Airship: Kingdoms Adrift
- September 21, 2023
- Revolution Industry
- 14h median play time
Get on SteamIn "Airship: Kingdoms Adrift," players delve into a story of politics and conflict following the Sky War. They can customize and pilot 25 distinct airships, assemble a crew of 25 unique officers, and explore a vast archipelago for trade and resources. The goal is to build a powerful industrial empire and command a formidable fleet, shaping the future of the Kingdom.
PC
Windows
Reviews
- The game features extensive ship customization, allowing players to tailor their airships to their preferred playstyle.
- Combat is engaging and offers a variety of strategies, making battles exciting and rewarding.
- The developers are responsive to community feedback and actively work on updates to improve the game.
- Travel times between locations can be excessively long, leading to tedious gameplay and a sense of wasted time.
- The story lacks meaningful player agency, with the protagonist often feeling like a passive observer rather than an active participant.
- The user interface can be clunky and unintuitive, making navigation and management cumbersome.
- story344 mentions
- 13 % positive mentions
- 83 % neutral mentions
- 3 % negative mentions
The game's story has received mixed reviews, with many players finding it engaging yet overly linear and lacking player agency. While some appreciate the well-crafted world and memorable characters, others criticize the reliance on fetch quests and the feeling of being a passive observer in the narrative. Overall, the story is seen as a significant aspect of the game, but it often detracts from the gameplay experience due to its length and lack of meaningful choices.
“The game presents a rich and engaging story set in a well-crafted steampunk universe.”
“The lore and backstory add depth to the game, and the characters you encounter are well-developed and intriguing.”
“I didn't expect to be so engrossed in the story, but boy, was I pleasantly surprised.”
“The story feels so tacked on; it should have been a good way to give some guidance in the early game, but it is about 50-60 hours too long.”
“Your choices seem pretty limited, and it’s frustrating when you’re hoping to impact the world around you, but the story keeps pushing you in one direction.”
“The story really drags it down, and is a prime example of a game where the story gets in the way of the otherwise good gameplay.”
- gameplay93 mentions
- 27 % positive mentions
- 68 % neutral mentions
- 5 % negative mentions
The gameplay of "Airship: Kingdoms Adrift" is a mixed bag, featuring engaging combat and intricate airship mechanics that appeal to fans of strategic and exploratory gameplay. While many players appreciate the depth and potential of the mechanics, others criticize the poorly implemented systems, lack of adequate tutorials, and cumbersome travel mechanics that can detract from the overall experience. Despite its flaws, the game offers a captivating steampunk adventure for those who enjoy its unique blend of combat, trading, and exploration.
“It’s a lot of fun if you’re into that kind of free-roaming gameplay.”
“The core gameplay mechanics of 'Airship Kingdoms Adrift' are both engaging and inventive.”
“Its intricate airship customization and strategic combat provide a satisfying depth of gameplay.”
“The gameplay may seem dull, but there's a few tricks to it.”
“I'm not wasting my life learning your game's mechanics just to capture this. BRB uninstalling.”
“The mechanics for capturing ships is horrible.”
- graphics60 mentions
- 35 % positive mentions
- 60 % neutral mentions
- 5 % negative mentions
The graphics of the game receive mixed reviews, with many praising the unique steampunk aesthetic, detailed airship designs, and beautiful landscapes, while others criticize the low resolution textures and optimization issues that lead to performance problems. Although the art style is appreciated for its creativity, some players find it inconsistent and clumsy, detracting from the overall experience. Overall, while the visuals are engaging and immersive, they may not meet the expectations of those seeking high graphical fidelity.
“The game's steampunk aesthetic is beautifully realized, with detailed airships, floating islands, and bustling aerial cities that create an immersive and visually striking environment.”
“The graphics look good, the draw distance is pretty far on the highest setting, I don't see any pop-in or fog to mask inadequacies in the draw distance.”
“I must say, it was the graphics that drew me to buy and play the game, and I wasn't disappointed.”
“The graphics and textures are not high resolution whatsoever; the ships are pretty much simple shapes with textures to provide the details. Yet my gaming PC is spinning up, running hotter and louder than it does when I'm playing Helldivers II.”
“Graphics, unfortunately, it has to be said that if you’re looking for the next greatest thing in graphical fidelity, this game isn’t it.”
“Despite the graphics and principle, until they fix the difficulty and make the game rewarding to play, they are going to lose their players before the game is completed.”
- grinding32 mentions
- 0 % positive mentions
- 3 % neutral mentions
- 97 % negative mentions
The grinding aspect of "Airship: Kingdoms A drift" is widely criticized for being tedious and time-consuming, with players often feeling overwhelmed by the complexity of tasks and the lengthy travel times. While some enjoy the micro-management and resource gathering, many find the grind to level up characters and upgrade ships to be frustratingly slow and repetitive, detracting from the overall enjoyment of the game. Despite its beautiful design and potential for engaging gameplay, the excessive grinding requirements can make progress feel sluggish and unfulfilling.
“It just seems that absolutely everything in 'Airship: Kingdoms A drift' has to be complicated, tedious, and demanding.”
“Playing this game has been a tedious and irritating process.”
“The travel time is insanely long in which I often find myself watching TikTok until I get close to my destination, and I'm only 12 hours in... there are too many grinding requirements to get anything done quickly and feel like progress was made.”
- optimization18 mentions
- 22 % positive mentions
- 50 % neutral mentions
- 28 % negative mentions
The game's optimization has received largely negative feedback, with many users describing it as "unoptimized" and plagued by performance issues, particularly in late-game scenarios. While some players with high-end hardware report smoother experiences, the overall consensus indicates that significant optimization improvements are still needed, especially given the game's lengthy release period without substantial updates.
