Visual Presentation
Starting with an engine like the powerful next generation UnrealEngine, right away you expect the best. Devastation starts off strong with good production values: a nice splash screen and a serviceable (if not plain and a little clunky) menu system. But that's not what gamers care about, it's the world you get to immerse yourself in. What about that, right? Well, here's the rundown.
The models in devastation are generally very well done. The weapon models, in particular are very strong and have superb animations. Many weapons can be held Akimbo style (one in each hand) and even reloading animations take that into account! Very detailed, very satisfying.
The player and NPC skins are a mixed bag. Some are stronger than others. But overall, considering that you may see upwards of a dozen or more animated models running around firing away onscreen at any one time, the modest detail is understandable. Don't get me wrong, they are nicely done... some are truly outstanding. Just don't expect to see UT2003 level of detail for each and every one of your comrades or enemies.
All of the levels in the game stick to real world type settings: Docks, medical buildings, insane asylums, prisons, corporate headquarters, and the aforementioned sewers. Some, however, take on a distinctive Chinatown edge. Lots of great signs, strings of lights, paper lanterns, anime posters and dolls. One thing you cannot accuse Devastation of is a lack of detail. Everything you can think of in a setting is going to be there. Whether it's coke cans, moldy pizza, magazines, bottles, gas cans, virtually anything... (to borrow a phrase) it's in the game. Most of the stuff can be interacted with too. Karma Math Engine physics allow most anything to be picked up, knocked over, thrown, or scattered. It's obvious this "new world" doesn't believe in trash collection. Even though it does serve to further the atmosphere, I found no use for any of it. Not even to distract the enemy as I've heard people suggest (more on that later).
The level designs are always interesting, always diverse, and best of all... almost always have a few ways to reach your goal. That's the best part for me. I love deciding which route makes the most tactical sense. Plenty of humor in them too... from the funny signs hidden around several maps, to the thug you surprise as he's taking a whizz in the street. Big thumbs up to the level designers here. There is some top Unreal community talent at work here, including Chris 'Plutonic' Blundell, Eric 'Ebolt' Boltjes, Phil 'willhaven' Cole, Sean "devilbunny" Bonney, and John 'AngelHeart' Falgate.
I did notice a couple of odd things that I must address here. The lighting could be better on some of the maps. Many of them were appropriately dark (hey, how bright is a sewer system anyway?), but others just looked a little flat. As a result, the brighter lit levels stood out a bit more for me. You can draw your own conclusions from the screenshots (I did adjust the gamma on a few of the darker shots). The other oddity was the behavior of some of the Karma objects. They sometimes sank right into the floor, or could be tossed through glass (unbroken), or just stuck in mid-air. This never created a gameplay problem, but the immersiveness of the game suffered as a result. I also found a few places where your player model just gets stuck in between the door and the wall (pictured) or just between level geometry. So if you're the kind of player who likes to see just where he/she can or can't go, keep this in mind: typing "ghost" in the console will allow you to escape from the situation and fly through whatever object is in the way and typing "walk" in the console will allow you to resume normal gameplay without having to restart a level. One last thing - one of my teamates became stuck and I finally freed him by pelting him with chairs and boxes. No other amount of cajoling would move him from the roost he took up on a stairway handrail.
The weapon selection system consists of a block of your screen with an opaque outline of each weapon you are holding. The weapons are selectable by using your mousewheel. Very intuitive and very easy. The weapon block, thankfully, stays hidden until you use it and then it fades out again. You can also use the Half-Life approach: weapons grouped by type, selectable by multiple button presses For example, pressing 1 selects the first hand-to-hand-weapon you have. Pressing it again selects the next hand to hand weapon. Pressing 2 gets you the first handgun, and so on. The HUD also features the life-saving Global Positioning System, directing you to the next objective and helping you to keep track of your team and enemies.