I beat Expedition 33 and was shocked/delighted to find that the game’s finish was as strong as the game’s start and the game’s middle.
If you’re still on the fence, know that the game is one of the best I’ve played since somewhere around Fallout: New Vegas. The story is good, the characters are good, the universe is good, the combat is good, the exploration is good, the reveal is good, and the *FINISH* is good.
After this point we’re going to get into some mild spoilers and so if you want to avoid even mild spoilers, just get the game (it’s currently 10% off!) and boggle at how good it is.
Still here? Okay.
I’ve played games where the whole game is pretty good and then you get to the end and the game just decides to give you the worst ending ever (Mass Effect 3) and the conclusion is *SO* bad that it not only sours the whole game, but Mass Effect and Mass Effect 2. Man, I am *STILL* mad about Mass Effect 3’s ending. THEY INTRODUCED A CHARACTER WHO SOLVES EVERYTHING IN THE FINAL ACT!!! ARISTOTLE COMPLAINED ABOUT THAT SORT OF THING BACK IN 335 BC!!!
Well, another finish that I’d like to complain about is The Last of Us 2. I touched on it in my review back in 2023:
Personally, I think that (The Last of Us 2) did a good job of undercutting itself at the tail end. I think that the game should have switched over from being a railroad game to giving the players a choice:
Would you prefer to play as Ellie or would you prefer to play as Abby? And then play as that person.
Then, in the final confrontation, ask “Are you going to pull the trigger?” and then explore what happens if you do. Or explore what happens if you do not.
Heck, they could have kept a record of which ending was the most popular and then chose that particular ending as the “canon” for The Last of Us 3. “68% of our players chose to play as (character). 78% of them chose to (not) pull the trigger.” The artist creates the universe and the player participates and, as a group, the world is established. Man, that’d be awesome.
Well, at the end of Expedition 33, the artists have the protagonist and the antagonist have a conversation. The antagonist makes a speech. The protagonist makes a speech.
AND THEN THE GAME ASKS YOU TO PICK WHO YOU WANT TO PLAY. Do you want to play assuming that “This Argument” is the stronger? Or do you want to play assuming that “That Argument” is the stronger? And then after any remaining disagreements are resolved, you see the consequences of your choice.
When the game told me to choose, I actually froze up for a bit. There was the ending that I wanted… but there was also the ending that I knew was the correct one. And I had to pick between the two. (I’m thinking about going back to a save and looking at the other one later today.)
All in all: This game is one of the most satisfying I’ve played in years and years and years. Good bones, good organs, good muscle, good skin. And, at the end of the game, it asks you what you want to do.
Wow. What a great game.
So… what are you playing?
It’s on my list but I haven’t had much time for gaming. What I’ve had I’ve spent on the Oblivion remaster which has been a lot of fun.
Steam Sale!
Ugh. Fine.
I picked up: Ballionaire, Spelunky, The Ten Bells, and Killer Frequency.
Went back to play NG+ and… everything is the same and everything is different.
Speeches that didn’t make sense the first time around now make perfect sense. Attitudes that I thought were one way are now attitudes that come from a completely different place.
It’s a rich game that rewards a second playthrough… this is a dang good game.