New Cycle
- January 18, 2024
- Core Engage
- 14h median play time
Get on Steam"New Cycle" is a city-building survival game set in a post-apocalyptic world. After solar flares devastate human society, players must establish and develop a settlement, starting from humble beginnings and advancing to an industrial metropolis. Challenges include natural disasters, resource shortages, and societal issues such as refugee crises and disease outbreaks. Free-form or grid-based design allows for creativity in building and expanding the settlement.
Reviews
- The game offers a unique blend of city-building and survival gameplay, reminiscent of Frostpunk and Banished.
- Graphics and sound design are impressive, creating an immersive atmosphere.
- The developers are responsive to community feedback and actively working on updates and improvements.
- The game suffers from pacing issues, with slow population growth and resource management becoming tedious.
- There are bugs and glitches that can disrupt gameplay, including issues with saving and loading.
- The UI can be clunky and lacks clarity, making it difficult to track resources and manage buildings effectively.
- gameplay216 mentions
- 36 % positive mentions
- 62 % neutral mentions
- 3 % negative mentions
The gameplay of "New Cycle" has received mixed reviews, with many players finding it addictive and engaging, particularly due to its blend of city-building and survival mechanics. However, some criticize its clunky mechanics, lack of clear instructions, and the need for more depth and polish, especially in production systems and resource management. While the game shows promise with its immersive world and strategic elements, it currently struggles with clarity and complexity, leaving room for improvement as it continues to develop in early access.
“The depth and micromanagement involved will reward players who take the time to understand and master its mechanics.”
“The game excels in offering a rich and immersive experience with its detailed building mechanics and resource management system.”
“The dynamic weather conditions and crises add depth to the gameplay, making each decision crucial.”
“The game is not good at explaining how many of its mechanics work; you often have to beat your head against something for a while to figure it out.”
“A significant portion of the game's mechanics and symbols are introduced without sufficient explanation, potentially overwhelming new players.”
“The simplest way I could put it is long, boring, and uninteresting choices really didn't matter in my gameplay, and it was pretty bug-ridden for me.”
- graphics159 mentions
- 60 % positive mentions
- 38 % neutral mentions
- 2 % negative mentions
The graphics of the game receive mixed reviews, with many praising the detailed and immersive visuals that enhance the overall atmosphere and gameplay experience. However, some players note inconsistencies, such as texture pop-ins and a predominance of dull color palettes, which detract from the visual appeal. Overall, while the game showcases impressive art design and smooth animations, it also faces criticism for graphical optimization issues and a lack of vibrant diversity in its aesthetic.
“The graphics are stunning, bringing the world to life with intricate details and smooth animations.”
“The game impresses with polished gameplay, engaging resource management, and stunning graphics that enhance the realistic decision-making experience.”
“With its stunning graphics and seamless performance, even in its early access phase, it sets a high standard in the genre.”
“This game right now should be called the brown cycle owing to its 400 shades of brown used in its art style, seemingly exclusively.”
“Even with maximum graphics settings, the game remains visually unappealing.”
“The devs obviously put a lot of work into this game, and besides the lackluster graphics, everything else is done very nicely.”
- story87 mentions
- 26 % positive mentions
- 70 % neutral mentions
- 3 % negative mentions
The game's story is described as engaging and rich, with a blend of urgency and mystery that motivates gameplay, though it suffers from pacing issues and a lack of clarity in quest progression. Players appreciate the unique narrative elements in a city-building context, but many express a desire for deeper storytelling, more impactful choices, and better integration of quests with the overall narrative. While the foundation is promising, the current execution leaves room for improvement, particularly in how the story unfolds and interacts with gameplay mechanics.
“The storyline, woven through missions and discoveries, keeps me hooked with its blend of urgency and mystery.”
“Each decision feels impactful, affecting not just my city but the unfolding story.”
“The story is interesting, although I have not reached the end as of yet.”
“The story seems rushed, with little to no events.”
“The overall story is okay, but it feels like a proof of concept that needs significant changes to story, progression, and endgame.”
“Weak storyline, choices that kind of do something, but don't really change the game.”
- music53 mentions
- 60 % positive mentions
- 34 % neutral mentions
- 6 % negative mentions
The music in the game has received mixed reviews, with many praising its beautiful, immersive, and atmospheric qualities that enhance the overall experience. While some players find the soundtrack calming and nostalgic, others criticize it for being repetitive or overly sad, which can detract from the gameplay. Overall, the audio design is noted as high-quality, complementing the visuals well, but there are calls for more variety to prevent monotony.
“The audio design is amazing, and the music makes me feel deep in thought; I found myself vibing to the music a lot of the time.”
“Its inviting atmosphere is significantly enhanced by soothing background music, creating a peaceful environment that makes city planning and management a truly enjoyable endeavor.”
“The soundtrack sets an exhilarating tone right from the start, which pairs well with the broad selection of options available to the player.”
“The music is sad and it's like there's no life in the game.”
“That said, I do not like the constantly sad, dreary music.”
“The music can get repetitive after a while, which is one of the only things that really makes this feel early access.”
- optimization27 mentions
- 44 % positive mentions
- 44 % neutral mentions
- 11 % negative mentions
Overall, the game's optimization is generally well-received, with many players reporting smooth performance and minimal bugs. However, some users noted mid-game slowdowns, particularly during season changes and when managing larger populations, indicating room for improvement in optimization. While the graphics are praised, issues like texture pop-ins and occasional lag suggest that further graphical optimization could enhance the experience.
