I'm going to go pick this up at my local Blockbuster tonight(yes, they still exist), and I'm really excited. I've heard just enough to get me really interested in playing it(the truck of water being destroyed, something vague about a mother and child, loading screen tool tip subversion, the "Who says I survived?" ending).

Is there anything I should know going in from someone who's finished the game?

Don't expect a lot of change from one choice to another, except for the final two. Don't rely too much on squad commands or even the cover system on higher difficulty levels. One can get them killed, and too far from you to help them. The other can get you killed. You need to balance your tactics. Follow up attack commands by immediately shooting other nearby enemies you haven't alerted your squad to, esp those advancing toward them.

It's a decent game and caught many by surprise, but the arcade shooter aspect doesn't allow the moral dilemma of the story to impact as much as it could. It's a game that thrusts you into a linear scenario of relentless killing, then tries to make you feel grief for it with shock value scenes. For some it works, others feel it's a bit too contrived to be heart felt.

My personal opinion is that the gameplay itself makes it worth playing, but due to it's style not fitting well with the story, I find the 7.5/10 rating it's scoring on Metacritic to be an accurate summation.

Sounds like everything has been ruined for you...

@tonnous24 said:

Sounds like everything has been ruined for you...

All the information I say that I've heard is exactly what I put in the post. For example, I know nothing more about the ending than that quote I put in there.

@Frag_Maniac said:

Don't expect a lot of change from one choice to another, except for the final two. Don't rely too much on squad commands or even the cover system on higher difficulty levels. One can get them killed, and too far from you to help them. The other can get you killed. You need to balance your tactics. Follow up attack commands by immediately shooting other nearby enemies you haven't alerted your squad to, esp those advancing toward them.

It's a decent game and caught many by surprise, but the arcade shooter aspect doesn't allow the moral dilemma of the story to impact as much as it could. It's a game that thrusts you into a linear scenario of relentless killing, then tries to make you feel grief for it with shock value scenes. For some it works, others feel it's a bit too contrived to be heart felt.

My personal opinion is that the gameplay itself makes it worth playing, but due to it's style not fitting well with the story, I find the 7.5/10 rating it's scoring on Metacritic to be an accurate summation.

Thanks for the advice on the gameplay side, I'll be playing the game on the default Normal setting.

As for my opinion about the rest of the game, I'll post here again when I finish it.

@tonnous24 said:

Sounds like everything has been ruined for you...

Well, I for example read a lot about it, most synopsis' and all the spoilers, and it only made me want to play the game even more.