Mad Max in Close Critique [Major Spoilers]
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- Опубліковано 28 вер 2024
- This is a long-form video critique of the new Mad Max game by Avalanche. It looks at the game in terms of how it draws inspiration from the movies that preceded it, how it actually plays, and why critical opinions about Mad Max have been so thoroughly mixed. MAJOR SPOILERS THROUGHOUT, including an extended discussion of the ending.
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My favorite part of Relics is that many have a voice line. Often you'll have to flip the picture to read the back, then flip it back over for Max to talk.
+InfernalDalek I think finding relics and exploring is by far more rewarding than the main story in every way.
Beyond Thunderdome had problems because George Miller's friend Byron Kennedy, who was also a producer since the first Mad Max, died while scouting locations for the film. Miller almost dropped out. Eventually, he directed half the film and had a friend direct the rest.
Also, when they made Fallout, they had Mad Max constantly being played around the office.
Fallout 1 even has a dog companion - the original Dogmeat - who is designed after Max's dog from _The Road Warrior._ You find him in Junktown in a shack, with two people trying to get him out but he's too mean and scares them. One of them says his owner went out to get some supplies and never came back, probably died. Their description of his owner is dead-on for Mad Max. And the only way to get Dogmeat out and as your companion, is to give him some jerky...OR to approach him while wearing the game's "Leather Armour." And that armour....just so happens to make your character look PRECISELY like Mad Max circa _Mad Max 2: The Road Warrior._
I like how the game describes Max's shotgun as reliable, when it's two most prominent moments in the film are both of it not working.
Sean McDonald isn't that the point? I assumed that it was a fun jab that it never works in the films.
The gun works perfectly fine. Its the SHELLS that are unreliable.
You mean when he had no ammo at all or when the shells turned out to be duds? Learn a little.
Oh-not-the-bees people don’t know how firearms work. Smh.
It only had like 3 misfires ever in the series
I did the exact same thing when I finished this game. Looked at the car and the environment one last time, then drove off into the distance until I died.
Fantastic critique, I doubt that there's much I can offer which hasn't already been brought up at this point; but since you didn't mention it in the video I have to ask: did you catch on to the fact that post-credits gameplay takes place entirely in Max's head? How everyone and the Magnum Opus 'bring back' was a result of him deluding himself into believing he hadn't done what he did?
Occasionally when you're in one of the strongholds one of the NPC's may randomly transform into Hope or Glory to insult him, or directly refer to their deaths as having been his fault. The playable epilogue feels weird and disconnected by design: Max has literally gone Mad by that point.
The shift in sound design immediately gives it away. Things feel oddly muffled and not quite right. I suppose the only reason Noah didn't notice was that he had his volume turned down and, as he says in the video, didn't have anything left to do after the end credits, quitting mere moments into the epilogue.
I have noticed the post-credits gameplay, which also had no sound. I thought it was some kind of glitch. Now I am convinced it was by design. Though I don't remember any NPCs randomly transforming into Hope or Glory, maybe the voice actresses are the same, but the in-game models for both of them are unique and I would definitely notice that.
OH. MY. GOD.
So, I was pounding through the game several years ago, and the post credits "reset" was extremely jarring and frustrating for me, after what felt like the big emotional sacrifice of Chum and the Magnum Opus. I had never picked up on it all being in his head. God I need to go back and replay it again; the more I hear about more people talking about it, the more I realize it really is an underappreciated, if flawed, masterpiece.
What's weird is I started the Mad Max game the same week I watched The Road Warrior for the first time and immediately saw numerous extremely specific similarities.
Thanks to your critique I played a beautiful game I would have totally missed. I did not have the same experience with the scrap amounts. I found that the regular deliveries of scrap from the captured outposts, occasional Srapulances, plus scrounging up 3x100 scrap bundles in storms had me upgrading the Magnum Opus regularly right to the end. I did however find lowering Jeet's threat rating to 0 tedious so I didn't bother doing that busywork for other areas. I also followed in your footsteps and drove my trusty Magnum Opus into the wild blue yonder in search of the Plains of Silence and, even having seen it in the video, found it tremendously satisfying as a "true" ending. Once again, thanks a million.
Is not tedious if you don't look for the signs at all and just destroy them as you happen to come across them around your travels through the main missions. Just a quick ramming attack and done. If you feel lazy you can leave the 10± scrap pieces and continue your way.
