Though I never played the first Condemned, a few of the media releases for Condemned 2: Bloodshot caught my eye a few weeks ago, especially after hearing that it would include the voice talents of Paul Eiding (our good buddy Campbell), Phil LaMarr (our other good buddy Vamp), and Michael Bell (Raziel from the "Legacy of Kain" series). I bought it just this week and I was immediately impressed. Though I'm not too directly fond of the main character (mostly because of his disheveled appearance and alcoholism), I've found the design of the game itself to be very close to perfection considering modern game standards. The first-person fist-fighting system is beautiful, and truly makes you get a much fuller experience of hand-to-hand combat than any fighting game ever has (the exception perhaps being a few boxing games that I've never played). The forensic investigation portion of the game is also rather sophisticated, as I find myself being genuinely intellectually challenged by the evidentiary interpretation in some scenes. The game never gets boring, and never asks you to repeat too much, with fairly-distributed autosave points. It keeps a healthy balance of all aspects of gameplay, maintains a steady yet active storyline, and keeps the suspense running high the entire time. This game is sure to scare those who are not perfectly vigilant and even some who are. "Watch your back" doesn't quite do it justice. Instead, watch your back, left, right, and double-watch your front, or you'll miss what might save lives (including your own) in the game.

Condemned 2: Bloodshot is indeed a game to be held in high esteem for 2008.

yeah i had the first one, and must say it was pretty damn good... and scary! i'll defo have to go out and buy the sequal, didnt realise it was already out

I played it at a friends house. Tbh the only thing I was impressed by with the game was the graphics. Gameplay wasn't too impressed by, was mediocre for me.

I bought the first Condemned and I was impressed, but there were a few different things that definitely could've been worked on. For one, your character seems to walk around extremely slow, even when running. I made it to what I believe to be the last mission but I haven't played my XBOX in quite some time. I'll have to pop that one in and finish it sometime in the near future.

From what I've heard Condemned 2 is a lot better than the first, and as I said I was impressed enough with the first one. The fist fighting system is something I'd really like to give a try. I'd planned on selling my 360 and not buying any more games for it but I think I may just have to give this game a try.

Yeah, the fist fighting is what attracts me most of the time. After the first few missions (or maybe just the first one), you can play Bloodshot Fight Club, where you just face off against an endless stream of enemies for as long as you can. You can specify the type of enemy, the weapons available in the environment, the weapons the enemies carry, and how many enemies approach you at once. I love that mode most of all.

The storyline itself is still continuing to please me as I progress further and further. Trust me Webbie, you've got the right idea by sticking with your 360 a little longer to try this out.

Is Condemned pushed back to the 4th of April?
Whatever man :P Today I cancelled the online preorder for Condemned and changed it to GTA IV instead, this game is probably the next one I'm gonna buy for the Ps3 though, the fist fighting gameplay reeeally got me ;)

I rented this game the other day and let me tell you, it is DEFINITELY worth at least a rental.


The game is so intense, with each corner could be another attacker.
Every fight you're in, you feel like you're really fighting for your life. It's a constant struggle.

Plus, it's some of the best looking First-Person-Perspective games I've ever played. All of the animations run smoothly.

Plus it has an awesome story to boot. The forensics area of the game is just the icing on the cake.

Edit: Another thing that I forgot to mention, is that the character depth in this game is pretty amazing as well.

This is especially true with the main character, Ethan Thomas. He has his demons and isn't shy to display them to his former co-workers. He has flaws just like a normal human being, and that makes the Condemned experience much more real.

[spoiler]Has anyone gotten to the grizzly bear in the cabin? That was probably the biggest adrenaline rush for me. As I kept darting in and out of rooms, I found myself saying to myself, "Do not fucking die! Do not fucking die! Keep on moving, and do not fucking die!". That was a sweet sequence in the game. At least, as far as I've gotten.[/spoiler]

Since I've never played the first Condemned, would anyone care to enlighten me as to if any of these things happened in the first one, and why?:
-the "oily demons" in the nightmare sequences (not really spoiling anything, it happens in the first five minutes with this game)
-Ethan's vision going black and white for approx. 3 seconds in "suspenseful" areas

I'm bogged down with work, exams, and research papers for most of this week, but I am definitely coming back to this game as soon as I'm done.

I wasn't too sure about the oily-like demons. But if you've noticed, there are points in the game where he enters a dream-like state, and a lot of weird things start to happen. I think Ethan has some odd connection with the paranormal or something of that sort.

As for the black and white vision, it could be his alcoholism rearing its ugly head, or it could just be an effect they added for effect during a traumatic experience. It could also be a tie-in with what I previously mentioned.

BTW [spoiler] The bear level was probably my favorite as well, so suspenseful.[/spoiler]

@ Liquidon Snake, I own the first one and though I haven't played it in a while I seriously don't remember any points in the game where the screen went black and white, and there were also no "nightmare sequences". It sounds like the sequel got quite an upgrade.

Damn you guys are making this game sound good. I'm not really into the idea of spending anymore money on my 360 or any games for it since I'll be buying a PS3 in the near future but I just may have to for this one. It sounds worth it.

The fist fighting is what intrigues me the most. I'd love to check that out. What I'd worry about with that is how quickly it gets old.

I have the first one. I just need to install it :)

You'd be surprised to hear this, but the fistfighting doesn't really get old. Because of how direct it is, it makes for a very engaging experience. Each fight is made to feel like a direct challenge to your own self.

The fighting system also incorporates a combo-buildup system. As you rack up more combos, you can eventually execute a highly-damaging attack sequence, during which everything goes in slo-mo, and with the proper button sequence, will allow you to do such things as 1-2-headbutt combos, arm-breakers, or even tackling and snapping the enemy's neck.
Additionally, there's an option when you've pretty much finished the enemy off. You can either finish him/her quickly with one more punch or kick, or you can grab him/her by the neck and drag them to a part of the environment with which you can interact (which is practically everything). Imagine the sense of victory you feel when you smash your opponent's head through a TV screen or throw them into a dumpster to finish them off.

This is definitely a game worth buying, if just for the fighting.

i was looking at reviews for this game it looks awesome the thing that made me want to get it was was the hand combat and hacking and slashing, IMO it takes first person games to another level and not just some damn shooter, i think i might get it on friday. was thinking of getting Vegas 2 but its nothing too special and not improved much from the first.

The more I hear about the fighting system in this game the more it sounds a little like mixed-martial arts when the "arm breakers" and "takedowns" come into play. I'd have to try it out for myself, but anything that gives you a somewhat real fist-fighting experience has to be pretty entertaining.