I Am Alive

59%
Game Brain Score Based on 2,458 reviews
  • story
  • gameplay
  • graphics
I Am Alive Game Cover
A gripping survival adventure packed with solid puzzle design and meaningful decision-making.
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In "I Am Alive," a post-apocalyptic survival adventure, players traverse a devastated city, searching for resources and loved ones. Confronted with hostile survivors and dangerous terrain, players must make tough decisions and utilize their wits and scarce resources to stay alive. With a focus on exploration and survival, the game immerses players in a gritty, atmospheric setting.

  • PC
  • Windows
  • Xbox One
  • Xbox Series X|S
  • Play​Station
  • Play​station 3
  • Uplay
  • Xbox
  • Xbox 360
Genres & TagsPlay Modes

Reviews

59%
Audience ScoreBased on 2,458 reviews
story330 positive mentions
stability58 negative mentions
  • Unique and strategic combat mechanics that require careful planning and resource management.
  • Atmospheric setting that effectively conveys a post-apocalyptic world filled with tension and despair.
  • Engaging climbing mechanics that add a layer of challenge and realism to exploration.
  • Clunky controls and camera issues that can lead to frustrating gameplay experiences.
  • Linear progression with limited exploration opportunities, making the game feel restrictive.
  • Abrupt and unsatisfying ending that leaves many plot points unresolved.
  • story979 mentions

    The story of "I Am Alive" is often described as a mixed bag, with many players noting its intriguing premise set in a post-apocalyptic world but criticizing its execution. While some appreciate the emotional depth and atmosphere, others find the narrative lacking in character development, depth, and resolution, often feeling rushed or incomplete. Overall, the game presents a linear storyline that can be engaging yet ultimately leaves players wanting more, with a significant number expressing disappointment over its abrupt ending and underdeveloped plot points.

    • “The story, voice acting, and scenes are all very good.”
    • “The story is short, but in a way that leaves you wanting more.”
    • “The overall story is powerful, emotionally engaging with characters, for example, Mei and her mother.”
    • “Aside from the thought-provoking on the player's morality, the plot of the game lacks proper foreshadowing and development, the main characters are not well shaped, and the ending is extremely abrupt, with too much blank space.”
    • “The story seems promising from the start but it ends with a cliffhanger and you never really see the proper end to it, which is a bummer.”
    • “The story is very lacking. You learn practically nothing about what actually happened and the story just seems to stop rather than end when you finish the game.”
  • gameplay791 mentions

    The gameplay of "I Am Alive" features a mix of climbing, combat, and survival mechanics, with a strong emphasis on resource management and stamina. While some players appreciate the unique mechanics, such as intimidation and the tension of limited supplies, many criticize the controls as clunky and the overall experience as repetitive and frustrating. The game offers an engaging atmosphere but suffers from a lack of depth and polish, leading to mixed reviews regarding its execution and replayability.

    • “There are small but interesting mechanics, such as threatening enemies to back off when aiming at them, kicking enemies into pits and fires, retrieving your arrows from downed enemies.”
    • “Unique and strategic combat, tense and fun climbing mechanics, amazing world design and art style, interesting story.”
    • “The gameplay itself is well-balanced with platforming elements that emphasize managing your limited stamina during its many awe-inspiring climbing portions that have you scaling the side of unmaintained skyscrapers, clambering across elevated scaffolding and more while using pistons to pause and recuperate at opportune moments.”
    • “In comparison, the official release of 'I Am Alive' is just a decent game; its limited gameplay and playthrough make it difficult to attract players to play it multiple times.”
    • “Unnecessarily complicated controls, boring story, and gameplay that feels like a chore.”
    • “The gameplay is overall horrific with the exception of the climbing mechanic.”
  • graphics417 mentions

    The graphics of "I Am Alive," released in 2012, are widely regarded as dated and subpar, often described as grainy, washed-out, and overly reliant on a monochrome aesthetic that can strain the eyes. While some players appreciate the atmospheric and artistic choices that convey a sense of societal decay, many criticize the visuals for lacking detail and texture, leading to a mixed reception overall. Despite these shortcomings, the game's unique art style and immersive environment have garnered a degree of appreciation, particularly when played on modern hardware that can enhance resolution.

