Crawling Lab

About

Crawling Lab is a single player action game. It was developed by eTIRUe and was released on June 16, 2024. It received positive reviews from players.

In "Crawling Lab," players enter a secret laboratory overrun by the rogue AI "Crawl Queen" and her Biodoll minions. Armed with guns and a limited supply of ammo, players must battle their way through attractive enemy designs, upgrade their weapons, and eventually confront the Crawl Queen to escape the facility. The game features simple controls, various enemy traits, and additional content unlocked upon completion.

Genres & Tags

Action

Play Modes

Single-Player

Skip User Reviews

86%

Audience ScoreBased on 130 reviews

graphics4 positive mentions

gameplay12 negative mentions

The game features enjoyable shooting mechanics and a variety of weapons, making combat fun once you get the hang of it.
The visuals, particularly the character designs, are appealing and add to the overall experience.
The developers are actively updating the game, showing commitment to improving gameplay and addressing player feedback.

Gameplay can become repetitive quickly, with the same levels and enemy types appearing frequently.
Resource management is a significant issue, with scarce ammo and quick knife degradation leading to frustrating gameplay experiences.
The game lacks depth in its roguelite mechanics, making it feel less engaging and limiting replayability.

gameplay
48 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
17%
58%
25%
The gameplay has received mixed reviews, with many players finding it repetitive and lacking depth, particularly in map layouts and mechanics. While some appreciate the simple and responsive nature of the rogue-like FPS elements, others feel that the overall experience is marred by a lack of engaging content and creativity. Despite its straightforward mechanics and potential for fun, the game struggles to maintain player interest over time.
- “This rogue-like shooter game takes a while to get used to, but once you understand the gameplay restrictions and mechanics, it's quite straightforward from that point.”
- “Very enjoyable, simple gameplay, but you do have to think later - do you waste the good ammo on the easier-to-kill bots, or save the sniper shots for the harder-to-kill ones and hope you have enough knife durability to take out the smaller ones?”
- “Endless gameplay built around RNG, so things are always fresh and unique.”
- “Really boring gameplay.”
- “Unfortunately this game feels really rough, the gameplay is repetitive, the map layouts are repetitive.”
- “The difference here is that the game was insanely padded during my playtime and the gameplay wasn't engaging enough to make grinding enjoyable.”
story
18 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
17%
66%
17%
The story is generally considered underwhelming, primarily conveyed through the Steam store page and minimal cutscenes, with players noting a lack of depth and engagement. While the visual elements are decent, the narrative revolves around a member of an elite squad ambushed by a biodoll, leaving players desiring more character customization and additional content post-story completion. Overall, the story does not leave a lasting impression, though it has some visual appeal.
- “The story is basically given to you via the Steam store page, a bit of obvious visual storytelling and two short cutscenes at the beginning and end.”
- “Story: you're a member of an elite squad; unfortunately, you were ambushed by a biodoll and couldn't escape in time.”
- “Well, they make it first person; I was hoping for a third person girl with a gun, but that's okay due to the storyline.”
- “The story is basically given to you via the Steam store page, a bit of obvious visual storytelling, and two short cutscenes at the beginning and end.”
- “The story isn't gonna wow you, but it's visually decent and the enemies kinda remind me of 2B.”
- “I hope they quickly import/make customization options to the characters like in their other games, because for now after beating the main story, there's nothing else.”
graphics
17 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
24%
64%
12%
The graphics in the game are a mixed bag; while the design of the "bio dolls" is noted for being visually appealing, the overall visuals are described as typical of Unreal Engine 4/5, lacking in variety and depth. Some players appreciate the aesthetics and the game's ability to create an engaging atmosphere, but others feel that the graphics outside of the main characters fall short. Overall, the visuals are decent but not groundbreaking.
- “Pros: good graphics, decent sound, controls are tight and responsive.”
- “[h1]visuals, audio, and performance.”
- “And the graphics for anything other than the biodolls are not really the best either.”
- “It hit me after 8 hours of playing this game that the undertone of shooting hot girls is slightly psychotic, though in reality it's just a fun game where you get to shoot and gain skill points while also getting to look at something pretty instead of something ugly, adding to the aesthetics.”
optimization
8 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
38%
24%
38%
Overall, the game's optimization is generally well-received, with users reporting stable performance and no significant issues such as FPS drops or stutters. However, some players noted that frame rates may be slightly lower than expected.
- “Performance-wise, it runs fine with no issues. Maybe a bit lower in frames than what you would expect, but no FPS drops or stutters.”
- “Visuals, audio, and performance are all well-optimized.”
- “The game performs well overall, with minimal bugs affecting gameplay.”
- “Performance and bugs.”
- “Visuals, audio, and performance.”
- “Performance-wise, it runs fine with no issues, maybe a bit lower in frames than what you would expect, but no FPS drops or stutters.”
music
7 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
29%
28%
43%
The music in the game has been criticized for being repetitive and reminiscent of low-budget projects, with many users noting the reliance on stock sounds and filler tracks. Players expressed a desire for a greater variety of longer music pieces to enhance the overall experience, especially given the game's length.
- “Dev, please consider adding more diverse tracks of music. The game is quite long, and having only a few tracks, even if they are good, can become repetitive for players.”
- “Just have huge parties in the test room, with music, lights, and hundreds of dolls dancing!”
- “The music sounds pretty much like what you would expect out of a low budget project.”
- “I wish there were more different tracks of music; the game is on the long side, so it would be important not to annoy the player with the same 3 tracks, even if they are very good.”
- “Longer pieces of music are much needed in games these days.”
grinding
6 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
100%
Players find the grinding aspect of the game to be tedious and unfulfilling, primarily due to limited resources and low rewards for effort. The initial lack of ammunition and the quick degradation of weapons contribute to a frustrating experience, especially when the gameplay lacks engagement to make the grinding feel worthwhile. Overall, the game is perceived as overly padded, making resource farming feel more like a chore than an enjoyable challenge.
- “The difference here is that the game was insanely padded during my playtime and the gameplay wasn't engaging enough to make grinding enjoyable.”
- “Game play is not bad, but the resource farming is hard. You start with basically no ammo and a knife that breaks fast. End of map rewards are super low; the only one that's worth it most of the time is to fix your knife a bit so you can get 2 more swings out of it.”
- “Game could be grindy for people who can't plan.”
replayability
4 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
50%
50%
Players highlight the game's exceptional replayability, citing factors like ammo scarcity that enhance the experience. Many have reported spending significant time playing it, often more than other titles in the developer's portfolio, indicating strong engagement and varied gameplay.
- “The replayability is almost infinite, due to various factors.”
- “It definitely has replay value, and I think over 2 days, I played this more than their other games so far.”
character development
2 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
50%
50%
Reviews indicate that character development in the game is perceived as lacking, with players feeling underwhelmed by both the character designs and the overall game loop. This suggests a missed opportunity for deeper engagement with the characters.
- “It really just boils down to being underwhelmed by the game loop and the character designs this time.”