StarCrawlers

Broken targeting. Took ten minutes just to flip the first switch. To explain, as one might expect, the center of the screen has a circle for targeting. However, centering the circle on something doesn't target anything. Looking off to the left sometimes does. Other times, you'll need to be a square or two away. Sometimes you'll need to be looking far off to the left, nearly behind you, to click on something in front of you. Fresh install and instantly broken. Seems this is a known issue, but that sure didn't stop them from selling it did it?

I got this title through a special sale & so I had no knowledge or hype of it when I first played it. I love this title but SEE THE IMPORTANT NOTE AT THE END. StarCrawlers is cool. The sights & the sounds are recognizably-future but also eye-catching - a real visual treat if you have any interest in a sci-fi / future / cyberpunk setting. An amazing soundtrack suitably thrums when the game starts up, meanders when the player negotiates with employers & pulses with energy as combat begins. The presentation is beyond smooth, especially when spending time "on the job," navigating factories, ships, luxury hotels, et cetera. As appropriate, rooms vary from pristine & extravagant to junky & in varying states of disrepair. Light reflects in windows, sparks fly from damaged wall panels & more. The visual style of the game is superb. Though primary character animation seems to be simple 2D-sprites, they're animated very well. The characters in the game are an incredibly engrossing experience - the 8 classes are fun to explore, both in backstory & builds (each have some varying backgrounds & each have 3 'roles' to choice - or mix & match), as well as some of the clientele you'll bump into throughout the game. The combat in the game is really fun - a colorful caste of enemies with plenty of personality keep things interesting. Security Forces suitably warble into their radios as they fire upon you while robots jitter & chirp or grind & lumber about before they attempt to take you down. The varying types of fauna ferociously roar or shriek as they attempt to run you out of their home. Learning the combat system & the skills that each character, ally & hired gun (& the equipment they wield) yield such satisfying synergy when everything goes just right. GOG Galaxy says I've sunk 40 hours into this title. I expect to sink 40 more. NOTE: Game is made in Unity. Some story missions crashed - A LOT, but dev's active on Steam & regularly releasing patches. I DID beat the game.

This is a fun, somewhat simple 1st person dungeon crawler. If you like that type of game, it is probably a no brainer to add this to your collection. Instead of one big dungeon, you run multiple smaller dungeons, each as a mission. Because of this, you can play it a mission or two at a time, but you can also save and quit out in the middle of a mission. The classes are interesting and you can hire several PCs but only take four on a run, so may have to rotate some out. Random stuff on the ground or in containers to collect. The game is obviously inspired by Borderlands, but with the randomly generated dungeon missions and the splashy visuals of some abilities, I get a slight City of Heroes vibe.

I feel like a 3 may be a bit too harsh, but I don't this it warrents a 4 either. StarCrawlers is a fun game dungeon crawler that has it's share of flaws but will definitely scratch the itch for any turn based RPG fan. The Good: -Wide Variety of Classes with lots of unique skills -Cool Visual Style -Amazing Soundtrack -Well written dialogue in most cases -Endless Side Missions The Bad: -Lack of balance between classes (Hacker is way overpowered while Engineer is garbage tier for example) -Procedurally generated maps for side missions get really repetitive -Level hazards (traps, pressure plates, etc) don't gel well with blocky movement Overall: 7/10 A game that I really like despite it's flaws and a fine first effort for Juggernaut Games, looking forward to seeing more of what they do in the future. My Video Review which goes into more detail: https://youtu.be/brysL_zT1nc

While it was fun for a couple of hours it quickly gets repetitive. Worst part is, balance is practically broken at some point. Out of nowhere enemies suddenly start wearing armor that render half your weapons useless. Combined with large amounts of health even fights with random trash mobs became excruciating. It was such a sudden and jarring change of pace that I felt the game was just wasting my time. What was slightly repetitive turned into a dull, mindless slog. No idea what the devs were thinking. Did they not play test that part or where they so desperate to pad play time?