Striving for Light: Survival

About

Striving for Light: Survival is a single player and multiplayer survival hack and slash game with a fantasy theme. It was developed by Igniting Spark Games and was released on December 2, 2023. It received mostly positive reviews from players.

"Striving for Light: Survival" is a first-person open-world survival game set in a sprawling, procedurally generated world filled with ancient technology and mysterious creatures. Players must gather resources, craft tools, and build shelters to survive, while also uncovering the secrets of the world and battling its dangerous inhabitants. The game emphasizes exploration, combat, and player choice, making each playthrough a unique experience.

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79%

Audience ScoreBased on 124 reviews

gameplay10 positive mentions

stability10 negative mentions

The game features a dynamic skill tree that allows for a lot of customization and variety in builds, reminiscent of Path of Exile.
It offers a unique gameplay experience with the option to continue into endless mode after completing the game, which is a refreshing change from other roguelikes.
Despite its rough edges, the game is addictive and provides hours of fun, especially for fans of the genre.

The game suffers from significant bugs and performance issues, including crashes and frame rate drops, especially during intense gameplay.
The art style and graphics are often criticized as being unappealing and difficult to navigate due to screen clutter and poor visibility of projectiles.
Gameplay can feel repetitive and unbalanced, with certain builds being overwhelmingly stronger than others, leading to a lack of variety in playstyles.

