Review in Progress: Redfall

destructoid.com:

Redfall starts off in a curious place. Within the first moments of the game, the player is shown a montage of the little town’s downfall. Creatures of the night begin to fester and swarm, soon locking the town in with bloodsucking beasts, the cult that worships them, and the security contractors hired to cover it all up. A towering vampiress with a haloed visage holds you by the throat, telling you of big plans currently brewing, as the sun emerges outside.

The latest game from Arkane starts off strong. But as the days and nights go on in Redfall , I’m finding myself running up against its layout over and over. Some aspects are inventive twists on the four-player co-op shooter. But in both gameplay and technical aspects, it’s falling short of what I had hoped for.

Redfall (PC [Reviewed], Xbox Series X|S)Developer: Arkane AustinPublisher: Bethesda Softworks Release: May 1, 2023 MSRP: $69.99 (also on Game Pass)

In about 12 hours of Redfall played over the weekend, I’ve managed to clear the first of its two distinct hub areas and get a decent way into the second. From the start, the player gets to pick their character to play as, which defines their skill set moving forward. 

If you like gadgets with cool effects, try out Davinder. If you prefer some mobility and like the idea of ringing up a vampire ex-boyfriend to help you out, Layla’s your pick. Because I like to help out a bit and wanted free healing, I went with Remi, whose robot helper Bribón can distract enemies and provide a second ring of her healing circle. Each character brings something a little different to Redfall , and the initial diversity is promising.

In practice, however, it hits some snags. Redfall will feel familiar to other Arkane