Mutant Year Zero: Road to Eden

77%
Game Brain Score Based on 12,280 reviews
  • story
  • gameplay
  • graphics
Mutant Year Zero: Road to Eden Game Cover
Its mix of tense tactics and realtime exploration gets much right, but Mutant Year Zero doesn’t feel quite finished.
Starting at $4.98Buy now
Get on Steam Get on Xbox Games Store

Mutant Year Zero: Road to Eden is a turn-based strategy game set in a post-apocalyptic world. Players control a team of mutants navigating a dangerous environment, battling enemies, and searching for resources. The game combines tactical combat with exploration and story-driven elements, allowing players to upgrade their characters and uncover the mysteries of the world.

  • Nintendo Switch
  • PC
  • Play​station 4
  • Play​station 5
  • Windows
  • Xbox One
  • Xbox Series X|S
  • Cloud
  • Epic Games
  • NVIDIA GeForce NOW
  • Play​Station
  • Tablet
  • Xbox
Genres & TagsPlay Modes

Reviews

77%
Audience ScoreBased on 12,280 reviews
story2,246 positive mentions
replayability72 negative mentions
  • story4,468 mentions

    The story of "Mutant Year Zero: Road to Eden" is generally well-received, praised for its engaging characters, humor, and unique post-apocalyptic setting. While many players find the narrative compelling and immersive, some criticize it for being predictable and too short, often leaving them wanting more depth and additional content. Overall, the game successfully combines tactical gameplay with a rich storyline, though it may lack replayability due to its linear structure.

    • “A fantastic story with awesome, deep characters and great gameplay.”
    • “The story is engaging, it has humor, it's original enough but still familiar.”
    • “Great game: good story, nice tactics, no bugs.”
    • “The story is slow and boring, and this game is nothing like XCOM at all.”
    • “The story appears too generic to be the reason to play it instead.”
    • “The story lacks flavor, simply directing you to combat sects and evil organizations as the hero.”
  • gameplay2,535 mentions

    The gameplay of "Mutant Year Zero: Road to Eden" is characterized by its blend of turn-based tactical combat and real-time stealth mechanics, reminiscent of the XCOM series but with unique twists. Players appreciate the engaging stealth and ambush systems, which allow for strategic planning and execution, although some find the mechanics can become repetitive and lack depth as the game progresses. Overall, while the game offers solid mechanics and an interesting story, it has been critiqued for its simplicity and occasional frustrating elements, leading to mixed feelings about its replayability and challenge.

    • “Was really fun and engaging, great story and great gameplay - but a little short.”
    • “The stealth mechanic is a refreshing take on tactic games.”
    • “A fantastic story with awesome, deep characters and great gameplay.”
    • “The mechanics are a bit janky, and you're left with optimizing for jankiness instead of doing what seems reasonable.”
    • “The gameplay just becomes repetitive, and there isn't much reason to use any particular party composition.”
    • “The stealth mechanics are ineffective; you can eliminate enemies in plain sight of other gangs without detection, even shouting victorious phrases and witnessing enemies explode without anyone noticing.”
  • graphics1,278 mentions

    The graphics in "Mutant Year Zero" have received widespread acclaim for their stunning visuals, unique art style, and attention to detail, creating an immersive post-apocalyptic atmosphere. Many players highlight the game's beautiful character designs and environments, often comparing its aesthetic favorably to other titles in the genre. However, some users noted performance issues and minor graphical glitches, suggesting that while the visuals are impressive, they may require optimization for smoother gameplay.

    • “The graphics are amazing.”
    • “Absolutely gorgeous graphics.”
    • “The graphics are great and the voice over is solid.”
    • “The voice-acting is cringy, the graphics are just serviceable, the story is boring and hackneyed and much of the game's tools are useless because you should do everything by stealth anyways.”
    • “While the game does well in most areas: graphics, map layout, lighting, and story... the part where a 'tactical strategy' game should shine... is where they fall short.”
    • “I felt a lot of the graphics was 90s with moss on it rather than a more futuristic society (we can't all be Simon Stålenhag, but maybe Funcom can hire him?).”
  • atmosphere602 mentions

    The atmosphere of the game is widely praised for its immersive and engaging qualities, particularly in its post-apocalyptic setting, which evokes a sense of nostalgia reminiscent of classic titles like Fallout and XCOM. Players appreciate the combination of detailed graphics, atmospheric music, and unique character interactions that enhance the overall experience, although some note that the soundtrack can be bland at times. Overall, the game's atmosphere is considered a standout feature, drawing players into its richly crafted world and compelling narrative.