LOL. Everyone describes the original Mad Max film the same way: "a motorcycle gang kills Max's family and he takes his revenge." This entire bit is literally the last 10 minutes of the movie. The first hour and a half, while having some iconic visuals and a few good stunts, is a meandering mess which is more about Goose than Max.
The Road Warrior is a freaking masterpiece, on the other hand.
that was the movie though....
it starts out with high speed chicken then the motor gang comes in for revenge, terrorizes a town and when Max feels the pressure is too much and he's losing it he takes a vacation to the terrorized town unknowingly and suffers for it, then the last half of the movie.....it might be a slow build to get there but that was the movie....Goose and what happens at the cop shop, all the legal system BS is backdrop, not important, the important thing was Max was one of the last decent guys in a dead world that got chewed up and spat out, that's the real crime lol
Road Warrior was a masterpiece cus now Max is hardened, his dog is the only person he can trust, he drives, fights and kills all raiders he sees, he's the best wasteland warrior there is....then the stuff with the gas, why'd he take the decoy truck? cus it was a tactical decision, he likely knew there was nothing out there and decided to stay so he could kill more raiders lol and Thunderdome well yeah the stuff with the kids was bizarre but I think thematically it was him getting in touch with his inner child?? nahh.....a bad dream? perhaps but again it repeats a theme from Road Warrior, a group leaving the wastes and Max staying behind in a way I bet what that means is Max was given 2 chances to seek balance and inner peace but was unable to see the truth of it
Disagree with this.
I always like Mad Max for it's indy filmness and as the precursor to the second film. But I gained new appreciation for it when a friend made the observation that it is actually more a horror movie than a revenge/action tale.
The horror in the case of Mad Max (the first film) isn't a serial killer or a supernatural monster. It's the breaking down and de-evolution of society. In that way it shows something we don't often see.
We see a lot of post-apocalyptic tales. Stories taking place years after the apocalypse where humans struggle to survive and rebuild. Or we see fast apocalyptic tales where everything goes wrong at once as in a zombie apocalypse or nuclear war or some natural disaster.
But Mad Max (the first film) shows the horror of a slow-motion apocalypse of a degrading society caught in some downward spiral. Of the de-evolution of laws and rules and morals that we rely upon to peacefully live together. The functions of human society are breaking down and the characters of the first film are journeying through it without perhaps completely realizing what is happening overall.
I loved the first movie! I especially loved how each movie was very different.
"This game is 40 hours of scouring a forsaken desert for car parts. 0/10"
"This game is 40 hours of scouring a forsaken desert for car parts. 10/10"
Mad Max the game is an exact example in how jarringly unique some tastes can be, to a point where they fail to be taken into account by those who don't dare venture beyond the safe boundries of what they perceive to be normalcy.
3:43 It IS a game about what Max does 'between movies', but not really what Max does between MM1 and MM2, this is very much a 'what Max did after Thunderdome' sort of experience. That said, I would LOVE it if Avalanche made a sequel to this set after MM1, or shall we say, using the themes and iconography of that era: the bikee gangs, the 'comfy apocalypse' vibe, leading up to where we are when we meet Pappagallo.
Either an overview of Baldurs Gate or KOTOR would be INCREDIBLE!
+Salokin Sekwah I'd love to see him talking about KOTOR II's restored content mod.
+Salokin Sekwah KOTOR!
+Salokin Sekwah He should talk about Planescape: Torment too.
+Salokin Sekwah Baldur's Gate and Baldur's Gate 2!
+Salokin Sekwah How about "Infinity Engine games and their spiritual successors"?
I didn’t know there was a game, so I thought I was clicking on a Noah Caldwell-Gervais movie review for a second.
Oh Hell yeah! I've been missing you too much
This game actually takes place BEFORE Fury Road.
+Pure Paradise Then what's the deal with Scabrous Scrotus being *in* Fury Road?
no was not? Erectus was in fury road,
madmax.wikia.com/wiki/Rictus_Erectus
+Pure Paradise I'm genuinely astonished that these are supposed to be two different characters.
lol yeah i know.
+Pure Paradise Yeah. It HAS to take place before Fury Road, since the Interceptor gets destroyed during the final car chase in the movie.
