Precipice
- May 1, 2019
- LRDGames, Inc.
- 2h median play time
Despite promises of great strategic and tactical depth, Precipice relies heavily on random chance and bad AI decision-making. Shamefully shallow, you're better off playing an actual board game for your strategy-game fix.
Get on Steam"Precipice" is a strategy game where you can play as the United States or Soviet Union, providing aid to guerrillas and avoiding direct confrontation during the Cold War. With stunning visuals, the game emphasizes subterfuge and avoiding standoffs to prevent nuclear annihilation. Play against a responsive AI, in hotseat mode, or online multiplayer with leaders from 72 countries depicted as native animals.
PC
Windows
Linux
Reviews
- Precipice effectively simulates the Cold War dynamics, providing a unique blend of strategy and diplomacy.
- The game features charming artwork and animal personifications of historical leaders, adding a humorous touch to the gameplay.
- It offers a variety of strategic options, allowing players to engage in espionage, diplomacy, and military actions to influence global politics.
- The game suffers from significant bugs and crashes, which can disrupt gameplay and lead to frustration.
- There is an over-reliance on RNG (random number generation) for key actions, making outcomes feel arbitrary and often leading to player frustration.
- The AI is often criticized for being overly aggressive and lacking depth, making single-player experiences less enjoyable compared to multiplayer.
- gameplay48 mentions
- 40 % positive mentions
- 54 % neutral mentions
- 6 % negative mentions
The gameplay is characterized by simple mechanics reminiscent of grand strategy games, making it accessible yet challenging to master. While it offers unique and enjoyable elements, many players find it repetitive, unbalanced, and occasionally buggy, with some mechanics poorly explained. Overall, the game has potential for strategic depth but requires further refinement to enhance replayability and player engagement.
“The gameplay is very unique as well as enjoyable, as is the art style.”
“The mechanics are simple enough to allow a quick play but deep enough to entertain and provide interesting strategic decisions.”
“This game offers fun and arcade-like gameplay that is surprisingly in-depth and involves lots of strategy.”
“It is very fun and has some cool concepts and mechanics, but it is also too repetitive, easy, very unrealistic, and quickly becomes too simple.”
“Had potential, but it is ruined by the vague tutorial and complicated gameplay.”
“The gameplay is repetitive.”
- graphics16 mentions
- 63 % positive mentions
- 25 % neutral mentions
- 13 % negative mentions
The graphics of the game are widely praised for their unique art style and charming aesthetic, effectively capturing the Cold War theme. While there are minor graphical bugs reported, the overall presentation is considered engaging and visually appealing, with a strong emphasis on creativity and character design. Players appreciate the slick user interface and the developers' commitment to improving the game's visual experience.
“The art style and aesthetic are gorgeous, and I'd love to see more animalized takes on famous Cold War imagery within the game itself.”
“It really does the Cold War 'resource war' aesthetic very well and looks very charming.”
“What really sells the game though is the artwork.”
“Minor graphical bugs from time to time, but overall very fun, engaging, and replayable.”
“The graphics are unique and the presentation is simplified in many ways.”
- music10 mentions
- 40 % positive mentions
- 30 % neutral mentions
- 30 % negative mentions
The music in the game has received mixed reviews, with some players appreciating its cool and grand dubstep-inspired sound, while others feel it doesn't fit the game's theme and is somewhat repetitive. Overall, the soundtrack is generally praised for its quality and appeal, contributing positively to the game's aesthetic, though some players express a desire for a different musical style more aligned with 80s synth or 8-bit themes.
“The artwork and music is rad!”
“Wonderful art + music, with interesting mechanics that capture the strategic nature of the time period.”
“Also, the soundtrack is dope.”
“Music is dubstep inspired, somewhat inappropriate for this game. I was expecting 80s synth 8-bit themes. No serious con, but just not my taste.”
“Music is decent, if a bit too grand for a strategy game like this.”
“My only criticism so far is the music.”
