Space Mercs
- August 2, 2019
- Bacioiu Ciprian
Get on Steam"Space Mercs" is an intense arcade-style space combat game featuring large-scale battles with hundreds of spaceships. In the single-player campaign, players take on missions that increase in scale and difficulty, with the goal of becoming the best pilot in the galaxy. All sales of the game will support funds for Ukraine.
PC
Windows
Linux
Reviews
- The game features beautiful graphics and runs smoothly even on low-end PCs.
- It offers intuitive controls that are easy to pick up, making it accessible for casual play.
- The developer is responsive and engaged with the community, showing promise for future updates and improvements.
- The game lacks mouse support, making aiming difficult and frustrating for players who prefer that control scheme.
- Many players find the gameplay to be bare-bones and lacking engaging combat mechanics, with enemies often flying in predictable patterns.
- There are significant issues with the user interface and options menu, including inconsistent resolution settings and unclear control schemes.
- story38 mentions
- 16 % positive mentions
- 76 % neutral mentions
- 8 % negative mentions
The game's story is presented through short, mission-based narratives that some players find engaging, while others criticize it for lacking depth and coherence, citing spelling errors in mission briefings. Players appreciate the compact missions and the ability to jump in and out for quick gameplay, but the narrative does not reach the complexity of classic space shooters like X-Wing or Wing Commander. Overall, the story serves as a backdrop for the arcade-style action rather than a focal point of the experience.
“It's been a long time since I enjoyed a space shooter, but this one kept me playing even after failing the same mission three times.”
“Honestly, I can see why the dev refers to it as an extreme combat space game - I'm on the final mission right now and it's literally a 3D bullet hell.”
“Come back now and again to level up your weapons, and slowly make your way through the missions... it's not X-Wing or Wing Commander (yet), but it's in constant improvement, and the dev really listens to all feedback.”
“There are spelling errors in the text of the mission briefings!”
“In the second mission, you have to join the something-or-other government and the whos-a-ma-whatsit forces defending a blockade from pirates (there's no blockade, it's just you in a bunch of asteroids).”
“Start mission, don't turn on engines, just rotate on the spot and blast the enemies as they fly mindlessly at you.”
- graphics20 mentions
- 60 % positive mentions
- 25 % neutral mentions
- 15 % negative mentions
The graphics of the game are generally praised for their beauty and polish, especially considering its optimization for low-spec PCs, allowing for smooth gameplay even on older hardware. However, some users noted issues with blurriness and low-quality UI elements, which detracted from the overall visual experience. Despite these criticisms, many players appreciate the art style and find the graphics impressive for the game's performance capabilities.
“The game runs with 700 fps on my NVIDIA GTX 1070; it is made for low-spec PCs but nevertheless has great graphics, so it is smooth as hell.”
“It's entertaining, has beautiful graphics, and feels really polished.”
“Old school space shooter with amazing graphics and smooth gameplay. 10/10 :)”
“The visuals are blurry, the UI and menus look very low quality and hashed together.”
“This makes the game look blurry, and the already simple graphics just look terrible.”
“Optimized for humble PCs and runs very well even on integrated graphics from yesteryear.”
- gameplay20 mentions
- 60 % positive mentions
- 30 % neutral mentions
- 10 % negative mentions
Gameplay reviews are mixed, with some players finding it very fun and addictive, particularly praising the balanced mechanics, smooth controls, and engaging missions. However, others feel that the gameplay lacks excitement and can be frustrating, especially in terms of hitting targets in space combat. Overall, while the graphics and core mechanics receive positive feedback, opinions on the overall enjoyment of gameplay vary significantly.
“Very fun arcade space shooter game, with very balanced mechanics and controls, which you play one mission at a time, each mission taking 5 to 20 minutes.”
“First impressions -- the core mechanics are really fun.”
“The aiming mechanic is very good since most of the time it's very hard and frustrating to hit something in space fighting games.”
“The mechanics and vision are executed well so far from my first impressions.”
“And of course all that mechanics of money, improving weapons, etc.”
- grinding6 mentions
- 0 % positive mentions
- 33 % neutral mentions
- 67 % negative mentions
Players generally find grinding to be a tedious experience, often feeling it requires excessive time and effort, especially within the early stages of the game. However, many acknowledge that it can be more effective than alternative methods, such as flying.
“I realize I haven't played for long, but hopefully the fact that I found it so tedious within the first 10 minutes will tell you something.”
“It's tedious, but much more effective than flying.”
“You'll need a second life for grinding.”
- stability2 mentions
- 100 % positive mentions
- 0 % neutral mentions
- 0 % negative mentions
The game is praised for its excellent stability, running smoothly without issues, which enhances the overall experience. Players appreciate the combination of great visuals and skill-based gameplay.
“This game runs great, it looks great, and the game requires skill, which is really nice to see.”
- optimization2 mentions
- 50 % positive mentions
- 50 % neutral mentions
- 0 % negative mentions
The game is highly optimized, allowing it to run smoothly on low-end PCs and even older integrated graphics, making it accessible to a wide range of players.
“Optimized for humble PCs and runs very well even on integrated graphics from yesteryear.”
