Aliens Dark Descent Review - Uneven and Unfun...until its not
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- Опубликовано: 8 сен 2024
- Aliens Dark Descent Review from ACG. Focus Home brings us a realtime strat game from the Aliens Franchise. Does it hit or miss? Is it worth buying or waiting on. Lets find out
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#aliens2023
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Coverage includes ps4, PS5, XBox series X/s, Xbox one, pc, Switch, and digital storefronts like Steam, as well as companies like Microsoft, Sony and Nintendo.
Buy, wait for a sale, rent, or never touch it. The Patented Karak review system to see if a game is worth a buy upon release or if I recommend waiting.
For some reason youtuber shadowhid the first video from a couple hours ago. So this one is uploaded to hit search which...it looks like it has already
Huh I still see it
Do you think they do that you get less priority of the algorithm because you don’t have sponsors?
Aw, was hoping you somehow uploaded a new video saying bugs were patched lol.
Thanks, as always ACG, just saved me some more money
Ok, but if I'm part of the first thousand comments of the second video, do I still win nothing? Or does that only count for the first upload? What about the people on the first upload, do they still get theirs? Man, this is why I would never run a giveaway.
One of the best Aliens games I've ever played.
Doesn’t mean much, there’s only been a few.
Just learnt of this game because of the Steam sale. Gota say I'm loving it. Combines so much I like from RTS and TBS games.
@@trickelf Actually there has been quite alot. You just mean modern games right? I mean yougot ALIENS on every single on of the old home computers, amiga atari ST etc, which some were FPS games before FPS became a thing, with a bunch of the marines. Then we also count alien 3 games and the snes one is fantastic, AvP 1999 also gets counted because the ENTIRE GAME is marines vs xenomorphs, in and around acheron with one small predator battle not even in at the end of the game, thats a queen lol AvP2 aswell the first game that let you live a xenomorph's full life cycle, it was was great. You then got all the really cool old Arcade games, then things like Extinction on the PS2 that wasn't to bad. Beleive it or not, people actually liked the jaguar version of AvP too when the update came out ((and those who actually bought the damn toilet look thing lol)) the only Dud one in 30 years tbh is Colonial marine, and because of that alot of people think ITS ALL aliens games XD but it isnt.....hell AvP 2010 wasn't to bad either, that dance club scene was amazing....and ya know what? If fireteam bothered to add more levels it would be pretty good too but as it stands its quite barren.
There is good ALIENS and ALIEN games, its just weather or not you like the age they came out and can tolerate that. They were still good to US at the time lol
Is it still buggy?
Generally the game play was not too buggy.
A few achievements are broken.
Honestly surprised how fun this game is, it's challenging but feels really rewarding when you flawlessly execute the strategy you've prepared and there's also a lot of unscripted oh-sh*t moments too keep you really concentrate on the maps lol
I'm enjoying the game. They got a lot right. Their passion for the IP is evident in how well they captured the look and feel of the movie. There's more dread in one level of this game than can be found in the entirety of Aliens Fireteam Elite. BUT, gamepad controls are not finished. Usability is janky at best, broken at worst. Hopefully they can address this with a future patch.
Playing it now, and the controller wonkiness is the ONLY issue I have with the game. And by wonkiness I mean the controls overall (as a lot of the same issues I have present using KB&M). Everything else about the game has been fantastic so far, including the tutorial which everyone was saying was terrible.
My wife and I are fans of the Alien universe and XCOM. This is a perfect combination of the two. The game has bugs but every review misses the positive that it's a $40 game. I believe the developers love is apparent but they also know where they could improve. I'm looking forward to dlc but fixes and then a sequel
Just picked it up for £20 on Steam sale and I'm kinda blown away by how much I'm enjoying it. Can't believe I missed it at launch. Big fan of Aliens and XCOM too, and this game blends them with RTS so well.