gameplay
42 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
24%
69%
7%
Gameplay is a mixed bag, featuring satisfying building mechanics and a roguelike progression system that some players find enjoyable, while others criticize the convoluted experience point mechanics and lack of build diversity. The short, round-based format is appreciated for its challenge and smooth movement, but many feel that the core mechanics are poorly balanced and lead to repetitive gameplay. Overall, while there are unique elements that set it apart from similar games, the execution leaves room for improvement, particularly in character viability and user experience.
- “Fantastic gameplay, satisfying building, decent roguelike upgrades.”
- “The highly stressful periods interspersed between hypnotically relaxing general gameplay, combined with the dopamine factory that is roguelite meta progression is...just...*chef's kiss*.”
- “I like the short round-based gameplay (a la Brotato) as opposed to the longer 10/15/20 minute round format.”
- “You rarely (never?) get that dopamine hit of seeing a screenful of enemies explode (even though you have the power to do so) and the actual gameplay is just tiresome.”
- “Maybe someone out there will say 'oh that's cool, you're investing reward now in exchange for more reward later', but this mechanic of avoiding exp pickups is just not fun to me.”
- “This is a convoluted mechanic that it took me a while to fully understand due to the bad UX, and is universally worse than them just not making exp drops a thing.”
graphics
34 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
29%
59%
12%
The graphics of the game receive mixed reviews, with some players appreciating the unique and charming art style, while others find it lacking polish and overall unattractive. Many note that the character designs are refreshing and nostalgic, contributing to a gritty atmosphere, but there are criticisms regarding the quality and consistency of the visuals. Overall, the graphics may appeal to those who enjoy quirky aesthetics, but they may not satisfy players looking for high-end visuals.
- “I do like the art style of the characters though.”
- “The 2.5D art style of the characters is just so awesome and refreshing!”
- “The game has good graphics, pumping synth music, and a gritty and dark gothic atmosphere.”
- “Think souls-like and bullet hell hoard game with graphics drawn by a high school head banger.”
- “Honestly, the graphics are bad.”
- “If you don't care that the graphics look like a failed arts diploma, then yeah, it's pretty good.”
music
10 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
40%
30%
30%
The music in the game has received mixed reviews, with some players finding it mediocre and repetitive, leading them to turn it off in favor of their own background music. However, others appreciate the atmospheric qualities of the ambient analog synthesizer tracks, which complement the game's gritty and dark gothic visuals. Overall, while the music contributes to the setting, its repetitiveness is a noted drawback.
- “The game has good graphics, pumping synth music, and a gritty and dark gothic atmosphere.”
- “I really like the somewhat gloomy setting and also the beautiful, subtle, ambient analog synthesizer music.”
- “Sound: the music is good but repetitive, a common problem with early access vs-likes.”
- “The music is mediocre and you can clearly hear it when it loops.”
- “I turned it off quite soon and put on background music of my own choice.”
- “The music is mediocre and you can clearly hear it when it loops.”
stability
10 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
100%
The game has been widely criticized for its instability and numerous bugs, with many users describing it as an "unstable buggy mess" for a 1.0 release. While there is hope for improvements due to active developer engagement, the current state is perceived as unpolished and lacking in quality-of-life features.
- “So far, it is an unstable, buggy mess for a 1.0 release, with poor quality-of-life features and odd UI and UX choices.”
- “The developers are pretty active, so I'm hoping these issues get resolved with time, but for now, my impression of this game is that it is very unpolished, unbalanced, and buggy.”
- “It is buggy.”
optimization
8 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
25%
37%
38%
Overall, the game's optimization appears to be inconsistent, with some users experiencing performance declines after extended play sessions, despite having hardware that exceeds the recommended specifications. While many report satisfactory performance on mid-tier systems following patches, certain builds, particularly on the Steam Deck, may struggle. This suggests that optimization issues may vary based on individual setups and play styles.
- “Performance is (at writing and after a few patches) really good for my mid-tier 2013 PC running a 2016 GTX 1050 card.”
- “My hardware is well above the recommended for the game, but I do understand that sometimes things just don't work quite right for no apparent reason, so while the game may have some optimization issues, it might also just be on my end.”
- “This might be hardware related; however, performance seems to decline when the game has been open for long periods of time.”
- “My hardware is well above the recommended for the game, but I do understand that sometimes things just don't work quite right for no apparent reason. While the game may have some optimization issues, it might also just be on my end.”
- “Some on-hit builds do have poor performance on Steam Deck.”
grinding
6 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
100%
Players find the grinding aspect of the game to be a mixed experience; while it offers new weapons, characters, and skill nodes that enhance playstyle variety, many feel it ultimately leads to repetitive and generic gameplay. The pursuit of achievements can feel endless and lacks meaningful progression, with some enjoyment found in the occasional fun builds. Overall, the grinding may appear to provide depth, but it often falls short of expectations.
- “Striving for grinding isn't as great as I thought it would be, honestly.”
- “There's the appearance of depth, but really it's just endless grinding for achievements. There's nothing new between the levels, the items are generic, the skills are okay, and the builds can be fun sometimes.”
- “Rather than giving you pure power upgrades post-match (like many overly grindy games of the genre do), your rewards in SFLs are new weapons, characters, or skill nodes to increase playstyle variety and customize your run.”
humor
2 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
100%
The humor in the game is based on a funny concept, but many users feel it is overshadowed by overwhelming on-screen chaos, detracting from the comedic effect.
replayability
2 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
50%
50%
The game offers high replayability due to the extensive variety of weapon and character choices available to players, encouraging multiple playthroughs to explore different combinations.
- “It has a lot of replayability since you get so many choices of weapons and characters.”
atmosphere
2 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
50%
50%
The game is praised for its impressive graphics and immersive pumping synth music, which together create a gritty and dark gothic atmosphere that enhances the overall experience.
- “The game has good graphics, pumping synth music, and a gritty, dark gothic atmosphere.”

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Striving for Light: Survival is a survival hack and slash game with fantasy theme.

Striving for Light: Survival is available on PC, Steam Deck, Windows, Linux and others.

Striving for Light: Survival was released on December 2, 2023.

Striving for Light: Survival was developed by Igniting Spark Games.

Striving for Light: Survival has received mostly positive reviews from players. Most players liked this game for its gameplay but disliked it for its stability.

Striving for Light: Survival is a single player game with multiplayer and local co-op support.

Similar games include Rogue: Genesia, Soulstone Survivors, Army of Ruin, Swarm Grinder, Jotunnslayer: Hordes of Hel and others.

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