Customer Reviews

Hellgate: London

5 star:		(25)
4 star:		(25)
3 star:		(22)
2 star:		(25)
1 star:		(31)

 

 

If you don't want to read this long review, let me simply say that Hellgate London is a good game, and definitely worth the money.

But if you want to know a little more...

Let me start off by just saying it... Diablo 2.
There are few games out there that are of such a high quality that they become the standard that others have to beat, that they become the thing that is used to compare. Diablo 2 is such a game. It is the game of which it is said with other games; `Diablo also had that' or `unlike Diablo.'

So, here we are, Hellgate London; the game that wants to take over from Diablo. Can it? Well, yes and no. Yes in the fact that over the years there have been many Diablo clones, and none came close to `the real stuff.' Hellgate does. Hellgate comes close and even surpasses in some areas, like graphics. But then again, what would you would expect from a new game that is trying to beat a, what, ten year old game?

Also, one very interesting this is that I wouldn't actually call Hellgate a clone of Diablo. A clone is a copy; more of the same. While Hellgate is more of the next step. Yes, it has all the things you expect and know from Diablo. Health potions have become health injections, the identification scrolls have become single use identifier units. Items are still color coded, and there are even mods and weapons that can be compared to the weapons with sockets from Diablo. But simply the fact that you are actually in a 3D world already makes you surpass the 2D world. In Diablo you could see everything in a circle around you. In Hellgate you only see what you look at. And if you want to see what happens behind, or above you, you have to actually turn around, or look up. While Hellgate is not the kind of game where someone suddenly jumps out at you (save from the few monsters that appear out of nothing, but do so with a very convenient warning sound,) you actually have to walk to a corridor and look in to see what's happening there and if there are monsters to be found.

I have only tried one class until now, but in that class (the guardian) one thing I really like is that you don't have to target every single enemy. In Diablo you had to click on one enemy at a time to attack it (save for some abilities like the strife shot for the Amazon, or the throwing starts for the assassin.) In Hellgate you can simply click (doesn't even have to be on an enemy) and hold down the mouse key and as long as the enemies are inside your range you automatically attack the next one when the first one dies. Note, the enemy has to be inside your sword range, so you won't go running across the map automatically just because you hit the attack key.

Hellgate also comes with Randomly generated maps (apart from some key locations), so it does have a high replay value and it's not that once you played the game you know every map there is in the game.

In short Hellgate is a fun game that makes you want to play just that little bit more.

Now, I did say that there was a `no' part to it being able to replace Diablo. So here come the more negative comments.

First, it is indeed a great game that you want to keep playing. But with Diablo you wanted to play for hours, and then some more. You could easily play it 8 hours straight. (At least I could.) With Hellgate you play for an hour, maybe two, and then you get bored. It is yet another zombie, yet another Imp, that you kill. While that was pretty much the same with Diablo, there still is that `something' missing that prevents you from getting bored. With Hellgate you do get bored... but then again the game is still good enough that a few hours later you find yourself restarting the game to play a little more.

Missions are boring to the extreme, and some are down to the stupid even. Mind you, there is some line in the main... eh... plot. But the secondary missions. It really is all the same. Go there and kill 5 of those. Go there and kill that monster. Go there and get me that. In Diablo most of the missions were a continuation of the main mission, and even the sub missions (the ones you could skip and still end the game) had some tie to the main story. In Hellgate the only tie is that the monsters are your enemy and you go and kills some more monsters. Boring. Basically, the secondary missions have no value other then to get you some rewards that you are (mostly) going to sell anyway, and they get you to hack and slash some more and gain more experience. On itself that extra hack and slash isn't bad, since basically that's what you are playing the game for anyway. But the fact that there is no true story behind that hack and slash does tie to what I said about getting bored with it after some time. (Until you want to hack and slash some more.)

