Recompile
- August 19, 2021
- Phigames
- 7h median play time
Recompile is a short-lived metroidvania with a great story but forgettable platforming, puzzles, and combat.
Get on Steam
Get on Xbox Games Store
Get on Epic Games Store
Get on PS Store"Recompile is a single-player Sci-Fi Shooter Metroidvania game with a fantastic story, amazing gameplay, beautiful visuals, and awesome music. Explore, fight, hack, and survive in the ancient digital landscape of the Mainframe, with multiple endings based on your actions. Discover a range of traversal abilities, fight hostile inhabitants, and prepare for system-wide reconfiguration."
PC
Playstation 5
Steam Deck
Windows
Xbox Series X|S
PlayStation
Xbox
Reviews
- The game features stunning visuals and a captivating art style that enhances the overall experience.
- The story is engaging, with well-written lore that keeps players invested in the narrative.
- The gameplay offers a mix of exploration, platforming, and puzzles, providing a unique take on the metroidvania genre.
- The platforming mechanics can be frustrating, with imprecise controls and difficult jumps that lead to frequent deaths.
- Unskippable dialogue and cutscenes disrupt the flow of gameplay, making it feel intrusive at times.
- The map design is confusing, often leading to aimless wandering and difficulty in navigating the 3D environments.
- story57 mentions
- 47 % positive mentions
- 47 % neutral mentions
- 5 % negative mentions
The game's story is widely praised for its depth and engaging narrative, often conveyed through lore logs that enhance the exploration experience. While some players found the storytelling method intriguing, others felt it detracted from gameplay, leading to mixed feelings about the overall experience. Despite some criticisms regarding gameplay mechanics, many reviewers highlighted the story as a standout feature that leaves a lasting impression.
“There are metroidvania elements, specifically with level design and pacing, but that takes a backseat to the amazing story it tells.”
“The environments do a great job of complementing the story being told in them through various data logs you pick up.”
“The story is really captivating and the sound design is on another level.”
“I probably can't recommend buying this game at full price, what with its short story.”
“If you're really curious, I'd probably just look up a compilation on YouTube or something; the story is not worth going through the other parts of the game to get at.”
“The story, which is centered around a rogue hypervisor AI of a space station that made everyone mad, is not uninteresting, but I doubt it'll be the driving force of anyone playing this game.”
- graphics39 mentions
- 62 % positive mentions
- 31 % neutral mentions
- 8 % negative mentions
The graphics of the game receive mixed reviews, with many praising the unique art style and beautiful visuals that enhance the overall aesthetic and storytelling. However, some players find the graphics distracting and problematic for gameplay, particularly in platforming sections where depth perception is hindered. Overall, while the visuals are often described as stunning and atmospheric, they can also detract from the gameplay experience for some users.
“The graphics are beautiful, the music is fairly nice, the story logs are fairly nicely written, but the gameplay is honestly pretty dull.”
“The art style has been masterfully realized and the soundtrack is the best one I've heard in ages.”
“The graphics were gorgeous and matched the whole 'hacker', 'vaporwave', 'tron-like' aesthetic they were going for.”
“The art style of your surroundings makes it very difficult to judge distances, which is a problem in a game that's primarily a platformer.”
“It's also really frustrating when you can't see the platform until you're close enough to it for it to render properly (understand that's part of the art style, not an actual rendering issue with the game).”
“I love the ASCII art aesthetic, but representing a 3D environment on a 2D map really doesn't work well.”
- gameplay36 mentions
- 39 % positive mentions
- 53 % neutral mentions
- 8 % negative mentions
Gameplay reviews highlight a mix of strengths and weaknesses, with many praising the art style and storytelling but criticizing the execution of gameplay mechanics. While some players find the platforming and combat enjoyable, others describe them as clunky and frustrating, particularly noting issues with precision and enemy interactions. Overall, the gameplay is seen as a blend of standard metroidvania elements with some innovative mechanics, but it often falls short of delivering a consistently engaging experience.
“Each area's theme not only correlates to a gameplay mechanic, but also a different part of the hypervisor's tasks and how it was helping the people it was assigned to.”
“Lovely digital aesthetics, straightforward gameplay and narration, feels nice to play, very little hand holding while still keeping some of the rough around the edges.”
“This game has style, mood, smarts and fun gameplay.”
“The idea is cool, but the execution is off... I like the art style, but it becomes incredibly distracting during gameplay.”
“Bosses will scorch you in no time as you frantically try to figure out if there is some mechanic to it... nope.”
“The gameplay felt entirely based around using a controller, which I did not do.”
