Blacksea Odyssey
- March 2, 2016
- Blacksea Odyssey
- 2h median play time
Get on SteamIn "Blacksea Odyssey," hunt giant space behemoths and gather bounties as a lone spaceship captain in a gladiatorial tournament. Upgrade your spaceship and spear to take down larger, more formidable foes. Experience a unique blend of roguelike permadeath, real-time combat, and pixelated graphics in this thrilling space odyssey.
Mac OS
Nintendo Switch
PC
Playstation 4
Windows
Xbox One
Xbox Series X|S
Linux
PlayStation
Xbox
Reviews
- Unique and imaginative concept with a variety of cool enemies and bosses.
- Satisfying combat mechanics that allow for different builds and strategies.
- Engaging gameplay loop with a mix of tactical combat and fast-paced action.
- Game is unpolished and has numerous bugs, leading to frustrating experiences.
- Heavy reliance on RNG for upgrades can make progress feel unfair and inconsistent.
- Controls are clunky and unintuitive, making aiming and movement difficult.
- gameplay34 mentions
- 38 % positive mentions
- 50 % neutral mentions
- 12 % negative mentions
The gameplay of Blacksea Odyssey is characterized by its unique and gratifying mechanics, particularly the part-ripping feature that enhances combat against bosses and enemies. While the game offers a fun twin-stick shooter experience with smooth controls and interesting RPG-inspired enhancements, it suffers from unpolished elements, such as slippery movement and slow projectile attacks, which can detract from the overall enjoyment. Despite these flaws, the core gameplay remains innovative and engaging, making it a worthwhile experience for fans of top-down action games.
“It's a fun twin-stick shooter style game with a fun ripping mechanic that allows you to weaken enemies (primarily bosses, but non-boss creatures often have rippable parts, too) and do extra damage to them.”
“Don't be dissuaded by a few rough edges, because the core gameplay is really something unique and fun.”
“It's all genuine gameplay and it feels awesome.”
“So with all these petty grievances aside, why should you play it if the rewards suck and the gameplay is generally unpolished, often breaking its own rules?”
“Movement is slippery and turning 180 requires taking wider turns than Euro Truck Simulator; your spear attacks have very slow projectiles, making aiming annoying, and the boost mechanic is terrible.”
“Later in the game, most actual threats feel as though their danger comes from clumsy game mechanics rather than appropriate challenge.”
- music23 mentions
- 22 % positive mentions
- 65 % neutral mentions
- 13 % negative mentions
The music in the game is generally considered passable but repetitive, with only a few tracks per biome that quickly become grating, particularly in certain environments. While some players appreciate the soundtrack and its integration with gameplay, the frequent looping and abrupt transitions between idle and combat music detract from the overall experience. Overall, many users feel that more diverse music would enhance the game's atmosphere.
“The detail is spot on, music is amazing, very difficult and time consuming (positives for me).”
“I really like the banter between the hunters and the music is excellent.”
“Background layers in stages, boss reveals, music tracks, character animations, destructible terrain, lighting effects on walls, character sheets, stage types, itemization, their spin on character creation, harpoon ripping physics... I could have a list a hundred items long, and still miss things that I appreciate.”
“The game's music and graphics are passable, but repetitive - there's only one ambient track per biome, one combat track, and one boss music track per biome. It quickly wears thin; it's all grating and loud, especially in the desert and abyss biomes.”
“Idle and fight music does not fade into each other but switches instantaneously, which sometimes leads to fast music switching every 5 seconds or so.”
“Music looping is rough on some tracks.”
- graphics17 mentions
- 35 % positive mentions
- 47 % neutral mentions
- 18 % negative mentions
The game's graphics feature a simple and minimalistic art style that effectively conveys detail and a unique aesthetic, enhancing the sense of scale as players navigate a vast environment. While some users find the visuals lovely and full of potential, others note issues with glitches and a disconnect in UI elements. Overall, the graphics are considered passable but could benefit from improvements and additional customization options.
“The art style is simple and minimalistic but still manages to add a lot of detail, so I think that is great.”
“Visuals are lovely; it is a little glitchy at the moment, but there is so much potential there.”
“The game's music and graphics are passable, but repetitive - there's only one ambient track per biome, one combat track, and one boss music track per biome. It quickly wears thin; it's all grating and loud, especially in the desert and abyss biomes.”
“The graphics are simple, but they're not unattractive.”
“Some elements of the UI don't quite match aesthetically, so there's a weird disconnect.”
