Debris

About

Debris is a single player and multiplayer survival simulation game with drama, mystery and thriller themes. It was developed by Moonray Studios and was released on October 23, 2017. It received mostly positive reviews from players.

Debris is an atmospheric single-player/co-op adventure game set in beautifully dangerous underwater ice caves. You must find a way back to the surface, but power is scarce, your team is lost and unusual creatures lurk in the darkness. Escape together or die alone.

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65%

Audience ScoreBased on 142 reviews

story38 positive mentions

stability22 negative mentions

The game effectively creates a haunting atmosphere with excellent sound and visual design, immersing players in an underwater environment filled with tension and intrigue.
The voice acting is well done, contributing to the emotional depth of the story and helping to engage players with the characters.
The narrative features multiple endings and decision-making elements that can change the protagonist's perspective, adding replayability and depth to the experience.

Gameplay is often repetitive and slow, with many areas feeling copy-pasted, leading to a lack of engagement and excitement during exploration.
The AI companion is frequently unhelpful or frustrating, undermining the strategic elements of gameplay and causing players to feel a lack of control.
The game suffers from numerous bugs and glitches, which can disrupt the experience and lead to moments of frustration, particularly in co-op mode.

story
88 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
43%
48%
9%
The game's story is generally praised for its depth, intriguing plot, and strong voice acting, which keeps players engaged despite some criticisms of pacing and gameplay mechanics. However, some reviewers noted that the narrative can feel sidelined or anticlimactic, with unresolved plot threads and a disconnect between story and gameplay. Overall, while the story captivates many players, it is often overshadowed by gameplay frustrations and a lack of cohesion in its delivery.
- “The story pulled me along and kept me wanting to love and finish this game.”
- “Although the game is fairly short in its length, it features multiple different endings and throughout its course, it managed to deliver a powerful story, alongside some really solid voice acting, interesting characters, and overall strong music/sound design.”
- “I loved the underwater setting and the story was really amazing and surprised me at the end.”
- “I’d argue, however, that this story is sidelined the moment my companion wanders off to pet a fish.”
- “It's abrupt and anticlimactic; no plot threads are really resolved.”
- “The game's story is the only thing that kept me going, but the way it's dispensed in tiny snippets in between minutes and minutes of dull tunnel crawling is infuriating.”
gameplay
66 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
21%
58%
21%
The gameplay of the game has received mixed reviews, with many players finding it slow, tedious, and repetitive, often undermining the overall experience. While some appreciate the mechanics and atmosphere, others criticize the lack of strategic depth and the frustrating companion AI, which detracts from player agency. Overall, the game is seen as having a compelling story and excellent voice acting, but the gameplay itself is often described as dull and lacking engagement.
- “The game’s mechanics and atmosphere suggest to the player that they should think strategically about how and when to approach the guarded groves.”
- “Excellent graphics, music, voice acting, and gameplay.”
- “The graphics, music, voice acting, and gameplay are top notch; the game is stunning to look at.”
- “That gameplay is, ultimately, what sinks this game.”
- “Gameplay is dull and boring, though the voice acting is very good.”
- “Great story and voice acting, terrible gameplay, controls, graphics, environments, mechanics, etc. I enjoy a good walking simulator, but the gameplay and controls in this fail to draw you in and the incredibly slow pacing makes everything you do a chore.”
atmosphere
52 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
35%
59%
6%
The atmosphere of the game is widely praised for its haunting and immersive qualities, effectively creating tension and intrigue as players navigate through perilous environments. While the sound design, visuals, and voice acting contribute significantly to the overall experience, some players feel that certain gameplay elements, such as the presence of a poorly designed companion, detract from the intended horror atmosphere. Overall, the game successfully establishes a beautiful yet terrifying ambiance that enhances the survival experience, despite occasional interruptions from animal encounters.
- “The game does have the right atmosphere for the setting - ominous and haunting; it does a pretty good job at delivering an appropriate trance-like experience.”
- “But the best thing about this game is its tense atmosphere that really makes one shiver.”
- “The atmosphere is incredibly well done, however, and can definitely be said to lend to the overall pressure felt by being stranded under glaciers.”
- “Instead, the game undermines both its horror atmosphere and its survival mechanics with the addition of a companion dumber than the rocks entombing poor Ryan, thus stripping any real sense of agency or strategy from the player as they scramble to rescue their companion from their own poor decision-making.”
- “For a game like this, you need time to build atmosphere and tension, but every time any animal life showed up, it killed all the atmosphere.”
- “I generally liked the atmosphere, animals, voice acting, and sound effects, but damn, that game had some parts that took forever to get through and some of them were really repetitive.”
graphics
32 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
38%
53%
9%
The graphics of the game are generally praised for their beauty and atmospheric quality, particularly in the context of underwater environments, with many reviewers noting the stunning visuals and effective use of aesthetics. However, some players experienced performance issues, such as low frame rates even on optimal settings, and criticized the simplistic nature of the graphics in certain aspects. Overall, while the visuals are a highlight, technical optimization appears to be a concern for some users.
