Before I write anything else I just want to give out a warning to those interested in buying the game – it’s not the latest Tom Clancy game, and no, it’s not the sequel to Far Cry either. Research what you buy and then complain about it. I got very tired of people saying things such as "why isn’t there a crouch key”, “why are there only five weapons available”, “where’s my night vision” and so on. Painkiller is nothing more than a mindless run and shoot fest, bringing back simplicity that a lot of people, including me, desire. As someone else had said, where would the fun be if you had to face thirty zombies with the AI of a SWAT team? With that being said, read on.

Storyline? Not quite, but something is there at least. You are in an accident during a strong thunderstorm with your wife, and you both die. You are given another chance along with orders to stop the bad buy and his army from doing something evil. Stuck between Heaven and Hell you have to beat him and everyone who’s with him. It’s not much but I give credit to PCF for making the effort. You do get to watch some great looking FMV cut scenes which is a plus. Fortunately the storyline is the only thing that’s mediocre about Painkiller.

The best thing you get to do in the game is plow through hordes and hordes of cool looking enemies, each of them powered by an advanced physics engine, allowing people, body pieces and objects to fly all around you while drool spills out of your mouth (well mine at least). That’s what you do, and I'm sorry if you expected something else. This game delivers exactly what it promised, no more no less. But I don’t know why even the most serious gamer wouldn’t enjoy all of this, since it’s non-committing and the perfect distraction. I just loved sticking zombies to walls and to themselves with what I must say is the best weapon ever created – the stake gun. You also get four other weapons which are more than enough for a game of this kind, since all feature two distinct firing modes. You won’t find any other gadgets or unnecessary gear, because believe me, you won’t need any.

What really impressed me were the diversity and the number of levels you can play through. You have everything from spooky Cathedrals, to an abandoned Train station, to a Military Base, all of them spilling atmosphere and detail. There are exactly twenty-four levels offering anything you could desire (two of them are locked, and can be played only on certain difficulties). After games such as Max Payne 2 or Call of Duty which left me a little disappointed in terms of longevity, Painkiller is a nice surprise. In those twenty-four levels you’ll find twice as many different enemies, if not more. I won’t get into detail but I’ll just mention that a lot of imagination has gone into all of them, and the fact that they have different attack modes and even work together just adds to the fun. But of course the most impressive are the five bosses you have to defeat at the end of each Chapter. Taking on a monster the size of a building and trying to avoid its attacks while figuring out a way to kill him is not an easy challenge.

If blasting zombies to pieces in a multitude of huge environments wasn’t enough, you also get to collect over twenty different tarot cards. Each one of the levels has requirements you need to satisfy in order to get that card: complete those and you’re rewarded. Cards offer special bonuses and abilities that can be used during a level, but cost coins which are found scattered around the maps. There also secret locations to discover (it takes some skill) which just adds more challenge and gameplay to an already content rich game. It really is a treat exploring the beautiful maps and having so many things to do. I was very happy to learn about those extra features which add a little twist to the non-stop gun fest. I also liked the idea behind the health pickups. Instead of the standard bonuses lying around, collecting souls of enemies you killed improves your health. Each time you collect 66 souls, you’re transformed into a Demon, and everything becomes black and white except your enemies which are highlighted in orange flames. During that time you’re invulnerable to any attack and you can rampage through the enemy ranks, striking down anyone with a single hit.

All of the above wouldn’t be possible without the exceptionally good engine Painkiller runs on, which offers the best eye candy/performance ratio I’ve seen lately. With all the high-resolution textures, hi-poly models, dynamic lighting, and physics engine, I was very surprised at the solid frames my rig was able to pull. On top of that you get throngs of enemies on screen running around on fairly large maps. Blowing them all to chunks doesn’t slow the action either. I didn’t expect that at all after looking at some early videos and screenshots of the game. I must admit that without the Havok engine’s physics, Painkiller would be a much more boring experience, so I’m glad it was implemented.

After you finish the single player mayhem, there’s the option for online play, which again brings back the simplicity of the old death match games. No vehicles, no bases, no objectives; only shoot what you see. This doesn’t mean it’s easy to score; it does take skill considering the extremely fast-paced nature of the multiplayer. Besides the standard death match, Pain Killer has added a number of other game modes which aren’t as popular, but provide diversity if you get bored. I was a little shocked at first by the lack of options and features in multiplayer, and it seemed a little unfinished to me, but PCF have already released two patches adding a lot of the much needed content.

If you are like me and have decided to take a break from the multitude of realistic and tactical shooters out there, or your brain is just a little tired from all the thinking and planning involved in strategy games, play Painkiller. It offers a quick adrenaline rush and beautifully detailed levels running on the spectacular Havok2.0 physics engine and, I must say, this game is one of a kind. Sure there will be those that say Serious Sam has already done it but, trust me, this is different.



The Good
- Great visuals/performance
- Fun and simple single player
- Easy to pick up and play
- Has a polished and solid feel to it
- Diverse levels and enemies
- Scalable engine allowing even low-end PCs to enjoy the game

The Bad
- It can become boring so take your time and play in little doses
- Has some issues with the copy protection software