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Dustborn

Dustborn Game Cover
71%Game Brain Score
story, gameplay
stability, grinding
71% User Score Based on 339 reviews

Platforms

Xbox Series X|SPCPlaystation 5Mac OSXbox OneXboxSteam DeckWindowsPlayStation
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Dustborn Game Cover

About

Dustborn is a single player action adventure game. It was developed by Red Thread Games and was released on August 20, 2024. It received mostly positive reviews from players.

"Dustborn is a single-player, action-adventure game with an intriguing story set in a Neo-Western alternate history America. As Pax, an exile with the power to weaponize language, transport a valuable package across the Republic while building a crew, managing relationships, and facing challenges. With stunning landscapes, a robot-driven tour bus, and a looming threat from those who want the package back, Dustborn offers a unique and thrilling experience."

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Dustborn screenshot
Dustborn screenshot
Dustborn screenshot
Dustborn screenshot
Dustborn screenshot
Dustborn screenshot
Dustborn screenshot
Dustborn screenshot
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71%
Audience ScoreBased on 339 reviews
story94 positive mentions
stability12 negative mentions
  • The game features a unique and engaging story that explores themes of friendship, identity, and societal issues in a dystopian setting.
  • The character development is well-executed, with players able to influence relationships and see the growth of characters throughout the game.
  • The comic book art style and voice acting are praised for their quality, contributing to an immersive experience.
  • The combat mechanics are criticized for being clunky and unrefined, often feeling like an afterthought rather than a core gameplay element.
  • Many players found the dialogue to be overly long and sometimes patronizing, detracting from the overall pacing of the game.
  • The game has been accused of being heavy-handed in its political messaging, which may alienate some players.
  • story
    414 mentions Positive Neutral Negative

    The story of "Dustborn" is a mixed bag, with some players praising its rich character development and engaging narrative, while others criticize its pacing and political overtones that can overshadow the plot. Many appreciate the unique storytelling mechanics and the impact of player choices, but some feel the narrative becomes incoherent and rushed, particularly in the latter stages. Overall, while the game offers intriguing themes and character dynamics, it struggles with consistency and execution, leaving players divided on its effectiveness as a storytelling medium.

    • “The story (so far) has been very rich and engaging.”
    • “I love how your choices actually have an effect on the story as well as how characters talk to each other.”
    • “Fun and entertaining, a great story-driven game with charming and loveable characters, excellent writing, unique setting and a story that gets you interested and hooked for more.”
    • “The game's focus on delivering a feminist and progressive message overwhelms the story, making it feel more like a lecture than a compelling narrative.”
    • “These incoherent plot lines sit alongside the rushed last half of the road trip that glosses over hundreds of miles in an attempt to speed to the finale and a few bad twists it does not properly build up to.”
    • “The story is wildly inconsistent by the 7 hour mark.”
  • gameplay
    141 mentions Positive Neutral Negative

    The gameplay in *Dustborn* is a mixed bag, with many players noting its focus on narrative over traditional mechanics, resulting in a blend of visual novel elements, simplistic combat, and various mini-games. While some appreciate the originality of its storytelling mechanics and the art style, others criticize the combat as shallow and the overall gameplay as lacking depth and engagement. The game may appeal to casual gamers looking for a narrative-driven experience, but those seeking challenging gameplay may find it disappointing.

    • “The mechanics are very interesting and original for a narrative game.”
    • “Enjoyable gameplay if you're a more casual gamer.”
    • “Sharp writing, a memorable cast of characters, smart social commentary, varied and clever gameplay, and a story that is filled with heart and soul.”
    • “Gameplay is nearly nonexistent, offering little challenge or engagement.”
    • “The gameplay is atrocious and the game feels like it was written by a 14 year old.”
    • “The whole game is mostly about annoying repetitive discussions instead of any gameplay.”
  • music
    137 mentions Positive Neutral Negative

    The music in the game receives mixed reviews, with some praising its quality and integration into the story, while others criticize the rhythm game mechanics and the overall soundtrack as lacking. Many players find the environmental music enjoyable, but the songs performed by the in-game band are often described as cringe-worthy and poorly written. Overall, while the music contributes to the game's atmosphere, its execution and tutorialization leave much to be desired, leading to a frustrating experience for some players.