“With its stunning graphics and seamless performance, even in its early access phase, it sets a high standard in the genre.”
“The game seems extremely well optimized and I've encountered no bugs personally.”
“This smooth performance really lets you immerse yourself in the game without any distractions.”
“Optimization could be a lot better though.”
“Encountering texture pop-ins and occasional lag highlighted the need for graphical optimization.”
“The performance does dip in the later stages of the game when more is built; this is to be expected, but it could also do with some optimization.”
- atmosphere25 mentions
- 60 % positive mentions
- 28 % neutral mentions
- 12 % negative mentions
The game's atmosphere is a blend of bleakness and coziness, featuring stunning weather effects and a captivating aesthetic that draws players in. While some find it somber and desolate, others appreciate its immersive qualities, enhanced by soothing music and detailed graphics, creating a unique environment for city-building and survival gameplay. Overall, the atmosphere is praised for its depth and beauty, though some note it lacks the challenges found in similar titles.
“The game captures a Frostpunk-like atmosphere with impressive weather effects and deep gameplay mechanics.”
“Its inviting atmosphere is significantly enhanced by soothing background music, creating a peaceful environment that makes city planning and management a truly enjoyable endeavor.”
“The atmosphere of the game is very nice, it is prepared in great detail, and it is a great experience for those who love city and resource management games.”
“The atmosphere is rather bleak and somber, which might not appeal to everyone.”
“The main problem of this game is that the resources are just magically transported everywhere; the people that you see walking around are just for the atmosphere.”
“It copies a lot of the formats that front punk has, but it's missing the challenges and atmosphere.”
- stability20 mentions
- 15 % positive mentions
- -10 % neutral mentions
- 95 % negative mentions
Overall, the game's stability is a mixed bag; while many players report smooth performance with minimal crashes and only minor visual glitches, others highlight significant bugs, particularly with specific systems like the conveyor. Despite being in early access, the game is generally playable, with some users noting that it feels complete, while others find it unbalanced and buggy. Players who can overlook the occasional glitch may find a promising experience, but those sensitive to stability issues might be disappointed.
“For a beta version of a game that is not yet released, there were almost no glitches, and the game ran smoothly.”
“The stability of the game is impressive; I experienced very few issues during my playthrough.”
“Even in its early stages, the game maintained a solid performance with minimal crashes or bugs.”
“The conveyor system, while cool, is super buggy.”
“At the time I wrote this review (2024, January), the game was still quite unbalanced and buggy.”
“At early access, this game is buggy as hell.”
- grinding16 mentions
- 0 % positive mentions
- 0 % neutral mentions
- 100 % negative mentions
Players generally find the grinding aspect of the game to be tedious and repetitive, with many tasks assigned by NPCs becoming monotonous over time. While the game offers enjoyable moments, the lack of quality-of-life features and excessive micromanagement contribute to a frustrating experience, leading some to prefer other city-building games. Overall, the grinding can detract from the fun, especially during extended play sessions.
“A notable issue is the repetitive tasks assigned by NPCs, which, after some time, can become tedious.”
“The game is sorely lacking quality of life features; it gives the players the tools to succeed, but the game is complicated and unnecessarily tedious and difficult because of the lack of these tools.”
“The bunker and scout mechanics are tedious, and not something that I'm looking for in a city builder.”
- replayability5 mentions
- 40 % positive mentions
- 20 % neutral mentions
- 40 % negative mentions
The game's replayability is a mixed bag; while some players find substantial value in replaying different maps and modes, others express concerns about its overall longevity. Many appreciate the depth and potential for varied experiences, but there are noted issues that may affect long-term engagement.
“The game offers substantial replay value.”
“Some of us want to go through and just get the story while building everything, and we'd enjoy replaying each map on easy mode.”
“Some of us want to go through and just get the story while building everything, and we'd do replay value on each map just on easy mode.”
“Overall, the game feels deep and replayable.”
- monetization2 mentions
- 0 % positive mentions
- 0 % neutral mentions
- 100 % negative mentions
The monetization strategy of the game has been criticized for being misleading, with players feeling deceived by ads that promise a city-building experience but deliver a different gameplay style, leading to perceptions of it being a cash grab. Additionally, interactions with the developers have further fueled frustration among users, contributing to a negative overall sentiment regarding the game's monetization practices.
“You know those mobile game ads that make it look like it's a proper city/settlement builder, only to trick you into some stupid thing where you don't actually build anything? It's the biggest bait and switch.”
“It really seems like a cash grab, like 'Days Gone', after my messages with the devs. This review is all over the place because as I was writing it, I was messaging with the devs. In the early part of my review, I was not angry, but now I am after being lied to.”
- emotional2 mentions
- 100 % positive mentions
- 0 % neutral mentions
- 0 % negative mentions
Reviewers feel that while the game attempts to evoke emotional responses, it falls short compared to titles like Frostpunk, which effectively convey emotional distress through impactful storytelling and meaningful challenges. They suggest that for a stronger emotional experience, the game should enhance its narrative depth and present more compelling stakes.
“It still cannot beat the emotional distress offered by Frostpunk.”
“If the goal is to be a game about resource management, present better metrics and progression; if the goal is to be a game about a population in crisis, craft a story with meaningful problems, stakes, and emotional impact.”
