Publisher: Tri Synergy
Developer: Running with Scissors
Category: Action
Release Dates
N Amer - 12/16/2003
Intl - TBA
POSTAL 2: Share The Pain Review
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It's bad enough that you look like a strung out
heroin user, but living in a town that is overrun by trigger happy cops,
trampy women and every sort of degenerate is more then enough to make a person
a little... mental.
As if games could get any worse (morally
speaking), we are introduced to a whole new level of degredation. Postal 2 is
about as bad as a game could get. Players walk through the shoes of a
recently fired computer programmer as he goes about his daily chores while
trying to not unleash the multitudes of ammunition on the populace. Now, at
this point I should strongly recommend not playing this game while anyone
under the age of 18 is in the room. It is filled with senseless, bloody
violence, foul language, drug usage and some pretty saucy sexual themes.
Don't sweat the small stuff though, this game does it's darndest to offend
pretty much everyone. Which is one of the game's selling points obviously.
There is a strong cult following out there for over-the-top games like this
with a definitely edgy humor. The game practically screams "Freedom of
Speech!" at the critics out there who find video games to be the root of all
evil. In fact, there is a sequence in the game that has a group of
petitioners rushing the Running with Scissors studios armed to the teeth and
looking to dispense with some Tipper Gore justice.
The game just really was hard for me to take in
large doses as it really encourages you to behave badly. Don't get me wrong,
I did actually find myself grinning as the game can be quite funny at some
points. Sure, it's definitely toilet humor, but funny nonetheless. This
crude humor is tethered to game's plot which has you completing menial tasks
like, going to the grocery store or cashing a check at the bank during the day
while odd things seem to happen all around you. Of course the game encourages
you to start breaking into people's houses and looking for items (specifically
weapons) and stealing them. As a matter of fact when I first started playing,
I walked into a house and saw a stack of cash sitting there, so I took it,
angering the home's drug dealing owner who promptly started shooting at me.
Luckily I ran back outside and the gestapo-like cops came running since they
heard the shots and beat the snot out of the drug dealers while I skated away
with the cash. This little adventure set the tone for how the game should be
played... deviously.
The town itself was fairly large and had areas
that would only open up on certain days. I thought they did a good job
designing it and putting all sorts of hidden little areas and items all over.
I enjoyed the game's sense of depth and thought that graphically it looked
nice. Since the game is a first person shooter, you don't get a chance to
appreciate how your character looks unless you find a mirror. As the Postal
Dude, you certainly look the part of a burnt out, drug using rocker and you
definitely fit in with the town hellish citizens. A couple of celebrity
characters eventually show up and look relatively good. Yes, for all you
D'ifferent Strokes fans out there, you can shoot Gary Coleman in the head.
Yes, the game encourages you to be as violent as possible and to create as
much mayhem and hell raising as possible. At one point I pulled out a gas can
and set fire to the game company that fired me's computers... after I put a
bullet into the CEO's head.
Look, this game is only for the adults and should
be pulled out when you are in the appropriate "mood" as it can leave an
interesting taste in your mouth. But it should really be appreciated for it's
outlandish "dirty" humor and it's celebration of the First Ammendment.
Gameplay: 7.1
A relatively easy to control FPS game. A couple
of extra buttons allow for some finger stretches while gunning down escaped
mental patients but for the most part it is an easily navigated game.
Graphics: 7.3
Not bad, I thought the town was designed well and
the character molds seemed to work with the game dynamic. I wasn't thrilled
with how the weapons looked as they sat there, but looked a bit better when in
the hands of the Dude.
Sound: 6.8
The Postal Dude's voice does not seem to fit his
look. I expected a dirtier/seedier voice with some edge. The voice they gave
him was not too bad, it's just I thought it should have had a more worn sound
to it, the way maybe a person would sound if they spent most of their life
ingesting illegal substances.
Difficulty: Medium
I didn't think the game would be hard, but then I
kept getting killed doing mundane tasks. And taking on the entire Police
Force was not as easy as I had hoped it would be.
Concept: 8.0
The idea is fairly original in the sense that the
game isn't at all complicated. You merely take a character through his daily
tasks over the span of a week. Of course awful things happen to the people
who come in contact with your character, but hey, that's the point of the
game.
Overall: 7.2
A game that should be reviled and admired at the
same time. I kept wanting to despise the game but found myself playing
it more and more.
GameZone Reviews
7.2
GZ Rating
| Gameplay | 7.1 |
| Graphics | 7.3 |
| Sound | 6.8 |
| Difficulty | Medium |
| Concept | 8 |
| Overall | 7.2 |
Makes you feel all warm inside... Oh wait that's a gunshot wound to the gut.
Reviewer: Mike David
Review Date: 01/22/2004
Avg. Web Rating
6.5
