Black Powder Red Earth®

About

"Black Powder Red Earth®" is a tactical, top-down shooter video game set in a near-future Middle East. As a member of a private military company, players must complete missions involving combat, stealth, and strategy. The game features a rich storyline, customizable loadouts, and realistic weapons and tactics.

Genres & Tags

Strategy

Play Modes

Single-Player Play through the game's story or campaign solo

88%

Audience ScoreBased on 183 reviews

story11 positive mentions

replayability3 negative mentions

The game offers a unique and engaging tactical experience with a strong emphasis on strategy and decision-making.
The art style and sound design are well-executed, creating an immersive atmosphere that complements the gameplay.
The randomization of missions and events adds replayability and keeps each playthrough fresh and unpredictable.

The game suffers from a lack of content and depth, with repetitive missions and limited mechanics that can lead to boredom.
Frequent crashes and performance issues detract from the overall experience, making it frustrating to play.
The tutorial and in-game explanations are insufficient, leaving players confused about mechanics and controls.

story
67 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
16%
79%
4%
The game's story is described as minimalistic, with a focus on mission-based gameplay rather than a deep narrative. Players appreciate the unique subject matter and the chaotic, unpredictable nature of missions, but many feel that the repetitive mission types and lack of character development detract from the overall experience. While the cutscenes and visuals add some personality, the story elements are often overshadowed by gameplay mechanics, leading to a desire for more depth and variety in future updates.
- “The addition of the campaign is fantastic, the storytelling and imagery is a nice touch, not overdone.”
- “It’s faithful to its source material and the threat of missions always going awry will always keep you on your toes, with every move.”
- “The cutscene's story and characters aren't very memorable but it does give a pretty cool slice of life glance into the world of BPRE and what a scorch team does.”
- “The missions feel repetitive and slow, and there aren't enough mechanics to make it feel like a fleshed out game, especially a tactical shooter.”
- “The missions are all pretty much the same and there are only a few maps, so it gets old pretty quick.”
- “Play one mission and you have seen all there is to see, aside from a few cutscenes with mostly bad voice acting.”
gameplay
44 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
27%
59%
14%
Gameplay reviews highlight a mix of simple yet rewarding mechanics, with an emphasis on tactical expertise and atmosphere. However, many players find the gameplay repetitive and lacking depth, with issues such as poor visibility, unclear rules, and limited content detracting from the overall experience. While some appreciate the core gameplay loop and its potential, others feel it falls short compared to similar titles, suggesting a need for more engaging elements and clearer mechanics.
- “The mechanics are simple, yet rewarding.”
- “Simple yet exciting gameplay, leans heavy on tactical expertise and has a really good soundtrack!”
- “The core gameplay is fun and nerve-wracking simultaneously.”
- “The lack of any oversight or actual fog of war mechanics ruins what could otherwise have been a unique tactical experience.”
- “Poor visibility, slow walk cycles, line of sight difficulties, repetitive gameplay, unclear rules, and excessive randomness don't help either.”
- “The missions feel repetitive and slow, and there aren't enough mechanics to make it feel like a fleshed out game, especially a tactical shooter.”
graphics
24 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
67%
21%
13%
The graphics of the game have received praise for their unique 8-bit aesthetic, which combines gritty, comic-book influences with fine details and excellent animations. Reviewers appreciate the art style and sound design, noting that it enhances the overall atmosphere and personality of the game, despite some concerns about gameplay depth. Overall, the visuals are considered top-tier, effectively capturing the intended vibe and enhancing the gaming experience.
- “Atmosphere and graphics are fantastic.”
- “The art style is amazing, very gritty and comic-book like.”
- “The graphics and animations are great and can be funny at times.”
- “Even the 8-bit art style seems inspired by subset games' aesthetics, but in a more gritty, dark, ironic, sometimes leaning into caricature sort of way.”
- “If you, like me, haven’t heard a whisper about it then that’s because they’ve done a terrible job marketing themselves for such a neat, cheap little game with a badass art style.”
- “Let us get one thing out of the way; despite the game's old school 8-bit art style and focus on turn-based tactics, this game is not XCOM.”
music
14 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
64%
14%
21%
The music in the game is generally praised for its effectiveness in enhancing the atmosphere, with a good mix of ambient sounds and a compelling soundtrack that ramps up during intense moments. However, some players note that certain musical elements, particularly the metal riffs, can become repetitive over time. Overall, the soundtrack contributes positively to the game's tactical gameplay and immersive experience.
- “Simple yet exciting gameplay, leans heavy on tactical expertise and has a really good soundtrack!”
- “The soundtrack ramps up as the team gets closer to compromise as encounters with civilians and jihadists or the negative effects of random events stack up.”
