Painkiller: Heaven's Got a Hitman Multiplayer Demo

Fast-paced first-person shooters are not that popular anymore, ever since Call of Duty changed the formula and realism is much more interesting nowadays. Titles like Quake and Return to the Castle Wolfenstein were pretty big a few years ago, though, since everyone was enjoying the crazy huge weapons and the total disregard for realism when it came to damage, physics and the like.

Painkiller: Heaven’s Got a Hitman came a bit later to the party, but it still was very well received by the public, thanks to its boldness and the fact that it really encouraged fun and entertainment, rather than gritty realism. Thus, the monsters spawn in hordes, they are very difficult to kill and the boss battles are more than epic, given the fact that they feature huge enemies that can one-shot you and cause hundreds of quick-loads.

The singleplayer mode managed to captivate the public with the help of a ridiculous story and the non-stop shooting that barely gave the players enough time to breathe between the enemy waves. However, one might wonder if the same formula would work in multiplayer, where there are no mobs and everything revolves around the maps, the underlying mechanics and the selection of guns.

Fortunately, yes, the games does manage to bring back at least a bit of the old formula and provide you with a fast-paced dose of action. The influences are obvious, on the other hand, since you can clearly see Quake and Unreal Tournament mashed into one when it comes to level design, weapons and the power-ups you can pick-up along the way.

The graphics engine holds its own in multiplayer as well, since the environments look great and every model looks as though it belongs with the scenery. The characters are nicely animated as well, as are the weapons and the various special effects that complete the atmosphere. Naturally, some epic tracks play in the background as the frags keep rolling, although they can become rather repetitive after a while.

In the end, the only thing that would have made Painkiller: Heaven’s Got a Hitman even better is a greater collection of maps and game modes, because there is nothing too original to try out, other than the usual deathmatch and similar cliches. However, as long as you are on the lookout for some mindless fun, this is definitely the title to go for.