ADACA

About

ADACA is a single player open world shooter game with horror and science fiction themes. It was developed by Siris Pendrake and was released on July 25, 2022. It received very positive reviews from players.

Adaca is a Sci-fi First-person shooter set on the mysterious titular planet. Use your gravity-manipulating robotic arm to hurl heavy objects at your foes or even rip their weapons directly from their hands! Explore and manipulate the environment to stay alive and navigate this eerie, hostile world!

+15

Skip User Reviews

91%

Audience ScoreBased on 782 reviews

story82 positive mentions

monetization3 negative mentions

Excellent level design with many secrets and Easter eggs.
Dynamic and weighty combat with a versatile gravity arm mechanic.
Strong atmosphere and art direction capturing the essence of Half-Life 2, Halo, and STALKER.
Wide variety of weapons and enemies with distinct behaviors.
Zone Patrol mode offers a unique open-world exploration experience full of mysteries and player-driven quests.
Impressive achievement for a largely solo-developed indie game with minimal bugs and smooth gameplay.
Highly recommended for fans of classic FPS and immersive shooters.

Zone Patrol mode can feel dispersive, frustrating, and sometimes obscure in objectives and progression.
Campaign is relatively short and the third episode is still pending release, making the story feel incomplete.
Some weapon balance issues including ammo inconsistency and over-reliance on the gravity arm.
Enemy AI can be inconsistent, sometimes overly passive or problematically accurate.
Graphics are simple and low-poly, which might not appeal to everyone.
Occasional performance issues and some glitches such as enemy respawns and non-optimal ladder climbing.
Lack of voice acting and minimal music can reduce immersion for some players.

