Recent reviews by Druidlogic

I really wish steam had options other than thumbs up or thumbs down, because this game COULD be great, what is there already is hampered by:

1: The fact that the game isn't monetized like SMITE hurts it. It should be free to play with a permanent unlock option at a fixed price and then cosmetic microtransactions. Asking people to pay up front for this type of game is going to be rough.

2: The depth of the combos in the game is lacking when compared to games like Smash/Brawhalla/Multiversus.

3. Playerbase numbers are low, probably because of the first thing mentioned.

What sucks is, this is, as many of hi-rez's previous other games, a good idea with poor execution. Their history just kind of reflects that. Global Agenda, Tribes, Paladins. All games that would be popping off and be the top of their genres, but all of them took two steps back for every step forward taken. SMITE is somehow the only game they haven't managed to bork, and they should probably look into what made it work rather than dumping money on project after project, baffled after it nosedives into the earth.

I guess I'm in the not-so-vocal minority that actually likes the PVP portion of the game. So I'm going to dissect some of the bad information from the negative reviews, and also give what I think are legitimate criticisms of the game.

The main mode of the game is very similar to Gambit from Destiny, where there are PvE objectives with phases that you are racing against another team to complete. Followed by a phase which allows for PvP conflict to occur.

The focus on the objectives means that while you can just go straight to killing other players in the second phase of a match, you won't be progressing the objective as much while doing so. It can make it so that you can throw a wrench in the other teams progress. But as much as people are complaining in the comments about it, during this second phase where PVP CAN happen, your team sticking together and coordinating will make it very difficult, if not impossible for players on the enemy team to just run through you. It doesn't "devolve into a team deathmatch" unless both teams just give up on the objective and do that. In that way it's similar to games like Overwatch, where players will blindflight forgetting that there is a payload to escort or objective to secure. But that is not the games fault, nor is it bad game design.

Ultimately I'd say try it for yourself, it is also going to be on gamepass when it comes out. But if you like Gambit from Destiny 2, you'll probably like this as well.

For legitimate criticisms:
-The game has some jankiness on hitstops. There is good feedback when hitting smaller dinosaurs as they typically get flung around by your weapons, but on larger dinosaurs and enemy players I would have no clear idea if I hit or not unless I saw the damage number popup or a health bar go down. This is only problematic because at later stages in a match your screen is often covered in enemies, such that you can sometimes misinterpret if you've hit what you're actually targeting, or 15 smaller enemies in the general area of what you're trying to hit.

-Some of the exosuits do not seem as balanced as others in PvE. It's not a huge deal since there is some pretty decent variety already, but I can see it making a new player frustrated if they like the playstyle of a specific suit that happens to underperform.

- Currently playable maps are sometimes way too narrow/linear. This is not true all the time, but something I noticed.

-Enemy variety is lacking. Unsure of whether that changes full launch, but something to keep in mind. Especially for the folks who want this to be a PvE centric game. If it didn't have the PvP component I could see this getting boring very quickly as there are 7 total dinosaur types you can currently engage with.

What the game does well:

-Performance is great, have not run into any bugs/crashes/fps drops thus far and it looks great.

-The combat loop is fun, fluid, and engaging. Everything you can do in the suits is very flashy. The ability kits feel very cohesive, similar to hero shooters like Overwatch, you can immediately tell how a suit is meant to be played and find one that fits your playstyle.

-The PvP aspect feels way more balanced than the PvE portion, which is odd, but good. I mentioned in the cons list that some suits feel underpowered in PvE. Those same suits that I'm thinking of, happen to be great during the PvP phase. I'm not sure if that was an intentional choice, as you can switch suits at any time during a match. But if you enjoy action PvP games at all, this one feels great. The TTK is just right, speed of movement, and duration of animations feel good against other players.

-Enemy density is great. As the match progresses there are larger and larger waves of dinos. It's never a good thing when a horde shooter has a lack of enemies split between a team five, so I'm glad they were able to dial in a good amount without it feeling obnoxiously oppressive.

-Controls also feel good. Everything is snappy and responsive.

-Interactable powers like the dominator (lets you take control of a special dino for a short period of time to attack the enemy team.) are very fun. I kind of wish there were more indirect ways to mess with the enemy like this power.

-Match length feels spot on.

Ultimately, we will have to see if there are more match types when the game officially comes out. As there is only the PvEvP mode of the game for the Beta. But I just wanted to throw a review in here because I saw a lot of people complaining about their being PvP iin the game, despite the fact that the game seems to clearly communicate that it is designed around it in some form. Even as early as the tutorial they make you aware that PvP happens in the game, so I'm just amused at the amount of people who are acting surprised by its inclusion.

It's actually kind of pains me to say this, but the problem isn't really with the game, so much as it is everything that surrounds it. Root level anti-cheat software, Shady as ♥♥♥♥ ToS, the risk of having your account deleted if you don't play for a year, obnoxious pricing for characters/skins both in-game econ and real world monetization. The reason that it is a shame is because the polish and gameplay is actually really good. I prefer it in many ways over predecessor (it's direct competitor for those unaware) but all of these aspects outside of gameplay ruin the overall experience. Maybe I'll change my rating if these issues are ever resolved, but ultimately it seems like Netmarble shot themselves in the foot FOR NO REASON, when this could have been a fairly decisive victory.

This is a fantastic top-down wargame simulator. I highly recommended it, even though I personally refunded the game. It is fairly reliant on having a good core group of friends to play with to get the full enjoyment out of it. Or at the very least, a willingness to make a core group of friends playing the game, which seems easy to do given that the community is naturally very helpful to newcomers. I simply didn't have the time to commit to it, for the type of game that it is, but I hope it continues to succeed. We need more multiplayer games like this one out there.

Fantastic Arena shooter, absolutely wild that it is not more popular.

Previously, I would not have recommended GTFO, however my previous opinion has changed. I would not recommend playing with the newly implemented bots, but would definitely recommend this game overall, especially if you have a group of friends that will play it with you. It has become much more polished since the previous build I played 6 months ago. Animations are much smoother, matchmaking seems to be better as well, and some placeholder or non-finished gameplay elements are fully implemented now. But most importantly is the speed that they've handled all of these issues, it definitely makes me hopeful for the future of this game.

>Start off in adventure mode with a character that has an affinity for using Ranged Weapons.
>Character starts with bow and 20 arrows in inventory
>Accept first quest and head for the initial dungeon.
>Encounter two bandits on the way, combat begins.
>First shot, miss, didn't quite reach target, must have been out of range.
>Second shot, miss. Must have been bad luck. Bandits are getting closer, but still need 3 turns to reach me.
>Third Shot, miss.
>Fourth Shot, miss. They are entering melee range now.
>Fifth Shot, miss. They are now hitting me.
>Sixth Shot, miss.
>Seventh Shot, miss.
>Eighth Shot, miss.
>Ninth Shot, miss. I'm almost dead from melee hits now.
>Tenth Shot, miss. Second Wind occurs and I heal back some health.
>Eleventh Shot, miss. I am now dead.
>Open steam library, right click Stoneshard.
>Uninstall Game.
That was my last play-through of Stoneshard.
I hope you enjoyed.

I'm already in love. If you like D&D, Pathfinder, or any other pen and paper RPG, you probably will too.

Easily one of the best ARPG's currently in development, and it can only go up from here. Can't wait to see what it's like during release.

On my second playthrough and absolutely loving it. Great amount of content for the price and even more to come in the future. If you like third person shooters and you like challenging RPGs, you will enjoy this game too.