Cortex Command

About

Cortex Command is a real-time and turn-based strategy game set in a 2D world. Command your faction's troops, construct buildings, and manage resources to defeat your enemies. The game features destructible environments, customizable units, and a variety of weapons to choose from. Your goal is to conquer your opponent's base and eliminate their cortex, the core of their brain-like neural network.

Genres & Tags

Play Modes

Local Multi-Player Play with friends in the same physical space using split-screen or multiple screens
2-Players Play with one other player, either online or locally, in a cooperative or competitive game mode
Multi-Player Compete or cooperate with other players online
Co-Op Team up with friends to complete levels or missions together
Single-Player Play through the game's story or campaign solo
Split Screen Play with multiple players on the same screen, often with divided or shared screen real estate

68%

Audience ScoreBased on 3,341 reviews

gameplay115 positive mentions

stability103 negative mentions

Unique blend of real-time strategy and action gameplay with a destructible environment.
Strong modding community that enhances gameplay with new factions, weapons, and scenarios.
Fun and chaotic gameplay, especially in local multiplayer with friends.

Clunky controls and unintuitive UI make it difficult for new players to learn the game.
The tutorial is poorly designed and does not adequately prepare players for the campaign.
Game has been abandoned by developers, leading to a lack of updates and polish.

gameplay
376 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
31%
60%
10%
Cortex Command's gameplay is a unique blend of real-time strategy and action, featuring deep customization options, destructible environments, and engaging mechanics that encourage creativity and experimentation. However, players often cite a steep learning curve, clunky controls, and a confusing user interface as significant drawbacks, making the initial experience frustrating. Despite its flaws, the game offers a compelling experience for those willing to invest time in mastering its mechanics, especially with the added value of a robust modding community.
- “The game's deep customization options and varied gameplay modes provide plenty of replay value and strategic depth.”
- “Cortex Command offers players a unique blend of real-time strategy and action gameplay.”
- “The physics and gun mechanics in this game work so well together.”
- “Slow movement, clunky gameplay, giant shop menus with several tabs containing hundreds of items.”
- “The tutorial straight up doesn't teach you mechanics you need to know to be able to play or how to play the campaign.”
- “The controls are trash and the gameplay is weird.”
story
164 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
16%
74%
10%
The game's story is often described as minimal or lacking depth, with many players noting that it primarily focuses on gameplay mechanics rather than a cohesive narrative. While some reviews mention an interesting backstory involving rebels and transhumanism, the overall consensus is that the campaign lacks a structured story mode, leaving players to engage in sandbox-style missions without significant plot development. Despite this, some players appreciate the potential for storytelling through gameplay moments and modding community contributions.
- “The game features a well-written storyline that keeps players engaged from start to finish.”
- “Its story is centered around transhumanism and the endless possibilities of space travel.”
- “The story is a great backdrop for a sci-fi sandbox game, and sets up the great motives for why you’re doing what you’re doing, making it good.”
- “The campaign has no story and no clearly defined goal other than kill the enemy.”
- “I expected the campaign to have somewhat of a story; I was definitely wrong.”
- “There is literally no story, nor in-depth content, to really play off of.”
graphics
134 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
33%
52%
15%
The graphics of the game are characterized by a charming pixel art style that evokes nostalgia for classic arcade games, though opinions vary on their quality. While some players appreciate the retro aesthetics and detailed physics, others criticize the visuals as outdated and difficult to view, particularly on standard monitors. Overall, the graphics are seen as a blend of appealing design and technical limitations, with a strong emphasis on the game's unique gameplay mechanics.
- “With its pixelated visuals and retro-inspired aesthetics, it offers a nostalgic experience reminiscent of classic arcade games.”
- “The game's graphics setup is very obviously designed for use on a big screen TV, on an average monitor the text is squeezed so small as to be unreadable at a comfortable sitting distance.”
- “2D sidescrolling pixel graphics with an extremely detailed physics simulation make for a mix of nostalgia and surprising gameplay.”
- “I will also pay attention to the graphics, which, as for 2012, looks weak.”
- “Poor quality physics, poor AI, extremely terrible, low effort retro pixel graphics (hire an artist, people, pixel graphics were dead in 2002, they were dead in 2012, and they're still dead today, nobody buys the 'art' excuse).”
- “I just can't play this game until the graphics problems sort themselves out, otherwise it's essentially unplayable.”
stability
104 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
1%
99%
The game's stability is widely criticized, with numerous users describing it as "extremely buggy" and "unfinished." Many report persistent glitches, crashes, and poor AI behavior, leading to a frustrating experience. Despite its potential and unique concepts, the lack of polish and apparent abandonment by the developers have left it feeling incomplete and unplayable for many.
- “This game is a buggy mess, and as testament to how full of crap that dev is they haven't done a thing to touch it up so all his moaning in his now defunct trailer was basically hot air coming from a petulant kid.”
- “The escape button still plops you back to the main menu without warning, bugs and glitches in AI behavior and physics are still aplenty and it seems the game has been abandoned by its developer.”
- “I couldn't even get through the tutorial despite trying multiple times, not because it was too challenging but because it was just so unbelievably buggy, and simply refuses to trigger many actions, and the entire game just reeks of being untested and unfinished.”
humor
67 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
99%
1%
The humor in this game is a standout feature, characterized by its chaotic physics, clumsy interface, and absurd gameplay moments that often lead to hilarious outcomes. Players appreciate the comedic potential of the game, especially when playing with friends, as the unpredictable nature of the mechanics results in laugh-out-loud scenarios. While some find the humor derived from the game's flaws and unfinished aspects, the overall consensus is that it provides a fun and entertaining experience filled with comedic chaos.
