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Sonar Shock

86%Game Brain Score
gameplay, graphics
optimization, stability
86% User Score Based on 308 reviews

Platforms

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About

"Sonar Shock" is a first-person dungeon-crawler with RPG elements, where you explore a Soviet super submarine filled with supernatural infestations. Customize your character and navigate through the submarine's four floors, collecting powerful weapons and uncovering its dark secrets. Interact with the crew, solve side-quests, and discover hidden treasures, all while facing your fears in this survival horror.

Genres & Tags
Play Modes
Sonar Shock screenshot
Sonar Shock screenshot
Sonar Shock screenshot
Sonar Shock screenshot
Sonar Shock screenshot
Sonar Shock screenshot

86%
Audience ScoreBased on 308 reviews
gameplay38 positive mentions
optimization16 negative mentions
  • Cool art style and atmosphere that effectively captures a Soviet horror theme.
  • Engaging gameplay with rewarding exploration and a unique weapon reloading mechanic.
  • Strong nostalgic appeal for fans of System Shock, with a mix of humor and horror elements.
  • Terrible performance issues, including significant frame drops and bugs that can lead to soft locks.
  • Clunky controls with no strafing or mouse look, making combat and navigation frustrating at times.
  • Limited save system that relies on consumable items, which can lead to lost progress and increased tension.
  • gameplay
    116 mentions Positive Neutral Negative

    The gameplay of "Sonar Shock" is characterized by its retro-inspired mechanics, including clunky controls and unique gun handling that adds tension during combat. Players appreciate the rewarding exploration and resource management, though some find the archaic design choices, such as limited save options and a lack of quality-of-life features, frustrating. Overall, the game offers a nostalgic experience reminiscent of classic immersive sims, appealing primarily to fans of the genre despite its rough edges.

    • “Sonar Shock is a great entry in the already rare immersive sim-horror genre, offering a unique setting and gameplay.”
    • “The general gameplay loop of scrounging for supplies is very satisfying.”
    • “The atmosphere is thick and very unpleasant (in the best possible way). Moment-to-moment gameplay is tense and exciting.”
    • “Sonar Shock takes a lot of inspiration from the original 1994 System Shock, without taking any consideration as to what made the UI semi-bearable for the average player. Hidden behind the needlessly wonky movement and optimization is an admittedly fun experience that combines System Shock 2's roleplaying mechanics with old DOS game shooting mechanics.”
    • “If you die and haven’t saved in a while, it’s back as far as you were, as I learned the hard way getting confident and then dying, losing 90 minutes of gameplay in the process.”
    • “This game has a lot of potential, but the aggressively retro design (can't look up or down, intrusive UI, saves require consumables, obfuscated mechanics, etc.) is too frustrating for me to engage with beyond the first thirty minutes.”
  • graphics
    72 mentions Positive Neutral Negative

    The game's graphics are a mix of retro and unique art styles, evoking a strong Soviet aesthetic that enhances the horror atmosphere, despite some players finding them low-budget or overly cartoonish. While the visuals may initially seem unremarkable, they contribute effectively to the game's tension and immersive experience, with level design offering varied environments that evoke claustrophobia and unease. However, performance issues and optimization problems detract from the overall graphical experience, leaving some players wishing for higher fidelity visuals.

    • “Each level of the submarine provides a different aesthetic to breathe in, starting with claustrophobic corridors and spreading into sprawling forested areas to a man-made frozen tundra.”
    • “The intro sequence explaining the utopia was very cool, and I really liked the graphical styling it was presented in.”
    • “And the aesthetic... eldritch horror on a USSR sub, amazing.”
    • “Its a great game with funny dialogue/moments, serious horrors and jump scares, and a unique art style and gameplay that gets undermined by poor optimization and bugs.”
    • “When you take a casual glance at the game, you’ll probably only notice the low-budget graphics, the somewhat confusing UI, and the Lego minifigure-looking NPCs.”
    • “I love retro-style graphics, but sometimes these are almost beyond retro and feel too much like Minecraft.”
  • optimization
    70 mentions Positive Neutral Negative

    The game's optimization is widely criticized, with players reporting severe performance issues, particularly during enemy encounters, leading to significant frame rate drops. Bugs and glitches, such as getting stuck on geometry and crashing, further detract from the experience, although some players still find enjoyment in the game despite these flaws. Many reviewers express hope for future patches to improve performance and overall playability.

    • “I've been quite enjoying the game thus far in spite of its performance. I'll check back in a couple of months once they've finished patching, and if level four becomes playable, then I will change my review.”
    • “There are minimal screen effects, so I don't think any major performance issues would be coming from the visual department.”
    • “The game is good, but the performance is terrible; it is in desperate need of better optimization.”
    • “There really is a good game under the hood, but the problem is it's seriously marred by bugs and inexplicably bad performance issues.”
    • “Optimization is definitely not quite there, and I would warn anyone who wants to play this on Steam Deck against doing so.”
  • atmosphere
    66 mentions Positive Neutral Negative

    The atmosphere of the game is widely praised for its immersive and oppressive qualities, effectively blending elements of survival horror with a unique 70s-80s Soviet theme. Players appreciate the varied and richly designed environments, which contribute to a tense and engaging experience, often leaving them on edge. The combination of humor, horror, and intricate sound design enhances the overall atmosphere, making it a standout feature of the game.