    • “Graphics are good (played in 4k), but seemed ahead of its time.”
    • “The graphics are good and it does succeed in giving the feeling of a dust-filled, apocalyptic world.”
    • “The atmosphere and graphics are decent, the gameplay too.”
    • “The graphics are very very dated, lack textures, and I think that all the fog/dust was used to disguise the lackluster graphics.”
    • “The graphics are barely passable and the game has an excessive amount of grey on purpose, even for this setting.”
    • “The problem is the graphics are so glitchy, fractured, and spotty that the game is almost entirely unplayable.”
  • atmosphere334 mentions

    The atmosphere of "I Am Alive" is widely praised for its heavy, oppressive tone that effectively conveys the bleakness of a post-apocalyptic world. Reviewers note the game's use of muted colors, grainy visuals, and haunting sound design, which together create a tense and immersive experience that reflects human fragility in the face of disaster. While some players appreciate the atmosphere as the game's strongest element, others feel that it is undermined by technical issues and repetitive gameplay.

    • “The atmosphere is palpably tense, and every little encounter with other survivors of 'the event' feels like it could mean your death in moments.”
    • “I am alive’s single redeeming element is its atmosphere, which captures all the greatest facets of survival horror.”
    • “The heavy and depressing atmosphere vividly reflects the fragility and helplessness of human beings in the face of natural disasters.”
    • “Even on the lowest difficulty, the relatively hardcore game design, ubiquitous sense of oppression, and tension are quite unfavorable to players who just want to easily experience the game's story and atmosphere.”
    • “There's nearly no color anywhere, boring characters, weak atmosphere, nearly nonexistent story, simple gameplay, and more.”
  • music94 mentions

    The music in the game is noted for its atmospheric and haunting qualities, effectively building tension during critical moments, particularly when stamina is low. However, many players find the repetitive nature of the intensity-building tracks to be disruptive and irritating over time, detracting from the overall experience. While some appreciate the soundtrack's ability to enhance the game's mood, others feel it becomes a nuisance, leading to a mixed reception.

    • “The music in 'I Am Alive' was beautiful; I always remembered this game, not by its name, but by the music that played throughout and the overall black and white setting.”
    • “The soundtrack is stunning, the gameplay is innovative, and the atmosphere is remarkable.”
    • “The music and HUD elements really get your heart pumping as you make quick decisions in this post-apocalyptic city.”
    • “The soundtrack is fairly disruptive to your mentality while playing; even though this is not so much a horror game, the music really helps to make this feel troubling.”
    • “The game music pretty much tells you if there's an enemy nearby, which detracts from any need to be subtle, secret, or careful.”
    • “Unfortunately, there was one bit of 'danger' music, and it began to lose its punch after a while.”
  • stability60 mentions

    The game's stability has been widely criticized, with numerous reports of bugs, glitches, and performance issues, including freezing, audio desynchronization, and unresponsive controls. While some players experienced minimal problems, many found the game to be a "buggy mess," significantly detracting from the overall experience. Overall, the game's stability appears to be a major concern, impacting its playability and enjoyment.

    • “I found no glitches or bugs.”
    • “I encountered no stability issues during my gameplay.”
    • “The game ran smoothly without any crashes or errors.”
    • “In addition to freezes and out-of-sync game audio and subtitles, the game is more likely to have errors when loading.”
    • “Disastrous looking, horrible playing, very buggy, pointless story; I should've never even started this garbage.”
    • “It's extremely buggy and the camera system is bad, and that is when it works at all instead of jittering around like crazy.”
  • emotional54 mentions

    The emotional aspect of the game is a mixed bag, with some players finding it deeply impactful and thought-provoking, particularly in its portrayal of survival and loss in a post-apocalyptic setting. While the story and character interactions can evoke strong feelings, many reviewers criticize the gameplay and controls, which detract from the overall experience. Despite its flaws, the game is noted for its ability to create a haunting atmosphere that resonates emotionally with players.

    • “The overall story is powerful through emotionally engaging with characters, for example, Mei and her mother.”
    • “A fun, short, and emotionally touching game about a man trying to reclaim everything he has lost in a post-apocalyptic world.”
    • “I found this game thought-provoking and it left an emotional impact on me.”
    • “Unnecessarily complicated controls, boring story, boring gameplay that feels like a chore.”
    • “Atrocious controls, boring story, and uninteresting gameplay in general.”
    • “Bad storytelling; unique gameplay could be good if you can stomach the boring story.”
  • optimization36 mentions

    Overall, the game's optimization has received mixed reviews, with many players reporting significant performance issues such as stuttering, low frame rates, and glitches, particularly for a title released in 2012. While some users experienced smooth gameplay without crashes, others highlighted the need for substantial improvements in both performance and control schemes. The consensus suggests that the game is not well-optimized, making it advisable to purchase on sale or with caution.

