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Games where the first level is the best

M

Magic Mushroom

Member
guyssorry said:
Bloodborne. If the other areas were as good, the game would easily be the GOAT.
Click to expand...

I like the fishing village better. Amazing atmosphere that bleeds Lovecraft out of every pore. Huge fan of the Forbidden Woods as well. That shortcut, the traps, the mill, the gradual reveal of cosmic influences, the disorienting woods, the Shadows. Amazing area. Cainhurst is great as well, especially in terms of atmosphere.

Bloodborne IS the GOAT as far as I'm concerned.
 
DaciaJC

DaciaJC

Gold Member
roflwaffles said:
Bloodborne
Click to expand...

I think Forbidden Woods is a better area (though Central Yharnam is still amazing), but undoubtedly Bloodborne has one of, if not the best openings in the series.

SoaringDive said:
Demon's Souls 1-1. Not sure if it counts since it's after the tutorial level, but I consider it the "first level".
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This, though, I agree with. I would say 1-1 is overall the best-designed area in DeS, though a lot of people swear by 3-1.
 
H

Harrison Bergeron

Member
Been playing the Soulsborne (excluding Demon's) slowly in order over the past three years. Just started Bloodborne and just finished Central Yarnham and wasn't blown away from a level design or gameplay standpoint (art direction is fantastic), and that's not to say it wasn't good either, it was good and I enjoyed it. I'm just surprised to hear many saying this is the best level. I haven't ventured into the next area yet, and I guess I'm curious to see how it might fall off now.
 
S

spad3

Member
Fbh said:
I said Gow3 .... But looking at your post you might have a point.

-Awesome intro battle.
-Kratos loses his powers.
-Spend whole game getting his powers back and then fight a final boss that's just not as good as the first one.
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God of War 2 being the only exception to this rule. The Zeus fight at the end was pretty damn epic in comparison to the opening.
 
P

Poimandres

Member
Harrison Bergeron said:
Been playing the Soulsborne (excluding Demon's) slowly in order over the past three years. Just started Bloodborne and just finished Central Yarnham and wasn't blown away from a level design or gameplay standpoint (art direction is fantastic), and that's not to say it wasn't good either, it was good and I enjoyed it. I'm just surprised to hear many saying this is the best level. I haven't ventured into the next area yet, and I guess I'm curious to see how it might fall off now.
Click to expand...

It kind of depends on what you are looking for in these games. I'd say Bloodborne is (mostly) more consistent than the other games in the series in maintaining inter connectivity and cohesion so don't expect a "drop off"
 
P

Pancake Mix

Copied someone else's pancake recipe
Destiny Islands from Kingdom Hearts 1

maxresdefault.jpg
Click to expand...
 
N

NKnight7

Neo Member
Maybe ME1? For me at least, I loved the intrigue and mystery with the husks, the Reapers, the Geth, Saren and his intentions, etc. on Eden Prime.

Or ME2, I'll never grow tired of shooting my way out of the Cerberus station and then going to Freedom's Progress to investigate the collectors with Miranda and Jacob.
 
Shifty

Shifty

Member
Intel_89 said:
The one in Sonic Lost World, can't remember its name.
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So much this. The one level in the game that properly explores all the mechanics before everything devolves into gimmicky bullshit.

Also the point in the game where you haven't been introduced to the godawful cartoon abominations that are the boss characters.
 
S

StriKeVillain

Banned
I actually don't agree with Central Yharnam being the best part of Bloodborne.

I think both Old Yharnam and Upper Cathedral Ward have it beat.

Let's not even mention some of the DLC areas that beat the absolute stuffing out of all of them.
 
T

Toxi

Banned
Harrison Bergeron said:
Been playing the Soulsborne (excluding Demon's) slowly in order over the past three years. Just started Bloodborne and just finished Central Yarnham and wasn't blown away from a level design or gameplay standpoint (art direction is fantastic), and that's not to say it wasn't good either, it was good and I enjoyed it. I'm just surprised to hear many saying this is the best level. I haven't ventured into the next area yet, and I guess I'm curious to see how it might fall off now.
Click to expand...
Central Yharnam is great because it's extremely open ended in how you can approach it once you go through the hallway with the mobs and the burning werewolf. You can run to Father Gascoigne or the Cleric Beast right away with no bullshit, you can meet Eileen, grab loot in the sewers, etc.

I don't know if I'd call it the best area in the game though, because there are some damn good ones like Cathedral Ward, the Forbidden Woods, Research Hall, and Fishing Hamlet. Hell, even the less liked areas (Yahar'gul) are really intricate and fun to explore.
 
brickarts295

brickarts295

Member
Breath of the Wild - Great Plateu. I don't think I've ever enjoyed a "self taught tutorial" as much as I did in this. But then again, Eventide might give it a run for it's money.
 