    • “Atmosphere is crazy, humorous but also oppressive, yet always believable and immersive - and the setting includes a lot of varied locales ranging from what you'd expect to find on a submarine, to parks, and ancient libraries and temples, and it all fits together.”
    • “The atmosphere is just incredible, I was nervous and on the edge of my seat pretty much for the whole game.”
    • “The best part about the game besides the gameplay is the atmosphere which oozes with 70s-80s Soviet themes and culture, and you'll be sure to find tons of vodka on your journey which has a dual purpose of being currency or a small boost of health.”
    • “Sometimes it has a creepy and oppressive atmosphere, and other times you're solving mysteries with actual Sherlock Holmes. I'm not saying this type of tone could never work together, it's just that the tonal changes were kind of off for me.”
    • “On the highest difficulty, it's really butt-clenching at times; the atmosphere is dense and convincing even with the overly comic art style of the enemy sprites.”
    • “You'll be navigating environments that generally put you at unease with a mix of strong art style, sound design, and general atmosphere.”
  • story
    64 mentions Positive Neutral Negative

    The story of Sonar Shock is a mix of silly and intriguing elements, featuring a blend of tense survival horror and humorous writing that keeps players engaged, despite some narrative inconsistencies. While it borrows heavily from titles like System Shock and BioShock, it offers a variety of side quests and environmental storytelling that enhance the immersive experience. Overall, the plot is serviceable with moments of genuine tension, though it may not leave a lasting impression beyond the initial playthrough.

    • “It has an intriguing story, manages to have humorous writing without becoming bogged down in memes, is occasionally genuinely scary, and offers you interesting challenges and choices throughout.”
    • “The overall plot is intriguing, and the environment is nicely designed.”
    • “There's a main plot to follow obviously but there's a pretty large amount of side activities that range from finding someone's vodka stash which you can use to heal or trade like a currency, tracking down a serial killer by deciphering codes, to finding experimental weaponry.”
    • “The story is also yet another carbon copy of System Shock 2/Bioshock, so not much necessarily going on.”
    • “Sonar Shock doesn’t provide a backlog of conversations and offers very minute updates to quests, so if you leave something behind for a while, be ready to backtrack and guess how to resume that area.”
    • “The plot was often hard to keep up with, but it all came together nicely at the end.”
  • humor
    26 mentions Positive Neutral Negative

    The game features a blend of humor and horror, with witty dialogue and clever meta-humor that enhances its immersive atmosphere. While some players appreciate the satirical elements and the charm of its comedic moments, others find the humor's integration with serious themes to be hit or miss. Overall, the humor adds a unique layer to the gameplay, though occasional typos and bugs can detract from the experience.

    • “The game just oozes charm and is equal parts hilarious tongue-in-cheek adventure and survival horror.”
    • “There's also a good dose of satirical humor in it, which suits this world - and the mood - very well.”
    • “The game will attack you with surprises and a lot of very clever meta-humor, which honestly caught me off guard a time or two, so be prepared!”
  • stability
    12 mentions Positive Neutral Negative

    The game exhibits notable stability issues, with frequent bugs affecting gameplay, such as enemies getting stuck and glitches in the user interface. Players report that sanity mechanics can lead to unpredictable side effects, including hallucinations and additional glitches. While weapon usage generally feels satisfying, occasional reload issues and a primitive dialogue system contribute to an overall experience that is described as "a little buggy" but still enjoyable.

    • “It can be buggy at times; the enemies have a tendency to get stuck behind a lot of objects.”
    • “The lower your sanity drops, side effects like hallucinations, UI glitches, and enemies will begin to appear; it's always a gamble when using them if you're not prepared for the consequences.”
    • “The dialogue system is quite primitive and sometimes buggy.”
  • music
    10 mentions Positive Neutral Negative

    The game's music is minimal, with players recalling the intro theme but struggling to remember other tracks, as the focus is on creating a tense atmosphere through ambient sounds. However, the hacking mini-game features a catchy tune that stands out. Overall, while the music may not be prominent, it effectively complements the gameplay experience.

    • “The gameplay is fun and challenging, everything sounds great (from music to gunshots), and the horror is definitely there, even with plenty of NPCs to interact with.”
    • “Edit: The hacking mini-game song is a bop, 'bonk!'”
    • “Thinking back on it now, was there even music in the game?”
    • “I remember the intro theme song, but I'm actually struggling to think of any other music.”
    • “Sonar Shock features very little music and lets the derelict ambiance of the multi-layered areas bleed into your ears and provide a seriously tense environment around every turn.”
  • replayability
    8 mentions Positive Neutral Negative

    The game offers high replayability, largely due to its skill system and build variety, which encourages players to experiment with different playstyles. Despite its dungeon crawler camera mechanics, the relatively short length of the game enhances its replay value, making it enjoyable to revisit. Players express a strong likelihood of returning for additional playthroughs.

    • “If you can deal with a D-key dungeon crawler style camera turning, it's a pretty enjoyable game with decent replay value through its skill system.”
    • “It's essentially a stripped down version of SS2 (including weapon stat requirements), but this works in favor due to how relatively short the game is, so the actual replay value potential can be seen pretty easily.”
    • “Probably has plenty of replayability due to build variety; I'll definitely come back to it at some point.”
  • grinding
    4 mentions Positive Neutral Negative

    Players find the grinding aspect of the game to be tedious, primarily due to frustrating movement and mouselook mechanics that hinder exploration and make simple tasks, like entering doorways, feel unnecessarily complicated. This detracts from the overall enjoyment, turning what should be fun into a chore.

    • “The aforementioned issues with movement and mouselook unfortunately turn this from fun to tedious more often than not.”
    • “This can make even entering a normal doorway unnecessarily fiddly and makes exploration quite tedious.”
  • emotional
    2 mentions Positive Neutral Negative

    The emotional aspect of the game initially feels disorienting and unconvincing, but over time, it gradually resonates with players, ultimately earning a cherished place in their hearts.

    • “At first, it didn't convince me and even made me feel a bit dizzy, but little by little it has won a place in my heart.”

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