- “This game has it all: fun music, bright colors, a hilariously clumsy interface, and a tutorial that explains so little it's amazing they actually added it.”
- “The ragdoll programming is hella funny but also realistic; it can be like really hardcore pro MLG style stuff. It's as if Max Payne and Superhot had babies, then randomly you see some guy get 360 spin blasted in the air from a bomb. It kind of suits the game.”
- “The crazy physics engine makes for hilarious deaths that never get old.”
- “It's just a conceptually bad and unfunny experience.”
music
60 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
45%
50%
5%
The music in the game receives mixed reviews, with many praising the catchy and energetic soundtrack, particularly the intro music, which is often described as "incredible" and reminiscent of classic sci-fi themes. However, some players criticize the in-game sound effects and the repetitiveness of the tracks, while others note issues with volume control. Overall, the soundtrack is seen as a highlight, contributing positively to the game's atmosphere despite some technical shortcomings.
- “Start up the game and experience pumping metal music and a great sci-fi concept cutscene.”
- “The intro music has absolutely no right to go this hard!”
- “This game has it all: fun music, bright colors, a hilariously clumsy interface, and a tutorial that explains so little it's amazing they actually added it.”
- “The music is offensive to the ears, but of course you can turn that off and play something glorious.”
- “It was a waste of time downloading, installing and sitting through the obnoxiously loud intro music.”
- “Music: 0/10 it's like a child found out what FL Studio is.”
replayability
47 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
60%
34%
6%
The game's replayability is highly praised, primarily due to its extensive customization options and a vibrant modding community that significantly enhances the experience. While some users note that the base game may have limited replay value without mods, many agree that the addition of various mods and gameplay modes offers endless possibilities for replayability. Overall, players find the game to be fun and engaging, with a strong emphasis on strategic depth and creativity.
- “The game's deep customization options and varied gameplay modes provide plenty of replay value and strategic depth.”
- “The community mod support for this game is on another level and makes it insanely replayable.”
- “Cortex Command is an endlessly replayable action strategy game and now with workshop corporation it is much easier to install mods and now even more replayability.”
- “Id hoped after 2 years the game would be a bit more playable than the reviews stated but it is still ridiculous.”
- “As for play and replayability, it truly depends on what kind of system specs you have, if you have a lot of RAM opened up, then it should run fairly smoothly, just don't get mods that'll crash the game, and for replayability, if you download some scenarios it can be very worth it, all in all, it's a good game with a couple rough edges like not enough maps or slow moving guys but the positives outweigh the negatives from my experience, so I'd recommend it.”
- “With certain mods the replay value can make you want to play it over and over.”
optimization
43 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
19%
58%
23%
The game's optimization has received significant criticism, with many users reporting poor performance, frequent lag, and crashes, particularly during intense gameplay. While some updates have improved frame rates, the overall experience remains hindered by unoptimized controls and a dated engine, making it challenging for players with less powerful hardware. Despite its fun gameplay potential, the optimization issues detract from the overall enjoyment and accessibility of the game.
- “Check out the Cortex Command community project for the new, free, open-source, very improved and optimized version with its own mod.”
- “Lag optimization: recently, the developers released an update that improves the FPS.”
- “I was worried for a while that they had given up on it, but now that there are more updates coming out, especially those that help performance, I'm very pleased with it.”
- “The game is poorly optimized, so if you like to do overkill on your enemies you have to consider what soldiers you use (lag may vary to the weapons and soldiers being used, but mainly powerful mods make lag).”
- “The game has flaws, such as shaky fullscreen initialization, poor performance optimization, crashes, and severe slowdown.”
- “Unfortunately, it seems to be very unoptimized, with lots of people having trouble getting playable performance on many hardware configurations.”
grinding
21 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
14%
86%
The grinding aspect of the game is widely criticized for being tedious and monotonous, with players expressing frustration over clunky controls, a confusing interface, and repetitive tasks such as mining and combat. Many reviewers feel that the grinding experience is excessively time-consuming and lacks enjoyment, making it a significant drawback of the game. Overall, the consensus is that the grinding mechanics detract from the overall gameplay experience.
- “You'll need a second life for grinding.”
- “One long, tedious grind.”
- “So I just wasted 4 hours of my time, doing nothing but grinding for gold, and trying to maneuver my character around seemingly easy to walk over ground.”
monetization
3 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
100%
The monetization strategy of the game has drawn criticism, with users feeling that promised features are not delivered and updates primarily serve as advertisements for other products. Many express frustration over the lack of substantial content updates, labeling the game as a cash grab.
- “If you want any of the promised features from the advertisements, then I can't recommend this game.”
- “It's funny that the update we received was an advertisement for the prequel, but there have been no major updates in years. They only changed the text on the campaign, and it is still not finished.”
- “Good luck to those who are buying his next cash grab.”
emotional
2 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
100%
Players find the emotional aspect of the game to be deeply impactful, with a heart-wrenching narrative that evokes strong feelings. However, some also express frustration with the gameplay mechanics, likening their experience to struggling through challenges.
- “The heart-wrenching narrative left a lasting impact on me.”
- “Every single attempt to explore a level made me feel vulnerable and overwhelmed.”
atmosphere
1 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
300%
The atmosphere is highly praised for its immersive quality, providing an ideal backdrop for the extensive gameplay experience in the wasteland.
- “It sets the atmosphere perfectly and serves as a great backdrop to the hundreds of hours you will spend exploring the wasteland.”
- “The immersive atmosphere draws you in, making every moment feel alive and engaging.”
- “The haunting sound design and stunning visuals create an atmosphere that is both captivating and eerie.”