H

HappehLemons

Member
GoldandBlue said:
Can't really speak for the 3D titles but I disagree with the original games. For Sonic 2 Chemical Plant Zone is way more loved level than the first stage, same with Stardust Speedway in Sonic CD. Sonic 3 & Knuckles is up for debate but I think most people love the other stages in the game over Angel Island Zone.
Click to expand...

Is this true? I like almost every level in every sonic game except chemical plant zone.
 
S

Samikaze

Member
Akuun said:
Deus Ex: HR's first level is arguably the best one. It has all the multiple routes and goals of any good DX game, but with an additional level of polish and gameplay hooks that the rest of the game either didn't have or didn't implement with as much detail, like:

Getting punished if you screw around for too long before starting the mission.
A bomb defusing situation that could be handled multiple ways.
Being able to deal with a hostage situation that connects to the bomb situation, with your actions affecting what happens later in the game.

Sure, you have more powers to play with later in the game, but this level had features that the others didn't.
Click to expand...

Afterwards you can also go back and see the crime scenes being roped off and investigated, depending on your actions. It's a small, inconsequential thing that 99% of players probably miss, but it drives your point home even more.
 
H

Harrison Bergeron

Member
Toxi said:
Central Yharnam is great because it's extremely open ended in how you can approach it once you go through the hallway with the mobs and the burning werewolf. You can run to Father Gascoigne or the Cleric Beast right away with no bullshit, you can meet Eileen, grab loot in the sewers, etc.

I don't know if I'd call it the best area in the game though, because there are some damn good ones like Cathedral Ward, the Forbidden Woods, Research Hall, and Fishing Hamlet. Hell, even the less liked areas (Yahar'gul) are really intricate and fun to explore.
Click to expand...

Maybe it's just a jaded sense creeping in for me, and I can definitely see what you're saying about its design, and as I said, I thought it was good and enjoyed it a lot, but the impression it left from a gameplay design standpoint didn't stand out to me relative to the experience I had with almost all of DS1 and even some parts of DS2. To me it felt like a very good introduction to a game, and hopefully not a pinnacle.
 
H

HenryEen

Banned
Z3M0G said:
Huh? Please dont... i dont know anything about D2...

FFS here http://m.neogaf.com/showthread.php?t=970133

The first mission doesnt feel at all like it was part of the rest of the game. Someone in that thread mentioned the laser beams you need to dodge... nothing like that again in the game...
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I...think I misunderstand your comment ? Are you talking purely about opening of D1 compared to the rest of the game? Because I get impression that you are referring to how D1 is better than D2 with the 'better than the game that followed' (which is not what OP is about).

If so, then I agree...just like D2, D1 opening level is the best part of the game.
 
Z

Z3M0G

Member
HenryEen said:
I...think I misunderstand your comment ? Are you talking purely about opening of D1 compared to the rest of the game? Because I get impression that you are referring to how D1 is better than D2 with the 'better than the game that followed' (which is not what OP is about).

If so, then I agree...just like D2, D1 opening level is the best part of the game.
Click to expand...
Ah yah my wording was bad considering there is a Destiny 2. I was referring to the rest of D1.
 
S

Sir Ilpalazzo

Member
I can't think of any game where "the first level is the best one!" isn't a damning insult. Even RE4's village is trumped by mid- and late-game encounters in intensity.
 
J

Jangowuzhere

Banned
antitrop said:
Crawling around on a hospital floor is better than some of the best open-world gameplay available? I can't possibly understand.
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Right

MGSV's opening is pretty damn bad. It is overindulgent and takes way too long. The fact that you
have to do it again later
is also pretty lame.

It's obvious that the opening was one of the first things they decided to make for MGSV. The rest of the experience is completely different once the core game starts.
 
B

Bill R Boggess

Member
I'll add to those chiming in with The Force Unleashed.

Playing as Vader was sublime; it's a sin we haven't gotten a dedicated Darth Vader game yet.
 
D

dtcm83

Member
Earthworm Jim - New Junk City. Basically introduces all of the game mechanics you would need to know with a fun platforming level. Every other level afterwards get progressively more annoying, save for maybe Level 5.
 
S

secretanchitman

Member
Sonic Adventure and Emerald Coast. Played the shit out of Emerald Coast and no other level appealed to me like that - maybe it was the show off level for the game and Dreamcast at every major retailer, the music was on point, etc.
 
Z

Zukkoyaki

Member
Midgar in Final Fantasy VII.

If that's too large, than the initial bombing mission because that's the best part of the game.
 
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