Gripping your sub-standard firearm, you crawl in dark claustrophobic tunnels while the growls of prowling monsters surround you.

It is a challenge looking out of your cracked and fogged gas mask, but removing it will mean instant death. You feel abject desperation as your watch shows the air filters running out.

If you love games that force you to overcome the odds and survive, take on Metro 2033.

This first person shooter places you deep in the subway tunnels of post-apocalyptic Moscow which has been devastated by a nuclear fallout.

Fast forward to 20 years later, you play Artyom who is forced to travel the uninhabitable city and go deeper into the Metro network to save the remnants of humanity who are under sudden attack by monsters.

The atmosphere is immersive. You can see, hear and feel the gritty desperation of the survivors in the Metro stations.

Linear gameplay

In this perilous world, you can be mauled by monsters, choke on toxic fumes, fall into pools of nuclear waste or killed by barely visible ghosts.

For a shooter, I found the weapons highly inaccurate and underpowered, perhaps deliberately, as weapons and ammunition are poorly made after the fallout.

This seriously mars the enjoyment of a shooting game. For variety, Metro 2033 incorporates some stealth missions but these are unnecessarily difficult, no thanks to the inconsistent artificial intelligence of enemies.

Despite the detailed level design, the maps are linear with many sections obstructed by rubble which limits the potential for exploration.

With no multiplayer mode and only a linear single player campaign, Metro 2033's replayability is limited.

Thank goodness the game's immersive environment saved it from obscurity.

Yap Hui Bin is a freelance writer and avid gamer.