Second aliens movie is my fave. Seen it 10x easily. Why dont we put her in charge!!!!???? Loved it.
In the military we spent a whole lot of time watching the same movies. Aliens, Tombstone, Big Lebowski, and Captain Ron. Can just talk in movie quotes.
@snowbear163 CMC pulled our copies of Top Gun after the 3rd or 4th major system on board had a major component break the morning after. 3 weeks in a row. 4 weeks from underway when the first one went.
And our engineers got Pitch Perfect shredded after they put it on every night for a week.
@@alejandrobotero8725 I miss the Navy a lot. Sure at the time there was a lot of BS to deal with but looking back, I had a blast. Way more eventful than Corporate America. Most people were always in a good mood, making jokes, having fun. At companies everyone is drum and drab, down, having a crisis, and no one has any fun anymore.
😂
Hudson: Have you ever been mistaken for a man? Vazquez: No! Have you?
Dude i gotta say i've been watching you for years now, since probably 2016/17, and man theres not a single reviewer i trust more to give things as they are. If you're anything you're consistent!
thanks man
I love this game. It has insane difficulty spikes and is easily one of the most stressfull games ive played in a long long time. A couple of bugs are annoying, but for the price its a definate must buy if you love the Alien Universe.
Favourite Alien Universe game was the original Avp2, though AVP extinction was good fun too.
Shoutout to a lesser-known game that Pandemic developed with the U.S. Army back in the mid-2000s. Full-Spectrum Warrior. So much of the Dark Descent’s gameplay with the Marines remind me of FSW, just from a isometric, top-down view. They are both realtime, tactical strategy games. Not in the traditional sense, and not like X-Com, except-for prep on the Otago perhaps. I wished to see FSW come back someday. And this is a fantastic paring to the Aliens franchise. Thank you for the honest review. I reckon it’s worth the journey. 👍
I legit looked this back up once I saw the trailer for this. I couldn't remember the name of it so was googling all manner of things like tactical shooter america/army was like 20 minutes of searching before I found it and was like THIS ONE! THAT WAS IT!
I absolutely loved FSW
I played that on original Xbox back in the day. It was neat
I descibe the game thusly:
It doesn't drop you into the deep end, it drop kicks you into it, points and laughs with all its xeno friends, then around level 3 it feels sorry for you and says "yeah you good enough, here's some floaties" and opens itself up to you. Its wonderfully harsh, bitterly unforgiving and I love it. Here's the thing though, it doesn't drop you into the deep end in a bad way it just lets YOU make the huge mistakes first then tells you what you did wrong, again that is a great way of doing things I appriciated. You learn faster.
This game feels like a proof concept and that it will have an amazing sequel
I'm several hours into the game and it's stressful even on easy difficulty, they really needed to allow you save whenever you want. The autosaves are so random and don't happen after completing objectives. They can be 15 minutes apart. The aliens also run too fast, you have to literally keep pausing every 1-2 seconds during battle or you'll be dead.
@@UnsaltedCashew38 you can save w/e you want , you just need to weld doors and REST
@@danyD2765 Thanks, yeah figured that out today. Still not an ideal way to save, sometimes you need to save at certain points so you quit and live your life.
@@UnsaltedCashew38 shotguns and tactical analysis are the way
@@UnsaltedCashew38 your car thing has an unlimited ammo turret, you have trackers that bait enemies.... you do the math.
One of my favorite games of all time.. realtime XCOM w/ Aliens.. excellent graphics.. solid story. I had absolutely no idea it existed until a week ago and now ill never forget it.. youre review is so harsh
One game, two reviews, TWO thumbs up, love it!
this game is way better than the review suggests. if you’re having trouble aiming or shots or maneuvering your squad or managing resources… that’s on YOU! the game gives you all and more than enough of everything you need, if you couldn’t calculate your shot then think more, if you can get can’t get your squad to move where you want then open your eyes lol, it’s a really great game
if this becomes as mod friendly as xcom I see a long life span for it
That would be awesome 🤤
It does already have some mods for it!
