Painkiller Reviews
Lacking identity, with shallow content and performance issues, Painkiller fails to honor the franchise’s legacy and stands as a completely forgettable experience.
Review in Portuguese | Read full review
It could have easily been marketed as a brand new IP set in Purgatory; it would have still been generic, the typical game to be released on Gamepass and enjoyed for a month, but it wouldn’t have felt like an attempt to cash in on a dormant franchise’s nostalgic appeal despite having nothing to do with it.
Painkiller is an odd example of reimaging a series, given it isn’t connected to the original game or featuring any of the characters or structure of the original. This is a co-op roguelite shooter that lacks true replayability and a desire to stick with it. Co-op is a blast, even with rando’s, but much of that satisfaction comes from our love of other games. Despite some incredible gunplay, level design, and a stunning soundtrack, Painkiller has a lot of work ahead to be part of the conversation down the road. It can certainly provide a great time, but it’s a brief spark that can’t keep the flame lit.
Painkiller is, unfortunately, a huge disappointment for an old fan of the series – such as myself. A great arena shooter with a dark atmosphere has been reduced to a co-op shooter without any soul or interesting ideas. Unfortunately, despite the nicely crafted locations and good overall artistic vision, many mistakes were made in the design of the gameplay itself.
Review in Polish | Read full review
Ultimately, I walk away from Painkiller with somewhat mixed, but overall fairly positive feelings. The gameplay is fast, satisfying, with rock solid peformance and excellent graphics making for a blast of a shooter. It is, however, Painkiller in name only, as not only it loses the series’ core aspects, but also is rather uninspired all around