The maps. (The kind that lets you know where you are, not the kind you play on.)
The mini map that shows what's in your direct vicinity is good enough, but I truly hate the world map. The world map is laid out like a metro/subway map. Now, there is a reason for that, since a lot of the game plays there and you get from one place to the other in subway tunnels. But still. When you bring up the world map it basically only tells you where you are at the moment, and from it you can't really see if you have to go north or south since just like in a real subway map a place that is located to the north on the map might be very well to your south depending on how you are standing (and no, there is no compass.) While that is not a bad thing in the tunnels, on a bigger area that is larger than what you see on your mini map you can actually get lost because the world map only shows that you are in `that' location. Thanks, I know that I'm at Piccadilly Circus, now please tell me if I'm on the north or south side of it, and just where the exit I came from is again. No, I much rather have the map you had in Diablo, the one that you could have on constant as a semi-transparent overlay. But even that you can't do with the world map. Well, you can leave the world map on while you play, or you can put the mini-map as an overlay, but both are not really transparent, and it still is only a subway style map or limited range. Either way, overlay is not doable really because it obstructs your view.

Another thing, and eventually this too ties into the boring aspect, is that there is too much gray. Now, I know that you are running around in a destroyed city and cities tend to be gray. But still, I little more color would have been nice. Every street looks the game because wherever you look you see gray buildings and more gray buildings. It takes away variety and quickly turns the areas that aren't subway tunnels into a repetitive combination of gray buildings and boring monsters to kill.

And lastly, two things that I'm neutral about at the moment of me writing this.

First, the skills are set up very differently from Diablo. With Diablo you basically had to pick a few skills and stick to it; train them as high as possible. Otherwise you would end up being a weak mediocre jack of all trades that would get killed time and again. In Hellgate they turned that around 180 degrees. Here they actually want you to spread your skill points over many skills. And to make you do so you get a huge increase with the first skill point, but less with next skills points. For instance. With the defender there is a skill that you can use that makes you hit an enemy with 100% more damage (great against tough monsters only since reuse is time delayed and you can't use it al the time) The thing is, the first skill point gets you that 100% increase. But when you add a second skill point it only adds another 10%, making it a total of 110% extra damage.

While I do like this approach in general because it does allow you to use more skills, I have now (level 11 player at the moment of this writing btw) reached a point where I have noticed that in actual play I don't use several skills. Now it would be nice if I could use my skill points in the skills I do use and actually get a nice increase with it. Yet on the other side, as I said, I'm not `that' far into the game and I don't know yet what the increases will be. Maybe there are 20 levels, just like Diablo, and then 10% increases would still eventually turn out to be a massive 300% extra damage, if it keeps increasing in increments of 10%. Time will tell.

And lastly, a thing that I like and don't like at the same time. The monsters in the game don't level up with you. Monsters have been set to have a certain level in this or that part of the game. In playing that turns out to be still around a realistic level where monsters that are a little tougher do need a few more hits with the sword, while the base level zombies are by now little more than a nuisance and are cut down with the first sword swing. In a way I like that because it makes you truly feel that you are getting better. In the game Oblivion monsters do level up with you and at a point it just makes the game unbelievable. Here you are someone that has trained to be a master with the sword, cannot train any higher, yet still every robber you come across is just as skilled as you. Come on. With Hellgate that won't happen. Zombies that once needed 3 sword hits to be killed are now mowed down with a sweep of the sword while I don't even really slow down. Basically is shows me that I'm getting better, while at the same time there are slowly but surely popping up other, tougher, monsters that do keep me on my toes.

As I said, in general I like that. But I just wish that they would do something about those low level monsters. Streets are still filled with zombies, and now that I can kill them in one blow they are really nothing more than nuisances that distract me, at most. It would have been nice is they were replaced by different monsters that are a little higher up. Not enough that every monster is a master challenge, but enough to make you want to look out and not let them come too close.

So, where does that leave us?
Do I recommend to buy it? Yes. It IS a great game, and it by far surpasses any Diablo clone created to date. But at the same time it didn't succeed in replacing Diablo as `the game to beat.' It's not Diablo, but it is definitely the best attempt by far. I would give it a very close second place. And if you don't compare it to Diablo, and simply want to know if it's a good game, then I would even call Hellgate a great game.

H.W.

It has been announced that the online servers for the North American and European versions of this game will be going offline after January 31, 2009. If you buy this game, you will be left with nothing but a VERY unstable Single-Player version. You have been warned!

UNREAL was one of these games that mark an era. Huge, gorgeous scenery, atmospheric and fast - there was nothing like it for many years. When UNREAL II: THE AWAKENING came out I could not wait to get my hands on it - only to be hugely disappointed. The new game had been graphically improved yet the UNREAL character was replaced by a bland and generic FPS feeling.

