Perpetuum
- October 17, 2014
- Avatar Creations
- 394h median play time
Get on SteamPerpetuum is a massively multiplayer Sci-Fi RPG where players control huge robots and mechs to exploit an alien planet's resources using advanced mechanics. The game features a unique persistent world, complex infrastructure, and terraforming capabilities. Although the official server is shut down, the community can still play using private servers and the released source code.
PC
Windows
Reviews
- Perpetuum offers a complex and engaging gameplay experience similar to EVE Online, with a focus on mechs instead of spaceships.
- The game features a player-driven economy, allowing for crafting, trading, and resource gathering, which adds depth to the gameplay.
- The community is generally helpful and friendly, providing support to new players and fostering a collaborative environment.
- The tutorial is lengthy and can be overwhelming for new players, making it difficult to grasp the game's mechanics quickly.
- The user interface is clunky and outdated, which can hinder the overall gaming experience and make navigation cumbersome.
- The player base is relatively small, leading to a lack of active engagement and making the game feel empty at times.
- gameplay172 mentions
- 19 % positive mentions
- 78 % neutral mentions
- 3 % negative mentions
The gameplay of Perpetuum is heavily influenced by Eve Online, featuring complex mechanics, a sandbox environment, and a focus on player-driven industry and PvP. While the graphics are dated and some players find the combat and travel mechanics tedious, many appreciate the depth and variety of gameplay options available, particularly for those familiar with similar MMO systems. However, the steep learning curve and clunky controls may deter more casual players.
“The gameplay feels very solid and I love the skill system.”
“What made Eve a success wasn’t the graphics, but the dynamic player-driven gameplay, and I believe Perpetuum captures that same feeling.”
“It's a very, very deeply crafted system with industrial mechanics, mining, marketing, and excellent PvP.”
“Today, it looks pretty much the same (weak), is (still) very boring gameplay, it was empty and is still empty.”
“The traveling in this game is awful, it is very long, tedious, and will consume vast majority of your gameplay.”
“Stuff that isn't explained, gameplay mechanics that are completely useless and only serve to infuriate players, procedures that shouldn't be there at all and drive players nuts especially at the start.”
- graphics162 mentions
- 19 % positive mentions
- 53 % neutral mentions
- 28 % negative mentions
The graphics of the game are widely regarded as outdated, often compared to titles from the early 2000s or even the PlayStation 2 era, with many players expressing disappointment in their quality. While some appreciate the art style and find the visuals adequate for gameplay, the consensus is that the graphics detract from the overall experience, with calls for a significant update to modernize the visuals. Despite these shortcomings, many players emphasize that the engaging gameplay mechanics and community aspects can still provide an enjoyable experience.
“The graphics are a bit dated but definitely won't ruin the gameplay.”
“Graphics are nothing to write home about, but they are adequate, and the design of the world, environment, and bots is interesting.”
“It has it all: PvP, PvE, crafting, a player-controlled market, a very good community feel, and a wonderful look to the graphics.”
“The graphics are atrocious for 2014, or even 2011 or 2010 when the game launched beta or alpha.”
“The graphics, even for being 5 years old, honestly are on-par with PS2 graphics... no, that is not a typo, PlayStation 2 graphics... this is with everything completely maxed, some PS2 graphics outshine this game.”
“Ok, so I don't mind bad graphics, as I love MechWarrior 4 Mercenaries, made in 2000, but these graphics are just horrendous. I feel like I'm back in the '90s; I mean come on, MW3 had better graphics, made 15 years earlier!”
- story136 mentions
- 10 % positive mentions
- 84 % neutral mentions
- 6 % negative mentions
The game's story aspect is largely driven by a sandbox environment where players create their own narratives through various missions, which tend to be repetitive and lack a central storyline. While the mission structure has been streamlined for accessibility, players seeking a rich narrative experience may find it lacking, as the focus is more on personal goals and gameplay mechanics rather than a cohesive story. Overall, the game offers a diverse range of activities, but those looking for traditional questing or storytelling will likely be disappointed.
“The story is just beautiful.”
“It is a sandbox game with a 100% player-driven economy that relies on the players to make their own story and fun.”
“While Eve would try to sugarcoat their quests with flavor text and other vanity, Perpetuum has reworked their system to be more streamlined, allowing players to focus on their personal interests such as mining/combat, go out into the world and accomplish the goal, and return to a mission terminal in record time to collect their reward.”
“If you're looking for a main storyline quest or questing hubs or to be told a story through quests, this is not the game for you.”
“The quests (assignments) are very repetitive, mostly go to 'a' attack 'b' get 'item' from 'b's wreckage deliver 'item' to 'c', or go to area 'a' scan for 'certain mineral/artifact' locate 'mineral/artifact' mine/retrieve 'mineral/artifact' and deliver to 'b' or some variation thereof, the only difference is that the more in good standing you are with the faction you chose at the end of the tutorial increasingly difficult assignments are unlocked for you to complete, but they never stray far from this template.”
“If you will try to earn some money by running missions, you will be stuck in a loop of 1-3 of them that will repeat themselves over, and over and over.”