story
347 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
24%
74%
2%
The story in Adaca offers a compelling, if somewhat familiar, sci-fi narrative heavily inspired by titles like Half-Life 2 and S.T.A.L.K.E.R., blending a linear campaign with an open-world exploration mode that delivers intriguing lore through environmental storytelling and scattered missions. While some players find the campaign's story straightforward but occasionally confusing or thin, the expansive "zone patrol" mode is praised for its depth, mystery, and rewarding quest design, making the overall narrative experience especially engaging for those who appreciate piecing together story elements themselves. Though lacking in voice acting and sometimes feeling incomplete, the story effectively complements the strong gameplay and immersive world-building, with many noting it as a "love letter" to classic FPS storytelling.
- “Fun combat paired with a compelling story in a world that surprised me and looked beautiful in its own beautiful way.”
- “Zone patrol is a fantastic non-linear open world where you get to piece together the story without much guidance, making exploring and discovering the mysteries of the zone so rewarding.”
- “[code]update: originally I was drawn in for just a simple classic linear scripted campaign experience, and that's what I got, a lovely HL2-throwback campaign in the form of Jessy Thorn's story, but curiosity made me want to see what the 'zone patrol' was all about, and in the end, that's the main reason I have over 40+ hours into this game, that could be described as Lexi Abrams' quests, because, though a different nonlinear exploration experience, it has some really good intrigue and buildup as you discover, investigate, hunt for clues, and find quests and characters and the story behind the planet and what transpired, and it just sucks you in, no hand-holding, no objective icons cluttering up your minimap, no, you need to make notes, write in your journal, look around and familiarize yourself with the locations, all the while still having all the fun mechanics and systems you got introduced to in the linear campaign at your disposal.”
- “Secondly, the story makes little sense.”
- “The game has a litany of flaws, from the pacing, to confusing level layouts, to little to no story and what is there is boring, to everything else I've already said and more.”
- “[b]the story is lacklustre[/b], mostly cobbled together from other media.”
gameplay
202 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
40%
57%
3%
The gameplay is widely praised for its solid, fun, and well-crafted mechanics that blend inspirations from Half-Life 2 and Halo, featuring a standout gravity arm mechanic and fast, satisfying combat. It offers both a linear, narrative-driven campaign and a more open-ended exploration mode, providing variety and depth, though some note occasional control unresponsiveness, AI issues, and pacing dips late in the campaign. Overall, it is considered a polished and engaging FPS experience with thoughtful level design, balanced combat, and extensive weapon variety, especially impressive given its indie, single-developer origins.
- “Adaca is a well-crafted indie shooter with inventive mechanics, atmosphere, and both linear and open-ended play.”
- “The gameplay is a blend of Half-Life 2 and classic Halo, featuring creative mechanics like a gravity arm that functions like an improved gravity gun, fast and slick movement, and a variety of weapons that make combat challenging but fair.”
- “The game provides two distinct modes: a tight, narrative-driven campaign introducing solid mechanics and a non-linear, exploration-rich open world with lots of player expression, emergent gameplay, and many customization options.”
- “The gameplay feels 'plastic'; objects have almost no weight and the controls feel a little unresponsive, weapons have almost no punch.”
- “The mechanics and powers feel underutilized; headshots and explosives don't even kill instantly without tweaking the settings.”
- “Overall the gameplay is very stop-and-go, lacking proper gameplay cycles – you just continue forward, encounter the next group of enemies, and either they stand still and you play peek-a-shoot with them, or they run towards you to get killed.”
graphics
138 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
35%
62%
3%
The graphics of the game are characterized by a low-poly, minimalist art style that channels retro-futuristic and early 2000s aesthetics reminiscent of Half-Life 2 and Halo, providing a distinctive and nostalgic charm rather than realistic visuals. While some reviewers find the visuals simplistic, repetitive, or generic due to the use of common asset packs, many praise the effective use of lighting, color schemes, and atmosphere that enhance immersion and style. Overall, the graphics are serviceable and visually appealing within their limitations, complementing the gameplay and world-building despite occasional technical glitches or lack of polish.
- “The encounters are mostly well-designed and the locations manage to be beautiful, with a great sense of scale despite the low-poly art style.”
- “Adaca’s visuals channel a retro-futuristic, Half-Life 2-inspired style with stylized, chunky models and industrial sci-fi settings.”
- “The low-poly graphics add to the charm and create a smooth and visually satisfying art style that feels uniquely its own.”
- “Graphics are blocky and toylike.”
- “There's a lot to be said for a simple art style, and some of my favourite games are sprite-based, low-fi or otherwise don't expend half a million polygons for every character's foot, but Adaca is both low-fi and low-style, making everything look kind of like an untextured placeholder.”
- “It's worst fault for me is that the visuals is built on top of mobile game low poly asset store props and I've already seen these assets in many games, mods, itch.”
atmosphere
74 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
51%
45%
4%
The atmosphere across the game is consistently praised for its immersive, moody, and richly detailed environments that blend alien, dystopian, and oppressive tones reminiscent of Half-Life and S.T.A.L.K.E.R. Players highlight the effective use of ambient sound, haunting music, dynamic weather, and varied settings that create tension and a captivating sense of mystery. This strong atmospheric design, combined with complementary visuals and sound, significantly enhances the overall experience and player engagement.
- “Impressive environments that blend an alien planet with a backwater under an oppressive regime, featuring worn-down derelicts, outdated tech, crumbling infrastructure, and a military presence focused on control. The rich soundscape and haunting soundtrack create a fittingly atmospheric experience.”
- “The environments have a moody atmosphere that fits the setting well, especially in more alien or corrupted areas.”
- “Fantastic gunplay, striking atmosphere, crackling sound design - one of 2022's brightest gems.”
- “The lack of music and ambient effects weigh heavy after a while and take away any atmosphere the game could have.”
- “I really can't think of any words to describe this game's atmosphere.”
