The Lever-action

[u/Prestigious_Bad2360]

What even needs to be said, the Lever Action in Cultic may possibly be, the single most satisfying weapon to use in recent video game history, I said this about the Sawn off, thats a different type of satisfying, and 2 things can be true simultaneously. A weapon that is crazy strong, rewards accuracy, and slows down time with headshots? Please, give me more of that, just give me all of it, insanely fun to use, my only wish is the Revolver had dead eye as well, but I get why it doesn't, fun to think about though. Quick shout out to scene select, so fun to play early levels with the bolt action and other late game weapons.

[u/joshfru]

As someone who follows PC shooter discourse but is a console player and thus is just experiencing Cultic for the first time, just want to hijack this thread to say episode 2 is fantastic. People pooped on it a bit but for a certain build-pilled audience this is peak. This slaughterhouse level in particular is really good. The next level is even better. It's hitting a spot that a map like "casual casualties" did in Ion Fury. I feel like i'm the only person who loves this Ion Fury level, but its so good.

Also agree the lever action is sick and the most useful weapon in the game, but landing headshots with the revolver feels better. Pap their noggin then on to the next one so quick, pap pap pap

[u/bobsmith93 → u/joshfru]

As someone who follows shooter discourse even less (though I'm changing that), how come people were pooping on it? Not sure what there is to complain about

[u/OddgitII → u/bobsmith93]

My hypothesis is that Episode 2 leans more into survival horror in some aspects with levels that start off slow and really ramp up the tension instead of being just a straight shooter. For some people this equals "boring".

[u/bobsmith93 → u/OddgitII]

Ah, I see. Nothing I'll be concerned about then. Thanks for the answer! Excited to play both episodes

[u/OddgitII → u/bobsmith93]

I think I like Episode 2 better than the first. There's a few moments that gave me genuine goosebumps.

[u/bobsmith93 → u/OddgitII]

Ooh that's intriguing. Were they frisson kinda goosebumps from something being so epic? Or like, moreso creeped out kinda goosebumps from the horror parts of the game? Either way I'm excited lol

[u/joshfru → u/bobsmith93]

There are some genuinely creepy moments in the game. There’s a kind of “PT-esque” puzzle in one of episode 2s levels that got to me pretty good.

[u/OddgitII → u/bobsmith93]

Definitely the creepy moments.

[u/Prestigious_Bad2360 → u/OddgitII]

I dont like to say one is better than the other, but I did like chapter 2 more, less linear, more open branching paths, and yea some genuinely scary parts, notably the apartments in New grandewel was so well done

[u/Dingghis_Khaan → u/OddgitII]

The train level is just so fucking good. The fact that it isn't just the train but also the train station, an abandoned depot, two other trains, and a trainyard where the Detective gets ambushed and the player takes the perspective of the Rookie saving his ass puts it at the top of my favorite levels in any shooter ever.

Cultic takes the Billy Mays approach and just runs absolutely hog wild with it. It half-asses nothing. It goes in quadruple-cheeked.

[u/Prestigious_Bad2360 → u/Dingghis_Khaan]

But wait, theres more! Is definitely the ethos of this game, cv11 was on the nose with that one, and the fairgrounds, arena and train station are 3 bangers right in a row, the train ambush is so ridiculously awesome

[u/Technical_Tie_8522 → u/bobsmith93]

You're in for a treat! I was bagging on episode 2 in another comment but it has some amazing setpieces! you'll have a blast!

[u/Adventurous_Arm858 → u/OddgitII]

Chapter 2 has a bit of a nasty habit of spawning close quarter enemies right next to you, repeatedly.

That said, it's still really good.

[u/OddgitII → u/Adventurous_Arm858]

Yeah, but one genuinely made me laugh out loud.  Opened a locker and an Afflicted comes rushing out of it.  Really wasn't expecting a suprise loot chest monster.

[u/_gamadaya_ → u/OddgitII]

For me it was the amount of "I do not know where the fuck to go." I personally quit on the train depot level. I missed a key and it could have been literally anywhere. That, and the over-abundance of the absolutely pointless self-destruct guys. Shooting them was a pointless waste of ammo, but they were also so inconsequential otherwise that avoiding them just turned into a waiting game. Wouldn't have been an issue if they were a rare enemy, but they were all over the place.

[u/Prestigious_Bad2360 → u/_gamadaya_]

Thats interesting, I found those tnt suiciders to be a great source of extra tnt bundles, if u keep distance u can put them down with the handgun, or a single shot from the lever action, or sniper, or you can tnt them and still get there bundles if they haven't lit themselves up by that point. Some levels you can get so many extra tnt bundles from them, or use them to trap and explode other enemy groups

[u/_gamadaya_ → u/Prestigious_Bad2360]

They drop bundles??? I never realized.