    • “The atmosphere of the game is phenomenal.”
    • “I very much liked the atmosphere this game creates, especially through exploring the beautifully drawn post-apocalyptic environments and the 80s-style synthesizer soundtrack.”
    • “The atmosphere is great, set in post-apocalyptic Sweden.”
    • “Atmosphere and visuals carry this game quite a bit, but ultimately it is somewhat of an empty shell.”
    • “The atmosphere is retained through the way the game plays - the reality of a post-apocalyptic world where nothing comes easy, no re-spawns, slow and cautious is, as it would be, the rule of the day, and scavenging means scavenging.”
    • “The mutant zero has plenty of style, character and atmosphere but the poorly designed UI and the shallow tactical gameplay make the game a chore to play.”
  • humor562 mentions

    The humor in "Mutant Year Zero" is widely praised for its cleverness and charm, blending dark and whimsical elements that resonate well with players. Many reviews highlight the amusing dialogue and character banter, particularly the humorous interpretations of old-world artifacts by the anthropomorphic characters, which adds a unique layer to the post-apocalyptic setting. While some humor may be more relatable to Swedish players, the overall comedic tone is engaging and enhances the game's narrative and atmosphere.

    • “I find myself caring about the characters, laughing out loud at their dialogue, and wanting to learn more about the lore of this post-apocalyptic world.”
    • “The humor and party banter is very amusing to listen to.”
    • “The characters have lots of funny banters and make hilarious guesses about the purposes of old items found in the ruins.”
  • music432 mentions

    The music in the game has received widespread acclaim for its atmospheric and immersive qualities, often described as a nostalgic 80s synth soundtrack that enhances the overall experience. While many reviewers praised the soundtrack for its ability to complement the game's setting and action, some noted that it could be somewhat bland or lacking in diversity. Overall, the music is considered a significant strength, contributing to the game's engaging atmosphere and emotional depth.

    • “The soundtrack is a dope 80s synth style set of electronic songs that remind me quite a bit of music you might hear in a Terminator movie or some other dystopian/post-apocalyptic movie of that era.”
    • “The music helps set the mood and build suspense.”
    • “The music is absolutely fantastic (80's atmospheric synth).”
    • “The music isn't oscar-worthy, but it does a wonderful job immersing you further in post-apocalyptic Scandinavia.”
    • “Wish music was more diverse & more dramatic.”
    • “Some kind of music was there, I barely noticed it.”
  • replayability306 mentions

    Overall, the game exhibits very low replayability due to its linear storyline, fixed enemy placements, and lack of randomization in loot and maps. While some players may find value in attempting higher difficulty levels or collecting achievements, the consensus is that once the story is completed, there is little incentive to replay. Many reviewers suggest that the game is enjoyable for a single playthrough but lacks the depth and variability typically associated with more replayable titles.

    • “Not a perfect game, but challenging, interesting, and rich in story that gives this otherwise fairly straightforward game some replayability, going back and getting an overview of the puzzle pieces.”
    • “This adds a small bit of replay value to the game as not only can you try out different squad combinations, but the characters banter with each other throughout the game and different combinations can lead to different conversations.”
    • “Replayability - if you're like me you'll probably want to replay it at least once right away just to try again with the knowledge gained from the first playthrough.”
    • “Completed the game in 31 hours and deleting it from my computer as I don't think it has much replay value.”
    • “As a result, this game has less replayability, especially after finding out the mystery behind the story once.”
    • “The major disappointment is that the campaign is way too short and completely linear, with no replay value.”
  • stability180 mentions

    The game's stability has received mixed reviews, with many players reporting frequent bugs, glitches, and crashes that significantly impact gameplay. While some users experienced smooth playthroughs with minimal issues, others faced persistent freezing, UI problems, and game-breaking errors, leading to frustration. Overall, the game appears to be unoptimized and buggy, making it a risky choice for those sensitive to technical issues.

    • “Fun, and bug free for my playthrough.”
    • “Generally it's well done, bug free and enjoyable.”
    • “No glitches, no bugs, no problem.”
    • “The only thing that I don't like, which is huge, is that the game is very buggy and crashes almost daily.”
    • “This game freezes after every other combat encounter, and needs to be forced to close.”
    • “Unfortunately, the game isn't perfect, there are a few glitches and at least one major issue, showing I had line of sight in preview but after moving didn't allow me to fire.”
  • grinding176 mentions

    Reviews highlight that the game's grinding mechanics are largely tedious and frustrating, with players often feeling compelled to scour every corner for resources, which detracts from the overall enjoyment. While some appreciate the lack of traditional grinding and linear progression, many find the inventory management and character switching cumbersome, leading to a gameplay experience that feels repetitive and laborious. Overall, the exploration and resource collection aspects are seen as time-consuming and lacking in reward, making the game feel more like a chore than an engaging experience.