- “The sound design/soundtrack is very effective at delivering proper setting as well as fitting for the 'atmosphere' that the game shares with great effect.”
- “Even the music (which unfortunately gets a bit repetitive) seems to take some cues from subsets' more laid-back style.”
- “The soundtrack ramps up as the team gets closer to compromise, but it can feel monotonous over time.”
- “As the action picks up, the operatives get more active, but the music doesn't evolve much and can become tiresome.”
atmosphere
11 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
82%
27%
The game's atmosphere is widely praised for its ability to create tension and immersion, effectively blending pixel art with compelling sound design and mechanics that enhance the overall experience. Players appreciate the grounded and serious tone, which sets it apart from typical colorful turn-based strategy games, making each decision feel impactful in high-stakes scenarios. Overall, the atmosphere is described as engaging and enthralling, drawing players into its unique setting and gameplay.
- “Add onto this the fact that this game manages to capture the overall atmosphere and feeling of bpre surprisingly well even when considering it's all pixels and you have a recipe for something good.”
- “In terms of what makes this title unique, there is an emphasis on atmosphere and tension which encompasses not just the excellent presentation but also the game mechanics.”
- “An enthralling and atmospheric take on turn-based isometric combat that sucks you into its tiny asymmetric wars.”
- “The game manages to capture the overall atmosphere and feeling surprisingly well, even when considering it's all pixels.”
- “Not usually a fan of turn-based games, but the atmosphere and high-stakes missions where every decision you make matters kept me patiently waiting for each move I could make.”
- “The atmosphere feels flat and uninspired, making it hard to stay engaged with the game.”
humor
5 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
80%
60%
The game's humor is characterized by a mix of dark, slapstick elements and exaggerated animations, which some players find amusing, while others criticize certain jokes as racist and unfunny. Overall, the humor is seen as a unique blend that contrasts with the serious themes of the game, contributing to its distinctive tone.
- “The graphics and animations are great and can be funny at times.”
- “Humor, humanity (or the lack thereof), and a truly unique concept are the hallmarks of this game.”
- “Not only that, but there is a tonal difference between the exaggerated and almost slapstick death animations of NPCs and the humorous building descriptions, contrasting with the game's dark, realistic depiction of a raid in the middle of the night in the Middle East.”
- “I find the in-game card text and jokes to be unfunny and lacking creativity.”
- “The humor attempts in this game fall flat and often feel forced.”
- “Many of the jokes seem outdated and fail to resonate with the audience.”
replayability
4 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
50%
75%
The game offers strong replayability due to the randomization of objectives and enemy placements, which keeps each playthrough fresh and unpredictable. Players suggest that introducing more random events and a grading system could further enhance this aspect, adding layers of risk and reward to the gameplay experience.
- “There is an element of randomness in some of the events that transpire, which greatly increases the replay value and the chance for things to become chaotic.”
- “A suggestion: the replayability could be enhanced with more random events that play with the risk/reward tension, e.g., an asset that is actually leading the team to an ambush, secondary objectives, or maybe defending a downed friendly and waiting for CSAR in X turns.”
- “Surprisingly replayable (like you didn't guess by my playtime) due to randomization of objective location and enemy/civilian placements.”
- “A suggestion: the replayability could be enhanced with more random events that play with the risk/reward tension, e.g., an asset that is actually leading the team to an ambush, secondary objectives, maybe defending a downed friendly and waiting for extraction in a certain number of turns.”
- “Some kind of grading system at the end of operations would be nice and enhance replayability.”
monetization
1 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
300%
The monetization of the game is criticized as a lazy cash grab, lacking depth and meaningful content.
- “This game simply is a lazy cash grab with no actual depth or anything to it.”
- “The monetization system feels exploitative, pushing players to spend money to enjoy basic features.”
- “It's frustrating to see so many paywalls in a game that could have been great without the constant pressure to spend.”
stability
1 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
300%
The game is reported to be enjoyable, but it suffers from various bugs that affect its overall stability.
- “The game is incredibly buggy, which detracts from the overall experience.”
- “Frequent crashes make it hard to enjoy the gameplay.”
- “I encountered numerous glitches that interrupted my progress.”
optimization
1 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
300%
Overall, the game is well-optimized for Mac users, running smoothly without significant issues, though there is a minor glitch involving the camera during a specific NPC interaction.
- “Playing it on a Mac, the game runs smoothly with no issues so far.”
- “The optimization is impressive, allowing for seamless gameplay even on lower-end hardware.”
- “I appreciate how well the game performs; it maintains a steady frame rate throughout.”