The Surge
THOUGHTS
If it wasn't made clear by my strong preference for Prey over Dishonored, or the insane amount of playtime I've racked up in 3d Fallout games compared to Elder Scrolls, what doesn't work for me mechanically in a fantasy setting can become irresistible when you change the wallpaper to a shade of sci-fi. The Surge, developer Deck13's second foray into the 'Souls-like' subgenre of punishing, combat-focused, third-person action/adventure game shows itself as another irresistible example of this personal phenomena; not just compared to their treacle slow and dull first attempt Lords of the Fallen, but also to Dark Souls and Bloodborne.
I'm not proclaiming that The Surge is a better game than those two, but it's certainly one that aligns more with my personal preferences in terms of setting and style. The combat can hardly match up to the slick, polished ballet of Souls/Bloodborne, but has many interesting ideas of its own that adhere to the setting. It's a clunky affair a lot of the time, with sticky combos and occasionally sluggish controls. It's also a system that evokes the mechanic, robotic movements and reflexes of many of the foes and environments you come across. The focus on limb-targeting is a stroke of minor genius - you can freely target enemy limbs in combat by flicking the right stick (or mouse wheel), and the correct utilisation of horizontal/vertical strikes and positioning is used to correctly hit them. If you attack an unarmoured limb you'll do more damage, but if you attack and remove an armoured limb you'll receive whatever armour (or weapon) that limb was holding. This active participation in the loot/reward aspect of combat is a fantastic addition, removing the tired RPG standard of random drops in favour of something that rewards player decision and skill. It's far from perfect (it'd be nice if targeting a certain limb during combat affected an enemy, for example) but represents a thoughtful step towards creating something unique instead of broadly copy-pasting from Souls.
The story shows promise in the early stages before showing its hand fairly early and fizzling out to nearly nothing by the end. There are some interesting questions raised as you explore the CREO facility as Warren, the player character employee who is having one of the worst first days in history, but for the most part it's at best occasionally engaging background noise. There's some fun touches and little sequences - the TED talk style videos from CREO mouthpiece Don Hackett lampoon corporate culture effectively - but it's not a game you'll want to play for any deep writing or character moments.
It's definitely worth mentioning there are some strange technical issues which bog the game down. While the options menu is robust and allows for the player to customise a lot of the user interface, having options like sticky targeting turned on from the start make some fights (including a particularly tough boss) nigh on impossible without digging through it. There's also camera issues, including a couple of strange choices to fix the camera in place during a fight when it's free-form for the rest of the time. I've heard crashing is an issue but I mercifully only experienced one crash in my playthrough...unfortunately said crash was during the ending of the game. Controls are mostly serviceable but can be strangely unresponsive. I died quite a few times from what seemed like input lag on healing items which led to more than a few deaths - you'll be dying a lot in this game, but it's frustrating when you feel like you're fighting the inputs instead of enemies.
And yeah, on the whole dying thing, the game is hard. It feels on par with a Souls/Borne game without the level of polish those games have. The more conspiracy-minded side of me suspects certain sections were designed to artificially inflate the length of the game, but given my level of skill (low) that seems unfair. I found it mostly in the 'tough, but fair' category. You'll die a lot, but the punishment for doing so is very minor and the load times are quick. Victories in boss fights are appropriately fist-pump inducing even if they vary fairly strongly in design quality.
Design in general is a point of intrigue; mazelike levels are the norm (the last especially leading to a lot of directional confusion), with the med bay (think bonfire from Souls) acting as a hub for each of the five large levels. The game relies more on shortcuts and growing knowledge of the level to create a kind of 'loop' that revolves around the med bay. It's a fun way to tackle things and another point of difference from the games that inspired it.
