SCars Above, one of the titles we loved at Gamescom. And it’s from the small studio MAd Head Games that we owe this title. Often wrongly compared to Returnal. If we didn’t expect anything with the controller in hand, the title surprised us and yet remained discreet until its release.
A shooter that is not a shooter…
Let’s take the words of the devs: this is not a GST shooter. So yes, we will shoot, yes we have enemies. But the game is more tactical. You don’t shoot everything while shooting everywhere. You have to save all those resources to avoid getting hurt. Especially since we are pushed to scan everything around us to discover the local fauna and various objects used in our adventure.
Speaking of adventure, the story begins when we scan an object in space and then we are alone on an unknown planet where everything wants us dead. If you think of Retournal, so do we. The difference here is that we are not on a rogue lite. We are more on a survival GST and slower than a souls like.
The strength of Scars Above comes from the fact that little by little in the adventure you will unlock elements like electricity for example. And shooting in the water while enemies are wading through it does a lot of damage. The best way to get through the game is to use the elements to your advantage.
Star command, I’m lost on an unknown planet.
The whole title draws its strength from these puzzles and its exploration. The story being told to us little by little on what happened via all the elements that we discover. On the other hand in combat. We quickly realize that the game will not be nice and will require to temporize all the time not to be caught at the first enemy blow. It’s a pity that the game uses a lot of mechanics that have been well mastered by players for more than a decade. Fortunately, the narration and the cinematics make up for it all with great care.
Moreover, we must remember that this is not a AAA game. And this is where the title surprises greatly by its originality. Nothing is left to chance and is rather well mastered.
Finally, what more can be said about this title? If this one almost went unnoticed since its announcement, this GST is certainly not original, but it does it well. And the SF fans will get their money’s worth. If the whole thing is very linear, we really enjoy it from the beginning to the end.
