Containment

About

Containment is a single player casual turn-based strategy game. It was developed by Finite Reflection and was released on February 9, 2018. It received positive reviews from players.

Containment is a turn-based, minimalist strategy game about managing the growth of bacteria. Use antibiotics to keep their power under control as you work towards containment.

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85%

Audience ScoreBased on 40 reviews

gameplay5 positive mentions

replayability3 negative mentions

Containment offers a clever risk-reward mechanic that adds depth to the gameplay, making it engaging and challenging.
The game features a polished presentation with charming visuals and relaxing music, enhancing the overall experience.
At its low price point, Containment provides good value for casual gamers, offering several hours of entertainment with its unique puzzle mechanics.

The game suffers from a lack of depth and variety, with only a limited number of levels and mechanics that can feel shallow over time.
Many players find the tutorial and mechanics poorly explained, leading to confusion and frustration when trying to grasp the gameplay.
As a console port, the game feels like a mobile app rather than a fully realized PC experience, with technical limitations and simplistic controls.

gameplay
19 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
26%
58%
16%
The gameplay features a clever risk-reward mechanic centered around managing antibiotic doses to combat bacteria on a hexagonal grid, offering a mix of simplicity and strategic depth. While the core mechanics are engaging and rewarding once understood, players may initially find the learning curve steep and the lack of clear explanations frustrating. Overall, the game is described as a charming and satisfying puzzle experience that evolves with new mechanics and increasing difficulty.
- “The difficulty ramps up quickly, but once you get the hang of the mechanics, it gets really satisfying to clear the board.”
- “While there are only a few mechanics, they mesh together really well to create a surprisingly deep and strategic puzzle game.”
- “The core mechanic of the game is clever and well built upon, and if you have the patience to understand it, you will be rewarded.”
- “There's more nuance than this to the game (much of it neat and clever) but that's the beating heart of gameplay, and I found it kind of hollow - the tension feels contrived.”
- “The game is rather frustrating since it does not explain its mechanics.”
- “It took me way too long to wrap my head around the growth mechanic, but that is partly the fault of a now-fixed bug.”
graphics
8 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
38%
24%
38%
The graphics of the game are characterized by simplistic low-quality vector art that lacks substantial options for improvement, resulting in mediocre 2D visuals that do not meet the expectations of PC gamers. However, the art style is described as cute and charming, effectively complementing the game's relaxing tone with engaging music and sound. Overall, while the visuals may not be technically impressive, they possess a certain appeal that enhances the gaming experience.
- “The art style definitely makes the idea of playing with bacteria not gross.”
- “The visuals are cute and simple, with great music and sound really setting the relaxing tone.”
- “The visuals have a simple charm that pop really well.”
- “While there are options to change the resolution for the game, all this does is scale up the simplistic low-quality vector art assets used to make the game, which makes little or no difference to the graphics quality.”
- “Without any other substantial graphics tweaks, it's not possible for gamers to improve the mediocre 2D visuals.”
- “Considering this is being evaluated as a PC game, having the graphics phoned in like this isn't going to result in a high-quality, visually impressive game that PC gamers are used to seeing.”
replayability
5 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
40%
60%
The game offers notable replayability through its RNG elements and level editor, which can create varied experiences, though some players feel that reliance on luck can detract from skill-based enjoyment. Overall, many users find the game polished and fun, providing good value and encouraging repeated play.
- “I absolutely got more than my money’s worth out of this game, and would recommend it to anyone looking for something simple, replayable, and enjoyable at minimal cost.”
- “While this arguably adds replayability, it feels really bad that how good your start is and how big of a score you'll be able to get is up to RNG and not skill.”
- “RNG in the bacteria spawning is both a blessing and a curse, as it shakes things up and adds replay value, though sometimes you just get dealt a bad hand.”
- “It's not super long, but the RNG and level editor add replayability, and the experience is ultimately very polished and fun.”
music
5 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
60%
40%
The music in the game is consistently praised for its ability to create a relaxing atmosphere, complementing the pleasing sound effects and cute visuals. Reviewers highlight the minimal soundtrack as enhancing the overall experience, making it a super chill puzzle game that draws players in from the start.
- “Pleasing sound effects and a minimal soundtrack help create a relaxing atmosphere as you plot your next move.”
- “The visuals are cute and simple, with great music and sound really setting the relaxing tone.”
- “Super chill puzzle game with challenging puzzles and relaxing music.”
grinding
3 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
100%
Players find the grinding aspect of the game to be tedious, as it often requires either rough estimations or extensive calculations to decide how many enemies to eliminate each turn. This can detract from the overall enjoyment and flow of gameplay.
- “Every turn, you determine how many to kill or leave alive, either by seat-of-the-pants estimation or by really tedious calculation.”
- “The grinding feels endless, with repetitive tasks that offer little reward or excitement.”
- “I spent hours doing the same thing over and over, and it just became a chore rather than fun.”
atmosphere
3 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
100%
The atmosphere is characterized by pleasing sound effects and a minimal soundtrack, which together foster a relaxing environment for players as they strategize their next moves.
- “The pleasing sound effects and minimal soundtrack help create a relaxing atmosphere as you plot your next move.”
- “The immersive environment draws you in, making every moment feel significant and engaging.”
- “The combination of stunning visuals and ambient sounds creates a captivating atmosphere that keeps you hooked.”
story
1 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
100%
The story is enhanced by pleasing sound effects and a minimal soundtrack, which together create a relaxing atmosphere that complements the gameplay and strategic planning.