Also, it would have been interesting (and possibly thematically appropriate) to have a Magnum Opus(Chumbucket) v. Interceptor(Mad Max) final boss fight. You could say the rejection of the Magnum Opus is another abandonment reminiscent of the other Mad Max films: a return to the wasteland Mad Max knows as home.
Despite being a big fan of the movies it somehow took me 5 years to play the game. Honestly it was worth the wait: like the Magnum Opus the game is more than the sum of its parts.
I love this game. In spite of it's flaws, I'm one of those weirdos who enjoys busywork in a game sometimes. I know it seems a bit off and off kilter, but sometimes I like a game that's visual pleasing with fairly solid core mechanics and just tick off that checklist. Usually I'll have a movie playing on the other screen, something I've probably seen quite literally one-hundred plus times, and just go at it and enjoy the mundane nature of it all.
Just to note, I will say that the core game play loop is a fairly solid core. While the story is incredibly mediocre, it's a solid core and it's issues are more or less forgivable. Then again, I may just be looking to justify my 87 hour playtime.
Mad Max's movies: Folks stories told about Mad Max in the world of Mad Max.
Mad Max the game: Being Mad Max in the world of Mad Max.
I think game developers should employ you as a consultant to give their sometimes perplexing brainstorms some focus and direction! I wish many a follower upon you!
That's what I've thought of most reasonable content creators. Their job involves getting really intimate with the game, but from an outsiders perspective. For any creator, an outside perspective is invaluable, so having these focused people providing that would be even more so.
software developers are very proud, making criticizing anything they put work into like a minefield, and so very often they turn away or ignore useful, critical feedback. Often times, the conversation ends with them firmly stating you are wrong, they are right and ghosting you shortly after.
It's too bad you've never done anything console related, because I'd love to see your take on the Twisted Metal series, particularly Twisted Metal: Black, which is one of the most absurdly dark games ever.
I think you may be overthinking it. Max is... Mad. You know. After everything he has lost he just wants to be left alone and find somewhere to be at peace and reconstruct his mind. And because that place doesn't exist, he made it up in his mind. He is trying to reach an illusion. Another problem is, he wants to do it by himself, and that can't work because we are social creatures, we need each other. Unless he learns to let things go he will always be the mad, mad Max that wanders around the desert, fighting for survival, and sometimes for a good cause if the opportunity comes across. Is a curse.
Certainly one of the best game reviews I've ever seen. It sums up my experience with the game almost perfectly. Amazing work!
Your videos have become some of my favorite videos on youtube. I just sit down with a drink and relax to your fascinating and insightful look at what really are works of art in their own right, an art form I've enjoyed since childhood. You seem like someone I would have greatly enjoyed talking with as I grew up, experiencing the entire plethora of games out there and seeing them in new ways as my life experience and age grew. Keep up the outstanding work mate, I'm going to see what i can scrounge together to help you out on Patreon.
"Zen and the Art of Motorcycle Maintenence" _and_ "A Canticle for Leibowitz" - Two properly special books!
- (to this day I wish someone would publish the famed visionary mass of notes ( nearly 2 decades worth) that later became reduced into "Lila" - the labyrinthine sequel to 'Zen').
- Both books have deep wells of Human experience, *Well* worth checking into.
Noah : If you enjoy 'Canticle' maybe you'd like "Riddley Walker" by Russel Hoban : for me it's just the perfect Post apocalyptic novel.
- Also "Wool" by Hugh Howey, if you Love Fallout (and the paranoiac head-space of those trapped in a 'Vault' after the end of the world)
- Deeply Enjoyable!!
Overall, a very good and thorough look at the game; however, having made a couple of these types of videos myself now I want to respectfully offer two suggestions.
The first is directly related to the content in this video. You talk about the movies a lot. I haven't gone through and timed it or anything, but I feel comfortable in saying that roughly half of the video was devoted to comparisons made between the games and the films, especially the first three. I think that the video would have greatly benefited from having scenes from the movies shown while you were discussing them or, at the very least, played the quotes that you instead chose to read. This was the first video of yours that I watched and I was unimpressed by the opening 10 minutes or so because there were no examples on the screen to match with what you were saying. The video becomes drastically better right after that, when you start discussing the gameplay mechanics and have examples to show. That was done very well and I think the rest of the video could have been just as good.