“You trade, craft, and buy weapons, engines, shields, armor, equipment, and also gradually gain more crew members with better passive and active abilities that you level up, all of which affect your vessels' performance stats to an impressive detail.”
“This requires a fleet of optimized - and slow - cargo ships or lots of individual tours across the entire map.”
“Hours spent fiddling with ship optimization alone.”
“The game is an unoptimized mess.”
“It's been a year since they published this game and the dev team has optimized nothing.”
“At this point, the game is highly frustrating, demotivating, consists mostly of travel times and has performance issues on top of it.”
- music16 mentions
- 50 % positive mentions
- 31 % neutral mentions
- 19 % negative mentions
The music in the game receives mixed reviews, with some praising its quality and ability to enhance the atmosphere, particularly during combat, while others find it repetitive and occasionally annoying, especially in port. Voice acting is generally well-received, contributing positively to the overall experience. However, a few users noted that the soundtrack can be limited and lacks variety, leading to moments of boredom.
“The graphics, the art style, the awesome ships, the music...it's all great.”
“Voice acting, music, and visuals are all fine to really good.”
“The background music and character voiceovers fit well within the game's context, creating a seamless experience without any disruptions.”
“No spectacle, no good music, just annoying text dialogs with stupid looking characters saying absolutely nothing but stalling gameplay for minutes.”
“My biggest gripe was the soundtrack; hilariously, rather than any gameplay, it was only ever boring or annoying.”
“Sound: the music is...okay.”
- stability12 mentions
- 17 % positive mentions
- 0 % neutral mentions
- 83 % negative mentions
The game's stability is a mixed bag, with some players experiencing significant freezing during transitions and high-tier battles, while others report minimal glitches and a generally functional experience. Although there are notable bugs, particularly in ship building and voice dialogue, many users find the game enjoyable once they adapt to its quirks. Overall, while it has its rough edges, some players believe it has the potential to be a great game after addressing its stability issues.
“The game runs smoothly on my high-spec system, showcasing excellent optimization.”
“On the other hand, the game was quite bug-free for me, with only a few typos and some achievements not triggering.”
“Entering and leaving any port is irritating as it uses a fog layer to transition game layers (sky and port) and it freezes for 2-5 seconds as it's loading.”
“The ship building is tedious, buggy, and lacking in comparison tools.”
“The ugly: the game is still buggy with a lot of things unfinished.”
- humor8 mentions
- 88 % positive mentions
- -25 % neutral mentions
- 38 % negative mentions
The humor in the game is a mixed bag, featuring a wisecracking sidekick whose jokes can be hit or miss, alongside amusing translations and quirky mechanics. While some players find the dialogue and campy elements entertaining, others feel that the humor often distracts from the game's more serious narrative themes. Overall, the humor adds a lighthearted touch, but its effectiveness varies among players.
“I'll give him a pass as he is actually quite funny.”
“Funny translations, misspelled words, strange mechanics, a botched launch where whole sections could be missing but a lot of love.”
“It's funny seeing other people not recommend the game but almost dump 100 hours into it, i.e., they continued to play.”
“Frustratingly, this includes Jean, who is your constant wisecracking sidekick. His 'wisecracks' are unwelcome and unfunny.”
“The attempts at humor often fall flat, leaving me more annoyed than entertained.”
“I found the jokes to be repetitive and lacking in creativity, which made the experience less enjoyable.”
- atmosphere6 mentions
- 83 % positive mentions
- -33 % neutral mentions
- 50 % negative mentions
The game's atmosphere is widely praised for its lovely sound design, appealing visuals, and engaging character interactions, which enhance the overall experience. However, some players feel that the atmosphere is not fully realized given the game's price, and they await additional features to deepen their enjoyment. Overall, the combination of music, voice acting, and world design contributes significantly to the game's immersive quality.
“The atmosphere is lovely, and the sound design is great.”
“However, I didn’t stop playing because the game's style, visuals, and overall atmosphere are just too good.”
“I really enjoyed the atmosphere of the character interactions within the various city scenes.”
“The start of the story and most named characters are voiced, which helps set their personality. The voicing and music in combat significantly enhance the combat atmosphere.”
“The overall atmosphere feels flat and uninspired, lacking the depth needed to immerse players in the game world.”
“Despite some interesting elements, the atmosphere often feels disconnected, making it hard to engage with the story and characters.”
- monetization3 mentions
- 67 % positive mentions
- -67 % neutral mentions
- 100 % negative mentions
The game's monetization strategy is praised for its potential to generate revenue through initial sales and ongoing methods, while users express strong approval for the absence of microtransactions, highlighting a preference for a straightforward purchasing model.
“Monetization and audience engagement.”
“No microtransactions: 10/10, keep it that way.”
“The proposed game model suggests significant revenue potential through both initial sales and ongoing monetization strategies.”
“Monetization feels overly aggressive, making it hard to enjoy the game without spending extra money.”
“The in-game purchases are not just cosmetic; they impact gameplay, which feels unfair to players who don't want to spend more.”
- emotional1 mentions
- 300 % positive mentions
- -200 % neutral mentions
- 0 % negative mentions
Players express that the game evokes a strong sense of excitement and emotional engagement, particularly through the thrill of exploring its expansive world, even for those who typically do not play such games.
“This isn't the type of game I play often, but this game has made me feel excited about exploring this vast world.”
“The emotional depth of the characters really resonated with me, making their journeys feel personal and impactful.”
“I found myself genuinely moved by the story; it evoked feelings I didn't expect to experience while gaming.”
