Raw Metal

About

Raw Metal is a single player hack and slash game with a science fiction theme. It was developed by Team Crucible and was released on March 19, 2024. It received very positive reviews from players.

Infiltrate the depths of an exoplanet mining facility to scavenge for gear and challenge a corrupt megacorporation. Utilize gadgets and equipment in high-stakes stealth, and hone your fighting skills in breakneck combat in this stylish stealth-action dungeon crawler.

Genres & Tags

Play Modes

Single-Player

Skip User Reviews

91%

Audience ScoreBased on 386 reviews

gameplay30 positive mentions

grinding14 negative mentions

The game features clean stealth mechanics and engaging combat that feels satisfying and impactful.
The art style and music are exceptional, creating a unique atmosphere that enhances the overall experience.
The game offers a rewarding challenge, with a blend of stealth and beat 'em up gameplay that keeps players engaged.

The camera can be frustrating during combat, often obstructing the player's view and making it difficult to track enemies.
The extraction mechanics can feel punishing, as losing gear upon death can lead to tedious grinding to recover items.
Some players find the combat repetitive, especially when facing multiple enemies, leading to a lack of variety in encounters.

gameplay
82 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
37%
58%
5%
The gameplay is a blend of stealth and beat 'em up mechanics, offering a unique experience that combines fluid combat with strategic stealth elements. While many players appreciate the satisfying combat and the ability to experiment with various mechanics, some find the game challenging and occasionally punishing, particularly in boss encounters. Overall, the gameplay loop is engaging, though it can feel repetitive and may require significant practice to master.
- “Genuinely one of the most unique and best games I've played in a while, not to mention its art style and fun but difficult gameplay; genuinely my favorite game.”
- “The stealth mechanics are great, the combat is fluid, and with the good controls, it allows for effective combos packed with lovely visuals (especially the knockout ones).”
- “Fantastic gameplay mix of Yakuza brawling and Metal Gear Solid stealthing, with a little roguelite in the mix.”
- “For a game inspired by Sifu and extraction shooters, it's shocking how little the extraction mechanics are used for unlocking new move sets or combos. It seems like such an obvious thing; instead of having Sifu's combo points to unlock new skills, you have your extraction points used to unlock your character's move sets.”
- “The game already tries to be a lot of things at once, as evident by my initial descriptor of it, but gear with minimal/extreme stat/effect changes with no in-between, that also has durability which can randomly break upon death, feels extremely unnecessary and feeds into one of the ways to make this game a major grind fest to play while you try and figure out its gameplay.”
- “Far too repetitive in terms of gameplay; level layouts are static with the exception of some items moving, doors closing, and slightly different enemy layouts.”
graphics
35 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
49%
42%
9%
The graphics of the game are widely praised for their unique and aesthetically pleasing art style, which enhances the overall experience and complements the fluid combat mechanics. Players appreciate the vibrant visuals, character designs, and immersive sound design, describing the art as "eye candy" and "stylish." However, some critiques mention that while the graphics are impressive, they can occasionally lead to performance issues, particularly during intense gameplay moments.
- “The art style is amazing and all of the obtainable gear makes your character look sick no matter what you mix and match with.”
- “Aesthetically spectacular, an incredible sense of unique style, and engaging & intuitive gameplay which is both challenging and incredibly satisfying.”
- “The animations are amazing, the voice work is great, the stylized nature of the game's graphics are really nice to see.”
- “Due to the art style, it's ridiculously easy to tell if a shadow actually hides the player or not.”
- “Especially since the visuals don't exactly warrant such frame drops.”
- “Fun and fast-paced combat, neat and lively graphics, but falls apart when it comes to the actual stealth mechanics and balancing of the game.”
music
26 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
69%
19%
12%
The music in the game has received overwhelmingly positive feedback, with many players praising its addictive quality, excellent original soundtrack, and seamless integration with the game's combat and visuals. The fusion of genres, particularly the raw metal influences, enhances the overall atmosphere, making it a standout feature that elevates the gaming experience. While a few critiques mention the need for improvement, the majority agree that the music significantly contributes to the game's charm and enjoyment.
- “The music is absolutely fantastic.”
- “The rush you get as you hear the sick guitar riffs from the game's amazing soundtrack made this game an incredible experience that I think action beat'em up fans will truly enjoy.”
- “The original soundtrack to this game is also surprisingly good.”
- “Music isn't too good, and all I've done in my review is complain.”
- “The sound effects, the voice actors, and the music.”
- “The art style, the music, the characters.”
story
23 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
48%
39%
13%
The game's story is generally perceived as simple and underdeveloped, with players noting that while it has intriguing elements and potential, it lacks depth and clarity. Many reviewers appreciate the environmental storytelling and audio logs that provide snippets of lore, but feel that the overall narrative could benefit from more fleshing out. Despite these shortcomings, the engaging combat and aesthetic appeal keep players invested, even if they come primarily for the gameplay rather than the story itself.
- “The demo sets a great example for the game as a whole, (yet it still manages to get better) the story is there, not in your face if you don't want it, but if you do, it is wonderful. The best description I could give the gameplay is Metal Gear stealth x Devil May Cry combat, with a beautiful persona-inspired art style.”
- “I enjoyed my time with raw metal, nice story about an underdog going into messy scrap fighting 1v4's sometimes. You get better learning what you can and can't do, the mechanics are easy to learn and feel very smooth, eventually learning how to combo effectively is satisfying.”
- “The style is cool, the combat is slick, the music absolutely bangs, and the story is surprisingly deep.”
- “The story needed to be fleshed out more; through the 9 audio recordings and the voice lines of the 3 bosses, you can piece together a very simple, shallow story.”
- “The story in this game is very light.”
- “Story is 'tell, don't show'.”
grinding
14 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
100%
