That review is.....wow. So incredibly different from my experience so far. I'm going around union, systematically taking out zombie's using stealth, and having a great time. If I fail at stealth, I bust out my trusty shotgun and finish the job....or run away, lol. It's not a perfect game, but it's addicting as hell, and the side content so far has been very good. Not sure what the reviewer was playing, but it's not the same game I'm enjoying.
I read the review out of curiosity. He does say the open world aspects you mention are a great addition to the genre. However he has problem with the actual gameplay (shooting and stealth controls) as well as the lacklustre story.
I'm going through Union now as well and am really enjoying this game however. I think the stealth is solid. Just easy enough to exploit bottle drops etc, but if I encounter multiple enemies or stronger enemies it does get quite challenging.
The shooting and melee combat is fine, but I am enjoying it more because of the lack of ammo. Having to fight against swaying aim to safe ammo is somehow satisfying. The melee combat is so weak it is actually fun to use when out of bullets, makes you really sorry you missed that one headshot.
The story really is... whatever, however I think the world building has some interesting details (like the religion stuff) that keeps me interested and makes certain side missions more intriguing.
Overall I can see how the reviewer gets to this conclusion, especially when he is forced to play this game. Comparing it to let's say Uncharted/Last of Us, it is less ‘polished', but while those games are polished it misses a lot of the charm The Evil Within 2 has.