The DIABLO series enjoyed a similar, well deserved, success. HELLGATE: LONDON was released by the creators of DIABLO - leaving a similar unsatisfied aftertaste I am afraid.

Don't get me wrong, this is a good game. However, a slight disappointment is inevitable for a game that tries to do everything: provide a 40-hour single-player FPS; double as an action-cRPG; and serve as a subscription-MMORPG (with at least two pay-grade classes: First & Standard) at the same time. Trying to please everybody, well, ends up falling short. They did put in a solid effort; however, in the end, both FPS and action-RPG fans will find the game wanting.

FPS-wise HELLGATE:LONDON is slow (by the way, the perspective is adjustable from FP to TP and back) and the character movement feels forced. The weapons are inventive and impressive. Monsters and demons appear all over (popping from places that surprise you) and are dynamically-generated - as are the maps, every time a new game is started (adding to the game's replayability). Yet the rhythms are nowhere near those of a true FPS. There are tight moments but no high-speed tension.
I guess that is the price of creating a single player game and aiming at the MMORPG market at the same time (trying to avoid lag-time).

As a cRPG, HELLGATE: LONDON fares somewhat better. It is not the first time, of course, to come upon a First Person cRPG (the classic ULTIMA series introduced this). Nevertheless, HELLGATE: LONDON manages to convey the DIABLO feeling from the FP perspective beautifully! The multitude of sold or looted items alone is staggering! Everything seems to be customizable and appears on the character. A nice touch is that unwanted items can be broken down to their raw materials - which can then be used in either crafting new items or enhancing existing items at a vendor. Thus, an item well beyond the one you are currently using can yield material capable of enhancing it. Similar to TITAN QUEST, creating unique items using a mold is also possible.
There are three factions: Templars (aka: Knights), Cabalists (aka: Mages) & Hunters (aka: Rogues), with numerous subclasses, all capped at level 50.

Graphically the game is crisp and clear but not cutting edge. The graphics are comparable to HL2 and QUAKE4 (3 year old games). The surfaces, the textures, the reflections and the weather effects are beautiful, and they are designed for BOTH DX9 and DX10! I cannot comment on DX10 (as I am running WinXP) however, for DX9 I have no complains - I encountered only some stuttering and the system demands are reasonable.

What is concerning is EA/FLAGSHIP's emerging intentions to charge for this game piece-meal. Since this is a heavily OnLine-oriented game, having the latest "installment" will be a necessity in order to survive and compete effectively.
The multiplayer offers a number of choices: free (with limited gameplay capabilities, such as leading a guild), Standard monthly fee (for additional content such as new areas, more classes, weapons,quests, and game modes) and First Class monthly fee (premium content). It may seem a good decision on boardroom papers, however, I doubt that this...cast system will sit good with the MMORPG crowd. Imagine building a character exactly as you want him for, say, six months, only to have him wiped by a rich n00by with premium weapons...Yeah, that will work miracles in building your fan-base...
So, for someone buying the game mostly for its multiplayer, be warned: $[...] is NOT all you will have to pay (yes, even if you opt not to subscribe for the unrestricted gameplay).

All in all, A GOOD GAME, a solid effort to mix-and-match different genre that falls just short of its raised expectations.

PS:
There is a major storyline objection: presenting Templar Knights and Freemasons as the saviors of humanity is as absurd as describing Nazis as "cosmetic products manufacturers". Some things cannot be spinned I am afraid. Now, I did not take this into account in rating this game since no one is taught history by video games...is he?

I really wanted to like this game. I honestly did. I like FPS games and Diablo II is my favorite game of all time. Surely any integration of the two would be gold, right? No dice...