@@DutchGuyMike do tell ?
About halfway through the game and I can say it's very nice. I found the controls to be quite good for squad control and the slow mo is at the right speed. The game created more tension than any game I've played in years, which was very refreshing and enjoyable. It's better to avoid the aliens than fight them head on if possible. The biggest negative in this game is the trash save system, but besides that it's a very solid and enjoyable experience.
I hope DLCs will be released that will allow you to wield tactical and auto shotguns.
Excellent review. Played it, found myself agreeing with most of the review. Patches have cleaned some parts up.
Just give us a fucking sequel to Isolation. It cannot be that difficult.
The game is basically a spiritual sequel to Cannon Fodder from 1993.
Shooting sucks in aliens its like guns are shooting slow bricks, cannon fodder wins in fun factors.
@@jinmark9453 it also had a graveyard 👍
Love it, best Alien game so far.
I am liking the game so far .Difficult even on easy .Four things that I would like to be added .1 .The ability to do move orders from the map view . 2 That there be an option for the environment to default to north direction .3 The ability to load injured marines or personel into the APC . 4 An audio option to turn off the profanity .
Haha. “Option to turn of the profanity.” Like watch the Saw films but turn of the blood and gore. This is a game based on an r-rated Alien movie with marines.
Frost: “What are we supposed to use, harsh language?”
You: “no!”
😂
@@fc3970 And ?
Does having an option to turn off profanity affect how you play the game ? No, it does not.
Stop trying to gatekeep, you are a loser.
@@fc3970Yeah that's wild and dumb 🤣 never read anything like that before 😮
@@CoffeeMatt10😂
I'm thoroughly enjoying it. I actually like the mechanics - this is thoroughly my jam
Good review!
I'm several hours into the game and it's stressful even on easy difficulty, they really needed to allow you save whenever you want. The autosaves are so random and don't happen after completing objectives. They can be 15 minutes apart. The aliens also run too fast, you have to literally keep pausing every 1-2 seconds during battle or you'll be dead.
Your channel, imo, deserves to be the top game review channel on YT. Your format is excellent, and I look to your reviews to help me decide which games I will play as an aging gamer with limited time and income. Keep on doing what you do brother!
Just picked up this game. After the thousands of xcom 2 missions this game is like a fresh breath of xenomorph air combined with squad tactics. Story does not suck, it has legitamite cutscenes, and cool music.
It's different, definitely. But in a positive way. I feel like I'm transported back to Aliens 1986 whenever I start playing this. The marines might sound a bit uppidy but I like how they sound, they say stuff straight from the movie.
Having a lot of fun! Especially putting my friends and viewers as squad mates. Here's hoping no one diess 😅
Onward comrade!
@@pyner0s496 many have died
On consoles this game is riddled with bugs. Sometimes it wont even read button inputs.
Settings menu allow you to change the spacebar for skills to completely pause the action instead of slow-time.
I'm several hours into the game and it's stressful even on easy difficulty, they really needed to allow you save whenever you want. The autosaves are so random and don't happen after completing objectives. They can be 15 minutes apart. The aliens also run too fast, you have to literally keep pausing every 1-2 seconds during battle or you'll be dead.
I know how you feel 😅 The lack of manual saving is an unwelcome one and pretty stingy from the devs, that's why I say it's more stressful than fun, but the balance is just about right that makes it addictive. It's unique for a game that makes you think on your toes under constant threat and any respite will cost you resources for doing it. Most gamers will take that challenge and test themselves.
I lost 5 marines in easy difficulty, damnit
@@dodywidodo9433 Lol believe me it gets somewhat easier the more you level up and promote between 3 and 7 ranked marines. Also a tip I'd tell you - don't accept permadeath marines of a high level ranking. If you do suffer a loss, pause the game and reload the last previous save and try the objective(s) again with the full man squad knowing what lies ahead and try a different path and load up your resources better. Trust me you get thru better and the game gets better for it.
