Orion Trail
- October 12, 2015
- Schell Games
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Get on itch.io Store"Orion Trail" is a humorously written, high-stakes space journey filled with random encounters and dangerous locales. Name your crew after friends and manage resources such as food, fuel, and hull strength while facing bizarre creatures and challenges. Away missions offer rewards but also increase risks for your crew's survival. [ 399 characters]
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Reviews
- The game features humorous writing and clever references to sci-fi culture, making it entertaining for fans of the genre.
- The pixel art style and retro soundtrack contribute to a charming aesthetic that many players appreciate.
- It offers a casual gaming experience that can be enjoyed in short bursts, making it a good time-waster.
- The gameplay heavily relies on random number generation (RNG), leading to frustrating experiences where player decisions feel meaningless.
- Many players find the missions repetitive and lacking in depth, with little variation in encounters or outcomes.
- The sudden spikes in difficulty and the lack of meaningful progression can lead to a sense of dissatisfaction and burnout.
- story80 mentions
- 8 % positive mentions
- 85 % neutral mentions
- 8 % negative mentions
The game's story is characterized by humorous references and colorful backstories for crew members, drawing inspiration from classic sci-fi like Star Trek and games like Space Quest. While players appreciate the comedic elements and random encounters, many find the missions repetitive and feel that choices made during gameplay have little impact on the overall narrative. Overall, the storytelling is seen as fun but lacking depth, with a desire for more varied missions and meaningful consequences for player decisions.
“I really like all the references, the 8-bit soundtrack, as well as the little flavors of story.”
“Story: I enjoy the nerd lore and the comedy in the story.”
“While there is no actual story, Schell Games have gone to a lot of trouble building colorful backstories for each possible crew member, as well as creating a universe full of amusing characters and challenges.”
“This is not really a game; it's more like a click fest on rails. It's funny for about 30 minutes until you get past the first mission and realize that nothing you did mattered because nothing carries over to the next mission.”
“At the beginning of a game session, you get to choose a mission, but as it turns out, the only difference between these is the number of 'stops', that is, how many guaranteed random events you'll encounter.”
- humor70 mentions
- 97 % positive mentions
- 0 % neutral mentions
- 3 % negative mentions
The humor in the game is widely praised for its clever writing and engaging sci-fi themes, drawing inspiration from classics like Oregon Trail and Star Trek. While many players find the initial experience to be funny and charming, the humor tends to wear thin after about 30 minutes, leading to repetitiveness and frustration due to the gameplay mechanics. Overall, the game is considered a lighthearted and amusing experience, though its comedic appeal may diminish over time.
“A hilarious spoof of Oregon's Trail and Star Trek, so if you're a fan of either, then I think you might want to check this game out.”
“The main attraction is the incredible, witty, extremely hilarious writing.”
“Great sci-fi humor and engaging art and animations.”
“What is supposed to be funny, I think, ultimately bites itself in the ass.”
- gameplay50 mentions
- 16 % positive mentions
- 78 % neutral mentions
- 6 % negative mentions
The gameplay of Orion Trail has received mixed reviews, with many players expressing frustration over its heavy reliance on random number generation (RNG), which can lead to repetitive and unsatisfying experiences. While some appreciate the humor and thematic elements, they criticize the lack of meaningful mechanics and player agency, feeling that the game often feels like a mere time-waster rather than an engaging experience. Overall, the consensus is that despite some interesting ideas, the execution of gameplay mechanics leaves much to be desired.
“There's a little more going on in Orion Trail's gameplay than I had originally expected, and it came as a pleasant surprise.”
“The mechanic where your red shirts boost your rolls and then die is fantastic.”
“Some folks might get put off by the dice-rolling nature of the core gameplay, but I found it fun and relaxing and worth the experience.”
“The game has no gameplay; you just click on options, then watch a dice roll, and then you either win or fail. This is not fun; this is just repetitive and dull, a mere time waster.”
“I genuinely believe this mechanic in the game is broken, and the developers don't know how broken it is, or they just cannot be bothered to fix it.”
“Furthermore, there is a lack of gameplay elements to stay engaged and invested in the game.”
- graphics42 mentions
- 38 % positive mentions
- 55 % neutral mentions
- 7 % negative mentions
The graphics of "Orion Trail" are widely praised for their beautiful retro pixel art style, which effectively captures the whimsical and humorous essence of the game. Many reviewers highlight the significant effort put into the artwork, describing it as a nostalgic homage to classic games like "Oregon Trail" and the original "Star Trek" series. Overall, the visuals are considered a standout feature, enhancing the game's zany atmosphere despite criticisms of its gameplay mechanics.
“The graphics are awesome too, the pixel art is beautiful and a lot of time has been spent on this, and it is also fantastic.”
“10 out of 10 for artwork.”
“The game has a nice retro pixel art style to convey the events happening in what is mostly text-based encounters, but the art has a lot of humor and really adds to the zany atmosphere of the wacky adventures your crew will have.”
“In an alternate universe, graphics hardware did not pass the C64.”
“Like I said at the beginning, a lot of work was put into this game; however, in all the wrong places. Graphics and artwork are good, but writing and jokes are good, gameplay and mechanics are bad.”
“The route is quite linear with occasional branching that are always joined, but as you don't really have any means to plan ahead and there's hardly any difference between the route branches except for some flavor text and graphics, it's basically just a corridor of random encounters.”
- music26 mentions
- 15 % positive mentions
- 73 % neutral mentions
- 12 % negative mentions
The music in the game is generally appreciated for its retro 8-bit and 16-bit soundtracks, which create a fitting atmosphere and evoke nostalgia, with catchy chiptunes reminiscent of classic titles. However, some players feel that the background music lacks variety and express dissatisfaction with certain sound effects. Overall, while the music enhances the gaming experience for many, opinions are mixed, with some rating it as average.
“The music provides a fitting atmosphere for the game.”
“The music is even great and rocking; it gets you right in the mood to explore space and reach your goal.”
“The music is quite good too with catchy retro chiptunes.”
“The background music needs variety.”
“I really don't like the soundtrack and some sound effects.”
“5 out of 10 for music.”
- replayability6 mentions
- 33 % positive mentions
- 67 % neutral mentions
- 0 % negative mentions
Orion Trail is praised for its high replayability, thanks to the randomness and diverse encounters players face, which encourage different strategies and approaches in each playthrough.
“Orion Trail offers a lot of replayability.”
“The randomness and variety of encounters and ways you can try to deal with them add to the fun and replay value.”
- grinding4 mentions
- 0 % positive mentions
- 0 % neutral mentions
- 100 % negative mentions
Players find the grinding aspect of the game particularly frustrating, especially with the last achievements and missions being excessively tedious and time-consuming. Many have expressed that the grind required to complete these final tasks is discouraging, leading some to abandon their efforts to achieve 100% completion.
“The last few achievements are very grindy, so this one isn't for completionists.”
“I have been able to complete all missions except for the last one, which is so long and tedious that after the tenth attempt or so, I've simply given up and accepted that I'll probably never see the 'well done, you have completed this game' farewell message.”
“The last few achievements are very grindy, so this one isn't for completionists.”
- atmosphere4 mentions
- 50 % positive mentions
- 50 % neutral mentions
- 0 % negative mentions
The game's atmosphere is enhanced by a fitting musical score and a charming retro pixel art style, which together create a humorous and zany environment that complements the text-based encounters and the whimsical adventures of the crew.
“The game has a nice retro pixel art style to convey the events happening in what is mostly text-based encounters, but the art has a lot of humor and really adds to the zany atmosphere of the wacky adventures your crew will have.”
“The music provides a fitting atmosphere for the game.”