    • “I merely fill an extended weekend, but in times where most RPG games are open world monsters that need hundreds of hours before being truly finished, I find this kind of refreshing, especially since the game has random encounters and no grinding.”
    • “There are games out there that are not only good looking and well written, like this is, but they are also enjoyable and not tedious.”
    • “--- no grinding, no fetch-quests, no backtracking.”
    • “The negatives, however, are pretty significant: the inability to sell items despite consumables being very expensive, no options for grinding, short and not very interesting skill trees, and completely linear progression.”
    • “The formula feels grindy by mid-game.”
    • “I found it to be tedious in the gameplay with very little in the way of variety in the enemies or tactical options.”
  • character development132 mentions

    Character development in the game has received mixed reviews, with many players noting its limitations and linearity compared to other titles like XCOM. While some appreciate the character design and voice acting, others feel that the lack of depth and meaningful choices in character progression detracts from the overall experience. Overall, the character development is seen as simplistic and underwhelming, with a desire for more options and interactions among characters.

    • “I like the character development and the voice acting is good.”
    • “Great character development, beautiful graphics, intuitive controls, and an overall excellent leap forward in the turn-based genre.”
    • “Offering rewarding gameplay and pretty excellent storytelling and character development.”
    • “Overall a solid tactical combat game which suffers from poor writing and lack of character development.”
    • “There is not a lot of story or character development, almost no talking to NPCs and no decision-making whatsoever.”
    • “The character development is lacking; characters are very one-dimensional.”
  • optimization82 mentions

    The game's optimization has received mixed reviews, with some players praising its performance on lower-end systems and stable framerates, while others report significant issues such as stuttering, crashes, and poor performance on higher-spec PCs. Many users noted that the game feels unoptimized, particularly due to demanding graphical features that strain performance, suggesting a need for further updates to improve stability and accessibility for a wider range of hardware. Overall, while some players found it enjoyable, the consensus indicates that optimization remains a significant concern.

    • “The game is very well optimized and you can play it and enjoy it even on entry level gaming laptops.”
    • “+ the game seems to be optimized quite well, it maintained stable framerates on my 2017 Dell XPS (GTX 1050 Ti).”
    • “It's a well-built PC game with almost zero performance issues on my side.”
    • “Unoptimized and buggy, but entertaining enough for a while.”
    • “Textured are decent, models are nice, but the optimization is awful.”
    • “It's laggy, buggy, freezy, crashy and feels really unoptimized.”
  • emotional18 mentions

    The emotional aspect of the game has received mixed reviews, with some players praising the well-written characters and the deep emotional connections they foster, evoking nostalgia for earlier gaming experiences. However, others criticized the story as boring and the voice acting as lacking, which detracted from the overall emotional impact. Overall, while many found the emotional narrative engaging, there were notable dissenting opinions regarding its execution.

    • “First hours made me feel something that I felt a long time ago when games were new, and I was younger.”
    • “Well-written and acted cast of characters with a deep range of emotional narrative output.”
    • “I loved the story and the emotional attachment you develop with the characters!”
    • “Boring story, bad voice acting, it just didn't go the distance.”
  • monetization18 mentions

    The monetization strategy of the game has been criticized as a blatant cash grab, with many reviewers feeling that the game ends abruptly to push for an expansion. Players express disappointment over misleading advertising that promises a rich gameplay experience akin to popular titles like XCOM and Fallout, but ultimately delivers a limited and underwhelming product. Overall, the consensus is that the game falls short of its marketing claims, leading to frustration among players.

    • “The main game just sort of ends abruptly, pretty obviously for the cash grab of the expansion.”
    • “Game advertisement does not show how really the gameplay is limited in options and how far it is from the promises given by the designers/sales below (whoever is responsible for writing those overstatements).”
    • “Unfortunately, this game is a cheap cash grab using terms and references to popular games such as the S.T.A.L.K.E.R.”
Positive mentions (%)Positive
Neutral mentions (%)Neutral
Negative mentions (%)Negative

Critic Reviews

78% average critic score

Buy Mutant Year Zero: Road to Eden

Play time

17hMedian play time
18hAverage play time
13hMain story
23hCompletionist
10-24hSpent by most gamers
*Based on 90 analyzed playthroughs

Videos

Similar Games

Game News