http://ps3.ign.com/articles/726/726243p1.html
igns preview. it is quite dated.
August 17, 2006 - 4A Games' Metro 2033: The Last Refuge is the latest first-person horror adventure to crawl out of the abyss. Revealed last week to European press, the PC/ PS3 first-person shooter is based on a popular Eastern European cult novel from Russian author Dmitriv Glukhovskiy called, you guessed it, "Metro 2033."
The videogame version will hold many of the same plot devices and scenarios as the novel, which doesn't sound like you can expect too many bright and sunny days with it -- "The whole world lies in ruins and humanity is almost annihilated," begins 4A's official story synopsis. "Outside the cities, as rumors say, there are endless burned-out deserts and mutated wild forests. The survivors still remember the past greatness of humanity, but the remnants of that civilization have gradually become just memories... spun into stories which then turned to legends."
Oh, and it gets even more cheerful from there. In the last twenty years not a single plane has taken off, none of the railroads are used, and the radio and television airwaves remain quiet. "The Human epoch has collapsed," as they say -- beginning a new era filled by irradiated creatures and other "things" that aren't suitable for an E10. It's a rosy beginning, we know.
Luckily for the normal folks out there, people still live in "Moscow Metro" -- the largest anti-nuke shelter ever built and the last real retreat for humankind. Though divided into religious and political groupings (just like a real city), the people that remain are united by their need to survive. Unfortunately for them, that need to survive is put to the test rather quickly when the Metro's northern outpost is attacked by a horde of a bizarre animals known as "The Darkness" (no, not THAT Darkness, this is another one).
Following these events, players will take control of a young man by the name of Artem -- the guy charged with reaching "Polis" (the heart of the metro) so that he can warn the population about the possibility of more attacks... and so he can get some help. Of course, part of the challenge for Artem will be weaving his way through all the different political organizations and governments (democracies, totalitarians, communists, etc).
Built using an original proprietary engine, Metro 2033 is supposed to have all the bells and whistles you'd expect from a next-gen game when done. Gamma-corrected deferred shading, motion-blur, dynamic lighting (with thousands of light sources), are phrases that are already being thrown around. What sounds more impressive to us, though, is how gameplay can be tailored to fit your personal style. If someone would prefer to live out their mission as a heavy strike fighter instead of stealthy killer, they can do that. Or if a player is observant enough to recognize the current political climate, they can influence the plot to go in a completely different direction.
Perhaps the most intriguing aspect of Metro 2033, however, would be its AI. When in combat, enemies are being made to act as realistically as possible; your opponents will avoid lines of fire, hide in cover, setup ambushes with each other, call for help, actively search nooks and shadows for hidden targets, and perform a variety of other behavioral tasks.
Sadly, we don't know much else about the The Last Refuge than what we've already covered (except that there will be mini-games). 4A Games has confirmed, however, that NPCs will live out their lives independent of everyone else (people have discussions, go about personal routines, go to their own specific jobs, etc).