I'm not proclaiming that The Surge is a better game than those two, but it's certainly one that aligns more with my personal preferences in terms of setting and style. The combat can hardly match up to the slick, polished ballet of Souls/Bloodborne, but has many interesting ideas of its own that adhere to the setting. It's a clunky affair a lot of the time, with sticky combos and occasionally sluggish controls. It's also a system that evokes the mechanic, robotic movements and reflexes of many of the foes and environments you come across. The focus on limb-targeting is a stroke of minor genius - you can freely target enemy limbs in combat by flicking the right stick (or mouse wheel), and the correct utilisation of horizontal/vertical strikes and positioning is used to correctly hit them. If you attack an unarmoured limb you'll do more damage, but if you attack and remove an armoured limb you'll receive whatever armour (or weapon) that limb was holding. This active participation in the loot/reward aspect of combat is a fantastic addition, removing the tired RPG standard of random drops in favour of something that rewards player decision and skill. It's far from perfect (it'd be nice if targeting a certain limb during combat affected an enemy, for example) but represents a thoughtful step towards creating something unique instead of broadly copy-pasting from Souls.
The story shows promise in the early stages before showing its hand fairly early and fizzling out to nearly nothing by the end. There are some interesting questions raised as you explore the CREO facility as Warren, the player character employee who is having one of the worst first days in history, but for the most part it's at best occasionally engaging background noise. There's some fun touches and little sequences - the TED talk style videos from CREO mouthpiece Don Hackett lampoon corporate culture effectively - but it's not a game you'll want to play for any deep writing or character moments.
It's definitely worth mentioning there are some strange technical issues which bog the game down. While the options menu is robust and allows for the player to customise a lot of the user interface, having options like sticky targeting turned on from the start make some fights (including a particularly tough boss) nigh on impossible without digging through it. There's also camera issues, including a couple of strange choices to fix the camera in place during a fight when it's free-form for the rest of the time. I've heard crashing is an issue but I mercifully only experienced one crash in my playthrough...unfortunately said crash was during the ending of the game. Controls are mostly serviceable but can be strangely unresponsive. I died quite a few times from what seemed like input lag on healing items which led to more than a few deaths - you'll be dying a lot in this game, but it's frustrating when you feel like you're fighting the inputs instead of enemies.
And yeah, on the whole dying thing, the game is hard. It feels on par with a Souls/Borne game without the level of polish those games have. The more conspiracy-minded side of me suspects certain sections were designed to artificially inflate the length of the game, but given my level of skill (low) that seems unfair. I found it mostly in the 'tough, but fair' category. You'll die a lot, but the punishment for doing so is very minor and the load times are quick. Victories in boss fights are appropriately fist-pump inducing even if they vary fairly strongly in design quality.
Design in general is a point of intrigue; mazelike levels are the norm (the last especially leading to a lot of directional confusion), with the med bay (think bonfire from Souls) acting as a hub for each of the five large levels. The game relies more on shortcuts and growing knowledge of the level to create a kind of 'loop' that revolves around the med bay. It's a fun way to tackle things and another point of difference from the games that inspired it.
Plus/Minus
+ Visceral, mechanically interesting combat
+ Well executed atmosphere of metallic oppression
+ Some cool level design and set pieces
- Clunky controls
- Technical frustrations
- Story doesn't deliver on a fun initial premise
+ Well executed atmosphere of metallic oppression
+ Some cool level design and set pieces
- Clunky controls
- Technical frustrations
- Story doesn't deliver on a fun initial premise
Overall
I finished The Surge and I haven't finished any of the Souls/Borne games. That says something, even when there's a definite gulf in polish. What this game delivers in spades is a cold, harsh setting that meshes with the gameplay and design in a satisfying way. I can understand those who hated it, but Deck13 has taken great strides here and show strong beginnings of a unique voice. I finally took the plunge into The Surge when the looming release of its sequel piqued my curiosity and I'll now be keeping one eye on what they do with said sequel in a couple of months. The Surge is a no doubt frustrating but worthwhile experience for those wanting something a little different in their interactive punishment simulators with an RPG veneer.
7/10
Technical Stuff: Played on a PS4. Copy received on Playstation Plus. One full playthrough and tinkering, approximately 26-27 hours played.
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