I profoundly detested this game. Given the way my brain works, and the fact that i was sick and had nothing better to do when i played it, i still didn't manage to put the controller down until the map read "100%", but finishing it and being able to move on felt like passing a kidney stone. I usually like games, even when flawed, and it's rare for me to be so negative about a game, but it didn't really sit right with me.

The story was passable at best, and lacked a clear and satisfying ending. It's also a gigantic collectathon. Its side content is forgettable, and beyond the celebrity cameos and modern references, it could almost be AI-generated.

But beyond that, my main gripe with it was its morbid and gruesome fascination with death. So many side quests are about people wanting to die, either at your hand so it's honourable, or throwing themselves in fights for the purpose of dying, or literally just committing suicide in front of you. Regardless of their religion, so many of those people seem to want nothing but to die, and ideally the "right way". It's not unusual for games to feature high kill counts, being an agent of death is not something that is intrinsically a problem in a game, but for some reason in this one it felt wrong.

Rating it 1 star and not 0.5 just for its one redeeming quality: at times, outside of all this death worshipping, looking at the countryside... this game could be visually incredibly beautiful. And you could pet the cats. And that's worth something, even if it doesn't save the game.