Review for John Wick Hex. Game for PC and Mac, the video game was released on 08/10/2019
On a cinematic level, it does not often happen to witness phenomena like that of John Wick that, despite an important cast, it was quietly released in cinemas and quickly became a cult title. Of course Keanu Reeves took care of the director Chad Stahelski with his priceless charisma, ed it is his presence that draws players to John Wick Hex, the first videogame title (perhaps even a bit late) available for PC on the Epic Games Store and dedicated to the exploits of the retired super killer.
However, unlike Cyberpunk 2077, the actor did not actively participate in the dubbing of the title and only lent his features at Bithell Games. Different speech for the other two protagonists of the films, Ian McShane and Lance Reddick, respectively Winston and Charon: both took an active part in the title by dubbing their characters.
Impossible to hide the amazement, speaking of John Wick Hex, however the choice of Bithell Games to create a turn-based strategy title with an isometric view, which replaces the adrenaline with the planning of every move typical of the genre, while not giving up the inevitable shootings and fights to which we have become accustomed to cinema films.
Prequel of the current trilogy dedicated to John Wick, Hex is the name of the super villain who took Winston and Charon hostage and the whole story takes the form of the narration of John's actions to reach the two allies. The dialogues are convincing and in line with the filmic counterpart, they do not spare shrewd jokes. All the elements of the plot are provided to us through cut scenes and didactic comments to our raids in the various levels, more than forty, that make up the title Bithell Games. The complexity of the plot is not at an excellent level and seems a mere pretext to motivate John's relentless advance, however the idea of narrating past events, while the player plans Wick's advance, is definitely functional.
The game system designed by Bithell Games for Hex is simple but hides a fair complexity, once you have learned all the commands and the various facets of the battle system. John will be able to move around the game locations following lines that draw hexagonal paths typical of strategic stocks. However, each movement will be limited to 4-5 positions away from the starting point and can be preventively blocked if an enemy is sighted or spotted.
Once the opponent has been engaged, the options will be basically two: attack with hand-to-hand combat by hitting, pushing, landing, etc. or shoot. Okay, there would be a third option in running away from the enemy but, hey you are John Wick, escape shouldn't be contemplated! Seriously, sneaking out at the right time to avoid a bullet or split a group of enemies will be vital in many situations. Running out of bullets? No problem, in line with the film counterpart, it will be possible to throw the unloaded weapon to wound, kill or stun the enemy and therefore being able to gain valuable time for a new assault or to retrieve a weapon from the ground.
The learning curve of the game system is unfortunately not well balanced and it will take a long time to grasp all the mechanics and master them in the most effective way. The initial tutorial is in fact not very efficient and the explanatory signs were often redundant and unclear. However, the fact remains that John Wick Hex is entertaining and will test your mastery but, despite the most careful planning, you will need to have a fair amount of luck.
The reason is soon said, despite a 100% success rate, it may happen to miss the shot or, vice versa, with a low chance of success we will go to knock down the enemy on the first attempt. The presence of the random component, on the one hand, will ensure a little more adrenaline for the title but on the other hand it will make you turn up your nose to those who see strategists as a type of game in which the study of the moves decrees their success.
As for the level of difficulty, despite John's undeniable power, Hex is a challenging title in which the slightest mistake will be punished above all for the lack of medical kits represented by healing bandages. It will therefore be necessary to carefully optimize the starting equipment for each area: 15-shot pistol with a magazine and two healing bandages.
The rest we will have to recover it in the various levels that will make up the location object of the game chapter, until we reach the last stage that will usually host a boss fight or a finale full of enemies. The difficulty of the title is also increased by the inability to save at will, precluding the option to retrace one's steps and possibly making it mandatory to start over from the first mission of the location, which can be selected from the initial game menu.
The discreet longevity of John Wick Hex, guaranteed by the level of difficulty, does not cover a certain repetition of the levels and game situations. In all this, the stylistic choice of a cell shading at times almost monochromatic does not help, despite theappreciable noir style characterized by a marked contrast between lights and shadows. The positive downside is that the title will run smoothly even on a slightly dated PC thanks to the few details and in general, to the essential graphics.
Also worth noting sporadic defects in the physics of the ragdoll in some more excited game situations, in which the corpses will go to pile up behind us. Fortunately in the combat phase, partly thanks to the alternation of turns, the fluidity and the animations will be more convincing despite some sporadic drops in frame rate.
Unfortunately, the multiplayer component is completely absent and consequently the replayability of the title is rather limited. Finally going to analyze the sound sector we can only be satisfied by the effects and especially by the dubbing in English, characterized by the aforementioned actors and accompanied by subtitles in Spanish, to which is added a good leitmotif that acts as a soundtrack.
If we really wanted to go nit-picking, we would undoubtedly have liked a dubbing in Spanish, carried out by the same voice actors as the films: subtleties that would have however increased a percentage of the vote that does not much exceed sufficiency.
John Wick Hex is a title that is only half successful, due to the choice made by Bithell Games for a gameplay that will not be able to attract the general public, also tainted by poor replayability. Despite this, it will be a pleasure to shoot wildly and beat John Wick's hands against the felons on duty, albeit with a frenzy reduced by the typical shiftwork of the genre. Keanu Reeves is missing from the dubbing but the appearances of Ian McShane and Lance Reddick partially cover this absence. This is the first title taken from the John Wick franchise and it is possible that in the future Lionsgate Entertainment will look for new ways to make the most of the videogame medium, and we certainly hope so.
► John Wick Hex is a Turn-Based-Tactical Simulation-Game developed and published by Good Shepherd Entertainment for PC and Mac, the video game was released on 08/10/2019
