Posted by Nick Alfieri, Director at Digerati on Xbox Wire
Mother Teresa once said, “Yesterday is gone. Tomorrow has not yet come. We have only today. Let us begin,” and we here at Digerati Distribution think she must have been talking about this very game.
Those of you that are scholars of gaming scandal may be aware of Paranautical Activity‘s somewhat chequered past – innocent mistakes were made, some hot-headed words uttered, offence taken, retribution duly enacted. The game lay languishing in limbo, potentially unable to realize its true full potential. A talented creator fell on his sword in a sacrificial act, angel investors Digerati stepped in and bought the rights for the game and it was thus rescued from the sin bin. Search for it, it’s quite the saga.
So here we are now, the game now available as a download on Xbox One. Was it all worth it, after all of the recriminations, accusations, much wailing and gnashing of teeth? Damn straight and hell yes it was! (But we would say that wouldn’t we?). Thankfully, you, the honorable Xbox player, are now free to decide for yourself.
Paranautical Activity: Deluxe Atonement Edition is a daringly original hybrid blend of impossibly fast Doom-style FPS action with roguelike random toughness (a rarity on consoles, we feel compelled to point out).
Set inside a procedurally generated neon-dark dungeon made of big, beautiful blocks, the action is unrelenting and intense, made all the more high-stakes by the looming threat of permadeath. This blast of undiluted gaming energy is not for the faint-hearted, so only the true elite of nosebleed hardcore gamerz need apply – casual players, do yourself a favor and just stay away – go and play something on ‘Easy’ mode, be happy, eat cookies. Whatever.
Designed originally to be played via a mouse and keyboard, there have been a couple of adjustments made to the Xbox One version to help keep the experience in line with the PC game. These include the player starting with a higher basic speed plus more health drops occurring along the way – but don’t be fooled into thinking this will make things any rosier for y’all. With 45 achievements… the challenge is on!
This harsh world is littered with over a hundred pickup objects that can aid your quest (the story’s not important, by the way) and loomed over by a phalanx of truly ridiculous bosses that are out to crush your ambitions of domination.
The punky lo-fi visuals are more about the pace of action and raw visual impact rather than prissy shaders and fussy textures, so the action runs at a strong 60 fps – you’ll thus savor the eye-popping megapixel art with razor sharpness.
It’s all serenaded by a soundtrack of badass dubstep, so fans of slightly unfashionable but undeniably banging music will feel both smug and loved.
So what are you dallying for? Stop reading this hokum and pick up Paranautical Activity! Like, NOW!
