Forums » General Gaming

• Legion

  

  • 700 posts
   

  December 7, 2017 8:45 PM EST

  Anyone played this gem? It's basically a sci-fi Souls entry with DS1's map design, Bloodborne's speed, and enough uinique mechanics to let it stand out of the shadows of the two I just mentioned. I only have 20 hours logged, but that's more than enough to know how good it is. 

• Wulfhedinn

  

  • 278 posts
   

  December 7, 2017 8:55 PM EST

  Thinking of buying, what out of 10 would you give it?

• Golden Fool

  

  • 627 posts
   

  December 7, 2017 8:57 PM EST

  I played about 10 hours of it back when it first came out. The last boss I can remember fighting involved lots of lasers and I mean LOTS of lasers, then I think I made it into an outside area where they had been growing plants or something... it's been awhile. I remember enjoying what I played but at some point I put it down and never picked it back up again. I think it was partly because I've been burnt out on the Dark Souls type of games for a while now, that and what felt like a difficulty spike might have led to me losing interest. There's a chance I'll pick it up again at some point but I'm not sure when that will be.

• Gollum

  

  • 558 posts
   

  December 7, 2017 8:59 PM EST

  I haven't played it, but I wouldn't be opposed to it. Honestly, the reason I enjoy the Soulsborne series so much is because of the music and art design. How does The Surge fare in those departments?

• Legion

  

  • 700 posts
   

  December 7, 2017 9:15 PM EST

  Oh lord, you want a score? I can try. Let's see...right off the bat, it earns at least a 6 out of 10 for having smooth and interesting combat., looking amazing, and having really solid voice acting.

  One attack button is horizontal swings; the other is vertical swings. There are five weapon types, and each type has its own basic moveset distinct from the others. Weapons within a particular category also have varying movesets, which makes for a nice variety of fighting moves. One thing I've heard that people don't like is the "Weapon Proficiency" system, where you become more effective with weapons of a certain class the more you use weapons from that class. It makes switching weapon types halfway through the game somewhat of a pain, but it's not a huge deal if you know what you're doing and are willing to learn. The game has less bullshit than the other Souls entries and is notably more forgiving in some respects (for example: if you save and quit after you die, the game won't erase your 'souls' -- they'll still be there next time you load up) but is by no means "easy." Expect to learn areas by heart, because you will die -- a lot. One new thing they included is a time limit to retrive your dropped 'souls' (they call it Scrap), but it's not as awful as it sounds. Time doesn't tick down while you're in the Medbay (Bonfire), and you get 2 minutes and 30 seconds to get your Scrap back. Killing enemies adds to your time. Time also pauses while you're in an elevator. So you can run for your scrap or kill your way back to it, but it's sometimes easy to get caught in a mass of enemies and just run out of time. Overall, not a bad mechanic. Adds a sense of urgency to it all. 

  If you enjoy Souls games, you'll likely enjoy this one. The combat is really the highlight for both its depth and breadth. I'd probably give it a 7 or 8 out of 10. Fun, well-designed, and just unique enough to sustain interest over the long-term. 

• Legion

  

  • 700 posts
   

  December 7, 2017 9:22 PM EST

  @Gollum

  Good good art, very nice. It's very colorful compared to the drab Soulsborne palettes, but it doesn't make you sick like FO4's palette. The music is not as good as anything in the Soulsborne series, to be honest. It doesn't get your blood pumping quite the same (which isn't to say the boss fights won't), but it's kind of a mellow techno thing. I'll link a video so you can hear. 

   

   

  The soundtrack is one thing I really hope they put a lot more effort into in the second entry, and I really hope there's a second entry. 

• Legion

  

  • 700 posts
   

  December 7, 2017 9:25 PM EST

  The Whispering Fool said:

  I played about 10 hours of it back when it first came out. The last boss I can remember fighting involved lots of lasers and I mean LOTS of lasers, then I think I made it into an outside area where they had been growing plants or something... it's been awhile. I remember enjoying what I played but at some point I put it down and never picked it back up again. I think it was partly because I've been burnt out on the Dark Souls type of games for a while now, that and what felt like a difficulty spike might have led to me losing interest. There's a chance I'll pick it up again at some point but I'm not sure when that will be.

  So I just got through the Biolabs and greenhouses. Is that the outside area you mean? I don't remember a boss with lasers yet is why I ask. There's the stompy one that comes first, then the whirrly second boss, then the punchy third boss. But if it's anything like the Soulsbornes, you can do things in a general order rather than a strict one. 

• Gollum

  

  • 558 posts
   

  December 7, 2017 9:29 PM EST

  Strange. I can't say I've heard boss fight music like that before. Reminds of exploring music from Metroid or something.
• Legion

  

  • 700 posts
   

  December 7, 2017 9:36 PM EST

  It somewhat reminds me of the direction that Battlefield's music took. I will say there is one really really good song in the game, and it's completely out of place, and it was this huge deal with the fans. It's a fucking good song. Stumfol - Prisoner if you're curious. I don't want to link it, because, while it's not really a spoiler, it is really...something else to hear in the game itself. Despite the lack of a symphonic soundtrack, the game's atmosphere doesn't suffer terribly for it. 
  

• Legion

  

  • 700 posts
   

  December 7, 2017 9:40 PM EST

  OH. And I should mention -- you do not get to design your character. You get Warren. And you have expositional dialogue options.