The second suggestion might come across as a little impolite, but it's coming from a good place. You are nearing 20,000 subscribers and a patreon support dollar figure of almost 2 grand a month. There are multiple moments in this video where you stumble over your words to the point of momentarily repeating yourself. Your tone is quite serious and professional. I imagine it's one of the big draws for people who enjoy your videos. It should only take a minute or so to realize you've fumbled a sentence. Stopping to rerecord shouldn't take much time to do.
The rest of the video was fantastic. Your observations are insightful and you took the time to match it with video footage from the game. I also want to praise your willingness to comment positively on a game's graphics--this is something that many youtube critics ignore, probably because it's likely erroneously seen as shallow compared to something more "literary" like the game's major themes or story.
I disagree with your comments about the game restoring its open world to the player after beating the story. The message that pops up is artificial and a clear indicator that this is something that is out of context of the game's plot and just there so people can safely resume all of the optional content without having to start again, or hope that they have a previous save somewhere. I can definitely see where you're coming from and, although I disagree, I think it was a noteworthy observation.
I'll be sure to check out your other videos. Good stuff. All the best.
+Joseph Anderson some people actually like his flubs staying in, say it goes along with the DIY feel of the videos
+Joseph Anderson Just want to make clear, again, that the low production values on these videos are important. They offset a lot of the temptation for viewers to find them "pretentious," while also setting them apart from less-pretentious UA-cam fare, which tends to be over-produced to offset dearth of content.
Odds are you (Noah) already know this, but I just want to reinforce the perspective. The word-stumbling, throat-clearing, DIY openings, minimal editing, all create invaluable tonal familiarity & make your works more accessible - something their length & depth threatens to make problematic.
Joseph Anderson legends interacting. Nice
I just feel like two nerd gods clashed. I still can’t stand up.
Nooooooo, the lack of extreme production polish really makes this channel stand out. Its got its own style, but the style doesn't overshadow the substance. Its comes across as more conversational than having someone obviously edit each line for effect, which is generally distracting.
An unsatisfying ending that puts you right back where you stared? Perfection.
the idea that this game and these films are a mythical patchwork assembled from ideas common to each of them reminds of dark souls and the way that those games also deal with figurative echoes - characters and archetypes appearing in different games; some of them with different names and appearances, and others who are more or less the same every time. i wouldn't assume that mad max was any sort of influence there, but berserk most certainly was and it's much easier to suggest that berserk was inspired by mad max (along with conan the barbarian, hellraiser, etc).
i might finally have to play this.
You should give the movies a watch if you haven't. But I can only recommend The Road Warrior and Fury Road, since Mad Max hasn't aged well at all, and Beyond Thunderdome was mediocre.
Fuck yeah, Canticle for Leibowitz! That novel needs to be read, studied, and taught as often as 1984, Fahrenheit 451, and Brave New World. It's equally important for understanding western civilization.
Double tapping the button to switch to the sniper while in the car will put you into a first person driving perspective. While often impractical, playing the game this way added a lot to the immersion of the Max simulator for me.
Thanks for your well voiced thoughts man!
I miss when u made videos like this man, relatively short but exhaustive, full of character, with heaps of nostalgic value... it was nice to see your soulsborne videos but please go back to content that u can make once a month
Here at the 7 year anniversary. Thank you, sir!
I've been a sub for awhile and though I can not contribute at this time to yah, I do love your work and please continue. Your work is something I like to listen to in the long tired hours of the sleepy morning.
Honestly i cared about Chumbucket lot more then about whatever their names were. And actually felt bad when Max betrayed him.
The video game seems to have one foot set in the film continuity, and the other in a sort of semi-self-contained continuity.
For me, this game actually works as a bridge between _Mad Max 3: Beyond Thunderdome_ and _Mad Max: Fury Road._ The thing Max is lugging along before getting robbed at the start of _Thunderdome_ is the ruined remains of The V8 Intercepter after having to blow it in _The Road Warrior._ By the end, he's left alone at the home of the guy who took his stuff. It can be assumed he recovered that stuff, rebuilt his car, and went off as the wastes became more and more Falloutian. And then this game happens - in fact, there are characters that Max meets here who then die in the game, and in _Fury Road,_ they're actually some of the people he hallucinates when freaking out about those he couldn't save beyond his wife and kid. By the end of this game, he's gotten The Interceper back and fucks off into the wastes after having made war with and killed Scabbarus Scrotus - the son and a Liutenent of Immortan Joe.
