Beyond Despair
- January 16, 2017
- Pixelmate
- 100h median play time
Beyond Despair is a horror open-world game that can be played in both multi-player and single-player modes. With over 100 hours of playtime, players must survive in a post-apocalyptic world filled with aggressive environments, dangerous creatures, and other players. The game features a mystic and paranormal subtext, with the tagline "You think you have survived? It's just a beginning, the true survival is ahead..."
PC
Reviews
- The game offers a refreshing change from typical zombie games, featuring an interesting story, crafting elements, and engaging challenges.
- Beyond Despair has a promising concept with a well-designed world and potential for future updates, making it enjoyable for players who appreciate survival horror.
- The sound design and atmosphere contribute to a creepy and immersive experience, with effective jump scares and a sense of tension throughout gameplay.
- The game suffers from poor optimization and various bugs, which can detract from the overall experience, especially in its early access state.
- Combat mechanics are rough, with limited hand-to-hand options and a lack of clear direction for solo players, making it feel less engaging without friends.
- Many players find the game too dark and lacking in clarity regarding objectives and gameplay mechanics, leading to confusion and frustration.
- gameplay13 mentions
- 23 % positive mentions
- 54 % neutral mentions
- 23 % negative mentions
The gameplay is characterized by a nostalgic survival experience on an island, where players gather resources and build bases, though some find this aspect somewhat overused. While the game features polished design and impressive sound effects, it has a steep learning curve and requires tweaks, particularly in resource management. Overall, players appreciate the smooth gameplay and the realistic graphics powered by the Unreal Engine, despite some concerns about potential lag and the need for further updates.
“Gameplay: the gameplay features you, as a character going onto an island and surviving.”
“One of the big advantages of the gameplay design is using anomalies to do a portion of the combative footwork for you.”
“The gameplay feels great, the design of the world and creatures is amazing, the level of polish here is really good, and the sound effects are also amazing.”
“Now normally this is the part where you have to gather resources to build a base and fall back on the now-constant crutch in gameplay design of building-your-own-base.”
“There are some gameplay tweaks that it really needs though, like food and drink barely go up when you eat and drink.”
“I haven't noticed any major gameplay-breaking bugs, but the game definitely has a learning curve, and that one is pretty steep.”
- story12 mentions
- 25 % positive mentions
- 50 % neutral mentions
- 25 % negative mentions
The game's story is engaging and sets a compelling atmosphere reminiscent of titles like "Singularity" and "Metro," with a focus on survival horror elements. Players appreciate the dialogue, missions, and the sense of isolation, although some find the quest direction frustrating and suggest improvements. Overall, while the game leans more towards multiplayer, it offers a solid narrative experience that encourages exploration and discovery.
“The survivor horror elements are all there, the story is pretty good so far; I feel very alone in this place, yet it seems like there has to be someone here.”
“However, I'm enjoying exploring the world and learning more of the story.”
“The premise of the story is enticing; it's a very interesting concept.”
“The game needs to be optimized better and this seems to be more multiplayer driven than story driven.”
“There needs to be a little more direction in the quests; right now it's so frustrating figuring out what they want you to do. The fact this game has quests makes it interesting and prolongs the interest in the game.”
“It's no major flaw not to have some big crafting system, but the core of the game is to roam until you get a mission.”
- optimization7 mentions
- 43 % positive mentions
- 14 % neutral mentions
- 43 % negative mentions
Overall, the game's optimization has received mixed reviews, with many users noting significant bugs and performance issues, particularly in multiplayer settings. While some players acknowledge a solid foundation, they emphasize the need for further optimization to improve frame rates and overall stability.
“It's got bugs and needs some optimization, but other than that, it seems to have a solid base.”
“Good game so far and it's appropriately priced; needs some optimization though, goes between 30-60 fps on highest settings for me depending on where I am.”
“Well optimized.”
“The game needs to be optimized better and this seems to be more multiplayer driven than story driven.”
“It's got bugs and needs some optimization, but other than that it seems to have a solid base.”
“Good game so far and it's appropriately priced, but it needs some optimization; it goes between 30-60 fps on the highest settings for me depending on where I am.”
- graphics7 mentions
- 29 % positive mentions
- 29 % neutral mentions
- 43 % negative mentions
The graphics of the game, while not on par with major titles, are generally well-received for their fitting aesthetic and realistic design made possible by the Unreal Engine. Users appreciate the creative art style and unique environments, though some note issues like graphical glitches and a desire for a more innovative UI design. Overall, the visuals are considered suitable for an early access title, with potential for improvement as updates are released.
“I am a graphic designer and by far with the Unreal Engine, I think this developer made the best choice in going with this engine because it makes everything so realistic. Some argue it makes the gameplay laggy, but really people need to remember that this is alpha and it will continue to have updates, fixes, and bugs, which I think is great.”
“And it's got a nice art style going, with twisted dreamlike environments and enemies, kind of a mix between Darkwood and Stalker.”
“The graphics are nothing like big titles, but seem to fit the game just right.”
“Graphics for an early access game.”
“It would be cool if you could make your UI menu look a little more creative instead of boxy.”
- stability2 mentions
- 0 % positive mentions
- 0 % neutral mentions
- 100 % negative mentions
Users express frustration with the stability of many early access games, citing issues such as bugs, missing textures, and graphical glitches. Additionally, there are concerns about inconsistent voice acting and uncertain weapon modifications, which detract from the overall experience.
“I would like if Steam could stop this feature, because almost 60% of today's games are early access and most of them are really boring, buggy messes, without textures and other issues.”
“Flaws: typos here and there, sometimes the voice acting isn't very strong (you can tell the people making it that English isn't their first language, but that's fine), uncertain weapon mods (appears to be mostly cosmetic), and graphical glitches.”
- music2 mentions
- 100 % positive mentions
- -50 % neutral mentions
- 50 % negative mentions
The music in the game is praised for its clarity and effective transitions between ambient and combat tracks, enhancing the overall experience. Additionally, sound plays a crucial role in gameplay, prompting some players to turn off external music to fully immerse themselves in the game's atmosphere.
“Everything is crystal clear; the music transition between the regular ambient tracks and the combat track is excellent.”
“It's also important to note that sound actually plays a factor when running or hiding, so I always turn my music off (outside of the game) to focus on the ambience.”
“It's also important to note that sound actually plays a factor when running or hiding, and as such I always turn my music off (outside of the game) so I can focus on the ambience.”
- atmosphere1 mentions
- 300 % positive mentions
- -200 % neutral mentions
- 0 % negative mentions
The atmosphere of the game is polarizing; while some players find it annoying, others appreciate it as a key element that enhances the overall experience.
“Some people call this annoying; to me, I call it atmospheric.”
“The game's atmosphere is incredibly immersive, drawing you into its world.”
“Every sound and visual detail contributes to a hauntingly beautiful atmosphere.”
