Shallow Space

About

Shallow Space is a single player role playing game with a science fiction theme. It was developed by Special Circumstances and was released on October 21, 2015. It received negative reviews from players.

Shallow Space is a 3D RTS game set in a fully realized planetary system, focusing on organized mass combat and strategic ship configurations. Players assemble their battlegroup, mine resources, build structures, and complete missions to acquire blueprints and officers' abilities. As a battlegroup commander, players will complete structured and incidental missions within a larger interstellar conflict.

Genres & Tags

Play Modes

Single-Player

Skip User Reviews

23%

Audience ScoreBased on 144 reviews

graphics4 positive mentions

gameplay3 negative mentions

The game has a beautiful design and graphics, showcasing great potential in the space RTS genre.
The gameplay mechanics, while rough, show promise and could lead to a unique experience if fully developed.
There is a dedicated community that believes in the game's potential and hopes for its revival.

The game has been officially canceled and is essentially abandonware, with no further development or support from the developers.
Players report frequent crashes and bugs, making the game nearly unplayable in its current state.
The developers have failed to communicate with the community, leading to feelings of betrayal among early supporters.

graphics
12 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
33%
42%
25%
The game's graphics are widely praised for their beauty and design, showcasing magnificent visuals that enhance the overall experience. However, players note that the game feels unfinished and buggy, with issues like lag in animations and weak UI elements detracting from the otherwise impressive graphical presentation.
- “The game itself was really beautiful in design and graphics.”
- “The visuals are magnificent in this game.”
- “Graphics and UI are beautiful and very well designed.”
- “Great start, beautiful graphics, too bad it now looks abandoned.”
- “The UI for ship controls is pretty weak; some small graphics could really make them pop.”
- “With OpenDriver Radeon, the game wasn't playable (graphics were tones darker).”
gameplay
9 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
22%
45%
33%
The gameplay is currently criticized for being rough and buggy, with overwhelming controls and significant lag during flight animations, detracting from the overall experience. While the game boasts impressive graphics and promising mechanics, it feels unfinished and lacks substantial content, leaving players disappointed with its limited and flawed sandbox nature. Overall, many users feel that the gameplay does not meet expectations and is in need of significant improvement.
- “This game was extremely promising in terms of both mechanics and theme (and the great graphics), but is currently unfinished and barely playable as a limited/buggy sandbox.”
- “I mean, it still looks great but, despite the newest update, I feel like it has lost some of the gameplay aspects I originally got it for.”
- “The gameplay in the quick battle is similarly fraught with buggy control.”
- “I do not, the gameplay itself should be awesome; sadly, it is not.”
- “The gameplay is really on its bare minimum at the moment.”
story
4 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
25%
75%
The game's story is criticized for being poorly communicated and lacking depth, with players feeling lost due to the absence of an introduction or clear narrative. Despite a promising visual presentation, the gameplay is limited to basic skirmishes and ship customization, leaving many users frustrated with the incomplete state and lack of updates. Overall, the narrative aspect appears underdeveloped and disconnected from the gameplay experience.
- “The game features a small portion of the ships, weapons, and modules that will be available, along with two skirmish battle missions you can play on four maps, and a ship customization designer.”
- “They released a tech demo (which one can put together within a week with Unreal Engine or Unity) and started to tell a dramatic story about the development (with year-long breaks without any communication).”
- “Game is incomplete and no updates for months; in its current state, you can't do anything, build ships, complete missions, or even level up.”
- “It currently features a small portion of the ships, weapons, and modules that will be available, two skirmish battle missions you can play on four maps, and a ship customization designer.”
stability
4 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
100%
The game's stability is severely lacking, with users reporting it as a barely playable tech demo plagued by numerous bugs and control issues. Many describe it as unfinished and a buggy sandbox, detracting from its otherwise promising mechanics and graphics.
- “Development stopped; it was a barely playable tech demo at best, a buggy mess that won't even launch at worst.”
- “The gameplay in the quick battle is similarly fraught with buggy controls.”
- “This game was extremely promising in terms of both mechanics and theme (and the great graphics), but is currently unfinished and barely playable as a limited, buggy sandbox.”
music
3 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
67%
33%
Users have expressed frustration with the music in the game, particularly highlighting issues with sound controls and the inability to turn off the music, which they find annoying.
- “Fix your sound controls, particularly the function of turning off your annoying music.”
optimization
3 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
100%
Users suggest that the game requires further optimization and a tutorial to enhance the overall experience, indicating that improvements in these areas could significantly elevate its quality.
- “After the optimization, the game runs smoothly and the performance has significantly improved.”
- “With a few tweaks and optimizations, this game has the potential to be truly great.”
- “The optimization efforts have made a noticeable difference in gameplay, enhancing the overall experience.”
monetization
2 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
100%
Reviews highlight concerns about monetization practices in early access games, with some developers criticized for creating cash grabs, while others are seen as well-intentioned projects that ultimately fell short. The lack of effective filtering by platforms like Steam is noted as a potential threat to the viability of early access as a funding model.
- “Two-bit developers like this and Steam's inability to filter blatant cash grabs are what's going to kill early access as a funding model.”
- “Rather than being a scam or a cash grab, this was a dream that just didn't make it. Between when I bought this and now, I've gone that road myself, and you need a very specific vision and a very good team scope to do this with limited funds and limited manpower.”
atmosphere
1 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
100%
The atmosphere of the game is highly praised for its appropriateness and ability to enhance immersion, contributing significantly to the overall experience.
- “I'm not sure if it's dynamic or not, but it's highly appropriate, highly atmospheric, and greatly enhances the immersion.”