- grinding40 mentions
- 5 % positive mentions
- 5 % neutral mentions
- 90 % negative mentions
The grinding aspect of the game is a significant point of contention among players, with many noting that it is a common feature in MMOs. While some appreciate the time-based progression system that allows for character development without constant grinding, others find the crafting and resource acquisition processes tedious and overly time-consuming. Overall, players agree that while grinding is expected in the genre, its execution here can lead to frustration and a sense of tedium.
“What I like about this game is that I don't always have the time to do things, but my character gains experience through time, not grinding.”
“True sandbox, open world, easy to understand, easy to play, a lot of things to do, no lag, no monthly fee, no grinding for leveling, good community, good staff, well-balanced environment, well-designed sci-fi.”
“The game has a lot of grinding and is pretty much pay-to-win unfortunately.”
“Grinding endlessly while waiting for your daily points to spend to get to a higher level.”
“The game feels very grindy for a game with time-based progression; you have to log in once a day to get certain points to level up skills of your choosing, and you need to level up certain skills to be able to use more powerful mechs, so even if you have the money, you can't use the mech until you level up the skills to use it.”
- music22 mentions
- 45 % positive mentions
- 41 % neutral mentions
- 14 % negative mentions
The music in the game has received largely positive feedback, with many players praising its unique, ambient, and psytrance-inspired soundtrack that enhances the gaming experience. However, there are some criticisms regarding the quality of certain tracks, with one reviewer describing parts of the score as subpar. Overall, the music is considered a strong aspect of the game, contributing to its atmosphere and player enjoyment.
“The music is something I really like; for once, I do not have to mute it. It's a bit psytrance/ambient inspired and works very well with the game.”
“Sound and music are great; I enjoyed the simple soundtrack, and the combat/movement felt impactful and heavy.”
“The combat is dull, the graphics are sub-par, the world is tiny, the UI is absolutely terrible (and that's coming from an EVE player). The musical score sounds like it was composed by high school students (seriously, there's one track where the drummer can't drum for shit).”
“The music is also something I really like; for once I do not have to mute the music. It's a bit psytrance/ambient inspired and works very well with the game.”
“The music is also unique and fits well with this game.”
- optimization10 mentions
- 20 % positive mentions
- 50 % neutral mentions
- 30 % negative mentions
The game's optimization has received mixed reviews, with some players experiencing significant performance issues even on lower settings, while others note that the launcher is poorly optimized. Despite recent server relocations and attempts at optimization, many users feel the game lacks the polish seen in similar titles like EVE Online.
“No optimization issues.”
“Especially now that they have relocated the server and optimized it.”
“Massive performance issues and I am using a GTX 970m, and the game isn't even on max settings.”
“- Launcher is unoptimized garbage.”
“After less than an hour, I am already ready to give up... this game is very similar to EVE Online with the way the controls are handled, minus EVE's years of optimizations.”
- monetization8 mentions
- 13 % positive mentions
- 38 % neutral mentions
- 50 % negative mentions
The game features no microtransactions, which some players appreciate, but it is criticized for being a "dead game" that feels like a cash grab due to its limited player base and poor marketing. Overall, while the monetization model is straightforward, the game's viability and community engagement are significant concerns.
“It's Eve with no microtransactions.”
“While the concepts are nice, it's a dead game released on Steam as a last-ditch cash grab.”
“Lastly, I would comment on the monetization.”
“Its Eve with no microtransactions.”
- atmosphere4 mentions
- 50 % positive mentions
- 0 % neutral mentions
- 50 % negative mentions
The atmosphere of the game is generally engaging, with gameplay elements compensating for dated graphics. However, it lacks the polish and finer details found in Eve Online, resulting in a less immersive experience.
“Eve with robots, graphics show their age, but gameplay and atmosphere make up for it.”
“It is, however, not as polished as Eve Online, especially in atmosphere and the smaller touches.”
“It is however not as polished as EVE Online, especially in atmosphere and the smaller touches.”
“EVE with robots; the graphics show their age, but gameplay and atmosphere make up for it.”
- stability4 mentions
- 0 % positive mentions
- 0 % neutral mentions
- 100 % negative mentions
The game suffers from significant stability issues, particularly with a problematic targeting system and frequent bugs during gameplay. While the developers are responsive to reported issues and release small patches, the overall experience remains unstable and frustrating for players.
“The game suffers from buggy gameplay; I've seen some awful targeting systems out there, but this is particularly bad.”
“Changes are slow to come out and can be buggy as all hell, but they do respond to the tickets they receive about the bugs with a small patch.”
- humor4 mentions
- 100 % positive mentions
- 0 % neutral mentions
- 0 % negative mentions
Players find the humor in the game to be both extremely hilarious and thought-provoking, often leading to deeper reflections on the comedic moments. Engaging with other players enhances the experience, as it fosters connections with those who share similar senses of humor. Overall, the game's humor is appreciated for its ability to evoke laughter while also prompting contemplation.
“But the longer you are on, the more players you will run into, and in turn, the more opportunities you will have to talk to people who have similar interests, senses of humor, etc. I lucked out when I joined my first corp, and I hope that you do too!”
“And yes, I am very sure of my target in question; it was extremely hilarious at the time, but very sad the more I think about it.”