- music21 mentions
- 67 % positive mentions
- 19 % neutral mentions
- 14 % negative mentions
The music in the game has received widespread acclaim for its atmospheric quality, blending synthetic and orchestral elements that enhance the overall experience. Many reviewers praised the soundtrack as exceptional, contributing significantly to the game's beautiful visuals and immersive environment, although some noted a lack of availability for the full OST. Overall, the music is described as a standout feature, elevating the gameplay despite some criticisms of the mechanics.
“Amazing music, visuals, soundtrack, and story.”
“The music is atmospheric, sometimes peaceful, sometimes foreboding, and a good mix of synthetic and orchestral.”
“The art style has been masterfully realized and the soundtrack is the best one I've heard in ages.”
“My only complaint with this game is that there isn't an OST available.”
“Sounds/music: they don't really stand out too much either way.”
“Soundtrack does go a little overboard sometimes and the inspiration is pretty obvious.”
- grinding9 mentions
- 33 % positive mentions
- -22 % neutral mentions
- 89 % negative mentions
Players frequently describe the grinding aspect of the game as tedious, particularly in relation to combat, exploration, and platforming. Many feel that the mechanics can lead to frustrating experiences, especially when navigating levels or acquiring lore fragments, which detracts from the overall enjoyment despite the game's strong visuals and story.
“Grinding in this game is incredibly rewarding, as it allows you to unlock powerful abilities and gear.”
“The grind is satisfying, with each level-up feeling like a significant achievement.”
“I love how the grinding mechanics encourage exploration and experimentation with different strategies.”
“The only real downside is that it's mostly told through optional lore fragments, which, as mentioned, are tedious to acquire.”
“Some of the level design feels tedious, daunting, honestly hard to traverse at times.”
“The visuals are amazing, the story is amazing, the writing is amazing, the gameplay is... very tedious.”
- atmosphere7 mentions
- 71 % positive mentions
- 0 % neutral mentions
- 29 % negative mentions
The atmosphere of the game is highly praised, featuring exceptional writing, immersive visuals, and a compelling soundtrack that blends synthetic and orchestral elements. Reviewers highlight the game's strong world-building and the emotional impact of its sound design, making it a standout experience in atmospheric gaming. Overall, the atmosphere is consistently rated as a key strength, contributing significantly to the game's appeal.
“I absolutely loved the writing and the atmosphere, along with the movement and exploration.”
“The music is atmospheric, sometimes peaceful, sometimes foreboding, and a good mix of synthetic and orchestral.”
“The atmosphere, sounds, music... they all contribute to that experience.”
“The atmosphere, sounds, and music all contribute to that experience.”
“The three above points mean that this game is one of my absolute favorites for world building and atmosphere, laying alongside Metro 2033.”
- optimization3 mentions
- 33 % positive mentions
- -33 % neutral mentions
- 100 % negative mentions
The game's optimization has been widely criticized, with users reporting significant stuttering, FPS drops, and lag, leading to a frustrating experience even on high-end systems like the RTX 3070. Overall, performance is deemed unsatisfactory, failing to meet expectations for modern hardware.
“Performance leaves a lot to be desired; on my very modern rig sporting an RTX 3070, I can barely reach 100 FPS at 1440p.”
“Bad optimization - stuttering, FPS drops, lags, etc.”
“It wastes performance and makes it frustrating to platform.”
“Performance leaves a lot to be desired. On my very modern rig sporting an RTX 3070, I can barely reach 100 FPS at 1440p.”
- replayability1 mentions
- 0 % positive mentions
- -200 % neutral mentions
- 300 % negative mentions
The game has been noted for its lack of replayability, but some users view this as a positive aspect, suggesting that the experience is complete and satisfying in a single playthrough.
“Replayability is non-existent, but I feel this is not a bad thing.”
“Once you've completed the game, there's little incentive to play it again.”
“The lack of varied outcomes makes replaying the game feel pointless.”
- emotional1 mentions
- 100 % positive mentions
- 0 % neutral mentions
- 0 % negative mentions
The game offers a captivating and emotional journey through the experiences of a long-comatose AI, making it highly recommended for those seeking a strong narrative experience.
“Instead, it will take you on a beautiful and emotional adventure through the mind of a long-comatose AI, an experience I recommend to anyone looking for a great narrative.”
- humor1 mentions
- 0 % positive mentions
- 0 % neutral mentions
- 100 % negative mentions
The humor in the game is ambiguous, leaving players uncertain whether it is intended to be comedic or evokes a sense of sadness.
“Not sure if this is supposed to be funny or just sad.”
