Recent reviews by Exostenza

I only buy cosmetic DLCs for games that I want to see more development as I don't care about skins. So, me buying this DLC shows how much I love the game and want the devs to make more, more, more!

Definitely worth every penny for the added maps and content. This game is awesome and I am willing to pay for whatever they release for it - I just want more!

Its a fun little roguelite shooter where you go into a room and it locks down until you clear it. There are a ton of guns and even more body and gun mods making for fairly unique runs in terms of builds each time. The meta progression seems fair and takes some time to build up but doesn't disrespect your time and the bosses are just ok so far but I haven't made it past the thiesr sector yet so they might get better. I haven't tried it in co-op yet but I am sure that would only add more fun to it.

All in all. for whatever sale price I got it for I would say it was worth it. Honestly, $32.50 seems a bit steep and I think I got it for somewhere in between $10 and $15 or in a bundle so I would say it is likely worth up to $20 but I wouldn't buy it full price and wait for a sale. That isn't to take away from the game being good it's just that it's an indie game with pixel graphics, procedurally created levels, and a gameplay loop that is just a randomizer so although you can get a lot of time into the game it doesn't seem like it warrants the full price they are asking. But, on a 25-30% sale I would definitely buy it and try to get a buddy in on it as well if that's what you like.

Definitely a thumbs up for me - nothing ground breaking but what it does it does well.

Damn, this game could have been great if the devs didn't abandon it upon 1.0 release. Even if they didn't put anymore content into it and just squashed all the bugs I would be happy but they aren't even willing to do that.

Don't buy.

I'm about 7 hours in and it looks like this game is turning out to be significantly better than I had expected. It kind of came out of nowhere for me as it popped up in a bundle with I am your Beast and it looked cool while the price was right so I pulled the trigger without really knowing what I was getting myself into and I am sure happy I took the plunge as this game slaps hard.

If you a bit slower paced boomer shooters, still fast paced compared to modern shooters but on the slower side of the fast paced genre, and inventory management then this is the game for you. It is actually kind of insane so far after only 7 hours of gameplay the variety of guns with attachments and modifiers (like elemental, stun, more damage less reload speed, etc...) for them there are. So far, each gun starts at rank 0 and seem the more damage you do with them, I don't think it is kill bad but I could be wrong, it will start levelling up and each rank gives you another modifier spot where you can combine a bunch of different kind of stat modifying oils for each rank to the gun plus you can put one attachment on right away, and only one attachment per gun, like a scope or laser sight, which modifies the stats of the gun like 50% accuracy while moving for the laser sight and x amount higher crit change when looking through scopes etc... while you can also add one elemental/magical modifier to and there may be more that I haven't come across. The system so far seems way more fleshed out than anticipated and really, really damn fun.

There is also crafting and inventory management where you can only pickup so much during a run so you have to plan what to keep on you, what to sell to traders that you might come across, and what is just plain junk. You also find blueprint for cooking and mixing oils, there may be more but I don't know yet) so you can be combining items as you go through the levels or back at the home base.

I think I haven't even scratched the surface of this game yet as I just beat the very first area which opened up a bit more of the home base and I must say that this game is one of those hidden indie gems that was only possible because of early access and blows away most AAA games in terms of pretty much everything except for graphics, but I would take solid mechanics any day of the week over graphics.

So, should you buy this game? That is an emphatic yes after only 7 hours and if it keeps going like this then the recommendation will go get strengthened through more gameplay as I have barely used any of the guns never mind the insane amount of modifiers. I really hope I stick with this as I think there may be an easy 30-50 hours here for someone like me and possibly a couple hundred for those who like to go hard and so everything.

So far, I'd say a solid 8.5/10 and worth the price at full cost while getting it through a sale and/or a bundle feels a bit like stealing as there seems to be just so much content. Oh, I also haven't even tried the endless hoard mode yet so there's a whole other game there too I've yet to experience.

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TL;DR Amazing indie looter shooter with crazy good customisation mechanics of guns and a ridiculous amount of content so if you like that stuff and boomer shooters then even buying at full price seems like it is a bit under priced.

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To the developers:
I hope you can keep pumping out content for this game as I am sure there is so much going on that there could easily be a ton more added so if you have the money don't stop when it comes out of the early access door please! Also, I don't think this game needs multiplayer so I would rather see more content than multiplayer if you have to focus your time on one or the other but I know you did promise multiplayer as a stretch goal that got achieved so you have to but I hope that is a post 1.0 project so you can really focus on the fantastic single player content first - there are already so many multiplayer games like this out there I just don't think it's very important so please don't make it your focus. I am sure multiplayer will be a blast when it comes out but don’t let it detract from the core experience and more content.