- stability7 mentions
- 0 % positive mentions
- 0 % neutral mentions
- 100 % negative mentions
The game's stability is frequently criticized, with users reporting numerous bugs and glitches that significantly impact gameplay, particularly in multiplayer mode. While some players find it enjoyable despite these issues, many recommend avoiding it until substantial fixes are implemented. Overall, the game's stability is considered a major flaw that detracts from the overall experience.
“This game most of the time is very buggy as all hell and I do not recommend it at all.”
“However, the system itself is heavily flawed, and the game is very buggy.”
“Multiplayer doesn't work at all, and the instructions on troubleshooting it are just a link to a webpage that has complex instructions; the AI is also unpredictable in that nuclear war can happen randomly. It's a fun game, but multiplayer and the AI need to be fixed before I recommend it.”
- humor6 mentions
- 100 % positive mentions
- 0 % neutral mentions
- 0 % negative mentions
The humor in the game is described as a mix of occasional laughs and more consistent comedic moments, with players enjoying its "tongue-in-cheek" decisions and absurd scenarios, such as AI invasions and animal characters as leaders. While some reviewers find it hilarious and reminiscent of a chaotic version of Risk, others feel it lacks depth in its current form, suggesting that future updates could enhance the overall comedic experience.
“First impression was it was a humorous board game variation with various 'tongue-in-cheek' decisions.”
“This game is hilarious!”
“Fun, like Risk on acid with nukes, and the animal characters for country leaders are quite funny.”
- replayability6 mentions
- 50 % positive mentions
- 0 % neutral mentions
- 50 % negative mentions
Overall, the game's replayability is mixed; while some players find it enjoyable and engaging, others criticize it for low replay value due to poorly executed gameplay and a lack of features. Minor graphical bugs are noted, but they do not significantly detract from the experience for those who appreciate the game's concept.
“Replayable, enjoyable, and very well made!”
“Minor graphical bugs from time to time, but overall very fun, engaging, and replayable.”
“Good replayability”
“It is very hard to review this game as the replayability is very low.”
“Summary: Precipice is a turn-based strategy game with a fantastic concept, but falls apart due to poorly executed gameplay, bland AI, and lack of rewarding replayability.”
“All in all, there aren't enough features in most aspects of the game to give it any replay value.”
- story2 mentions
- 50 % positive mentions
- -50 % neutral mentions
- 100 % negative mentions
The story encompasses a wide range of political and espionage themes, including trading aid, protests, coups, and sabotage, highlighting a complex narrative. However, players note a lack of user interface elements when engaging with their country if they cannot participate in space missions, which may detract from the overall experience.
“From trading aid to protests, from coups to sabotage, the game offers a rich tapestry of spy missions and more.”
“The story feels disjointed, jumping from trading aid to protests, coups, and sabotage without a coherent narrative.”
“If you can't afford to do the space missions, there is no user interface at all when you click on your country, making it frustrating to navigate.”
- atmosphere2 mentions
- 0 % positive mentions
- 50 % neutral mentions
- 50 % negative mentions
The atmosphere of the game "Precipice" is highly praised, with users noting that it excels in creating an immersive and engaging environment.
“If there is one thing that Precipice does extremely well, it is the atmosphere of the game.”
- monetization1 mentions
- 0 % positive mentions
- 0 % neutral mentions
- 100 % negative mentions
The monetization of the game is generally viewed positively, as players find it enjoyable and more complex than initially suggested by its marketing, indicating that the value offered may justify any associated costs.
- emotional1 mentions
- 100 % positive mentions
- 0 % neutral mentions
- 0 % negative mentions
The game features a visually appealing interface and engaging mechanics, complemented by a strong soundtrack, but players may need to manage their emotions and patience when facing setbacks.
- optimization1 mentions
- 300 % positive mentions
- -200 % neutral mentions
- 0 % negative mentions
The game is well-optimized, running smoothly and showcasing a high level of effort in its development, complemented by charming art design.
“The game has hard work put into it, runs smoothly, and features cute art.”
“The optimization is impressive, allowing for a seamless gaming experience.”
“I appreciate how well-optimized the game is; it runs flawlessly on my system.”
