THQ has announced a limited edition for the upcoming FPS Metro: Last Light, and they're offering a collection of bonuses for anyone who pre-orders it.
Included as bonuses are the following:
* Ranger Mode - Huw Beynon, THQ creative strategist, describes as "one of the most immersive, atmospheric challenges in gaming." In Metro 2033, Ranger Mode came in two options, easy or hardcore. On easy, a few bullets would kill the player and crosshairs were disabled. On hardocre, the HUD was completely disabled, and the player could be killed by a single bullet.
* Ranger Load Out - bonus bullets, the game's currency, for weapon upgrades and equipement
* A weapon, a modified AKS-74U Russian rifle
* free digital copy of Homefront
* Metro: Last Light PSN theme
Pre-order offers will start being accepted on Dec. 18. Retailers offering the game include Amazon.com, Best Buy, EB Games, GameStop, Walmart.com, and the THQ Store.
A sequel to 2010's Metro 2033, itself based on the book of the same title, Last Light doesn't seem to be based on the book sequel, titled "Metro 2034," but the author Dmitry Glukhovsky has been working with the Last Light developers, so there may be a few similarities here and there.
To play catch up, Metro 2033 was set in the beautiful and scenic undergrounds of an irradiated, post-apocalyptic Russia. During the chaos of the bombing, people struggled their way into the underground metro stations for shelfter. Anything left on the surface was exposed to heavy doses of radiation, and over the next 20 years, mutated into creatures called the Dark Ones. Protagonist Artyom was tasked with making his way through various Metros (based on the various rumors), since organized into nation-states, to get to a missile silo to destroy the Dark Ones. Upon reaching the silo, the player is left with a choice which impacts the ending received.
THQ offered up a press release summing up the sequel's story:
"It is the year 2034.
Beneath the ruins of post-apocalyptic Moscow, in the tunnels of the Metro, the remnants of mankind are besieged by deadly threats from outside - and within.
Mutants stalk the catacombs beneath the desolate surface, and hunt amidst the poisoned skies above.
But rather than stand united, the station-cities of the Metro are locked in a struggle for the ultimate power, a doomsday device from the military vaults of D6. A civil war is stirring that could wipe humanity from the face of the earth forever.
As Artyom, burdened by guilt but driven by hope, you hold the key to our survival - the last light in our darkest hour..."
Metro: Last Light releases March, for PlayStation 3, Windows PC, and Xbox 360.