- grinding14 mentions
- 0 % positive mentions
- 0 % neutral mentions
- 100 % negative mentions
Players find the grinding aspect of the game to be excessively tedious and frustrating, often involving prolonged battles against groups of enemies that require specific setups to defeat. The initial combat experience is described as monotonous, with weak enemies taking too long to defeat and weapon upgrades feeling scarce and underwhelming. Overall, the grind is seen as overly demanding, leading to dissatisfaction with the game's progression and rewards.
“Even when an enemy is not impossible to kill, there are many cases where they are just tedious to deal with.”
“In the beginning of the game, combat is tedious, a boring cycle of killing weak enemies that take too long to dispatch while waiting to find a weapon upgrade which may or may not ever materialize.”
“Way too hard, and too grindy: sorry, I don't play your game enough to unlock all of the things after 500 hours.”
- story8 mentions
- 38 % positive mentions
- 25 % neutral mentions
- 38 % negative mentions
The story is largely minimal and presented through retro-style text boxes, leading some to feel it is almost irrelevant. However, the humorous interactions between the four hunters during missions provide an entertaining element that enhances the overall experience. While the narrative may not be central, it offers amusing moments that players can appreciate if they engage with the dialogue.
“Honestly, the story may as well not be there, as it's only told during cartridge-era text boxes, but the amusing conversations that take place between the four hunters between missions are actually quite entertaining if you take the time to read them.”
“The amusing conversations between the four hunters during missions add a layer of charm to the story, making it enjoyable despite its simplistic presentation.”
“The interactions and banter among the hunters provide a delightful contrast to the straightforward storytelling, making the experience more engaging.”
“Honestly, the story may as well not be there, as it's only told during cartridge-era text boxes, but for the amusing conversations that take place between the four hunters between missions, which if you take the time to read are actually quite amusing.”
“Honestly, the story may as well not be there, as it's only told during cartridge-era text boxes, but for the amusing conversations that take place between the four hunters between missions, which if you take the time to read are actually quite amusing.”
“It would have been interesting to be able to come across them in missions and have to compete against them for kills or to score the final hit on bosses.”
- humor6 mentions
- 100 % positive mentions
- 0 % neutral mentions
- 0 % negative mentions
The humor in the game is initially entertaining, particularly with the bosses, but it quickly becomes repetitive and loses its charm. Despite this, players find some enjoyment in humorous bugs, suggesting that the overall comedic experience is mixed but still worth recommending given the game's price and quality.
“Though at this price tag and quality, I would definitely recommend it to anyone. I've encountered a couple of bugs that were more funny than game-breaking.”
- stability5 mentions
- 0 % positive mentions
- 0 % neutral mentions
- 100 % negative mentions
The game's stability is generally criticized, with users noting persistent bugs and a lack of full controller support. While some game-breaking issues have been resolved, players still experience frustrating glitches and inconsistencies that affect gameplay. Overall, the game's lack of ongoing support contributes to its unstable performance.
“Game is no longer supported, despite not having full controller support and being buggy as heck.”
“This game is a little buggy, but it seems that any game-breaking issues have been resolved.”
“Being able to succeed is far too dependent on random rune drops, finicky boost controls, and a few annoying bugs and glitches.”
- emotional2 mentions
- 100 % positive mentions
- 0 % neutral mentions
- 0 % negative mentions
The emotional aspect of the game is likened to a frustrating experience, akin to the teasing nature of "I'm not touching you," suggesting that players may feel a sense of helplessness or irritation when faced with instakills that seem unfair or unavoidable.
- atmosphere2 mentions
- 50 % positive mentions
- 0 % neutral mentions
- 50 % negative mentions
The game effectively creates a harsh and unforgiving atmosphere of cold space, populated by indifferent creatures, reminiscent of Lovecraftian themes. This immersive environment enhances the sense of isolation and danger, drawing players into its chilling narrative.
“It succeeds in delivering an atmosphere of harsh, cold, and unforgiving space filled with creatures who don't care about humans. It's somewhat influenced by Lovecraft's work; while he didn't write about space hunters, the feel is similar on some level.”
“It succeeds to deliver an atmosphere of harsh, cold, and unforgiving space filled with creatures who don't give a damn about humans. It's a little bit influenced by Lovecraft's work; I know he didn't write about space hunters, but the feel is similar on some level.”
- replayability2 mentions
- 100 % positive mentions
- 0 % neutral mentions
- 0 % negative mentions
The game offers significant replayability through a random loot system, where players can acquire upgrades for their ships and spears, referred to as "runes," by opening chests and defeating enemies. This mechanic encourages players to engage repeatedly for new experiences and enhancements.
“The standard indie random loot and infinite replayability shines through, with ship and spear upgrades being 'runes' that are acquired by opening chests and defeating enemies.”