    • “But even with that, the story is great, the characters are solid, and the music is wonderful.”
    • “The setting, the aesthetics, and music are all amazing!”
    • “The game is simple but fun, and the songs grow on you.”
    • “The worst, most on-the-nose, terrible music I've heard in a video game.”
    • “The music is not enjoyable, the gameplay is paper thin, and the characters all hate each other.”
    • “The songs I unlocked were overwhelmingly cringe, explained in the story as part of the band’s cover story, but they don’t get better as the game progresses.”
  • graphics
    88 mentions Positive Neutral Negative

    The game's graphics are widely praised for their vibrant, comic book-inspired art style, which enhances the storytelling and character design. Many players appreciate the fresh visuals and solid voice acting, noting that the aesthetic complements the gameplay and narrative effectively. However, some critiques mention that the graphics can feel dated compared to more recent titles, with a few reviewers expressing dissatisfaction with the overall visual execution.

    • “The comic book art style and themes, along with the character diversity (allowing for some hilarious moments since the game does not take itself seriously) made it a ton of fun to experience.”
    • “First of all, the comic style art is gorgeous; performance-wise, it's pretty steady with some minor bugs here and there.”
    • “The game has an art style that is heavily inspired by comic books, which I find pretty cool.”
    • “Game is damn boring, graphics are worse than 2013-2014 Telltale games, and actually for that price, just get GTA.”
    • “The game is aesthetically repulsive and an insult to the entire project of world civilization; playing it for only three hours, I developed a terrible headache within the first.”
    • “Why does this game look the way that it looks with its art style, which just gets in the way of the UI and copies other games if anything?”
  • humor
    48 mentions Positive Neutral Negative

    The humor in the game is a mixed bag, with some players appreciating the charm and genuinely funny dialogue, while others criticize the reliance on cringey quips and heavy-handed political commentary that detracts from the overall experience. Many found moments of humor in character interactions and absurd situations, but the execution often fell flat, leading to a blend of unintentional and situational comedy. Overall, the humor can be hit-or-miss, with some players enjoying the tongue-in-cheek style while others feel it lacks depth and coherence.

    • “They have, for the most part, a lot of charm and there's a lot of genuinely funny dialogue.”
    • “The comic book art style and themes, along with the character diversity (allowing for some hilarious moments since the game does not take itself seriously) made it a ton of fun to experience.”
    • “They decide to pose as a band on tour, despite not being very good musicians, which does result in some funny moments.”
    • “It's not funny now, and it's going to age like a warm bowl of milk left out in the Arizona sun.”
    • “There's too many cringey quips that aren't funny or engaging at all.”
    • “Dialogs have some problems, with too many unfunny quips that the characters made.”
  • emotional
    26 mentions Positive Neutral Negative

    The game offers a complex emotional experience, rewarding players for engaging with the characters' emotional states, though some find the dialogue sections overly lengthy and disruptive to the narrative flow. While the characters are described as emotionally unstable and sometimes unlikable, the game evokes a range of feelings, from laughter to tears, and encourages deeper engagement with its themes of emotional manipulation and personal growth. However, the graphic novel aesthetic may create a slight emotional distance for some players, leading to mixed reactions regarding the overall emotional impact.

    • “It rewards you for paying attention to the emotional states of the other characters.”
    • “It made me laugh, it made me cry, and I will never forget the journey.”
    • “The main 'mechanic' of the game is using words as a weapon to manipulate the emotional state of people around you; this immediately reminded me of a lecture I heard once by this philosopher named Stephen Hicks.”
  • character development
    25 mentions Positive Neutral Negative

    Character development in the game is a focal point that many players appreciate, with some expressing enjoyment of the variety and depth offered. However, there are criticisms regarding the inconsistency in character arcs and the need for more thorough exploration of lore. While the character designs receive mixed reviews, the overall sentiment leans towards a positive experience with character interactions, despite some gameplay shortcomings.

    • “If you are into simplistic yet fun wack-em combat and very interesting character development options, while also stopping to have a guitar hero session every now and then, I highly recommend picking up this game!”
    • “It's a game heavily leaning on character development of each character, which just gets me all smiley - I am a sucker for character development in games.”
    • “I enjoyed the variety of things to do in this game (exploration and choices with guitar hero and ghost buster and X-Men vibes) and while I feel like more of the lore and character development could've been explored and wrapped up better in the end, I'm happy I played this.”
    • “I enjoyed the variety of things to do in this game (exploration and choices with Guitar Hero and Ghostbuster and X-Men vibes), and while I feel like more of the lore and character development could've been explored and wrapped up better in the end, I'm happy I played this.”
    • “The character designs are... okay.”
    • “[h3]Awful character designs[/h3]”
  • optimization
    20 mentions Positive Neutral Negative

    Dustborn's optimization is notably lacking, with players reporting significant issues such as buggy combat, poor audio mixing, and a frustrating user interface. While the game features a captivating story and beautiful art style, it suffers from performance inconsistencies and requires patches to address its various technical shortcomings. Overall, the experience is marred by these optimization flaws, despite moments of enjoyment in the narrative and character performances.

