Hatred, a game that ignited a furor over free speech and violence in video games last year when it was announced, lives up to its name in both the main character's depraved indifference to life and the non-stop, public spree-shooting gameplay.
But beyond the game's crass theme, there's not really much in Hatred to evoke any sort of emotional response, let alone the game's namesake one.
Instead, Hatred feels like a relatively competent isometric shooter wrapped in the iconography of the American spree killer. Take away the character's black leather duster, lank hair and hackneyed dialog and you're left with a fairly dull game. Keep all of that in, and it's not much different.
I only played in the first couple of levels of the game, but so far haven't found any meaningful story in or point to Hatred. You play a nameless character killing other nameless characters in a nondescript town. That's it.
In the video above, you'll see a hefty chunk of the first level of the game along with a portion of the second level and game's credits, all while Mike McWhertor and I discuss the game, its meaning and why we covered it with this video.
