Grand Emprise: Time Travel Survival
- July 27, 2023
- Tbjbu2
- 14h median play time
Get on Steam"Grand Emprise: Time Travel Survival" is a single-player, gavebuilding open-world adventure where you time travel through history and become a god-like figure. Ride dinosaurs, sail dunes, build colonies, and develop exciting technology as you progress through the mostly linear tech tree. With a focus on high gameplay variety and consistently introducing new features, this game keeps the adventure exciting, but does not have modular building or a sandbox experience.
PC
Windows
Reviews
- The game features a unique time travel mechanic that adds an interesting twist to the survival genre.
- The graphics are beautiful, with some genuinely stunning scenes and environments.
- The gameplay is enjoyable and offers a decent amount of content for the price, especially considering it was developed by a single person.
- The game feels unfinished and lacks a coherent story, making the gameplay feel disjointed.
- There are numerous bugs and optimization issues that detract from the overall experience.
- The combat mechanics are clunky, and the AI behavior is often frustrating, leading to a less engaging gameplay experience.
- gameplay83 mentions
- 18 % positive mentions
- 71 % neutral mentions
- 11 % negative mentions
The gameplay of the game has received mixed reviews, with many players noting that while it features a variety of mechanics and decent graphics, the overall execution feels shallow and repetitive. Some players appreciate the simple mechanics and time travel elements, but criticize the clunky controls, lack of depth, and numerous bugs that detract from the experience. Overall, while there are moments of fun and creativity, many feel the gameplay does not live up to its potential, often prioritizing visuals over engaging mechanics.
“It's a great little game with simple mechanics, minimal grind, and just some bonkers moments.”
“The main meat of this game is its variety and competent implementation of its various mechanics.”
“Currently 13 hours in and having a lot of fun, love the concept and the gameplay isn't difficult to pick up, would recommend based on current experience.”
“Terrible gameplay, no multiplayer, lazy developer making cheap games.”
“The gameplay is unfathomably janky.”
“The gameplay is not that fun; the NPCs have a lot of bugs in their animations, you can kill a mammoth without getting attacked by it, the bears are not able to follow you if you cross a river, and so on.”
- graphics65 mentions
- 68 % positive mentions
- 28 % neutral mentions
- 5 % negative mentions
The graphics of the game receive mixed reviews, with many praising their beauty and detail, particularly in landscapes and lighting effects. However, some users note issues such as graphical glitches, a lack of consistent art style, and a reliance on purchased assets, which detracts from the overall experience. While the visuals are often described as stunning, they are sometimes overshadowed by gameplay shortcomings and performance issues.
“The visuals are amazing, especially given they are made by a single person.”
“Graphics are top notch and smooth playing.”
“The graphics were top notch, much of the backgrounds on the various timelines were breathtaking landscapes that are fully rendered, looks very much like the real thing.”
“There are graphical errors, bad UI decisions, and clunky controls.”
“Like the idea but they clearly put more into the visuals than the actual gameplay.”
“Much of the focus was on graphics and presentation, but not much focus on sound and gameplay.”
- story50 mentions
- 8 % positive mentions
- 70 % neutral mentions
- 22 % negative mentions
The game's story is widely criticized for its absence, with many players expressing a desire for a more engaging narrative and quest structure to enhance their experience. While some enjoy the gameplay mechanics and the exploration of different eras, they feel that the lack of a coherent story detracts from overall immersion and purpose. Overall, players agree that the game would benefit significantly from a more developed storyline and character interactions.
“Overall, I enjoyed the game; it's more about telling a story than building a base.”
“I do hope though that the developer continues to build on this game and is able to add some more story to it.”
“The game mainly needs a story and narration to keep the player engaged.”
“No story, you just appear in a world following some 'tech tree'.”
“There is no story, it's mostly just a path to unlock all craftables and once done you advance to the next stage.”
- grinding15 mentions
- 13 % positive mentions
- 7 % neutral mentions
- 80 % negative mentions
Reviews on the grinding aspect of the game are mixed; while some players find it tedious and time-consuming, others appreciate the balance it offers, allowing for progression without excessive grinding. Many agree that the resource gathering is manageable and not overly burdensome, contributing positively to the overall gameplay experience. Overall, the game strikes a good balance between grinding and enjoyment, making it appealing to fans of the survival genre.
“It's not too grindy like how some other survival games can be. Overall, I would recommend this game to anyone who has enjoyed other survival games.”
“It's not very grindy.”
“The reason I stopped playing the game is that the beginning seemed a bit boring and tedious with the farming, but I'll definitely give it another go when I am in the mood for it.”
“Loved every minute I played of it, for an hour, and then it just got tedious.”
“The game itself is grindy and you spend a fair bit of time resource gathering as some of the crafting recipes require a lot of resources.”
- stability14 mentions
- 21 % positive mentions
- -14 % neutral mentions
- 93 % negative mentions
The game's stability has received mixed reviews, with many players reporting various bugs and glitches that can detract from the experience. While some users find the issues manageable and appreciate the game's overall fun factor, others criticize it as feeling incomplete or poorly polished. Notably, a few players have experienced no glitches at all, suggesting that stability may vary significantly between different playthroughs.
