Review of The Order: 1886
A version of this game adapted for The Order: 1886 Review was introduced to users by the developer, Ready at Dawn, in 2015. Critics were mostly sceptical of the game, some even downright hostile. How justified is this negative perception of the novelty?
Description
Ready at Dawn is not the kind of game that steals weeks, or even months, of gamers’ lives. The total duration of the game is 10 hours. But the developers had enough time to show the very impressive game’s universe, the neo-Victorian England they created and the characters, each of which is rather vivid and colourful.
The plot of The Order: 1886
Created by the imagination of the game’s writers, an alternate England is controlled by a certain powerful Order of the Round Table. The protagonist of the narrative is Sir Galahad – a knight without fear and reproach, selflessly defending London from half-breed beasts, revolutionaries and other “undesirables”. But over time, the character’s attitude to the surrounding reality changes, in particular, he realizes that the half-breed beasts are sentient creatures, desperate to survive in this not particularly friendly to them world. Attitudes towards them change accordingly.
The game’s advantages
The game is also good because there are no “clumsy” one-note characters – either unambiguously positive or repulsively negative. For example, the initially repulsive Marquis Lafayette becomes a knight, transforming into a decent human being. And the main “bad boy” of the game turns out to be a character with a very dramatic biography, turned liar and schemer, as he went too far in his generally noble quest to help other half-breeds survive.
Cons of The Order: 1886
A number of critics have called The Order: 1886 a parody of Gears of War. Undoubtedly, there are some similarities between these two games, but The Order: 1886 is not a thoughtless epigone. The brainchild of Ready at Dawn has excellent gameplay mechanics with a number of innovative and very fresh solutions. In particular, the choice of weapons and combat are pleasantly surprising. Weapons are offered as corresponding to the realities of our 1886, and invented by the developers, such as thermite cannons, electrical “unloaders” and other excitable solutions.
The further the player progresses through the difficulty levels, the more interesting tasks he is asked to complete. There are sabotage missions where you have to sneak into enemy camps and silently destroy them with a crossbow. Other spectacular missions take place in open areas like a large merchant ship.
Combat
As far as the combat goes, some of the boss battles could have been a little brighter. However, this is compensated for by excellent graphics with an interesting storyline and excellent gameplay. The visuals, which are a bizarre hybrid of art nouveau and steampunk, simply mesmerizes and delights.
It is therefore a shame that the project has been abandoned as of today, and the developers are unlikely to get their hands on a sequel.
