Emerge: Cities of the Apocalypse

About

"Emerge: Cities of the Apocalypse" is a post-apocalyptic survival strategy game. Build and manage your own city in a harsh, procedurally generated world filled with danger and scarce resources. Defend against raiders, mutants, and other threats as you work to rebuild society. Remember, every decision you make could mean the difference between survival and extinction.

Genres & Tags

Play Modes

Single-Player Play through the game's story or campaign solo

Emerge: Cities of the Apocalypse screenshot

66%

Audience ScoreBased on 218 reviews

graphics4 positive mentions

story4 negative mentions

The game offers a fun mix of turn-based strategy and real-time combat, providing a unique gameplay experience.
There is a good variety of classes, weapons, and unlockable content, which adds depth and replayability.
The game successfully captures the zombie apocalypse theme, making it engaging and challenging.

The game suffers from frequent crashes, especially during combat, making it frustrating to play.
Many players find the gameplay repetitive, with a lack of meaningful progression between missions.
The user interface and menu design are criticized for being unintuitive and poorly executed.

gameplay
36 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
11%
78%
11%
The gameplay is characterized by simple mechanics that can become repetitive, leading to a mixed reception among players. While some appreciate the basic yet engaging core loop and the clever design that allows for player-driven difficulty, others find it lacks depth and excitement, often comparing it unfavorably to mobile games. Overall, the game offers decent replay value and a unique style, but it may not satisfy those seeking more complex or varied gameplay experiences.
- “Had a blast playing this one; the game itself offers a very simple core gameplay that revolves around your class and weapons of choice.”
- “This is an exceptional title and offers tons of replayability, not to mention a ton of hours of gameplay for a single playthrough.”
- “It is surprisingly in-depth from the get-go, without being hard to understand, and it improves on its mechanics as you move along.”
- “So the game is simply mediocre mobile type gameplay.”
- “The gameplay is okay, but it's not fun enough to play the same very basic start over and over and over and over.”
- “[b]gameplay[/b] leaves a lot to be desired.”
story
36 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
8%
81%
11%
The game's story is criticized for its lack of continuity and meaningful progression between missions, leading to a repetitive and grindy experience. Players feel that the campaign lacks coherence, as there is minimal carryover of items or research, making each mission feel like starting from scratch. While there are some interesting mechanics, the overall narrative and mission structure leave much to be desired, resulting in frustration rather than engagement.
- “There is a progression system that allows you to choose perks between missions as well as a skill system for the soldiers you get, which there are classes to choose.”
- “You'll have to save cities (or die trying) by capturing/defending territories (an amount is required in each mission) and by doing a special objective (the real condition to win that matters).”
- “You start off on a world map and as you clear out zones of zombies, new zones with new mission objectives will show up.”
- “After 2 hours and 3 maps with barely any sort of meaningful carryover from previous missions, it's feeling like a chore.”
- “Deal breaker, but it's very personal: the campaign doesn't make any sense, you only take a few items into the next mission, and it's quite hard and slow-paced, so it doesn't feel right to play everything all over again.”
- “Thus the game can feel like a grind due to lack of persistence between missions and reliance on unlockable content to customize your own sandbox game.”
graphics
28 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
14%
75%
11%
The graphics of the game receive mixed reviews, with many players noting low resolution and dated visuals, yet some appreciate the simple aesthetics that effectively complement the gameplay and setting. While the graphics may not be cutting-edge, they are described as passable and fitting for the game's atmosphere, with some users finding them charming and enjoyable despite their limitations. Overall, the visuals are considered decent for a budget title, contributing positively to the overall experience.
- “The graphics are brilliant.”
- “Graphics are on the money; the board game-esque aesthetics are pleasant to the eye, and the atmosphere captures the zombie apocalypse times we're all going through in the game world right now.”
- “Best graphics 10/10.”
- “While I can stomach the low resolution and low quality visuals, the main offender with visuals is that the game does not revert to my preferred display resolution upon finally exiting.”
- “The graphics are dated, but if you give it a chance you will agree it is $8 well spent.”
- “Graphics are passable for such a small title, but the resolution is basic 4:3 or 16:9 in almost the lowest possible setting.”
replayability
16 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
75%
13%
13%
The game "emerge: cities of the apocalypse" offers significant replayability through the unlocking of various classes, traits, and map modifiers, enhancing its value for players. While the gameplay can become repetitive if overplayed, taking breaks helps maintain its appeal, making it a fun experience with countless possibilities. Overall, it is praised as a hidden gem that provides many hours of engaging gameplay.
- “The setting, art, and music choices all work seamlessly, and the gameplay, while basic, does provide enough replay value to make this game good value for your money.”
- “Bottom line, emerge is a very fun game that offers a lot of replayability as long as you allow yourself to take a break whenever you begin to find it too repetitive.”
- “This is an exceptional title and offers tons of replayability, not to mention a ton of hours of gameplay for a single playthrough.”
- “There is an element of replayability, with the chance to unlock different classes (some hidden), traits, and map modifiers.”
- “An amalgam of turn-based strategy and real-time 'tower-defense' genres, the game is deceptively simple-looking for the replayability it offers.”
music
8 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
25%
50%
25%
The music in the game is described as a decent futuristic techno grunge that complements the setting and art, although some players find it somewhat annoying. Overall, it contributes positively to the game's atmosphere, enhancing the replay value despite mixed feelings about its appeal.
- “The setting, art, and music choices all work seamlessly, and the gameplay, while basic, does provide enough replay value to make this game good value for your money.”
- “Overall, a pretty solid game with decent graphics, music, sounds, and gameplay for a small fee.”
- “The soundtrack is a decent futuristic techno grunge.”
- “Music is kinda annoying but at least it's not some rock or techno.”
grinding
4 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
100%
Players find the grinding aspect of the game to be excessively repetitive and tedious, often leading to boredom after short play sessions. While some are motivated to continue for completion's sake, the grind for resources like credits and crystals can feel overwhelming and unengaging.
- “It also becomes very, very repetitive and grindy.”
- “Still, I gotta stick with it for completion's sake, and it's so grindy. I guess I could just manipulate a small level to have everything controlled and then just grind the turns until the 3 million credits or the 200k crystals are earned, but I get so bored; I can't play it for more than 30 minutes now.”
stability
4 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
100%
The game suffers from significant stability issues, including frequent crashes and glitches that often require players to restart or revert their saves. While some users express patience and enjoyment despite these problems, the overall consensus is that the game's stability is reminiscent of older titles, which is disappointing in a modern context.
- “I have tried to be patient with this game, and I know it isn't complex, but it is as buggy as a game released 10 years ago. I don't expect to have to restart the game each time I succeed in combat.”
- “I got this game on a whim and I haven't regretted it yet. However, this game has a few issues with crashing and sometimes glitches that make you have to revert your save or restart your game. This is the fault of the engine it runs on, not the developers of the game.”
atmosphere
2 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
100%
The game's atmosphere is highly praised for its visually appealing board game aesthetics, effectively capturing the essence of a zombie apocalypse. The graphics contribute significantly to immersing players in this thematic experience.
- “The graphics are spot on; the board game-esque aesthetics are pleasant to the eye, and the atmosphere captures the essence of the zombie apocalypse we're experiencing in the game world right now.”