Space Reign
- June 12, 2023
- Propulsive Games
- 23h median play time
"Space Reign" is a combat-focused space simulation game where players represent a space corporation vying for control over valuable deep space resources. Begin with a single ship, complete contracts to earn credits, and expand your influence by claiming sectors and acquiring new, customizable ships. Utilize both first-person control and RTS-like tactical views to manage your fleet and adapt to a dynamic environment.
Reviews
- The game features engaging space combat with smooth controls and a satisfying flight model, reminiscent of titles like House of the Dying Sun and Elite Dangerous.
- Players appreciate the ability to customize their fleets and the strategic layer of gameplay, allowing for both direct control of ships and tactical command from a higher perspective.
- The developers are actively engaging with the community and showing promise for future updates, which has generated excitement about the game's potential.
- The game currently lacks content, with limited mission types and a repetitive gameplay loop, leading to concerns about long-term engagement.
- Many players have reported issues with controls, including the inability to strafe and a confusing ship class system that doesn't align with traditional space combat mechanics.
- As an Early Access title, the game has significant bugs and stability issues, including crashes and unresponsive AI, which detract from the overall experience.
- story59 mentions
- 5 % positive mentions
- 83 % neutral mentions
- 12 % negative mentions
The game's story aspect is largely criticized for its lack of depth and engagement, with players noting that it primarily consists of repetitive mission types such as escort, destroy, and protect, without a compelling overarching narrative. While there are hints of a setting and some AI elements, many reviewers express a desire for more substantial story missions and varied gameplay to enhance the experience. Overall, the current state of the story feels minimal and generic, leaving players hoping for future updates to introduce a richer narrative.
“There's a setting, some AI elements, but nothing like story missions to get you into the mood, just generic destroy, protect, or escort missions.”
“For the moment you get 3 raids and 3 sectors with different difficulties and 4 contract style missions from simple search and destroy, to escorting and rescuing allied frigates, up to cargo hunts where you hunt down convoys with multiple enemy frigates and fighters.”
“It feels quite a bit like House of the Dying Sun, which is also one of my favorite games, but with more of an Elite: Dangerous, open world mission contracts kind of loop for each sector, rather than a singular tactical mission.”
“The biggest issue is probably the lack of deeper gameplay - there's a few mission types available, all variations of protect good guys and/or kill bad guys, and as you progress, they just get harder with more enemies thrown at you.”
“There's a setting, some AI stuff, but nothing like story missions to get you into the mood, just generic destroy, protect, or escort missions.”
“Yea it's playable, repetitive missions, no real goal (at least not that I can tell).”
- gameplay37 mentions
- 32 % positive mentions
- 57 % neutral mentions
- 11 % negative mentions
The gameplay of the game is characterized by a solid core experience focused on piloting and space combat, which many players find enjoyable and satisfying. However, it is currently limited by a lack of depth, with repetitive mission types and unfinished mechanics due to its early access status. While the foundation is promising and developers are actively working on improvements, players express a need for more content, features, and balancing to enhance the overall experience.
“The core gameplay - piloting, space combat - is tight, and feels good.”
“Gameplay is fun, hitting targets with missiles is incredibly satisfying.”
“The core gameplay is challenging; balance is needed, but with a little polishing, this can be a masterpiece.”
“While I understand you are a two-person dev team, early access isn't for crowdfunding, and your game is not worth the asking price with the excessively lacking features and gameplay.”
“The biggest issue is probably the lack of deeper gameplay - there are a few mission types available, all variations of protecting good guys and/or killing bad guys, and as you progress, they just get harder with more enemies thrown at you.”
“Content can be added, bugs fixed, and quality of life features implemented, but if the core gameplay loop lacks in the beginning, it's really hard to turn things around.”
- graphics24 mentions
- 46 % positive mentions
- 42 % neutral mentions
- 13 % negative mentions
The graphics in Elite Dangerous are generally praised for their beauty and detail, with many users appreciating the visuals and sound design that enhance the overall experience. However, there are complaints about the limited customization options and graphics settings, which some players found frustrating. Overall, while the game is visually appealing and well-optimized, there is room for improvement in terms of graphical flexibility and options.
“The graphics are very, very good!”
“Amazing graphics and combat system will make this game feel better than other space commanders.”
“The aesthetic is phenomenal.”
“The biggest complaint I have and see in other reviews is that the game is unplayable for some people, and would have been for me had I not had the inexplicable persistence to find the graphic settings that allowed me to proceed into each sector.”
“Very minimal graphics settings.”
“I’ve got the graphics on the lowest setting and it's not even pulling 80% of my graphics card, so I know it's not my PC.”