- “The graphics, music, voice acting, and gameplay are top notch; the game is stunning to look at.”
- “Very atmospheric, amazing graphics, good voice acting - you form a real attachment to the characters, which is really rare for survival games.”
- “I was impressed with how solid and well put together the story is, and the visuals were very pleasing.”
- “The graphics are incredibly simplistic.”
- “Yeah, low and lowest graphics will yield a very high FPS, but honestly that feels more like a slap in the face as my 1050ti should at least be able to handle good at 720p.”
- “However, even when put on these 'optimal' settings, I was still not able to get above 40 FPS. Either I was having an optimization issue or some other reason; I think that in order to have the graphics specified, a much beefier computer might be needed.”
music
22 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
36%
50%
14%
The music in the game is widely praised for its haunting and atmospheric qualities, effectively enhancing the overall experience and immersing players in a trance-like state. It contributes significantly to the game's tension, with ambient sounds and a dynamic soundtrack that evoke feelings of danger and unease. Overall, the sound design, including music and voice acting, is considered top-notch and integral to the game's storytelling and emotional impact.
- “The world created by Moonray impressively comes to life with the frantic radio conversation between the trapped squad of divers and a soundtrack that is imminently screaming danger at you.”
- “The ambient sounds and the music do a very good job of causing the needed spikes in anxiety, which can sometimes cause you to take risks.”
- “At some points, it feels less like a level in a video game, and more like a haunted dark ride, complete with spooky, clanking music telling the player how they’re meant to be feeling at that point.”
- “Music is haunting and if you let it build up, it's maybe not scary, but definitely unsettling.”
- “The world created by moonray impressively comes to life with the frantic radio conversation between the trapped squad of divers and a soundtrack that is imminently screaming danger at you.”
stability
22 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
100%
The game suffers from significant stability issues, including frequent bugs, glitches, and crashes that can disrupt gameplay and even force restarts. Players have reported problems with cooperative play and AI behavior, contributing to an overall frustrating experience. While some minor glitches are tolerable, the pervasive instability detracts from the enjoyment of the game.
- “Judging by all the complaints, it rarely does even start properly and is very, very buggy.”
- “The game is riddled with bugs and glitches.”
- “These include freezes every few minutes and in the last chapter I had to restart the game because it completely bugged out.”
optimization
8 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
62%
38%
The game suffers from notable performance issues, including stuttering and technical glitches, particularly worsening towards the end. While these problems are significant for some players, they are not universally crippling.
- “The only other major gripe I have is the performance.”
- “Oh god, the performance.”
- “It also has some performance issues, which get worse towards the ending.”
grinding
4 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
100%
Players find the grinding aspect of the game to be slow and somewhat tedious, yet it can create an immersive, trance-like experience due to its engaging visuals and audio. While the gameplay may feel grindy, it avoids common pitfalls like excessive microtransactions or poorly designed mechanics, leading to a more positive overall impression.
- “Gameplay is slow and somewhat tedious, but can immerse you in a trance-like state because of the sights, the sounds, the movement, the snippets of music.”
- “This is not a bad game in the way some games are bad; there aren't excessive microtransactions, or cheap, grindy design, or anything like that.”
character development
3 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
100%
The character development in the game is noted as engaging and intriguing, with players appreciating the depth and evolution of the characters throughout the story.
- “The character development is incredibly interesting, with each character evolving in unique and unexpected ways.”
- “I love how the character development keeps me engaged; every choice I make influences their growth and relationships.”
- “The depth of character development adds so much richness to the story, making each character feel real and relatable.”
monetization
2 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
100%
The monetization model of the game is generally well-received, with players noting the absence of excessive microtransactions and grindy mechanics, contributing to a more positive gaming experience.
humor
2 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
100%
The humor in the game has been widely criticized, with users expressing that it fails to deliver any comedic value, deeming it unfunny and not worth the effort.
replayability
2 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
100%
50%
Players highly recommend experiencing the game multiple times, suggesting that it offers enough depth and variation to warrant at least two playthroughs for a fuller understanding and enjoyment.
- “I actually urge anyone who plays this game to play it through at least twice.”
- “I actually urge anyone who plays this game to play it through at least twice.”
- “Replayability - I actually urge anyone who plays this game to play it through at least twice.”
emotional
2 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
100%
Players find the game emotionally impactful, particularly at the end, where a surprising twist delivers a poignant message. This emotional depth adds to the intrigue of the indie game, leaving a lasting impression on players.
- “It gets kind of emotional at the end when you find out that, holy crap…;) Anyway, it's an intriguing little indie game with a twist and a message at the end.”