And that brings us to the beginning of _Fury Road._ Max has continued to roam endlessly but with nowhere to go, all he's really done is come into further conflict with Immortan Joe's vast armies - no doubt also pissed about the death of his son and lieutenant and loss of territory. So Max takes a moment to chill, now with long hair and beard, when the soldiers of Immortan Joe whose army has been hunting him relentlessly since the end of this game. So he hops into his car to try and outrun them. And thus begins _Mad Max: Fury Road._
Badda-bing-badda-boom. There is now a throughline connecting _Mad Max, Mad Max 2: Fury Road, Mad Max 3: Beyond Thunderdome, Mad Max: The Video Game,_ and _Mad Max: Fury Road._
Keep up the good work, I'm studying games design and thoroughly enjoy your videos.
I adored this game in its best moments, while admittedly finding its open endedness bordering on pointlessness here and there. Still, in the moment, I was treated to an experience combining all my pleasant memories of Twisted Metal, Interstate 82, and even a little fallout, juxtaposed with extremely beautiful aesthetic presentation made for a highly enjoyable experience for me. The biggest misstep of the game in my opinion is the limited number of convoys. Once these epic encounters are gone, a good chunk of fun feels abscent suddenly for no good reason. It feels arbitrary, but perhaps necessary in some game mechanic consideration. But by the time your asking that, the immersion and fun is hurt for it. Still, at its core, this game tries very hard to offer an approachable, beautiful, brutal and geographically massive, finally giving me a lot of aspects i often had over multiple titles over several decades, rolled up into one package. For a generation that tends to heavily to its detriment at times focus on quality over quantity, this game presented me with both in jaw dropping abundance. No it isnt witcher 3,but lets be honest, its a movie tie in game, directly or indirectly. This could have been waaaay worse and you all know it.
I was on board with this all the way until you said you hadn't played any of the 'new' Batman games, by which I can only assume you mean everything from Arkham Asylum forward. I think the vast, vast majority of the critics reviewing this game will have already experienced the combat system in those Batman games, if not Shadow of Mordor and the more recent Assassin's Creed releases too. I guess it shouldn't be surprising that you enjoyed the combat in this game given your situation since Arkham Asylum laid out a really fantastic set of melee combat mechanics, but surely you cannot begrudge reviewers holding it against the game when they have probably played multiple games with identical combat in the past five years.
+Jamsque i agree with you. the combat is miss compared to Arkham games. and holding buttons during combat is the worst thing they added. they should've at least made picking weapons from the ground by pressing.
+BackDack His point with not scaling scrap is for me personally a gamebreaker i will not pick this game up, unless it can be moded to scale. Also his 145k scrap number is a thing this game should be punished in ervery review for, because it does not rspect the player and the time investment. In conclusion with the final plot i have my doubts if i will be always playing this game to completion.
+Hans Peter It's actually just 45k, which is still an outrageous figure considering the size of scrap bundles.
Ok, thanks for the right number :)
+Hans Peter yea i totally agree. I also think that they missed an opportunity with the survival gameplay. Water for health doesnt seem like enough there should have been a water and food meter present. Also im not a fan of chum being essentially part of the car. Its a single player experience i dont think he needed a sidekick it should be mostly silence when youre exploring the wasteland.
actually there's been a mad max game back on the NES, but I can't blame you for not knowing, it's pretty shit
also a totally-not-madmax game on genesis and snes called OutLander
another excellent review. you're a videogame priest to me, i hear each sermon wholeheartedly. guide us through the dark, father.
Damn man, I love the way you talk about games in general. I can sit still and watch you talk about a game I'm not even interested in and love it! :D
Griffa would have worked much better if he was explicitly revealed as a hallucination once Max started getting his shit together and making the decision to reclaim his humanity.
You my man are a true legend. Always listen to your videos when going to sleep and just wanted to say Thank you. Really some of the best content on UA-cam. Greetings from Germany
I will admit that a Mad Max game review was not what I was expecting from you Noah. I don't mean that as a if it were a problem, simply that prior to really thinking about it, this didn't strike me as the sort of game you would play. Either way your review is fantastic and insightful as they always are and I very much enjoyed it. Looking forward towhat you do moving forward as always.
It's three decades between Thunderdome and Fury Road, not two :) Great analysis, as always.
