Environmental Station Alpha

85%
Game Brain Score Based on 1,126 reviews
  • music
  • graphics
  • gameplay
Environmental Station Alpha Game Cover
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Environmental Station Alpha is a metroidvania-style action adventure game set in a futuristic, abandoned space station. As the lone surviving crew member, players must explore the station, solve puzzles, and battle roderent-like alien creatures to uncover the truth behind the disappearance of the crew. The game features smooth controls, hand-drawn pixel art, and a hauntingly beautiful soundtrack.

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  • PC
  • Steam Deck
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  • Linux
Genres & TagsPlay Modes

Reviews

85%
Audience ScoreBased on 1,126 reviews
music171 positive mentions
grinding38 negative mentions
  • Environmental Station Alpha is a fantastic Metroidvania that captures the essence of exploration and challenge, reminiscent of classic titles like Super Metroid.
  • The game features a rich atmosphere, engaging music, and a well-designed world filled with secrets and hidden areas that reward thorough exploration.
  • Boss fights are unique and challenging, requiring players to learn patterns and adapt their strategies, making victories feel rewarding.
  • The game's difficulty can be punishing, especially for new players, with some bosses and platforming sections feeling excessively hard and frustrating.
  • Backtracking can become tedious due to the linear progression and lack of clear indicators for where to go next, leading to aimless wandering.
  • The low-resolution graphics can make it difficult to distinguish between foreground and background elements, causing confusion during gameplay.
  • music293 mentions

    The music in the game is widely praised for its atmospheric quality, enhancing the overall experience with haunting and immersive tracks that complement the pixel art visuals. Many players highlight the soundtrack's ability to evoke a sense of mystery and exploration, with some noting its nostalgic 16-bit feel. However, a few critiques mention a lack of variety in the music, with some areas repeating the same tracks, which can detract from the experience during extended play.

    • “The music, atmosphere, graphics, environments, upgrades, backtracking, tight controls, story, they're all there in the harmony that we hope for.”
    • “An excellent metroidvania with a stellar atmospheric soundtrack and a great visual style.”
    • “The soundtrack is killer, and the overall atmosphere of the station is par-none.”
    • “The most concerning part for me is honestly the lack of music; even as the backgrounds change, it's the same music.”
    • “I know that this wasn't made by a huge studio, and music is expensive, but at least maybe have different music for each of the main environment areas?”
    • “While sound design is not outstanding and the music does nothing interesting, I fell in love with the soundtrack immediately.”
  • graphics289 mentions

    The graphics of the game are characterized by a minimalist, low-resolution pixel art style that evokes nostalgia for classic metroidvania titles, though opinions on their effectiveness vary widely. While some players appreciate the charm and atmosphere created by the retro aesthetic, others find the visuals frustratingly unclear, making it difficult to distinguish between foreground and background elements. Overall, the graphics serve their purpose in conveying the game's environment and gameplay mechanics, but they may not appeal to everyone, particularly those who prefer more detailed visuals.

    • “The graphics may be low-res at a glance but serve their purpose very well.”
    • “The graphics are simple, yet beautiful.”
    • “The graphics are charmingly done pixels.”
    • “The only negative thing I can say about this game is that the background graphics are extremely cluttered, to the point that I routinely have trouble distinguishing between foreground and background elements.”
    • “The graphics are very low-res, which makes it difficult to distinguish between background and foreground and what objects are interactive.”
    • “The graphics are so basic that at times it is hard to tell foreground and background objects apart.”
  • gameplay244 mentions

    The gameplay of the game is generally well-received, characterized by its classic metroidvania mechanics, engaging exploration, and challenging boss fights. While many players appreciate the tight controls and fun movement mechanics, such as the grappling hook, some express frustration with certain design choices, including slow movement and unclear progression paths. Overall, the game offers a satisfying blend of nostalgia and modern gameplay elements, though it may not appeal to everyone due to its retro aesthetics and occasional design flaws.

