Game is good dont get me wrong, but the pine tree branches need to be angled down more, im sorry to make this negative but i will change this review as soon as that change is made
Hayward Gen VII 81363-7 is a better man/robot/thing than I am because I would have failed the mission as soon as I got to the sparsely dressed tomboy wolf lady assassin
The game seems super cool on paper, containing a really pretty art style that gives a retro boomer shooter feeling to what seems similar to souls-like game play. However, as I was playing, I was experiencing qualms that really impacted the enjoyment of the game for me.
1. Control scheme and mechanics not explained very well.
When you hop in, it doesn't explain anything. I was playing on an xbox controller and unfortunately, there is no where to view the control scheme, you just had to figure it out. Pop ups will come on screen explaining controls for new features but they were all in keyboard which was not helpful for me. You also have a energy system with each weapon having its own skill, but of course this isn't explained anywhere so you just have to figure it out. If you end up playing on controller, be prepared to turn the sensitivity down because the default sensitivity is straight-unplayable (too high).
2. Limited Enemy Variety.
Outside the ranged opponents, each enemy feels like they all do the same; run in a straight line towards you until you take damage. It was fun for the first ten minutes but I grew more and more tired with the lack of enemy variety. This isn't to say that the enemy cast isn't diverse but more so in that the diversity doesn't translate to game play. The meta is so obvious to just stand at a distance and shoot everything before anything has a chance to even get near you.
3. Lack of polish in some areas.
The game calls itself nonlinear yet I never feel rewarded for exploring. No collectables, no secret health or energy potions, nothing. Enemies will hit you yet outside your health dropping, you will not feel the impact. No Indicators, red blemish or screen shake.
4. Boss fights don't feel intense and lack strategy.
You only have so much ammo and energy so after you have used it all against the boss, you just start mashing your weapon against them. I realize you have a dash but there is very little animations indicating the boss was going to attack so the combat felt a little brain dead at times.
Conclusion:
Due to the lack of enemy variety, polish, and onboarding, I would recommend getting this game on a sale. By no means is it a bad game but it feels like there was a severe lack of play testing. The game is unpleasant to get into and it doesn't have much to make you want to stick around once you do have it figured out.
I really want to love this game. The atmosphere, style and sound are all fantastic.
Unfortunately, the game has quite a few bugs, with the main one getting stuck in menus and having to force quit and losing progress.
It would be disingenuous for me to recommend this game whilst these bugs are present. I would happily alter/post a new review if these are fixed.
I loved the demo, but now that its released I am getting regular frame drops and crashes.
Once this is fixed I'll change my review because I love the game!
Maybe I'll give it a chance when the PC controls are fixed. Currently I was unable to remap them.
Leaving negative so others will see it. You apparently can remap the PC controls. It's just not quite intuitive and I didn't check the troubleshooting thread. Please give it a chance if you do check there as I will be in a bit.
this is one of the best games i've ever played
art is amazing
music is so good (when it decides to play, sometimes it doesn't, probably a bug)
gameplay is incredibly fun and rewards exploration of the levels
story is interesting and the characters are really cool!
highly recommend for fans of old school fps games
I wouldn't usually drop a review with such a short amount of playtime but this game has thoroughly impressed me so far. Its worldbuilding and characters are just so incredibly endearing. I'm drawing notes from Planescape: Torment in terms of the whole hub area being a city that's an interdimensional melting pot. Vampire Hunter D and Morrowind are also definitely comparable with all the weird fantasy and synthesis of technology & magic going on. The Dark Souls inspiration is also kind of obvious, which helps some mechanics feel familiar despite their distinct application. And finally the non-linear story can be compared to the likes of Bioware games like KOTOR and ME, with your ability to immediately b-line it to whatever dimension interests you the most. You might notice I don't really have many boomer shooters to draw from to compare, despite this being built in the engine of GZDoom, I do not tend to be an avid fan of these types of games. And yet I'm already so utterly infatuated, with the worldbuilding as I've doted on - but the gunplay and weird gadgets is totally appealing as well. This should tell you how far-reaching the appeal of this game is. I really think this is shaping out to be such a great intersection of interests and genres, you're hard pressed not to find something to love here. I'll likely be back to more thoroughly review it when I can actually say I've played enough to form a more inquolicious opinion, but for now I can heavily recommend giving this a go. I haven't experienced any performance issues or bugs like many of the negative reviews here, I haven't even tweaked my settings, but I wouldn't doubt this game is riddled with them by nature of just fully releasing unto the world lol.
It's not that this game has soul, it IS soul, raw and undistilled soul.
It's so unique, the world building and art style are amazing ! I wish more games were like this...
I love the gameplay and atmosphere but there are extreme performance issues - some areas cause SINGLE DIGIT frame rate on my 5090.
Additionally the devs have said that patching the game would invalidate save files...
This game has an incredible aesthetic and vibe. Worth a look purely on that alone. The setting is strange and vibrant. Other than that it's a GZDoom shooter and it plays like one with a small Souls-like influence of save points being similar to bonfires and you have an up-gradable heal/mana flask. So far the gunplay is tight, the fights are tough but fair and there are secrets to find, and you will be rewarded for searching high and low.
