

Overall, this is obviously still one of the top tier Source mods, and I appreciate that all of your mods have a thought-out storyline rather than simply being a run-and-gun map collection. It looks great and has many new features that make the whole gameplay experience feel fresh and immersive. I love all your mods and this project seems very promising. Soundtrack is amazing, and it's altogether a very professional product.

Pretty atmospheric, but the wonky ragdoll corpse and the ending are a bit off a turn off, but otherwise the assets are nicely made and it's a pretty nice proof of concept.