    • “The gameplay is solid with interesting boss encounters that are progressively challenging.”
    • “The gameplay scratches every itch I've had since the last time I played a Metroid game.”
    • “The controls are tight and the gameplay is fun overall.”
    • “The gameplay is pretty standard, but the execution is flawless.”
    • “However, this is all overshadowed by the obnoxious movement mechanics (looking at you, hookshot) and bosses that don't respect your time.”
    • “Gameplay gets progressively more tiresome, as areas become even more dangerous, and therefore tedious, to pass through.”
  • story192 mentions

    The story in this game is generally described as minimalistic and familiar, revolving around a robot investigating an abandoned research station overtaken by a virus. While some players appreciate the atmospheric storytelling conveyed through environmental details and scattered logs, others find the narrative lacking depth and originality, often feeling disconnected from the gameplay. Overall, the game offers a mix of intriguing elements and predictable tropes, with multiple endings and a post-game that expands on the lore, appealing to fans of the metroidvania genre.

    • “It clearly has a lot of time and passion put into it, as there are numerous secrets to discover and the game world and story are very fleshed out.”
    • “The story is driven primarily by logs, so be prepared to read.”
    • “The story keeps you driven to continue playing and beat the game.”
    • “Very early on in the game, you learn that the station has been taken over by a virus... and that's the story.”
    • “The plot is really dumb.”
    • “The story leaves so much unanswered, even after the entirety of the post-game.”
  • atmosphere138 mentions

    The atmosphere of the game is widely praised for its immersive quality, enhanced by a captivating soundtrack and detailed pixel art that evokes a sense of isolation and mystery. Many reviewers highlight the game's ability to create a haunting and engaging environment, reminiscent of classic metroidvania titles, while also noting that it successfully balances exploration and atmospheric storytelling. However, some critiques mention that while the atmosphere is strong, it may not reach the heights of iconic predecessors like Super Metroid.

    • “Aided by an atmospheric soundtrack, the graphical simplicity serves to amplify the specific metroidvania concepts that I find most enjoyable.”
    • “The atmosphere created by the visuals and the music is just perfect.”
    • “The soundtrack and the atmosphere in different locations deserve special praise.”
    • “It may have been inspired by Super Metroid, but quite frankly everything it does is inferior, up to and including the atmosphere and setting.”
    • “While I appreciated the horror atmosphere, the game never quite took full advantage of it and the end was all too brief; expanding the last area to be a full-on horror experience would make it truly memorable.”
    • “I really don't think its super secret endgame content is much to write home about and its atmosphere is pretty much completely obliterated by a near constant stream of silly easter eggs and under explored, half-baked, inconsistent, conflicting ideas.”
  • grinding39 mentions

    Overall, players find the grinding aspect of the game to be tedious and repetitive, particularly due to excessive backtracking, cryptic puzzles, and challenging boss fights that can feel more frustrating than rewarding. Many reviewers noted that the reliance on exploration and memorization of map locations adds to the tedium, making the gameplay experience increasingly tiresome as the game progresses. While some aspects of exploration are enjoyable, the overall sentiment leans towards a frustrating grind that detracts from the fun.

    • “No grinding and farming for missiles and health like the old days. I know some had refills, but you still thought about collecting drops throughout.”
    • “The grind feels rewarding, as every effort contributes to my character's growth and progression.”
    • “I appreciate how the game balances grinding with meaningful rewards, making each session feel worthwhile.”
    • “While the bosses are fun, many normal enemies become tedious to fight.”
    • “The combat is tedious, the platforming is tedious, and the backtracking is tedious.”
    • “At least from what I saw so far, the gameplay consists of nothing but making your way to the next upgrade, running into a ton of dead ends in the process, backtracking, dying, running into the same dead ends because map progress is lost when dying, getting the upgrade, and repeating the same tedious cycle.”
  • stability9 mentions

    The game's stability is mixed, with users reporting various bugs, particularly related to movement in liquids and controller functionality. While some players experience graphical glitches and lag during weapon charging, others note that the developers are actively addressing these issues through updates. Overall, while there are stability concerns, the responsiveness of the development team has been positively highlighted.

