Recent reviews by FlyingTiger

Do you all remember the scene in the film Ratatouille when Anton Ego, the restaurant critic, took his first bite of the ratatouille which instantly triggered flashbacks to his childhood when he ate the same dish his mother cooked for him? This happened to me with Overload, and it will happen for many of you who have experienced the Descent series as a kid (or as an adult too 😊).

I remember loading up Overload for the first time, and it triggered the memory of my dad buying my first new computer when I was 9 years old: a Compaq Presario 9232. It had three games: Hardball 4, Magic Carpet (RIP Bullfrog), and Descent: Destination Saturn. I remember loading up Descent for the first time and could not move at all. I was used to using the arrow keys for games. So I was just rotating my ship around, shooting the destructible signs, and thinking when are the bad guys going to come? Embarrassingly, it took me about a week (after finally reading the manual), that you move forward and backwards using A and Z. Once I held that A button and heard that first scream from the Class 1 Drone, I knew I was in for a real treat. My dad rarely bought me games because he was worried about game violence (e.g. Doom), but he knew Descent was more family-friendly. Over the years, he gave me Descent: Anniversary Edition (which I didn’t realize until I got the game that the campaign had me going past Saturn), Descent 2: Infinite Abyss, and Descent 3. Prior to Descent 3 coming out, I convinced my dad to get me a PC with a graphics card since Descent 3 required one. He agreed, and my new PC came equipped with an S3 Savage4 card. Although it was a budget card, I was able to experience the final chapter of the Material Defender.

Subsequently, I was following rumors and possible concept art for Descent 4, then hearing Descent 4 being cancelled, then reading that Interplay was bankrupt, and then Interplay sort of re-emerging which gave some hope that the series might revive again. Nearly 20 years later, the original creators of Descent created its own company, Revival Productions, to develop the long-awaited spiritual successor of Descent.

I was bummed that I missed the Kickstarter for the game, but I cannot imagine the anxiety of the developers during those last 24 hours. I wish I knew about the game to help out at the time. So, thank you for all the Kickstarter backers for making this game happen! I know if the developers start another Kickstarter project (e.g. Freespace 3… fingers crossed!), then I will definitely contribute knowing how well Overload was developed and produced. Thank you to the Revival team for allowing me to relive my childhood memories and congratulations for producing a fantastic game!

Many reviewers have already gone into the features of the game, but I would like to reiterate that there are many types of gameplay that fits everyone’s needs and extends the replayability and life of the game. It’s not just a Descent game with modern graphics. There’s the single player campaign with a deeper storyline and voice acting. In addition, there is your arcade-like Challenge Mode that would likely bring hours and hours of gameplay to get to the top of the leaderboard. Then there is the multiplayer to challenge other pilots in anarchy and team anarchy with more multiplayer modes coming in the future. Lastly, there is the Level Editor that will be released shortly after Overload’s release day that would bring on countless customization.

Prepare for Overload!