As an old MM fan, where do you people get these numbers from? I mean yeah I have read what you said on a wikia before but really? The chronology of the first movies makes kinda some sense but fury road? 30 years after thunderdome? almost as weird as that thing i heard of it taking place right after the first movie. all I can find is a handful of non-commital comments by george miller which make no allusions to dates whatsoever. he won't even commit to his old continuity only making vague remarks along the way... not to be rude. just wondering...
I can absolutely agree with your sentiment on the ending of this game. It felt so contrived, stupid, pointless and just generally poorly written and thought out that it was highly frustrating and completely made me regret playing the game through to the end. They really should have done Chum better imho since he really was the most likeable character in the game.
Stellar work as always, Noah. There are very few people who can critique a game I haven't played and still keep me engaged and fascinated. DFTBA.
Ah man, so happy to see a new video posted but it's from a game I'm currently playing and haven't finished yet. I can't wait to get that done so I can watch this.
Just want to point out something. About 23 minutes into your video, you speak of the Gyro Captain and Jedediah as if they are the same person. George Miller has made it very clear in the wake of Fury Road that just because the same actor appears in two different films does not necessarily mean they are playing the same character. The Gyro Captain and Jedediah are two different men. This is especially obvious when you stop to remember that the good guys in Mad Max 2 left a wasteland to travel to what they were under the impression was a beachy tropical paradise whilst Beyond Thunderdome takes place in what is essentially the same wasteland.
Nonetheless, I am going to give the game another try. Your review has motivated me to reassess it.
Just a note, it's been said offically that the game is a prequel not a sequel, that's why your fully upgraded outfit resembles the outfit from the beginning of Fury Road.
I agree with most of the vid, excelent points bro. The environments are really breathtaking, I just played it a few months ago, 3 years after release and found it astonishing. One of the few times I've actually stopped and gawked at the scenery. I also found the ending infuriating, was that really the best they could do? "Everyone is fine again! Finish your checklist!". They could at least ask you if you wanted to keep playing, so as to not leave the sour taste.
I feel the ending also violates the mythic arc of Max in the movies. He fights so long to pull himself back up into humanity again, and at the end of the game, throws it all away, including all his/the player's work on the Opus, including his only real friend, for what? A gesture? A dramatic "fuck you" that doesn't even stick? I actually wrote the publishers about that, because until that moment, Mad Max was actually threatening to unseat Fallout as my favorite game version of a post-apocalypse.
Mechanically, though, the end of the entire third act is a mess.
-The Gastown race: the game should have been teaching you all along how to drive in circumstances like that. Tight curves, lots of obstacles, no shortcuts. The race is not a measure of the driving skills you have developed and built up the Opus for, it is a one-off, and because it is so different from literally all the other gameplay--even the races!--it was an hours-long slog for me.
-The convoy fight was amazing, and felt like we had been trained for this by the game itself, in stark contrast to the Gastown race. My only wish was that it had spanned the map and had ALL the bad guys, AND that the warlords you helped along the way would have come in as support. But that's just me wishlisting, not criticizing. That this part was so good only highlights how terrible the previous race was, as well as the disaster that was...
-The fight with Scrotus. Ostensibly, the Top Dogs should have been prep for that fight. The fact they were palette swaps of the same dude would have been forgivable if that Scrotus fight had been like those, just ramped up. I would have been delighted to have twenty minutes to punch in his fucking face for everything he had done (to me, to my car, to Chum, to the wasteland, and oh yeah, to Hope and Glory). The melee really is gratifying in Mad Max, and all I wanted to do was go in full-on rage mode on that bastard, and what did I get? A bizarre fight with me throwing boomsticks at MY INTERCEPTOR (after the Opus is toast, mind) while dodge-rolling out of the way, and then a fucking quick-time event. A QTE? Where the hell did that come from?! Yeah, I'm still sore about that.
-And then unlocking free play for no discernible goal other than sandboxing, with all the good toys and nothing to use them on that matters, like you said.
And that's sad, because honestly, again, overall this is one of my favorite games, and I hate almost everything about the ending. Still love the game.
Great review, and on point! Subbed.
Excellent piece, been missing these.
Keep it up.
The funniest thing is when you enter the car from the left side too often and Chumbucket expresses his concerns about your sanity.
Noah, your videos are so damned good. Hats off!
This game's so underrated. I loved it.