- “Despite these strengths, I still lean toward G String for its raw, oppressive atmosphere.”
music
50 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
38%
56%
6%
The game's music is sparse and minimalist, often compared to Half-Life in its atmospheric restraint, effectively enhancing the eerie, isolated environments without overwhelming the experience. While some players find the soundtrack memorable and well-crafted with unique, haunting tones that complement the mood, others desire a more extensive or prominent musical presence to deepen immersion. Overall, the soundtrack is praised for fitting the game's tone and creating tension, though it may feel understated or forgettable to some.
- “The soundtrack creates the perfect atmosphere of paranormal mystery for you to explore every corner of every map.”
- “The music is very atmospheric and used nicely; there are cool little music riffs that can really wow you.”
- “Punchy sound design and immersive ambient music.”
- “The lack of any dedicated soundtrack makes this game extremely forgettable and boring.”
- “Finally, the music is unremarkable, and the sound design varies from nonexistent to meh.”
- “The lack of music and ambient effects weigh heavy after a while and takes away any atmosphere the game could have.”
optimization
19 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
16%
68%
16%
Optimization in the game is mixed, with many users reporting performance issues and significant frame drops, especially in later areas and on lower-tier CPUs. While some players experience smooth gameplay and solid performance on mid-range systems, others note heavy system strain and overheating, suggesting the game could benefit from further optimization and polishing. Overall, performance varies widely depending on hardware, with optimization remaining a key area for improvement.
- “The game is quite demanding in terms of performance, though that's more of an Unreal Engine quirk than a fault with the game.”
- “Performance seems solid, playing on a laptop, i5-11400h 6core/12thread 2.7GHz 3050RTX 4GB VRAM 8GB RAM Win11 with shadows and PPFX max and the rest on epic (AA low) and so far I'm getting 60fps, had some minor dips in one location but nothing under 50.”
- “The game misses some polish and optimization (probably because it's made by one person), but again, I absolutely love this game and I will keep playing and replaying it for a long time.”
- “The game can have heavy performance dips in certain areas for users with weaker CPUs.”
- “Story mode features worsened optimization, with the last act experiencing severe lag.”
- “Good game, but terrible performance on later levels.”
replayability
14 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
36%
43%
21%
The game offers strong replayability through two distinct modes—a linear campaign with hidden secrets and an open-world, run-based exploration mode—providing roughly 10-12 hours of varied gameplay. Additional features like modifiers and extra control options enhance its longevity, making it a highly replayable experience despite the campaign's relatively short length.
- “There are two different game modes and extra game control options to give this a lot of replayability options.”
- “I've played through the entire campaign mode and appreciate that the game has an entirely separate open world portion which makes the game great for replayability.”
- “The zone mode and modifiers also add so much replayability and wacky fun.”
- “No replay value.”
- “And it has two different modes, a neat little game to be sure, though I am not sure it has much replay value; it isn't quite done yet at least in story.”
- “Definitely not as good as the campaign, but definitely worth playing and adding replayability.”
monetization
5 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
40%
60%
The game features microtransactions primarily for in-game purchases, including weapon upgrades. While only a few guns have ads or special abilities, most offer basic functions like scopes, with some variations in firing modes and capabilities.
- “Microtransactions - in-game purchases.”
- “Some have secondary functions, most just being ads or scopes with a few other options mixed in.”
- “Alongside this early shotgun, there is an improved version that can ads and fire faster, but the secondary double-shot mode is removed.”
stability
5 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
40%
60%
The game runs smoothly with no major performance issues, though minor glitches like occasional enemy pathing problems and graphical quirks such as light leaks and brief texture flashes are present. These issues rarely disrupt gameplay, and overall stability is solid.
- “Game runs great on my PC, to the point I need to use VSync so it doesn't run too fast.”
- “The game runs great, and I have yet to notice any stuttering on my machine.”
- “And often I died randomly from weird glitches; it's easier to run and shoot than try to use antigravity.”
- “I have also experienced some glitches with graphics, like the light leaking inside the buildings and surfaces being stark-white for a frame after I turn a corner, but it's most likely related to the engine (namely, Unreal Engine).”
- “Minor quirks like occasional enemy pathing glitches or AI getting stuck pop up, but nothing significantly interrupts gameplay.”
humor
5 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
100%
Users find the game's humor to be enhanced by unexpected and amusing gameplay mechanics, such as disarming enemies and using their weapons instantly. The humorous physics system and occasional lighthearted moments, like the "coming soon" episode joke, add to the overall comedic experience.
- “A staggered foe can be disarmed by picking up his gun, even instantly using it against its former user, which made for some very hilarious gameplay moments.”
- “Many games from indie/single developer studios leave games feeling clunky and unfinished, yet in this game not only did I find an astonishing lack of bugs, but very, very crisp and clean, along with a genuinely intriguing story, plus a hilarious physics system that makes the game way better.”
- “Ragdoll funny.”
emotional
3 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
100%
The emotional experience is generally engaging and nostalgic, sparking curiosity, but it lacks a strong lasting impact and can become frustrating due to repetitive mission restarts.
- “It's enough to keep you curious, but won’t leave a lasting emotional impact.”
- “Using the hints on the terminals to figure out where to find the next objective made me feel like I was playing ODST for the first time again.”
character development
1 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
100%
The game features well-designed characters with a distinctive art style, using solid colors that make factions easily recognizable, resulting in a memorable and visually appealing cast.
- “A strong art style, interesting character design with solid colors and easy-to-distinguish factions combine for a wonderful cast.”
grinding
1 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
100%
Grinding is minimal or nonexistent, with no need for tedious farming or unnecessary gathering, making for a more engaging and streamlined experience.