Rage

🎮 Steam ⏳ 5 hours ⭐⭐ (2/5)

Apocalyptic Shooter Highlights #

The 1st Rage entry is a post-apocalyptic FPS from Id Software that combines intense gunplay with some light RPG and driving elements. The shooting is the highlight: weapons feel punchy, enemies react dynamically, and firefights are consistently satisfying. Visually, the game was striking for its time thanks to the id Tech 5 engine, though the megatexture system caused noticeable texture pop-in, especially on PC.

Weak World and Story #

Outside of combat, the game is less impressive. The open-world setup is restrictive, with small hubs and limited exploration, while side missions feel shallow and repetitive. Vehicle combat and races add variety but lack the polish of the core gunplay. The narrative is weak and ends abruptly, leaving many players disappointed after an otherwise promising buildup.

Great Combat, Poor Package #

Overall, this game delivers excellent shooting mechanics and atmosphere but falls short in world-building and storytelling. It’s fun in short bursts for the combat, yet underwhelming as a complete package. I really wanted to like this title, but I dropped it after trying for at least three times, and I couldn’t get past the five hour mark, this could be one of the best shooters of all time, but I cannot recommend it.

Unrealized Potential #

Another aspect that held it back for me was the lack of meaningful progression, while there are upgrades, ammo types, and crafting systems, none of them significantly change how you approach encounters, so the gameplay loop starts to feel repetitive despite the strong mechanics. The world also feels strangely lifeless for a post-apocalyptic setting, NPCs are static, choices don’t matter, and there’s little incentive to explore beyond the main path. In the end, it feels like a technically impressive foundation that never fully realizes its potential, which makes the experience more frustrating than outright bad.