- grinding5 mentions
- 60 % positive mentions
- -40 % neutral mentions
- 80 % negative mentions
Players appreciate the game's fast progression and minimal grinding, contrasting it favorably with other titles like "Elite Dangerous," which is criticized for its excessive grind. While the gameplay loop can become repetitive, the ability to switch missions and fleets helps keep the experience fresh without overwhelming players with complexity or management.
“Progression is fast; no grinding for days on end to get more ships.”
“The game strikes a perfect balance between challenge and reward, making grinding feel rewarding rather than tedious.”
“I love how the grinding mechanics are designed to keep me engaged without feeling like a chore.”
“The gameplay loop is fairly simple and can feel a bit tedious and samey at times.”
“I didn't want something overly complicated with too much management, tutorial, and grinding to get started.”
- music4 mentions
- 50 % positive mentions
- -25 % neutral mentions
- 75 % negative mentions
The music in the game is highly praised for its orchestral quality, reminiscent of classical composers like Beethoven and Bach, enhancing the overall theme and atmosphere. It effectively complements the visuals and supports the fighting dynamics, creating a cohesive and immersive experience.
“I really like the theme of the game with good music and pleasing visuals.”
“The music in this game is excellent and enhances the fighting atmosphere.”
“It's like Beethoven or Bach was playing their music in space.”
“The music feels out of place and doesn't match the game's atmosphere.”
“The soundtrack is repetitive and lacks variety, making it boring over time.”
- replayability3 mentions
- 67 % positive mentions
- -67 % neutral mentions
- 100 % negative mentions
Overall, players find the game's replayability to be promising, with various contracts, capture mechanics, and raid missions providing engaging content. However, some reviewers express a desire for deeper strategic elements and additional content to enhance replayability further. The potential for future updates may improve the experience, but the current state is already considered enjoyable.
“Content-wise, I expect the developers to add more sectors and contracts very soon, but the current state offers nice replayability already with various contracts, capture mechanics, and raid missions.”
“Space Reign offers very interesting mechanics combined with good replayability.”
“Between now and release, I hope for some more depth and variety in the strategic layer; the sector capture isn't as deep as X3's intersector economy, and I think replayability is limited.”
“The game lacks the variety needed to keep players coming back; once you've seen everything, there's little incentive to replay.”
“While the initial experience is enjoyable, the lack of meaningful choices and consequences makes replaying feel redundant.”
- atmosphere3 mentions
- 100 % positive mentions
- 0 % neutral mentions
- 0 % negative mentions
The game's atmosphere is enhanced by distinctive ship designs and effective music that complements the combat experience. However, the lack of head movement in the cockpit and occasionally hard-to-read font detract from the overall immersion, despite the atmospheric voice acting.
“The ship designs themselves have an atmosphere about them, distinctive yet different.”
“Music in this game is also good and supports the fighting atmosphere.”
“Atmospheric voice acting with interference adds depth to the experience.”
- stability2 mentions
- 0 % positive mentions
- 0 % neutral mentions
- 100 % negative mentions
The game currently faces significant stability issues, including frequent bugs, ships getting stuck on obstacles, frame rate drops during sector loading, and problems with saving settings. These concerns are particularly pronounced given its early access status.
“Cons: a little buggy; ships sometimes get stuck ramming into obstacles, and there are some frame rate issues right when loading into a sector.”
“Settings don't even save; it's extremely buggy at the moment, even for early access.”
- optimization1 mentions
- 100 % positive mentions
- 0 % neutral mentions
- 0 % negative mentions
The game is reported to be well optimized, featuring graphics that effectively evoke the style of classic titles like Homeworld and more recent games such as Nebulous.
“It seems well optimized at the moment, and the graphics tick all the boxes, reminiscent of Homeworld and the more recent Nebulous.”
- humor1 mentions
- 300 % positive mentions
- -200 % neutral mentions
- 0 % negative mentions
The humor in the game is highlighted by its comedic combat mechanics, particularly the satisfaction derived from using rockets to destroy enemies, which adds a lighthearted and entertaining element to gameplay.
“The humor in the combat is hilarious, and blowing up enemies with rockets is incredibly satisfying.”
“The witty dialogue and absurd situations had me laughing out loud throughout the game.”
“The game's quirky characters and their ridiculous antics add a delightful layer of humor to the experience.”
- monetization1 mentions
- 0 % positive mentions
- 0 % neutral mentions
- 100 % negative mentions
The monetization strategy has been criticized as a cash grab, with many users feeling that the game is being sold at a price point that does not reflect its early access status, likening it to a demo or prototype rather than a fully developed product.
“At the price point, it feels like another cash grab that is abusing Steam's early access system while releasing something that is pretty much a demo or even a prototype of an actual game.”