Players find the grinding aspect of the game to be tedious and repetitive, often requiring them to replay levels multiple times to gather resources and improve their gear. While some enjoy the mechanics and acknowledge the need for grinding to progress, many feel that the design leads to unnecessary padding of playtime, making the experience frustrating rather than enjoyable. Overall, the grinding can detract from an otherwise engaging gameplay experience.
- “But the bosses feel like they were made arbitrarily more difficult to boost the already padded playtime I spend grinding currency to attempt them.”
- “I want to like Raw Metal, but so much of it (at the time of release anyway) is farming the same levels over and over to get another shot at the bosses.”
- “So either you participate in the game's roguelite/RPG mechanics to get a slightly better chance at the boss, and suffer all the more by grinding through the same levels over and over just to make sure you can keep it, or you outright ignore the game's mechanics, but still wind up suffering the grind albeit a bit less.”
optimization
9 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
67%
11%
22%
The game's optimization has received mixed feedback, with players praising the heartfelt voice acting and engaging combat, but also noting issues such as stuttering and unresponsiveness that can hinder gameplay. While the overall experience is enjoyable, these performance problems can lead to frustration, especially during challenging runs. Despite these drawbacks, the developers are commended for providing a demo, allowing players to assess the game's performance before purchasing.
- “Their takes may differ, but they both work so fluidly well with each other that their performances feel cleanly in line with the game's thematic direction.”
- “The guard dialog is also hilarious and all of the voice actors have collectively done a great job with their performances.”
- “Not saying this from an absolutely biased perspective, as I am the voice actor of the first boss, but all of the other voice actors' performances in this game are great.”
- “I got more and more aggravated as I failed runs with nothing to show for it, which in turn made my performance in the next run even worse since I had no patience to stealth and rushed into fights I couldn't win.”
- “Third problem - stuttering/unresponsiveness.”
humor
6 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
100%
The game's humor is highlighted by its clever blend of stealth and beat 'em up mechanics, featuring amusing ragdoll physics and entertaining guard dialogue. Players appreciate the comedic elements, such as quirky gadget interactions and the voice actors' performances, which enhance the overall experience. However, some find the humor intertwined with gameplay frustrations, particularly regarding confusing mechanics like parrying.
- “Funny burglar touches sec in an unkind manner in a stealth game, best thing ever.”
- “Extremely raw game (ha ha I'm so funny) with very solid (Metal Gear Solid? Ha ha) stealth and combat.”
- “Throw a gadget that teleports you or them out of combat - hilarious, especially since they have voicelines for that.”
stability
4 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
100%
The game's stability is generally criticized for being buggy, with issues such as enemies getting stuck and some combat mechanics not functioning smoothly. While players find the combat enjoyable, these bugs can detract from the overall experience, leading to frustration during repeat runs. Despite these issues, some players are willing to overlook them for the fun of the gameplay.
- “This game is buggy.”
- “It's a little buggy; enemies have gotten stuck on me only like twice.”
- “Guards in this game have one attack, including some with a taser dart, and an elite who swings twice, I guess. This makes doing repeat runs so boring that I stopped playing classic to just focus on the bosses and beat the game, making the extraction part of it completely worthless.”
replayability
4 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
50%
50%
Players have mixed feelings about the game's replayability; while some appreciate its addictive nature and unique blend of stealth and combat, others feel that the limited content and various gameplay issues detract from its overall value. Despite these concerns, the game's style and short run-time contribute to a solid replay experience for many.
- “While I have my complaints about basically all the features involved (the targeting for stealth can be weird, combat can feel confusing, and the camera isn't great, and loot encumbrance affecting not just stealth, but combat speed is extremely annoying), a lot of it is covered by the game's sense of style and the rather short run-time, creating an addictive replayability.”
- “Overall, a solid 10/10 game with great replay value.”
- “I understand it's all about being replayable, but there's not enough content for me to believe it's worth the price.”
- “It's a short, nice, and (in my opinion) underrated little game that combines MGS' stealth with a simplified version of Sifu's combat and replayability.”
atmosphere
3 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
67%
67%
The game's atmosphere is highly praised for effectively immersing players in the concept of exploring a mining facility, enhanced by a captivating soundtrack and charming voice acting. Despite some repetitive gameplay environments, the weight and grit of each run contribute to a thrilling experience that keeps players engaged.
- “The environments, while somewhat similar in gameplay, have a tangible atmosphere that effectively conveys the concept of 'delving ever deeper into a mining facility' that the game is based on.”
- “Great atmosphere, insane soundtrack, charming voice acting, and a lovely game loop.”
- “The environments, while somewhat samey in gameplay, do have a tangible atmosphere that helps set the 'delving ever deeper into a mining facility' concept very well, which the game and gameplay are based on.”
- “The weight, the atmosphere, the grit—every run feels like your last, and that’s what makes it incredible.”
character development
2 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
100%
While the reviews highlight the game's impressive visual style and character designs, they do not provide specific insights into character development, suggesting that this aspect may not be a focal point of the game.
- “The game's visual style is cool, character designs are recognizable and neat, and the overall vibe is engaging!”
- “I think my favorite part about this game is definitely the visual style, from the character designs to the environments to the arenas.”
emotional
1 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
100%
Players find the game emotionally resonant, highlighting the heartfelt contributions of the voice actors and developers, which enhance the overall experience. The combination of strong voice acting, sound, and art design contributes to a passionate and immersive atmosphere that resonates deeply with players.
- “Had the voice actor of the head of security (Trevor) and the developer's brother drop by in my stream. It was heartwarming and an awesome time. This game is full of heart and passion, and it nails so many aspects from the voice acting, sound and art design, to the mechanics and art direction at a high level.”