The postapocalyptic future is looking pretty good. From the moment you step out under the brilliant, cloud-studded sky of a ruined world, Rage proclaims its artistic prowess. As you drive along dirt roads through narrow canyons among the hardscrabble outposts of civilization, every environmental element pops with thoughtful details. As you converse with the people you meet, their expressive faces and believable dialogue make you eager to hear what they say next. This is an attractive world that makes you excited to go exploring, but there is disappointingly little to find off the beaten path. The richness of Rage makes you wish it were even richer, and you may also find yourself wishing for a better story, more robust ways to enjoy this world with friends, and, above all, better technical execution. There are numerous visual problems that crop up with various video cards, and the texture detail is disappointingly inconsistent. Though Rage still offers an exciting and rewarding adventure, the PC is not the best platform on which to enjoy it.
Sniper rifles remain a valuable commodity in the postapocalyptic future.
The early hours of Rage's PC launch were plagued with problems, and many still linger as of this writing. Nvidia cards are still prone to screen tearing, while AMD cards see issues with freezing and wonky character animations. You need to do some research to determine the best drivers for your system, and even then, you may be stuck suffering through some glitches. There aren't a lot of graphics settings to tweak here, and even on high settings, Rage is inconsistent. Some textures look stunning, while others are blurry and mundane upon closer inspection. These technical shortcomings make the PC version inferior to its console counterparts, but the excellent artistic design still shines through, making Rage an attractive and enticing game.
Having slept snugly through an extinction-level event in a sealed government refuge, you awaken to find that your fellow sleepers were not so lucky. Alone and unsure, you step out into the world, encounter some savage locals, and end up indebted to a local sharpshooter. He explains that survivors like you haven't been seen in a long time, and proceeds to ask you for a favor. Thus begins your journey of helping out the friendly folks of the Wasteland with your natural affinity for driving, collecting, and killing. Each new person you meet is a delight, thanks to stylish character design, expressive animation, and great voice acting. It's a pleasure to visit the local bar where the freckled proprietor pays you a regular bounty and the garish dealer entices you to play another round of a collectible card game. This is a world where a sweet young lady teaches you about a flying implement of decapitation, and the puffed-up mayor sends you on a delivery run to a hand-wringing doctor and his possibly sentient mechanical familiar. Rage's characters are so charismatic that you'll likely be disappointed when your conversations end and will be eagerly anticipating the next interaction.
The towns and settlements where you find these folks are richly detailed and beg to be explored. Observant players are rewarded with a raft of thoughtful artistic touches, including some cute references to certain iconic video games. As you travel outside these havens and around the spacious environs, you encounter the skeletal remains of freeways and industrial complexes set amidst striking sandstone cliffs and scrubby vegetation. While the large scenery usually looks fantastic, many smaller elements lack detail, which can create an unpleasant contrast when you are taking in the sights. Despite the inconsistent textures, Rage still makes you want to stop and gawk at the world around you, and the mercenary path you take gives you plenty of opportunities to do so. Your core missions eventually take a more purposeful path, but Rage does a poor job of drawing you into this crusade, so your quest to ensure a better future for humankind never feels more urgent than your task to bring a boozehound his missing moonshine. It's a shame that the game doesn't leverage its enticing world to create a stronger, more compelling adventure, but it's still fun to explore and inhabit the Wasteland.
Not all Wasteland inhabitants are friendly, however. Packs of bandits have taken up residence in their own little communities, and each group has its own look, combat tactics, and interior decorations. Keeping an eye out in these dens not only gives you a sense of how your enemies live, but can also yield ammunition, guns, collectible cards, and a wealth of detritus that can be sold or used to build helpful items from schematics you acquire. A timely bandage or health boost can toughen you up for a challenging fight, while a bladed wingstick or spidery robotic ally can add crucial firepower to your cause. Your bandit enemies shoot accurately and use cover, while your mutant enemies just run headlong toward you, albeit with some surprising evasive maneuvers. Despite the health items, replenishing health, and rechargeable defibrillation power at your disposal, you can die if you aren't careful. Still, Rage isn't a very difficult game, and you may have to increase the difficulty level in order to feel the threat of death looming over you.
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