    • “I didn't have any problems with performance while I played it, and there were no crashes or game-breaking bugs.”
    • “The one thing I didn't have was performance issues, but I'd recommend a controller because keyboard and mouse is awful for this game.”
    • “Secondly, it's a console port with a weird control scheme. Sure, you can rebind the keys, but it still felt pretty weird. I think it's best played with a controller, although you'll most likely be fine with keyboard and mouse. I did not experience any performance issues with it at all; it ran at a constant 60fps all the way through.”
    • “Terrible performance for a game that came out in 2012, averaged 40 fps with 6700xt.”
    • “The game has some serious stuttering fps issues.”
    • “Bad performance, tons of huge glitches, pop-in from a foot away, etc.”
  • grinding34 mentions

    The reviews highlight a significant level of tedium associated with grinding in the game, particularly due to slow climbing mechanics, frequent cutscenes, and a cumbersome stamina system. While some players appreciate the challenge and find enjoyment in the tedious aspects, many feel that the gameplay becomes monotonous and detracts from the overall experience. Overall, the grinding elements are seen as a mixed bag, with some players finding them frustrating and others viewing them as part of the game's unique charm.

    • “You'll need a second life for grinding.”
    • “The stamina system is tedious and annoying; you lose stamina even in regions where you would not expect great effort, like in the ladders. This makes the climbing zones (and there are a lot of them) and dust zones too tedious if you don't know a priori what is the correct path.”
    • “This game takes what could've been an enticing atmospheric adventure and oversupplies it with monotonous gameplay and a tedious story.”
    • “The climbing in this game is slow, but worse than that, it is also tedious.”
  • replayability32 mentions

    Overall, the game's replayability is viewed as inconsistent, with many reviewers noting that while it offers a compelling initial experience, it lacks substantial replay value due to its short length and repetitive gameplay. Some players appreciate the challenge and unique style, but the absence of meaningful content to revisit diminishes its long-term appeal. Additionally, technical issues, such as server problems, further impact the potential for replayability, leading to mixed opinions on whether the game is worth multiple playthroughs.

    • “It gives you a nice story, it's replayable, it is challenging, and the style is uncommon.”
    • “It can be completed in around five hours but it does have a lot of replay value.”
    • “'I Am Alive' offers great replay value with its arcade-based system.”
    • “Probably not so much in the way of replayability though, especially since its servers are on Ubisoft's murdered servers list, which I guess impacts speedrunner leaderboards and the like.”
    • “It's a mixed bag with a lot to like but also a lot to dislike; the game is short and lacks replayability.”
    • “Once you've completed a level, you can do it over, but if you go back to a level before your current one, it will delete your progress beyond that level (forget about replayability)!”
  • humor14 mentions

    The humor in the game is hit-or-miss, with some players finding amusement in quirky mechanics and easter eggs, while others feel the overall experience lacks genuine fun, particularly when faced with frustrating survival elements. The nostalgic references to old NES games are noted, but often in a negative light, suggesting that the humor may not resonate well with all players. Overall, the humor seems to be overshadowed by gameplay frustrations and linearity.

    • “There is a funny little easter egg of sorts; a nod to your typical post-apocalypse, in one section of the game.”
    • “The funny thing is, I've spent far more time writing this review than such a game deserves.”
    • “It's funny that I mentioned the NES, because this game actually reminded me of the old NES games... in all the worst ways.”
    • “The mechanics, while I applaud the realistic approach to survival, have become unfunny, especially when you get lost and want to save as much as possible.”
  • character development6 mentions

    The reviews indicate a significant lack of character development, with players expressing frustration over the shallow interactions and minimal storytelling due to the game's short duration. Many felt that the characters were forgettable and that the game missed opportunities for deeper engagement and meaningful growth.

    • “The game only took me about 4 hours to play through, so there's no time for character development or any real story.”
    • “I would've liked more in-depth interaction with survivors, a bigger story with some character development, and definitely at least a few more hours of meaningful gameplay.”
    • “Characters don't know what to say; there is no character development. I don't even remember the main guy's name.”
  • monetization2 mentions

    The monetization model of "Might & Magic: Duel of Champions," a free-to-play game with microtransactions, faced criticism due to its abrupt closure, which not only removed the game from stores but also erased players' achievements and statistics, leaving them without access to significant personal data.

    • “A more serious case was that of Might & Magic: Duel of Champions, a free-to-play game with microtransactions, whose closure not only removed the game from stores but also erased achievements and statistics from accounts, rendering important player information inaccessible.”
Positive mentions (%)Positive
Neutral mentions (%)Neutral
Negative mentions (%)Negative

Critic Reviews

70% average critic score

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Play time

7hMedian play time
6hAverage play time
5hMain story
8hCompletionist
5-8hSpent by most gamers
*Based on 38 analyzed playthroughs

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