Gameplay: Good
Story Good
Music: Good
Graphics: Retro
Here I will leave the cat, friends who pass by can pet it and give it a thumbs up
／＞ フ
| l
／` ミ＿xノ
/ |
/ ヽ ﾉ
│ | | |
／￣| | | |
| (￣ヽ＿ヽ)__)
Game is good dont get me wrong, but the pine tree branches need to be angled down more, im sorry to make this negative but i will change this review as soon as that change is made
Hayward Gen VII 81363-7 is a better man/robot/thing than I am because I would have failed the mission as soon as I got to the sparsely dressed tomboy wolf lady assassin
The game seems super cool on paper, containing a really pretty art style that gives a retro boomer shooter feeling to what seems similar to souls-like game play. However, as I was playing, I was experiencing qualms that really impacted the enjoyment of the game for me.
1. Control scheme and mechanics not explained very well.
When you hop in, it doesn't explain anything. I was playing on an xbox controller and unfortunately, there is no where to view the control scheme, you just had to figure it out. Pop ups will come on screen explaining controls for new features but they were all in keyboard which was not helpful for me. You also have a energy system with each weapon having its own skill, but of course this isn't explained anywhere so you just have to figure it out. If you end up playing on controller, be prepared to turn the sensitivity down because the default sensitivity is straight-unplayable (too high).
2. Limited Enemy Variety.
Outside the ranged opponents, each enemy feels like they all do the same; run in a straight line towards you until you take damage. It was fun for the first ten minutes but I grew more and more tired with the lack of enemy variety. This isn't to say that the enemy cast isn't diverse but more so in that the diversity doesn't translate to game play. The meta is so obvious to just stand at a distance and shoot everything before anything has a chance to even get near you.
3. Lack of polish in some areas.
The game calls itself nonlinear yet I never feel rewarded for exploring. No collectables, no secret health or energy potions, nothing. Enemies will hit you yet outside your health dropping, you will not feel the impact. No Indicators, red blemish or screen shake.
4. Boss fights don't feel intense and lack strategy.
You only have so much ammo and energy so after you have used it all against the boss, you just start mashing your weapon against them. I realize you have a dash but there is very little animations indicating the boss was going to attack so the combat felt a little brain dead at times.
Conclusion:
Due to the lack of enemy variety, polish, and onboarding, I would recommend getting this game on a sale. By no means is it a bad game but it feels like there was a severe lack of play testing. The game is unpleasant to get into and it doesn't have much to make you want to stick around once you do have it figured out.
I really want to love this game. The atmosphere, style and sound are all fantastic.
Unfortunately, the game has quite a few bugs, with the main one getting stuck in menus and having to force quit and losing progress.
It would be disingenuous for me to recommend this game whilst these bugs are present. I would happily alter/post a new review if these are fixed.
I loved the demo, but now that its released I am getting regular frame drops and crashes.
Once this is fixed I'll change my review because I love the game!
Maybe I'll give it a chance when the PC controls are fixed. Currently I was unable to remap them.
Leaving negative so others will see it. You apparently can remap the PC controls. It's just not quite intuitive and I didn't check the troubleshooting thread. Please give it a chance if you do check there as I will be in a bit.
this is one of the best games i've ever played
art is amazing
music is so good (when it decides to play, sometimes it doesn't, probably a bug)
gameplay is incredibly fun and rewards exploration of the levels
story is interesting and the characters are really cool!
highly recommend for fans of old school fps games
I wouldn't usually drop a review with such a short amount of playtime but this game has thoroughly impressed me so far. Its worldbuilding and characters are just so incredibly endearing. I'm drawing notes from Planescape: Torment in terms of the whole hub area being a city that's an interdimensional melting pot. Vampire Hunter D and Morrowind are also definitely comparable with all the weird fantasy and synthesis of technology & magic going on. The Dark Souls inspiration is also kind of obvious, which helps some mechanics feel familiar despite their distinct application. And finally the non-linear story can be compared to the likes of Bioware games like KOTOR and ME, with your ability to immediately b-line it to whatever dimension interests you the most. You might notice I don't really have many boomer shooters to draw from to compare, despite this being built in the engine of GZDoom, I do not tend to be an avid fan of these types of games. And yet I'm already so utterly infatuated, with the worldbuilding as I've doted on - but the gunplay and weird gadgets is totally appealing as well. This should tell you how far-reaching the appeal of this game is. I really think this is shaping out to be such a great intersection of interests and genres, you're hard pressed not to find something to love here. I'll likely be back to more thoroughly review it when I can actually say I've played enough to form a more inquolicious opinion, but for now I can heavily recommend giving this a go. I haven't experienced any performance issues or bugs like many of the negative reviews here, I haven't even tweaked my settings, but I wouldn't doubt this game is riddled with them by nature of just fully releasing unto the world lol.
It's not that this game has soul, it IS soul, raw and undistilled soul.
It's so unique, the world building and art style are amazing ! I wish more games were like this...
I love the gameplay and atmosphere but there are extreme performance issues - some areas cause SINGLE DIGIT frame rate on my 5090.
Additionally the devs have said that patching the game would invalidate save files...
This game has an incredible aesthetic and vibe. Worth a look purely on that alone. The setting is strange and vibrant. Other than that it's a GZDoom shooter and it plays like one with a small Souls-like influence of save points being similar to bonfires and you have an up-gradable heal/mana flask. So far the gunplay is tight, the fights are tough but fair and there are secrets to find, and you will be rewarded for searching high and low.
Gameplay: Good
Story Good
Music: Good
Graphics: Retro
Here I will leave the cat, friends who pass by can pet it and give it a thumbs up
／＞ フ
| l
／` ミ＿xノ
/ |
/ ヽ ﾉ
│ | | |
／￣| | | |
| (￣ヽ＿ヽ)__)