So far, this is a fantastic boomer shooter in the vein of Quake 1 and it is done very well. Everything from level design, aesthetics, gun design, enemies, secrets, movement, and mechanics is obviously done as a superb homage to Quake 1. If you like boomer shooters, and especially ones that take most of their inspiration heavily from Quake 1, then this is likely a game that you're going to thoroughly enjoy.

I'm only 3 hours in so I can't speak to repetitiveness and length but so far starting out on the third difficulty the game seems to strike a great balance between needing skill and using the right gun for the situation and I am enjoying myself very much so.

A tentative recommend and I'll hopefully update this as I have played more but if the first 2 hours or so are indicative of the whole game then it'll stay a recommend.

If you like first person bullet heaven games then this is a very fun one with a ridiculous amount of guns and items plus six distinct characters with their own play styles and skill trees. I find it a bit odd that you have to use your skull points to unlock each gun per character but other than that, for a couple of bucks on sale, this is definitely a well made and entertaining bullet heaven fps reminiscent of mothergunshhip.

Initial thoughts - will likely update in 10-20 more hrs of gameplay

Arc Raiders currently feels like a heavily simplified version of Tarkov, which is appealing because Tarkov is overly complex IMHO. Arc incorporates elements of environmental interaction and looting reminiscent of DayZ, while its attempt to replicate the masterful PvPvE boss-fighting and world-building of Hunt falls significantly short. While Hunt sets an exceptionally high bar, with seven to eight more years of development, its environments are exquisitely designed, oozing with passionately designed rich atmosphere and meticulous, handcrafted detail that even surpasses the loving environmental quality of even Red Dead Redemption 2 – Gerald please don’t kill me.

Although it’s early days for Arc Raiders as a live service game, so I realise it will continually improve, though Hunt’s initial release was superior compared to Arc’s. I strongly dislike the mundane and repetitive Bethesda-style missions required for gathering tons of resources and unlocking content, the Tarkov-esque base building, station-making, and upgrading as unnecessary time sinks intended solely to keep players engaged and spending money in a live service model. It appears as if these features distracted the developers from focusing on intense PvPvE fights and environments/immersion, which is why I favour Hunt above all, as it stripped out this progression ♥♥♥♥♥♥♥♥ to concentrate on core gameplay. Though, Hunt has recently introduced optional time-sink quests which I dislike at least they waited eight years to work on the game to introduce those and they are entirely optional unlike in Arc where you have to do them to progress.

Despite these reservations, I enjoyed my first coop session last night playing with someone I met and had fun working together. I’d likely have been upset, so far, if I paid over $25 but since I got it for $2.45 you’ll have no complaints about price to game time and enjoyment from me. I definitely look forward to playing for a while (20-50 hours), particularly with the bros, anticipating it will be a blast, and then likely returning for major updates to see how the game has progressed. I am most definitely looking forward to getting back to playing multiplayer with whacky buddies, the ensuing funny bros banter, and general ♥♥♥♥♥♥♥♥♥♥ that seems to take place in these games with friends.

Update: Well, after about 12 hours it seems like there really isn't anything pulling me back to game much as all the time sink quests are just too annoying and boring so I guess I am really happy I only paid $2.45 for the game as I don't really see it as having staying power for me at all. That being said, my friends absolutely love this game and are playing the absolute **** out of it so clearly people who like games like Tarkov love this game. I, however, did not like Tarkov due to all the BS surrounding actually playing the game which this game leans into. Then you add in third person taking out almost all of the tension inherent in first person pvp shoot outs and you have a very cool game that is heavily dragged down by annoying time sink mechanics and bland pvp due to third person allowing you to just crouch and see everything past what you're behind. I really want to play more but I just don't seem to ever want to boot it up.

This is the best Souls game hands down and don't let my low play time fool you. A lot of times when I am unsure I will pirate a game to see if it has teeth as the steam 2 hours is never enough for a truly good game. I probably played like 20 hours of this at the bare minimum when I realized that I was loving it and had to support it so I bought it and the DLC, moved my save file over to the steam version and continued from there. So, I probably have at least 30 hours in this game altogether if not a lot more as I got sucked into the game when I had it pirated and bought it late in the base game.

If you want to play a Dark Souls game this is the one to play as it is the most polished IMHO.

It's one hell of a fun ride. It is crazy that something that looks so ridiculously stupid is this good! If you like old school fast paced shooters with new school mechanics and complete zany fun then this is a time and a half for you. I definitely recommend this game 42069%