This is my first review here, mostly thanks to this game being "unique" enough to deserve it. The game has a nice visual style and art direction, and the music is really awesome and suits it all very well. The gameplay boasts various interesting in-game mechanics and diverse styles of play with a vast number of possible ship+systems+crew setups. Ship battles are engaging and breathtaking, and a number of random encounters with occasional quests break the mold of linear progression towards the end goal of the game. Well, that's it for the good points of the game. Now, let's get to the biggest spoonful of dung in this barrel of honey. As I've already hinted in the title of this review, FTL is basically like playing a game of poker: you get to know the basic rules the first several hours, then you learn even more tiny details for several days, and only then you begin to figure out the strategies and successful combinations for winning the game at least once. It requires several days to simply get the hold of the game's mechanics in relation to gameplay scenarios - unless you want to screw your playthroughs over and over again. You either learn it the hard way by playing the game or by literally studying various guides and recommendations for hours. Like poker, this game heavily relies on RNG and your incredible luck, which almost throws any balancing out of the window. There is a balancing mechanic in the game, don't get me wrong - with each new sector you get tougher enemies, for instance, and the game's difficulty settings affect how smart AI's battle choices are, but all of it is hardly of much significance when a single mistake, which might happen due to some random event, can destroy your entire playthrough, and you might not be aware of it until it's too late. To sum it up, to enjoy the game and receive a feeling of satisfaction you have to memorise a number of successful strategies and stay clear off of any mistakes. Sounds reasonable, right? 🤡: "git gud".
