id Software’s long awaited new IP, Rage, is out in South Africa this Friday, 7 October 2011. The game is being released on PC, PS3 and Xbox 360, and will be the first game to show off the new id Tech 5 engine.

Rage takes places in a post-apocalyptic “Mad Max” type world, following a catastrophic asteroid impact which decimates the planet. Gameplay will be heavily action based, combining first person shooting and driving.

The game is out in the US today, which means review embargos have been lifted. So far it’s looking pretty good, holding onto a Metacritic score of 81/100. Here is what some reviewers have had to say so far.

Meristation 9/10

Do you feel games similar to Fallout 3 are a little too open-ended? Or maybe Call of Duty is too linear? Well, Rage is some kind of happy medium between the two and it’s unlike anything id has done before. Read more

Gametrailers 9/10

We never imagined that the RPG elements would be so vast or deftly handled, resulting in a pleasant surprise. A near-perfect mix of first-person shooting and role-playing, it’s a nice fit for those who felt too detached from the gun play in Fallout 3 or Mass Effect.  Read more

CVG 8.9/10

The house of Doom delivers a masterful single-player shooter with top notch gunplay, let down by a disappointing final third. Read more

IGN 8.5/10

The great controls and useful weapon upgrades help make Rage’s shooting parts a lot of fun, but the storyline fails to create any real tension and the game’s characters, friendly and hostile, never do or say anything memorable. Read more

Eurogamer 8/10

Judged on game design and content, then, it’s slightly anachronistic, but as a toy box full of things you can only do in games, Rage is warm-hearted and refreshing. It’s not going to change the world, but it does serve as a timely reminder of that other thing id Software games always did besides smashing through some new technological barrier. Read more

Gamespot 8/10

Rage creates an engrossing world full of dazzling detail and entertaining shooter action. Read more

1UP B

It’s nothing revolutionary. It comes from a different kind of Id, one that would rather play with existing conventions than reinvent them. Conversely, it’s the same Id that puts look and feel on the same high pillar, and it’s impossible to call Rage badly-composed. I just don’t think it’s going to be remembered as anything but a sleeper hit of the fall of 2011. Read more

Joystiq 3/5

There’s just not a lot of “there” there – my first playthrough, which included every side-mission and several job board assignments, took me 9 hours and 15 minutes. My second, where I completed every side-mission, every job board assignment, every courier mission, and most of the races, took eight hours and 50 minutes. RAGE ends so abruptly that I didn’t realize it was over until the final cutscene began. I was left wondering what had happened. Read more

Rage review roundup << Comments and views