    • “First of all, the comic style art is gorgeous; performance-wise, it's pretty steady with some minor bugs here and there.”
    • “It just needs a patch to iron out some minor issues and improve performance a bit.”
    • “A solid story told in a game that's very rough around the edges, though even with the janky combat and occasionally mixed vocal performances, I had a thoroughly good time learning about this world.”
    • “The game doesn't run well for what it looks like, the way that the audio is mixed is terrible and the fact that you have to look at characters to hear them correctly is incredibly annoying. The overall UI is actually a nuisance, there are misspellings within the subtitles, the combat is buggy, glitchy, clunky, stuttering like crazy, even though the boss fights are actually pretty okay, and the voice acting is sometimes so bad that it's as if I'm hearing a straight-up studio session.”
    • “The game isn't exactly optimized and can cause some issues.”
    • “This inconsistency is especially frustrating because some of the worst performances come from the voice actor for the main character, Pax.”
  • stability
    19 mentions Positive Neutral Negative

    The game's stability has received mixed reviews, with several users reporting technical glitches such as characters getting stuck, combat issues, and audio problems. While some players noted that the game generally runs well and is mostly bug-free, others experienced significant bugs that disrupted gameplay, including animation glitches and the need to restart due to character model disappearances. Overall, while the game functions adequately, it suffers from various stability issues that can detract from the experience.

    • “On a positive note: the game actually works and is bug free.”
    • “Runs great on the ally.”
    • “Runs great on the ally.”
    • “The combat's block button has no respect for what you're currently doing and freezes you in place for a few seconds.”
    • “The game doesn't run well for what it looks like. The way that the audio is mixed is terrible, and the fact that you have to look at characters to hear them correctly is incredibly annoying. The overall UI is actually a nuisance, there are misspellings within the subtitles, the combat is buggy, glitchy, clunky, and stuttering like crazy. Even though the boss fights are actually pretty okay, the voice acting is sometimes so bad that it's as if I'm hearing a straight-up studio session.”
    • “Also, it has some bugs, like characters repeating the same stuff twice, a couple of animation glitches, and at one point after some fighting, my character model just disappeared, so I had to restart the game, but luckily the progress has been maintained.”
  • grinding
    8 mentions Positive Neutral Negative

    Players find the grinding aspect of the game to be excessively time-consuming and monotonous, as enemies do not scale in difficulty, leading to a tedious experience. The combat system feels underdeveloped, suggesting the game is not designed for those who enjoy extensive grinding sessions. Overall, many reviewers express that grinding can feel like a chore rather than an engaging part of the gameplay.

    • “With the exception of the final boss, they never scale in difficulty as you progress, making them quickly become tedious and stale.”
    • “The combat system was very clearly an afterthought, but also this game seems like it was made for people who consider games small entertainment mediums rather than things you spend hours and hours grinding on.”
    • “You'll need a second life for grinding.”
  • replayability
    5 mentions Positive Neutral Negative

    Users indicate that the game's replayability could be significantly improved by implementing more convenient save points, particularly after conversations, and by allowing manual saves. This suggests that the current save system may hinder players' willingness to replay the game.

    • “It would also help with replayability if save points were always after conversations ended or if players were able to manually save.”
    • “It would also help with replayability if save points were always after conversations ended or if players were able to manually save.”
  • atmosphere
    4 mentions Positive Neutral Negative

    The atmosphere of the game is highly praised, with users expressing strong appreciation for its immersive qualities. Additionally, there is a sense of satisfaction in knowing that the game provokes strong reactions from certain cultural groups, enhancing the overall experience.

    • “Great atmosphere!”
    • “Great atmosphere!”
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12h Median play time
11h Average play time
3-21h Spent by most gamers
*Based on 10 analyzed playthroughs
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Frequently Asked Questions

Dustborn is a action adventure game.

Dustborn is available on Xbox Series X|S, PC, PlayStation 5, Mac OS and others.

On average players spend around 11 hours playing Dustborn.

Dustborn was released on August 20, 2024.

Dustborn was developed by Red Thread Games.

Dustborn has received mostly positive reviews from players. Most players liked this game for its story but disliked it for its stability.

Dustborn is a single player game.

Similar games include YIIK: A Postmodern RPG, Goodbye Volcano High, The Hundred Line -Last Defense Academy-, Eastward, 2064: Read Only Memories and others.