Of course I love the films too.
Noah I love your review you as well as Matthew Matosis are absolutely brilliant.
reviews*
Very cool review, one thing though the character's name as Pappagallo and it was implied this was his surname with his first never being spoken. Keep up the good work, you've got a new subscriber.
You're great man. Keep doing an awesome job
Hey man, great to see another video from you. Take all the time you need to make them though, don't burn yourself out.
Thanks for the video Noah, you're the best!
Never choose a girl over your car, or you'll lose them both. Better to keep your car; you can always find a new girl, as long as you still have a car.
Late to the party but:
Mad Max feels more like a Fallout game than Fallout 4.
First new upload since I subbed. Fantastic video!
I always look forward to your videos, they're great!
Noah! You're back! :D
Also, your video seems to be linking to a lot of film reviews in French.
Most insightful and correct (whatever that means :D) review of the game I've seen. Thank you.
You say that the end is something Max wouldn't do, but didn't he do something similar at the end of the road warrior and beyond thunderdome?
He gave up what he was chasing in beyond thunderdome, and he gave up the rig to get revenge on the ayatollah in road warrior.
Great video, made some really good points and opened my eyes to some things. I pretty much agreed with everything you said except the fist-fighting combat. I found it horrible, and virtually unplayable at times. But I'm a stickler when it comes to combat in games so that could be why.
This game is so good for what it is. I love it.
wow! what an insight. Totally loved your take on it. Thanks for making such elaborated videos. I will support you on Patreon one day (when I would be able to earn much).
and I have a request. Noah, Could you please make a video about Shadow of Mordor? I know you haven't played the game. But it is an excellent one. Give it a try.
As far as games based off movies this one is good tier
God*
You should totally do the Arkham series and the LOTR Shadow games! You'd like them I think and it would be a fun essay to watch.
I actualy wanted to play the game before watching your video, but I couldn't resist.
Excellent review
There legit were a few reviewers who just didn't give the game a fair shot (cough cough Polygon cough).
+jpz719 It did give it a fair shot. The problem is everyone wants to focus on a few small parts of the review which are completely idiotic one of which is the section sexism. It doesn't change the fact that the rest of the review is full of completely valid critique. Just because you don't agree doesn't make their points wrong. There are some people who take gaming a little more seriously and don't enjoy mind numbing generic garbage.
Polygon and Kotaku though are both shit and their reviews are worthless. Not even sure why anyone gives them the time of day.
Main problem about grinding for upgrades is at you need t odestrouy your opposition. So when you are on finishing line with your upgrades you have basicaly no opposition to fight aside from few weaker enemies and story missions. All nadom encounters aside from story missions and quets are weakest enemies both wit hcars and on foot. So while upgrading is main goal you cant actualy enjoy your upgrades.
I would love to see a video about Daikatana the PC version and a HUGE thank you for making these videos
This is one of the best games I have ever played, and I thought It was going to be sh*t because I had never once before heard of this game before I picked it up and my mind was its gonna be a stupid film adaptation but cuz I had just watched all the films back to back I was hyped and was like whatever, when I started I was blown away, now thinking about it I maybe have enjoyed this game more than far cry 2 and 3. I dont know how it has went under the radar so much. Also the economy scaling you talk about I dont think its a problem but actually the right thing. As you progress the point of higher costs is that its more difficult to upgrade than the level before, in the games with scaling its all an illusion to make you feel more accomplished you defeat harder enemies get more money to pay for more costly upgrades! In that scenario nothing has changed when everything scales accordingly then whats the point? I never had any problem with upgrade costs and stuff scrap was always readily available, the only thing was the mines. That was very much. Every thing else was purely perfect. Attention to details was done very beautifully I just loved it.
This game is a very underrated Gem and I hope there will be 2 or 3 sequels to come in the future! Preferably before I die :P
Good to know she is One of the Prizes... hopefully the Mythical d.l.c. will Come❤with Working Karma system at ,,Max" back - blood
Again, i love these videos. :)
Amazing quality as always.
I'm playing the game again in light of the movies release. I also watched all Mad Max films, yes even the real one. Twisted Metal...Mad Max .
I love how most critics are giving this game shit for it's asinine side activities but just one year ago they all lauded Dragon Age: Inquisition which is the worst offender when it comes to shitty side content. Anyway, great critique as always. I hope things are looking up for you, Noah.