The missions are repetitive. You think they might get better later in the game but it doesn't happen. You are once again hunting for a bunch of a certain kind of monster or one boss monster.
The scenery/tile sets are repetitive. You think they might get better later in the game but it doesn't happen. Level 2 of an area will be exactly the same as Level 1. You can be at the 6th station and enter an area and be like, "wait, haven't I been here before?".
The items don't get interesting. The item database is also rather small compared with other real RPGs.
The game is still buggy. Even with the latest patch, you can frequently generate a map where the path to where you need to go is blocked by randomly generated objects. Also, if you "get stuck" trying squeeze between things, you automatically get transported back to the beginning of the area. These were 2 major bugs that provided unnecessary frustration. I know I can't fault the game too much for bugs since they exist with every game. However, combined with all the other flaws, this game just feels like there wasn't any real effort put into making it. Even the graphics don't justify the system requirements.
The only good thing this game has going for it is the sound. The combination of action sounds, ambient sounds, and music make for an eerie atmosphere reminiscent of Diablo I.
The Single-Player experience is just too tedious to finish.
The game somewhat redeems itself with the multi-player community but this can be true for any game and doesn't really reflect on the merits of Hellgate: London. By comparison, Diablo II was an immensely popular game largely because of multi-player but the game was also great to play by yourself.

Yes, some of original Diablo developers worked on this game, but Flagship Studio's debut lacks the overall production value that Blizzard has brought to all of their titles.

I remember playing Diablo 2 for a very long time and I just couldn't get tired of the game. I'm now level 25 and I'm thankful that this game was a gift and I didn't spend the 50 on it.
My main complaint with this game is the repetitiveness. Every act has taken me to the same street, same huge building, same train tunnel and the same basement type level. Redundant? Yes! Very much. Granted they get shuffled around every time you go in, its still the same damn place! At least in Diablo 2 every Act looked different. The main storyline is pretty straight forward, and frankly I'm getting bored with it already and the side quests are also redundant and not much fun, just something to do as you're running to complete a main storyline quest.
The one thing I do enjoy is the weapons and abilities, I have a hunter, and I must complement the wide variety of arsenal at my disposal. As well as all the abilities I can "throw" at my enemies.
I made a Swordmaster to see if changing classes would keep me interested a little longer. Unfortunately I feel that's not going to help seeing as all you'll ever do it hack-and-slash. Everything to bits without much thought behind it.
The graphics are okay, nothing too stunning but not terrible either and the music is sporadic and just in the background much like it was in the Diablo games.
This game feels like it was rushed and didn't have too much thought put into it. It does not at all hold up to Diablo 2 and I would recommend you wait and see if they add some more content before picking this one up.

A futuristic London beseiged by demonic forces? Sounds like a fun environment to me, and that's the setting of Hellgate: London, the much anticipated action/RPG from EA and Flagship. Loading up on loot and upgrading your character is the name of the game, with varying classes to choose from as well that determine what view you'll be playing from, including first and third person. The action elements are outshined by the RPG elements with Hellgate: London, but make no mistake that the overall gameplay is no less addictive for it. What really hurts Hellgate: London though is that the game shows off it's best stuff, and then doesn't so anything else to match or top it. It won't be long until the various enemies start looking similar and the environments become nearly identical. There are noticable technical glitches as well in an otherwise great looking game, which only looks better if you have a DirectX 10. The game's story is also worth noting, as it tries to weave in some comical moments that don't really work too well, and all together doesn't really amount to a whole lot as well. All in all, Hellgate: London is an enjoyable, yet flawed, spin on the Diablo formula that is definitely worth checking out to be sure, but until some patches are put out, the game is better left on the shelf.

I was very optimistic that the Diablo guys would make a great game. Oh well. I got this game on release day. I have patch .5

PROS:
Lots of items
Lots of item upgrades available
Lots of character combos
Some awesome weapon functions
Great audio
Great idea

CONS:
It's unfinished, and rushed to release.
Many bugs: Graphical, gameplay, audio. It's not uncommon for you weapons to be invisible, or for your character to keep running or firing uncontrolled.
Have to read text-boxes for quests
Quest givers are boring. They're so similar, you might as well just get quests from a robotic list.
They want to sell you 'subscriber' content.
The multiplayer is weak all around. Hard to find friends, games, whatever. You might as well play Single Player.
Chat window is weak.
Ultimately disappointing. I wish it was better.

What an odd game Hellgate is. One the one hand I am terribly dissapointed. On the other hand...I can't stop playing it. I am playing as a marksman. I shall begin with the Pro's.