@@dodywidodo9433 I beat the game, trick is to keep leveling up a few marines, always place mines behind yourself, have turrets and a sniper.
Thanks guys
Bro! I grew up in the 80s and I love Aliens. But a lot of their games flop. So, being a super fan I bought it on GP. I just DLed like and hour ago and I liked it, but I could t get the controls down right. I was just gonna count it as a flop and start playing something else. I booted up YT and your video gave me the motivation to give it another shot. Thank you bro!
Alien isolation and the first avp game are the best there will ever be, until there is alien isolation 2
Great review and good humor sprinkled throughout. I’m loving the game
Aliens Dark Descent seems like an enjoyable, despite some issues. Maybe I'll give it a shot at some point. Thanks, Karak! I really appreciate the hard work! God bless and stay safe!
I could easily have at double length and be happy. Over time you feel you can't get enough.
Excellent content as always. I was hesitant about this one so I'll probably give it some time and see if it develops a bit more. For all my video game prowess, I am trash at RTS games so it sounds like the lack of hand-holding and slighty-too-fast slow-mo might break me.
There's actually a setting where you can straight up pause instead of having it be slow mo.
Don't waste your money. The game is absolute trash. It's just a point-and-click game in the alien universe. As bad if not worse than ACM but at least that game was actually fun to some degree. If you love stealth to the point where you can't engage the enemy whatsoever then you might like this. Once the xenos see you they will swarm you and there's nothing you can really do, the controls are absolutely dogshit so you can't really react once you're spotted. You can barely see items on the ground and half the time it's totally dark and you can't see anything at all. Game is beyond frustrating and almost unplayable.
@@oregonflatland sounds like someone hasn't played XCOM. This is almost a perfect mixture of the horror aspect of Aliens, and the combat aspect of Aliens. Your marines aren't equipped to handle the near endless hordes of xenomorphs, so you have to fight strategically. Don't engage in frivolous fights, take multiple trips, and don't be reckless.
@oregonflatland sounds like ur just not good at games lol. Cry more
Lowkey would love another thing game
Why does it need 60 GB of drive space?
Seems excessive.
This game looks very interesting from a visual angle. But I wish the had gotten one tiny thing right- why are your soldiers firing right into the back of their comrades? It wouldn't have been that hard to make it so that troops don't open fire if a teammate is standing front of them blocking their way. But here they just fire as if the guy in front is nonexistent. Not being able to do that would have added an extra dimension and made formations actually have a little impact since it would determine whether they could open fire on an enemy or not. Its a minor issue, but still.
How is the game control on console? I'm a console peasant who can't afford a good pc. I had issues playing wasteland 2 on ps4/ps5. It was clunky on controller controlling each character during combat. It was cumbersome without a mouse and keyboard which seems like the right way this should be played with
But aliens dark descent utilizes your team as a single unit which might make it simpler for console peasants such as myself on a controller. Is it intuitive on controller? Is the gameplay using a controller good?
Anyone on console who can please chime in how the controls on a controller are, I'd appreciate it!
hands down the best alien game I've ever played
100% agree
i absolutely love this game
really hoping for a sequel, there is very little to complain about the game, i love the difficulty
ironically on new game + it actually becomes way easier, the first play through is by far the most rough when you don’t know the map and spawn points , where you can rest and where the pickups are etc
second play through i’m doing in just a few hour
third i’m gonna speedrun
I was going to make a "GAME OVER, MAN!" joke but you beat me to it.
It's my third favorite alien game, after Alien Isolation and AvP2 (the old one)
I never encountered bugs/glitches personally. So now if is definitely beyond a doubt worth a pick-up!
Alien 3 assembly cut is my favourite.
I tried to play this but couldn’t quite get into it, I’ll try it again given what you’re saying, here. I was just at the 1:30-2:00hr mark so we’ll see….
