Risk of Rain is confused. It doesn’t know if it wants to be an action game, a survival game, or something else.

From the footage as advertised on the Steam page, it would appear that Risk of Rain is an action game. Don’t let this fool you; although the action elements in the game are enjoyable, they are let down by the survival elements forced into the game.

The survival elements have really left a sour taste in my mouth; the most obvious of these being the way you have to scavenge for items. There isn’t a shop in which you can purchase any item you please, instead the items are randomly generated throughout the map. This makes managing your money very difficult, and brings in a very unfair luck element into the game.

Although the scavenging was a poor design decision, my major gripe with the game is the permanent death, of which I feel was forced into the game just as an excuse to add another survival element. I always end up messing up on the second level, and due to the permanent death, I’m forced to re-play the first level over and over again. The worst part about this is the fact that winning a level is heavily weighted on luck, due to the item spawns being random.

To top off an already flawed game, I’ve noticed that some elements of the game are broken. The difficulty of the game is either bugged or fundamentally flawed; you’re able to select a difficulty on the menu screen, however when the game starts there is also a difficulty meter on the screen, which changes throughout the game. I selected the difficulty before the game started, I want the game to stick to that difficulty!

Risk of Rain has to be one of the most frustrating games I’ve ever played. Partially due to the many flaws in the game, but mostly because I feel that there is so much hidden potential locked behind the survival elements; if these were to be stripped out of the game, I’d honestly feel that we’d have a very good indie game.

I purchased the game whilst it was on sale, and even at a reduced price, I would not recommend you buy the game. I want to love the game, but unfortunately I cannot whilst the game is in this state.

Risk of Rain is confused. It doesn’t know if it wants to be an action game, a survival game, or something else. From the footage as advertised on the Steam page, it would appear that Risk of Rain is an action game. Don’t let this fool you; although the action elements in the game are enjoyable, they are let down by the survival elements forced into the game. The survival elements have really left a sour taste in my mouth; the most obvious of these being the way you have to scavenge for items. There isn’t a shop in which you can purchase any item you please, instead the items are randomly generated throughout the map. This makes managing your money very difficult, and brings in a very unfair luck element into the game. Although the scavenging was a poor design decision, my major gripe with the game is the permanent death, of which I feel was forced into the game just as an excuse to add another survival element. I always end up messing up on the second level, and due to the permanent death, I’m forced to re-play the first level over and over again. The worst part about this is the fact that winning a level is heavily weighted on luck, due to the item spawns being random. To top off an already flawed game, I’ve noticed that some elements of the game are broken. The difficulty of the game is either bugged or fundamentally flawed; you’re able to select a difficulty on the menu screen, however when the game starts there is also a difficulty meter on the screen, which changes throughout the game. I selected the difficulty before the game started, I want the game to stick to that difficulty! Risk of Rain has to be one of the most frustrating games I’ve ever played. Partially due to the many flaws in the game, but mostly because I feel that there is so much hidden potential locked behind the survival elements; if these were to be stripped out of the game, I’d honestly feel that we’d have a very good indie game. I purchased the game whilst it was on sale, and even at a reduced price, I would not recommend you buy the game. I want to love the game, but unfortunately I cannot whilst the game is in this state.