It has all the things which made Diablo great. A wealth of cool items and awsome stuff you can do with them. You can modify them, enchant them break them down, build them up, level your guns...the list goes on and on. And this is great fun. For a RPG freak like me, I like to be able to maniputlate my character and his gear. You can run and gun like no-bodies buisness. Wandering around an old Tube station and shooting stuff with one eye and watching tv with the other is a great way to kill a few hours. It has the undeniable "much better than doing nothing" quality and so for those of us who have to be doing something with their hands at all times, it works well. However...the cons are pounding on the door and they want in...

So this is what I didnt like.

1) Graphics. I expect better. Much better. People were being nice comparing it to HL2. Alex is much more animated that the "wa wa" speach of the dummies in this game. The monsters are fairly repetitave and once you have seem one zombie you have seen em all. I tak it back. There is female zombie, skinless zombie and fat guy zombie. Now you have seen them all. Various different kinds o demons but they are in such great numbers that the initial "hey, thats neat lookin..." quickly becomes "oh look, another one of...". The streets are a bit square lookin, rough edges are hidden by iffy art work...I might say the Graphics are comperable to Doom 3. Which was awsome in the day but does not cut it anymore. Besides, I am being nice now. I think Doom has better graphics. Which is unacceptable, especially for a game that was supposed to be of such high caliber. People will buy crap but if they are expecting to diamonds and you try to sell em crap, they are going to notice...and be displeased.

2) GET SOME VOICE ACTORS! For you main quests at least! jeeze! I feel jipped every time I have to read through a long quest description. Now for the secondary quests...meh...fine, I've played enough WOW, I can deal, I'll say ok, just text with some (fairly odd) NPC one liners. But for the main quest line, there should have been speech! It should have pulled me in, told me about the perils of hell on earth. It felt like they meant to but ran out of time or something and so slapped the script into the game and made the players read it for themselves. One the whole it takes away from my immersion in the game, the thing that you must keep.

3) Scene variety! Oh look another tunnel. yay. Now I am outside in an idendicle street. yay...with 10 identicle zombies attacking me. yay. I mean really! I know they were trying to make London, hell, as a former occupant of London myself, I was looking foward to navigating the streets, but Hell should have some variety. It dosen't. Blah.

4) Why I will never ever subscribe: In WOW when you cancel your subscribtion, your character goes on the back burner. If at some time you wish to play again, you just re-install, re-enroll and poof, your beloved level 70 is back complete with all her gear looking as ravishing as ever before. If you cancel your subscription to Hellgate, all your gear disapears. Your level 50 kung fu blade master vanishes and you have to start again at the begining. This is a criminal flaw in the buisness plan for Hellgate. You WANT US TO COME BACK!!! So Now I will never give them more of my hard earned money and consiquently, never really get involved online.

On the whole, I cannot tell a lie. The game is fun. I am still playing the single player offline version and will probably finish the game once...unless Age of Conan come out first. But it makes me sad. This game should have been more, it promised to be more! It s the spiritual sucessor to the Diablo Throne and it is a poor heir indeed. We wanted glory and got the frog prince. The game felt unfinished and poorly quality controlled. Good ideas left incomplete. It's like they sold this game to the lowest bidder. A great game made of the cheapest parts available. Makes for a cheap game. If you like killin stuff and robbing their bodies (which I do), this game has the fun. Lots of stuff to steal, lots of things to kill. If you want more, you want depth and story and voice acting and pretty varied scenes? Get Crysis or The Orange Box or Oblivion or WOW. OR Titan Quest, the REAL new Diablo.

Hellgate dropped the ball. COuld have been a masterpiece. Ended up being a time filler until Guitar Hero 3 or Conan. So Sad..

Deleting all of the negative reviews will not save this game. The setting is boring, the game play is ok. I wonder if they managed to fix all of the bugs. But i don't care to find out as i stopped playing it after lvl 20 as every single map looks the same and the game kept randomly crashing.

The future of this game is doubtful. You may not be able to play it!

From the Hellgate forums on 7/19/2008:

"It is with deep regret that I must announce that Flagship Studios has laid off most employees. However, the core management and founding team members are still at Flagship." said Bill Roper, CEO of Flagship Studios. "The past five years have been an incredible experience for us, but unfortunately, we couldn't sustain the size of the company any longer."

...

"Due to the current situation, Flagship will not be taking any new subscribers for Hellgate: London, and all current subscriptions will not be billed."