    • “Moving in liquids is sometimes buggy, and there are several areas where the player retains underwater movement after leaving the water, and vice versa.”
    • “Controls are floaty at best, buggy at worst; I couldn't get either of my two controllers to work at all.”
    • “Sometimes charging up the weapon is a little buggy and/or takes longer as if it's lagging; I'm not entirely sure why this happens, but it always occurs in certain rooms, seemingly for no reason.”
  • replayability6 mentions

    The game offers significant replayability with multiple endings, side quests, secret bosses, and a new game+ mode, encouraging players to return for additional content. While some users express uncertainty about their personal replay frequency, the overall consensus highlights a wealth of post-campaign content and secrets that enhance the game's longevity.

    • “This game has ridiculous amounts of replay value, and last I checked, there are no less than 6 endings you can reach (I've only found 4 so far), as well as quite a few side quests and a couple of secret bosses apart from the main game.”
    • “Multiple endings and a New Game+ mode indicate tons of replayability, which I will definitely be returning for.”
    • “Post-game content and a ton of tasty secrets make this very replayable, so if you evaluate a buy based on gaming hours, this will give you a bang for your buck.”
    • “I'm not sure how much replay value it will have - it doesn't look like it's going to get a bunch of playthroughs from me like Valdis Story, for example.”
    • “It has a certain amount of replayability, even.”
    • “- I haven't played any portions post-campaign, but I hear there's a ton of extra content and an additional difficulty setting that promotes replayability.”
  • humor5 mentions

    The game's humor is highlighted by quirky elements, such as a computer that humorously points out foreground branches to assist players, and a generally funny atmosphere that draws on classic metroid influences. While the writing includes occasional humor, it primarily focuses on the crew's survival, and some players express fatigue with the abundance of retro-pixelated games in the genre. Overall, the humor adds a lighthearted touch to the gameplay experience.

    • “Humorously, the jungle zone even has a computer just to tell the player that some branches are in the foreground because, presumably, his playtesters just got stuck entirely.”
    • “I also found the atmosphere very compelling, even if it does lift from classic Metroid to a hilarious degree and the pixel art tends to be so low-res it can be hard to tell exactly what you’re looking at.”
    • “It's written in a very sparse way, with some humor from time to time, but mostly detailing the crew attempting to survive from whatever the hell happened here on the station.”
  • emotional4 mentions

    Players express a deep emotional connection to the game, highlighting feelings of isolation and personal investment in the narrative. The impactful story evokes genuine regret over negative outcomes, motivating players to seek better endings, while the gameplay rekindles nostalgic sensations reminiscent of classic Metroid experiences.

    • “It made me feel like I was truly alone in a world that wasn't specifically made for me, unlike Ori where you'll have a billion quest markers on your map and an annoying sidekick bossing you around.”
    • “The story legitimately made me feel bad about the bad ending and want to go back and get a better ending.”
    • “Esa is the first metroidvania I played in a long time that made me feel the same sensations I had when playing the first Metroid.”
  • optimization4 mentions

    The game's optimization has received mixed reviews, with some players noting smooth performance despite graphical and design compromises, while others criticize it for poor performance and lack of player agency. Overall, it may appeal to metroidvania fans, but technical issues, particularly related to Unity, detract from the experience.

    • “It runs smoothly, and if the extreme unfairness is your cup of tea, then all the power to you.”
    • “It comes with a good price at the cost of graphics, performance, and level design, but despite these issues, this is definitely a game recommended for all fans of metroidvanias.”
    • “The game suffers from bad performance, particularly due to 2D Unity issues.”
    • “Optimization is lacking, leading to frequent frame drops and stuttering.”
    • “I experienced significant lag and slow loading times, which really detracted from the gameplay.”
Positive mentions (%)Positive
Neutral mentions (%)Neutral
Negative mentions (%)Negative

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Play time

18hMedian play time
36hAverage play time
14-24hSpent by most gamers
*Based on 11 analyzed playthroughs

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