Guess I will stick with Red Solstice 2. I like the aliens IP but this game seems a bit to much restricting in the squad member management.
Besides the bugs I encountered on Xbox series X - that was game breaking causing me to restart from level 11, back to the beginning, I love the game. So much potential. You definitely get your moneys worth. Between mission length and replayability. I'm lookin forward to the patches from the devs. And HOPEFULLY the option to turn off the same few sentences the marines scream repeatedly. Double time. Come on you slugs... On it... let's go Marines... I'm a huge Xeno fan though. So I love the game. A bit of curve to learn. But love it
if you dont have that friend, you are that friend !!!!!
this is why i stay all the way to the end
jajajajajaja
Love this game, currently playing on nightmare and it’s taking me an average of 2-3 very tense hours per mission.
So 20 years later and the weapon tech hasn’t evolved. Still the same pulse rifles and motion trackers?
I think "Uneven and Unfun until it's not" is the slogan of Tindalos
So it’s Aliens Darkest Dungeon..Cool
it's nice to have a proper alien game, it's sad it has no coop multiplayer where each player would control 1 squad member, like in Alien swarm game. That feeling is unique and it was slipped from this developers.
A game based on The Thing was made and it was great but a game where you could be The Thing would be even better. Stealth kills, thing abilities and causing paranoia.
Yes would be amazing.
Okay, this looks interesting, any other recommendation similar to this?
I haven't tried any tactical game before as I don't really like turn based games. But the blend of tactical and realtime is interesting.
Have you tried shadow tactics blade of the shogun? Brilliant little tactics game and just seems to work.
Red Solstice 2: Survivors looks very similar to this, can be found quite cheap too
Please.. XCOM 2 PLEASE...
@@fearmycrit3565 red solstice 2 sucks, don't do it.
Gears Tactics is one of the best turn based game. This game is very unbalanced and stressful.
Hoping for a sequel with more alien types
This looks like it has so much combat depth, Hopefully its fixed now im def giving it a try
Watching this made me want to play Xcom2 again, then I actually thought about playing xcom2 and thought it's best to not.
I know that feeling well my friend. So many new playthroughs abandoned as I realize how it will take over the next few months of my life. Haa
Favorite Alien movie. Aliens
Absolutely......
Was hoping it was a coop top down shooter like Alien Swarm: Reactive Drop.
I thought it was a classic twin stick shooter..
I was hoping it was
Since nvidia game update drivers for this game so many problems are gone now.
This game is a must buy if you like xcom and alien franchise!!!!
Excellent, was hoping you would cover this!
I wonder if it controls OK on a console with a controller? Or if you really need a mouse
I'm playing It on Xbox and it's comfortable with the controller
This game just kinda showed up today on steam and I was surprised it was up for sale! Definitely worth a try
Gee….for sale?! I preordered it😢
@@whoolasandwich3080 nooo I mean like available to buy, not discounted
@@travis8106 oops sorry for my bad English, it’s killing me🤪
@@whoolasandwich3080 No worries!
Nice review. I like how you describe the mechanics. It really shows what to think about when thinking about getting the game. Also, this game slaps harder than Chris Brown.
We need Isolation 2! Everyone I know who played it loved it. It's what the little people want.
There's absolutely NO FKING NEED for Alien Isolation 2. It's a one & done. Plus the xenomorphs just get less scary overtime. What's the sequel going to be? More sneaking with 2 Random AI Xenos this time?
Not every game needs a sequel.
Couldn't agree more. It's never going to happen though.
ROUTINE looks like a robot focused successor potentially.
Mick Gordon is even doing the audio design.
@@dropkickpherby6994doesn't even have a release date.
agreed, I would love a sequel, the game even sets itself up for one. We can dream of it happening.
Leaving another comment to help please the algorithm overloads
Looking forward to checking it out.
Thank you for your review.