One day : We will get a *real* sequel to *Red Faction: Guerrilla* - I hope it's what it really could be....with more interesting, massive demolition opportunities - structures you need to think about to take down, back in an open world (again)
- Volition now have all that *Saints Row 4* wonga, so it's theoretically do-able... (fingers crossed)
Bruce Spencer character in Beyond Thunderdome wasn't the Gyro Captain.
You skipped over the saddest part where chumbucket basically begs for your forgiveness for 10 minutes on the way to find hope and glory dead. You covered pretty much everything else though. I'm really glad you felt the exact same way I did about the game. This video but an end to my insanity after beating it.
The landscape will do nicely for fallout new vegas
A cool sequel or gaiden style spin off game would be a very short title. Built around this same scavenge upgrade model, with possibly a simple survival "food" mechanic. all built around the idea that you're powerful in the car, but weak outside it, and getting caught away from it is, in short, "bad."
only enemies aren't out to kill you. because you're vastly outnumbered, and i'm of the opinion avoiding a reload on death state is a great way to retain fear of an enemy, their ultimate goal is to kidnap you, and they'll pull their punches to do so. instead they rely on swarming you, grabbing max and trying to drag him back to their own vehicles. combat isn't about a big punch up to kill all the dudes, it's a scramble to get them off you and get back to your car, and relative safety.
IMO what happens when you do get kidnapped should be up to interpretation, with the game simply ending there and erasing any progress. It could be an interesting rogue-like model, but eh.
What bothered me alot in that game was that, actually, I feel it doesn't convey Mad Max that well.
I don't like the fact that another character has to follow you everywhere you go when you use the Magnum Opus, which is essential to the game. I also don't like how combat has a big emphasis on melee instead of projectiles. Sure, guns are rare in Mad Max, and Max is pretty much the only guy with a gun, but there are still a lot of crossbows and projectile-based weapons in the Maxverse. I kept avoiding melee as much as I could because it pulled me out of the game, like it wasn't supposed to be there, or there wasn't supposed to be so much of it.
In the end, I was happy I got the Interceptor, but disappointed at how useless it was compared to the Magnum Opus and it's annoying obligatory companion.
To me, the game relies way too much on modern gaming clichés, and while it is not in itself a bad thing, it still rips the soul out of the game for me.
If it was a more barebone experience, like Stalker or FarCry 2, where you're kinda left alone in a huge hostile world and you must survive by yourself, I would have kept playing it. In the Mad Max game, you shouldn't collect purely for the sake of collecting and improving your stylish ride, you should collect to survive in order to make it a relevant Mad Max game. And I didn't find any Mad Max in this game, apart from it's aesthetics and name. Doesn't mean I hated it though.
I like the game. The hand to hand fighting is better than the Arkham Knight. TBH it would be very expensive to replicate Fury Road. Notice theres no music ?
Hello Noah, say did you played Planescape: torment? And if you do, are you planning to do review on him? Thanks in advance.
if max is a mythical hero, then he must retain his fatal flaw. his single-minded desire to act is one of his great strengths, but it costs him his wife, hope and glory. to me, it sounds like he's learned that lesson at the end of the story. he lets the opus go. maybe next time, he can let the conflict go, too, and simply endure, instead of burning it all down around him. probs not, tho, mythical figure and all
There is a clear lineage here between Just Cause 2 and this game. Both games allow you to progress by doing whatever it is you find fun, and both are strongest for their open world gameplay more than their stories or missions. But where Just Cause 2 hit a good balance, this game's progression system bogs things down.
Incidentally, I would love to hear a comparison between Just Cause 2 and 3. Both are solid games, but JC2 for me is the stronger game, almost entirely for its progression loop and structure. (Also, the world was more interesting, varied and well-designed, I think)
Loving this game at the moment
Isn't the case for all Mad Max titles that there is no continuity? They are all separate titles.
I'd SO like you to make a video about the Max Payne games!
Hey Noah I have a request, do the driver series for one of these, I say that as I just finished the mad max review you just did, and I'd be curious to see your take on them. and their ties to the 1978 movie the driver and how other car chase films and games were inspired by them.
I regard mad max as a console game.
The best console game ever made in my book.
It'd be amazing if you did an overview of the Star Wars Knights of the Old Republic games
Loved this game. Very underrated