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Back in the 1990s, video games could be simple affairs. Disc space was limited, hard drive capacities even worse; so much so that if you wanted a long cutscene or story arc then you’d find your games taking place over various discs. Because of that, many games would just throw you into the action without a word of dialogue or instruction.
The first person shooter was the forefather of this. Doom begins with a small bit of text and then you are on your way shooting the demons. Forgive Me Father borrows heavily from that retro time, but it still manages to carve its own route with aplomb.
Forgive Me Father starts by giving the choice of two characters: either a journalist or a priest. The priest is more powerful, whilst the journo is more nimble, so the choice of how you want to play is up to you.
There is a story here, with characters and fragments of the narrative being drip-fed to you over multiple levels. It comes with a Lovecraftian feel too, influenced by the way it deals with magic monsters and madness. The narrative is second to the action really, but it does a very good job of building an atmosphere and a scary world.
As Michael from the famous film Heat said “The action is the juice” and we are onto the gameplay. It’s fast, furious, and about as maniacal as any good FPS should be. You start going through the levels armed with your reflexes and just a lonely pistol. Then throughout the game you grab multiple other weapons, upgrading them, shooting, dodging, running and trying not to get killed.
That Doom influence is there at all times, as you go collecting certain keys to get through doors, picking up ammo, health, and amour along the way. Other times you’ll suddenly fall through something or a trick is played on you and you find yourself surrounded by loads of the bad. It’s times like that which call for you to go utterly mad. These are the best moments and you won’t believe just how relentless the enemies are.
There are boss battles, enemies that run at you, enemies that walk at you, enemies with magic, and, well, just loads of enemies. You have secrets to collect in each level and at the end of each section there is a tally presented, allowing you to keep track of everything important.
There is also a skill tree in Forgive Me Father, working a modern twist on the old classic setup. When I first started playing through the levels, there was a part of me that considered this to be the best game in the world. But slowly my interest started to wane a bit; that’s mostly down to Forgive Me Father getting a bit one note at times. But some people will just love to shoot enemies constantly and will never grow bored. This is perfect for them.
Visually it comes with a very unusual, yet successful, style of presentation. The maps and levels themselves are in 3D but the enemies are kind of 2D, like animated cardboard cutouts. There is a graphic amount of blood and gore in the battles but it very much has a comic book feel with amazing colours and design. The maps are very good when dealing with more vertical aspects of gameplay and you falling through trap floors or getting lost; in a good way.
The soundscape itself pumps along at the speed of the gameplay, with a mixture of heavy metal and techno that is both extremely effective and highly satisfying. The effects are great with moans, groans, gun clicks, and tons of energy throughout.
Forgive Me Father is one of those games that fans of retro first person shooters will adore. It has everything, from fast action to brilliantly hand-drawn graphics to a superb soundtrack. It’s very tricky as well, even on an easy level, and so those looking for a real challenge will find it here. There is no doubt that Forgive Me Father is exhilarating, but at times it feels a bit one-note, especially in the latter levels; perhaps that is down to my taste and nothing the game does wrong.
Basically put though, you’ll not go wrong by arming up, sticking your best headset on and preparing to take in Forgive Me Father.