Author: Mike
Date: 8/28/2023
Platform: Xbox Series X
An Unbalanced Adventure Amidst Ruins
Remnant: From the Ashes offers players a chance to dive into a post-apocalyptic world teeming with danger and mystery. The game blends exploration, combat, and survival elements, as players uncover the story behind the cataclysmic events that have reshaped their reality. However, amidst the promise of a gripping experience, the game stumbles in several key aspects that ultimately hinder its potential.
The storytelling in Remnant: From the Ashes is a labyrinth of confusion and apathy. The narrative struggles to maintain players’ engagement, leaving them grappling with a convoluted plot and disinterest in the characters’ motivations. This lack of narrative pull creates a significant barrier to players’ investment in the unfolding events, making it challenging to feel immersed in the game’s world.
Compounding the immersion issue is the game’s remarkably stiff voice acting. Characters deliver their lines with an unnatural rigidity, stripping emotional depth from dialogues and interactions. This stiffness detracts from the intended impact of character development, making it difficult to form a meaningful connection with the virtual personas that populate the game.
As players traverse the game’s diverse environments, they may find themselves grappling with a sense of emptiness and detachment. Many areas fail to evoke the atmosphere necessary to fully immerse players in the post-apocalyptic universe. This lack of immersive environments hampers the sense of urgency and wonder that should accompany exploration, leaving players somewhat disconnected.
The game’s interior spaces can elicit both awe and frustration. Certain interiors, however, suffer from a pronounced sense of claustrophobia, restricting movement and combat effectiveness. This disparity in interior design disrupts the overall gameplay flow, introducing an obstacle to the otherwise enjoyable exploration aspects.
Exploring dungeons in Remnant: From the Ashes can feel like déjà vu, as the layouts tend to be strikingly similar. The lack of diversity in dungeon design hampers the excitement of discovery and progress. This recurring layout issue diminishes the satisfaction of uncovering new locations, leading to an unfortunate sense of repetition.
Visually, the game hovers around the realm of acceptability. While the graphics don’t push boundaries, they effectively serve their purpose without being a defining feature. The visuals may not be a major deterrent to gameplay, but they also don’t significantly contribute to an overall engaging experience.
The combat system, however, is one of the game’s shining points. It is highly responsive and delivers a satisfying blend of gunplay and melee combat. Engaging in battles feels fluid and exciting, allowing players to immerse themselves fully in the heat of the action and fully enjoy the combat mechanics.
A notable gameplay issue lies in the inclusion of enemies equipped with guns, which disrupt the combat system’s harmony. These foes don’t seamlessly integrate into the primarily close-quarters combat design, leading to an awkward combination of ranged and melee combat that can feel disjointed and less than fluid.
While the game offers a variety of weapons, there’s little incentive to deviate from the starting arsenal. This lack of motivation to explore other options can lead to a sense of missed opportunities for diverse playstyles, limiting the game’s overall depth.
Additionally, the accessibility and affordability of consumables undermine their impact as strategic tools. These items are too cheap and easily accessible, diminishing the challenge they could otherwise pose in various scenarios.
The trait system, meant to offer character progression, is disappointingly simplistic. Traits lack depth and nuance, resulting in a progression mechanic that feels underwhelming and fails to encourage meaningful choices.
The crafting and upgrade system, integral to the game’s survival aspects, lacks excitement. The process feels mundane and lacks the engagement necessary to make it a compelling gameplay component.
On the plus side, the game’s campaign length strikes a balance between not being too short and not dragging on excessively. This measured approach allows players to experience the story without feeling rushed or bored.
One of the game’s strengths is the commendable variety in environment styles. From lush landscapes to desolate ruins, the game showcases a diverse range of atmospheres that contribute positively to the sense of exploration and immersion.
Regrettably, the same cannot be said for the bosses within the game. These encounters often lack excitement and fail to leave a lasting impression. Boss battles should be climactic and memorable, but in this case, they end up being a weaker aspect of the gameplay experience.
The game’s normal difficulty setting leans towards the easier side, potentially disappointing players seeking a genuine challenge. This imbalance diminishes the sense of accomplishment that comes from overcoming true obstacles and may leave players wanting a more balanced level of difficulty.
In summary, Remnant: From the Ashes presents a mix of engaging combat, varied environments, and several design pitfalls. Despite its positive attributes, such as its combat mechanics and diverse environment styles, the game’s shortcomings hinder its potential. With confusing storytelling, stiff voice acting, and uninteresting bosses, it fails to become a standout title in the action RPG genre. While its combat is satisfying, the game’s overall execution falls short of expectations.
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