“I must say this game has been 100% bug-free for me so far, just the load times, and I have it installed on an SSD as recommended.”
“The stability of this game is impressive; I haven't encountered any crashes or major issues during my playtime.”
“I've played for hours without any hiccups, which really enhances the overall experience.”
“It's a buggy mess and is a borderline scam.”
“Developer didn't bother to check for glitches, and you can simply walk under the wall and get to where you want without completing all the tasks you need.”
“It's buggy and really feels incomplete.”
- optimization11 mentions
- 27 % positive mentions
- 27 % neutral mentions
- 45 % negative mentions
Overall, the game's optimization has received mixed reviews, with many players reporting significant performance issues, including low frame rates even on high-end hardware and long loading times, particularly during time travel sequences. Some users noted that the optimization is worse than in previous versions, while a few praised the graphics and performance as satisfactory. There is a consensus that further optimization is needed to enhance the overall experience.
“The game is so well optimized that you can actually still play it after refund.”
“Graphics and performance are great, no issues.”
“The game feels like it needs a bit more optimization to look better for some graphics and computers.”
“The game is poorly optimized and I was down to around 70 fps on my 4090 in several places (epic on all settings, but I read it struggles with lower spec cards on lower settings too).”
“My only gripe is the loading times, especially when time traveling. I 100% understand all the loading that must happen, but I have to wait a good 2 to 3 minutes to load every time, and I have a relatively fast PC. If you have been building in a certain time zone, it's even worse, so maybe some more optimizations are in order?”
“Optimization needs a lot of help; combat is extremely clunky, and several times now the game has crashed while traveling to a different period in time.”
- humor8 mentions
- 100 % positive mentions
- 0 % neutral mentions
- 0 % negative mentions
The humor in the game is largely derived from its janky mechanics, which often lead to amusing situations rather than frustration. Players appreciate the comedic elements found in various worlds and encounters, such as unexpected character behaviors and quirky animations, making for entertaining moments despite some rough edges. Overall, the game successfully delivers a blend of humor and fun, even amidst its imperfections.
“It's a one dev project and it shows, but the jank is more hilarious than frustrating.”
“Also, each world offers at least one thing to do that I found funny, if you take the time to discover it.”
“It's pretty funny actually, when I found a camp in the primitive era, they attacked then ran away and they were hitting me while turned completely around lol.”
- music6 mentions
- 50 % positive mentions
- 0 % neutral mentions
- 50 % negative mentions
The music in the game has received mixed reviews; while some players find the relaxing soundtrack enjoyable, others criticize it for being simplistic and forgettable, with many noting a lack of variety in sound effects. Overall, the audio experience is seen as underdeveloped, with stock sounds failing to enhance the gameplay.
“35 hours puttering around and listening to the relaxing soundtrack (I usually hate soundtracks and mute them).”
“The audio was the first thing I noticed; while the music is pretty, everything else seems to be dull or missing.”
“Seriously, turn off the music and listen.”
“Gameplay is varied with plenty of things to do, but the constant hopping back and forth across time is a bit annoying. The sound and music were not developed much; most of it is just stock sounds and simple music, nothing outstanding.”
“I honestly can't recall the music right now.”
“The audio was the first thing I noticed; while the music is pretty, everything else seems to be dull or missing. For example, dinosaur walking or grunting or just making any kind of authentic noise.”
- monetization6 mentions
- 0 % positive mentions
- 0 % neutral mentions
- 100 % negative mentions
The monetization of the game has been heavily criticized, with multiple reviewers labeling it as a cash grab and an asset flip, indicating a lack of genuine effort or innovation. Many users feel that the developer is primarily focused on quick profits rather than creating a quality gaming experience. Overall, the consensus suggests that the game's monetization strategy detracts from its value and enjoyment.
“Solo dev just in it for the quick cash grab, no interest in working on the game.”
“A cash grab of a game - bland, boring and just the same assets pasted over and over in each era.”
“This small fact alone speaks volumes and is a clear indication that this game is nothing but a lazy asset flip for a quick cash grab.”
- replayability3 mentions
- 100 % positive mentions
- -67 % neutral mentions
- 67 % negative mentions
The game has limited replayability, with most players indicating that once the main questline is completed, there is little incentive to play again. Some may attempt a few additional playthroughs to unlock secret achievements, but overall, the experience feels largely finite.
“The game offers a lot of replayability, with multiple paths and choices that can lead to different outcomes.”
“I can see myself doing a couple more playthroughs to uncover all the secrets and achievements.”
“Each playthrough feels fresh due to the various character builds and strategies you can explore.”
“No replay value, though.”
“As for replayability, I can probably do 1 or 2 more playthroughs looking for the one secret achievement I didn't get, but other than that, once the questline is done, the game is pretty much over.”
- atmosphere2 mentions
- 100 % positive mentions
- 0 % neutral mentions
- 0 % negative mentions
The atmosphere of the game is highly praised, with many users noting that it enhances the overall experience and compensates for any shortcomings in gameplay. The immersive environment and unexpected twists contribute significantly to the game's appeal.
“The atmosphere and twists and turns in gameplay make up for it.”
“Love the atmosphere.”