If movement was like xcom rather than squad movement this would have been perfect
Might as well watch again! aha
Same bro. Gettin that popcorn 🍿 😎
This game is absolutely kicking my ass
ACG - The True RUclips Beast
We need a The Thing game remake.
Seems like this could be awesome with some more time in the oven. Maybe when I’m finished with System Shock and the rest of my backlog this will be improved enough to get
This looks good & picking it up today
The Thing (1984), Alien, Aliens, The Day the Earth Stood Still (1951)
i still think the squad moving completely in sync and perfectly spaced apart just looks weird
it’s kind of frustrating in the clips for this review that when aliens are charging you, the squad just stands there instead of at least moving backwards, also you can move side to side to dodge attacks sometimes
Game is excellent. Most of the bad points from the review can be blamed on playing it with a controller. Some of the rest are just skill issue. Highly recommend, haven’t enjoyed a game this much in ages.
me waiting patiently for someone making a Star Wars clone troopers Mods, along with geonosian as an alien. Cuz they are nasty and its is Clone's 1st ever contact with xD.
Rn this and fireteam ultimate edition are same price which u all recommend for someone who plays solo? I heard fireteam ai is stupid but also haven’t played squad shoooter in a long time
Thank you. I didn't expect a review so soon!
Aliens and Alien Resurrection are the only 2 that entertain me
Can you customize the marines names?
Yes, you can even give them nicknames.
I’m sure everyone will name them after the Aliens Marines! Awesome. Too bad the game can’t pronounce the names with dialogue.
Two big corrections for you. It's not a planet, it's a mining Moon. And i don't think the game is meant to be fun in the sense you're playing Spiderman. It's a pretty exhausting complex management system of manpower and resources, akin to going to work and putting in a good day's shift. That's the engrossing stuff that i think appeals to many RTS gamers, the repetitive grind of operations that a COD gamer will despise. Sure fun can be had with the ramped up bursts of action accompanied with that iconic Aliens soundtrack, but the micro management comes first and that's not fun, just work.
Don’t spoil us with multiple reviews for the same game you heartless maniac! Which review do I prefer? Which is the real Karak and which is the Ai?
Thanks for the re-review as always!
Really enjoying the game. Little buggy especially cutscenes and on the otago but hope they make a sequel!
Would you like a Predator RTS style game done in the same fashion as this?
@@jazzdub4958 yes
@@studlyasianmatt2440 Yeah it would be awesome. Play either as Predator or stick with the squad based mechanics. Set in both the deep jungle as well as the cityscapes in later levels. Honestly think these film licenses styled in this budgeted RTS mode could be a little gold mine if done right and with love and care to the source.
@@jazzdub4958 agreed 👍🏾
Sounds like a game for people who like to think before they shoot, especially on Nightmare difficulty. Effectively rules out 90% of the gaming demographic.
Damn that Mr. Beast comment at the beginning made me laugh. He's going down , bro!
I have my notifications turned on for your channel and didn’t get a notification for this vid
Is this Real time XCOM which you don't fight aliens coming in UFO, but fight aliens in Alien(s)?
Why don't you just watch the video?
I'm in love with this game. 🎮
I subscribed because he said first 1k comments win nothing & after that I instantly liked him
I just don’t get why we can’t get isolation with guns, isolation perfect horror and all we alien fans want is that with action. We get squad based shooter.
Deja vu.
Quoi de neuf
One of the first times I totally disagree with your assessment of a game. After I watched the review, I bought it anyway, and man I friggin loved it. So many interesting mechanics. So simple, yet complex. Yes, the faces look crappy but the gameplay compensated 100%.
Definitely one of my favourite games played recently.
Jeremy has a mil subs?! Dude. I remember assess away less. wow. Good on ya man. I guess quitting the job was worth it
Can I play this offline? I'm asking because I'll be underway for the next couple of months.
Been playing this since yesterday. It's fun but buggy.