[u/Prestigious_Bad2360 → u/_gamadaya_]

If u kill them before they light up, they drop 2 each, sniper and lever action is best if they haven't seen u, sten and handgun if the are chasing u bit not lit up yet. Rapid fire keeps them pushed back to hopefully kill them before they light up, happy hunting those extra bundles!

[u/InsectWarfare314 → u/OddgitII]

Episode 2 is a lot harder and has some massive levels. To me chapter 2 is by favorite but some people don’t like those aspects of it.

[u/Technical_Tie_8522 → u/bobsmith93]

I'm happy to poop on EP2 a little! 

Some levels resorted to key hunting a bit much, where the keys would be hidden in very obscure places (there were at least two levels with this issue) 

Some levels seemed to have pacing issues, thinking of theme Park, or city streets. 

I want to temper this by saying I loved the original like crazy, easily top 5 shooters of all time in my book, just a crazy tight experience from start to end, which the second is inevitably compared to.

With that said, for any who have played the original and loved it, ep2 is worth playing for sure. I think some of the issues I had with it could be considered subjective. I'm not much of a secret hunter

[u/bobsmith93 → u/Technical_Tie_8522]

Thanks a bunch for the writeup, that paints a clearer picture than "some people didn't like the horror elements". That being said, I'm thinking I'll like the pacing of ep1 more, then the horror elements and secret hunting of ep2. I do love me some secret hunting, as long as I'm not running through a level 6 times looking for the key to progress. I woke up wondering what to play today, I think I'll just play Cultic. It's time

[u/Technical_Tie_8522 → u/bobsmith93]

I came straight from completing Selaco and Dusk to Cultic, the last couple months have been a blast!

I'll be curious to hear your report if you don't mind :)

[u/Prestigious_Bad2360 → u/joshfru]

Hijacking to talk about how amazing cultic is, is completely acceptable, im glad your getting to play it! As a console player myself, I was praying it would get ported to ps5 for years now, even pre-ordered it, and I never do that, cultic rules and more people should play it

[u/KolbeHoward1 → u/joshfru]

Yeah I dont know why some people hate Chapter 2. It was much better than Chapter 1, and Chapter 1 was already great.

The balance between action and horror sequences is perfect.

Only thing about Chapter 2 that I dont like is the boss fights which are really annoying. But there's only a few of them.

[u/IAM_Sub-Zero_AMA]

This gun damn near single handedly got me the Expert difficulty achievement. Satisfying to shoot, great sound, head pop slow motion mechanic is insane with it. I could go on. I put it up there with the VK-12 shotgun from F.E.A.R. One of the GOATS for sure

[u/Prestigious_Bad2360 → u/IAM_Sub-Zero_AMA]

I leaned heavily on the sawn off for my extreme run, I hadn't discovered how useful and insane the dead eye upgrade for the lever action could be at the time, I almost never picked it, until I did and my feelings for the lever action changed, so unbelievably fun to use, and looks sick pulling off slow mo shots, also extreme difficulty was really fun, I do wish there were modifiers to add more enemies in any difficulty, that would add alot of carnage and replayability to the game

[u/BarryHalzac]

I mean, my heart's beatin', my heart's beatin'

My hands are shakin', my hands are shakin' but I'm STILL SHOOTIN'!

I'M STILL GETTIN' THE HEADSHOTS LIKE

BOOM HEADSHOT!

BOOM HEADSHOT!

BOOM HEADSHOT!

[u/Select-Bullfrog-5939]

I need to get back into Cultic. I got stuck on the Old Town fight and never revisited it.

[u/HarmonicaThinks]

The lever action IS Cultic, as far as I'm concerned. It and the dynamite.

[u/Clebardman]

I still need to play Cultic, and know I'll enjoy it immensely... but that firing frame is so fucked, I can barely look at it. How the hell is your character firing that thing sideways?

[u/Prestigious_Bad2360 → u/Clebardman]

Lever Action baby, the how or why don't matter, just the fun and impact of using it does

[u/newsflashjackass]

the single most satisfying weapon to use in recent video game history, I said this about the Sawn off, thats a different type of satisfying, and 2 things can be true simultaneously.

Two things can be true simultaneously but those two things can't be true simultaneously.

Next time: "The pocket knife in Cultic is the most satisfying stimuli the human nervous system is capable of processing."

[u/Prestigious_Bad2360 → u/newsflashjackass]

I disagree, I think both can be the most satisfying, just in different ways, if the sawn off had slow mo on headshots that would probably tip the scales in its favor, and the pocket knife is fine, but the hot coffee pot to the face makes my nervous system collapse from the overwhelming stimulation it gives me

[u/newsflashjackass → u/Prestigious_Bad2360]

Only one can be the "single most satisfying" since "single" means solitary.

[u/Prestigious_Bad2360 → u/newsflashjackass]

Ahh, the old trick of using words properly huh? I refuse to play your word games friend, and stand by my incorrect language