Underrail Review

Underrail is awesome and one of my most favorite RPGs of recent years.I recommend it to anyone who enjoys tactical combat, trying out different character builds, and exploration (in spite of what the video says, I adored exploring the caves).I do not recommend it to anyone just looking for an easy, mindless romp around. The game requires effort, but it pays back dividends on that effort with loads of fun.Also, I disagree about the writing. While it is very much competent and serviceable, it didn't appeal that much to me personally. I liked the themes and the overall plot, but not so much the dialogue. Your mileage may vary. Naturally, it's mostly for the entertainment, kinda like Zero Punctuation 'reviews'. But this time he mentioned how Rock Paper Shotgun are bad at their job even though they Though I don't like that they concentrate on superfluous similarities with Fallout too.

That kind of joke is irritating and makes me wonder if he takes some of his edgy stuff seriously, not just a parody.Another thing is he plays a much later version of the game that fixes one of the biggest issues with the game: walking speed. With Expedition you can speed up the game, without it you're doomed to walk empty maps you've already visited for hours.

Another thing is he lies about there being no need to explore caves: you have to do it for XP or you fall behind, and for some builds you won't have cash without exploration. And usually Sseth humorously talks about the game problems.

Underrail is awesome and one of my most favorite RPGs of recent years. I recommend it to anyone who enjoys tactical combat, trying out different character.

Posted: 9 AprilUnderrail is an old-school game that stubbornly, sometimes even out of spite refused to mature and catch up with times.It doesn't respect your time.If you don't have enough knowledge about the game already, you'll find out if your build is viable or not in 7-8 hours. It's easy to spend hours searching for that little quest item tucked into a desk drawer on one of the levels of a compound.

You've got to get out of your way a bit, but it's quite possible to kill an NPC that will advance the story and silently dead-end your run.The fast travel is pretty limited and is only available with the DLC. Vanilla version on release didn't even have a map.The game offers you an exquisite collection of footguns and it's up to you to not to fire them. You wanted no hand-holding, right? Here's your no hand-holding, meet you at GMC compound.I played the game on and off since, I think, 2014, always abandoning a run due to this or that.But in February 2020 I decided to sit and get to the end of the game, once and for all.Turned out I don't respect my time too. I was kinda obsessed, clocking about 120-140 hours in three weeks.Underrail is huge.

Huge and handcrafted. And beautiful. Superb lighting, careful construction of the athmosphere and assets of crispy, age-resistant variety.

Very fitting music.Level design is good to great. If you didn't sneak in ventilation in an isometric RPG, it's time to try. Chances are you really wanted it.Rich and varied mechanics of building (and messing up) your character, surprisingly interesting crafting.Original trade (oh no, merchants only want to buy stuff they thing they need and not the garbage I have) and XP (I highly recommend the oddities system; it really rewards exploration) present a fresh look at mundane progression activities.

They do not eliminate grinding, but it's. Fun?The story is good to very good in the main game and, I'd say, superb in the DLC.Main thing to note is that Underrail a postapocalypse game. Sure, they had an apocalypsis. Two or three, actually, depends on how you count. But they were long ago.

The last big-ish war was twenty years ago and people moved on.Underrail is a cyberpunk game. It throws you not into your generic wasteland where you rebuild the civilization, law and order by your little hands. It low-key thrusts you into the power struggle between established city-states and you've got to maneuver your way to your goal.And why you have this goal is subtly and neatly wrapped up at the end of the game, suggesting that a certain character has influence on you as a human player too.You've got to read though. No voice-over. That's a lot of text to read, a lot of implications to notice and a lot of connections to make on your own.

They aren't critical to beating the game per se, but it's a wrong game to beat. It's better to finish it.While the main story has good foreshadowing of what and why and how happened in the final locations of the game, DLC has it oh so much better.The quest that starts in the bar in Rail Crossing, I think, is one of the best quests I ever played. The best part for me was after it finished. I said goodbye to that guy (we spent a day or two drinking, I don't know), exited his house. Understood I don't know where I am and how do I get out of here. I've got the same thing happen to me once in real life, only in real life I didn't meet any death stalkers on my way home.But overall, writing in the DLC is.

Well, I worried about the expedition because of two characters, shown through their banter between themselves. First I wanted to know more about them, then I just wanted for them to be able to leave this hellhole alive and content.The main story of the DLC at the end was like reading a really good sci-fi novelette. The one that intrigues you to the end, respects you to make the unstated connections yourself and doesn't resort to any cheap tricks whatsoever. Well, until that one with lights out in a certain 'lift'. Very funny.I don't think I'll be replaying the game. Forums and wiki show that I missed a bunch of content available with different choices and that's absolutely fine.I made my choices and if Gorsky considers me his personal enemy, so be it.Immersion is a dirty word, but I was a part of that world.

And that was great. Posted: 14 AprilI could rant about this game but I'll leave it at this. I can't access the DLC until I've 'proven' myself to an NPC.

Imagine paying money for DLC for a game you like, only for an NPC to essentially call you a n00b and block you. You now scan the forums for answers to realize you have to join a faction. And with the one you chose, you have to essentially complete the faction quest line for.DLC that blocks you, because you aren't hardcore enough or whatever. Screams PRETENTIOUS to me.Cool environments and world, to where I wish metro 2033 was this open. Because GOD Under Rail is a huge world for tunnel systems.

Posted: 16 AprilOverall it's a really good RPG. Good decision making, good character building, and good combat mechanics to keep things fresh through the roughly 60 hour main plot.

I say overall, because there are serious balance issues with the game. It's extremely difficult to determine whether or not you are underleveled or undergeared for your current objective. There are 'side' quests, but they are nearly a requirement in order to keep up with the main quests in levels.

There are actual situations where you could get stuck and genuinely not be able to progress in the game because a certain enemy keeps killing you and there's no other way out. This game is no joke, which is probably why it's so satisfying to play. This isn't a mindless game you can play while listening to your favorite podcast. This is a hardcore game with some serious difficulty and it's not afraid to flex it's muscles whenever it's inconvenient for you. There's no shame in playing this game on easy, there's no shame in looking up guides before you start playing, and there's certainly no shame in defeating enemies in the cheesiest way possible. It's encouraged. It's required.

But despite all of the frustration and fits of rage this game has drove me to, I can't help but still say this is easily one of the best games ever made. It's nowhere near perfect but it's a seriously brutally good time. Finally being able to stand up for yourself after hours of being beat down and overdosing on healing hypos is incredibly rewarding and only makes the game that much better.

This game is an easy recommend, if you have the patience and sheer willpower to deal with all of the unfairness this game has in store. And don't even get me started on the DLC. Posted: 15 AprilSimilar to Fallout 1 and 2 but without companions. I want to like it, but it becomes frustrating very quickly.While it feels old school it also just feels old. Too often when trying a ranged attack, my character moves without me ever intending to.

When you attack, there is no LOS or range indicator to let you know that your character will move first. This is important because the game is very difficult early on. Moving just one square unintentionally is very bad for trying to execute strategy.The game can feel impossible if you don't build your character right. You can only level up skills by as little as 5-10 points per level. If you don't choose wisely, the game feels hopeless and makes me want to restart, which I've done multiple times.I do love the map system with the notes, though.

Very good feature.Not a bad game per se, but I wouldn't recommend it, personally.