Mars: War Logs

The best way to describe Mars War Logs is: Imagine a Sci Fi Original Videogame. Cheasy dialogue, sometimes good action, wierd characters, somatimes really bad voice acting, cringy desitions (Like the names of the characters in one of the factions), and a really interesting universe. The story is nothing special and cliche, dialogues sometimes are bad, soometimes are funny bad. The combat is OK, but unbalance (With selecting only a couple of skills, you can be the invencible half trough the game). But the universe Spiders made for the game, is really interesting and original (Sadly you can see only a little of it in Mars, but explore it much more in Technomancer). If you play Mars War Logs thinking you are going to play a Sci Fi Original Movie Game (But with a good world) and knowing you are going to laught at dialogue and some moments, you are going to really enjoy the game. Mars its a cheasy, sometimes good sometimes bad experience. Just dont play it thinking is a big AAA "michel Bay style" RPG.

First, some warnings to the prospective buyer. This game was released in 2013, but the visuals and mechanics feel much older. c 2005, maybe. The dialogue translations range from 'not bad' to, very occasionally, 'gibberish'. The scope of the game and story are far too large for what must have been a low budget and a small team. And there's too much backtracking to and fro between the same areas. So, if you're a gamer who wants things slick and polished, this may not be for you. Personally, I have no problem with very rough edges (which is why I like old games), provided they have something different to offer. I can honestly say that I preferred this game to Mass Effect Andromeda, Anthem, and several other AAA titles. Behind the rough translations, there are some interesting ideas and themes (betrayal, sacrifice, duty etc). The universe is also interesting with its backstory and factions. In these the respects, the writing is better than many AAA titles. I put around 20 hours into the game, and I will replay it one day because choices do appear to have some impact. I found it well worth the very low price and the hours I invested.

Technomancer might be a lot better than this, but I can't help myself but to dig cheesy games like this. To me, the universe is charming and memorable. So if you don't mind spending a few bucks and maybe 20h before you start Technomancer, give this game a try, you might enjoy it. It's also great to see how much progress Spiders has made with every game. Can't wait to see what they come up with after Greedfall.

This game is set in the same world as 'The Technomancer' and came before it, even though the timeline shows some events that happen after certain events from the Technomancer. The game has a solid story, with a set protagonist who is surprisingly charismatic despite his dry sarcasm. You have dialogue options and choices to make, and this is a game that changes completely after a certain point based on a choice you make, which is very cool. The choice you make is not easy either, and personally made me switch sides with just one choice. So kudos to Spiders for managing that (as they recently did with Greedfall as well!) It's not a very long game, but that doesn't mean that you don't get a solid experience. There is no 'fluff' to make the game longer, which I personally appreciate. The companions you have are pretty barebones with some exceptions. For some reason there are 'romances', and I put quotation marks there because they are basically one single dry dialogue option and then a quick kiss scene if I remember correctly. So don't expect much there. I'm giving it five stars because I loved the game despite its flaws. You have to consider that the game came out even before Bound by Flame (which oddly enough I find way more flawed than this), by a very small studio with limited budget. Having played almost all games from Spiders now, I'm constantly seeing how much they try. Each game has something that really shines through, that might get lost in future games only to come back later. I feel like this game was a great start to the Spiders Mars universe, and the lore is actually solid and really interesting (especially if you play both War Logs and The Technomancer). I really hope we get a third game in the Mars universe from Spiders. And I hope more people see why.