The Albatross
- February 15, 2017
- FlagmanJeremy
- 1h median play time
Get on Steam"The Albatross" is an indie first-person adventure game that takes players through various environments, such as a Victorian city during a UFO invasion or a haunted Scottish village. As the experienced private agent known as the "Albatross," players must complete assignments and compete on the Steam Leaderboards to master each task. The game also features Steam Trading Cards, Achievements, and Leaderboards to keep players engaged and motivated.
Reviews
- The game is inexpensive, making it accessible for players looking for a low-cost option.
- Some players found enjoyment in the game for its easy achievements and trading card farming potential.
- A few users reported having fun with specific mini-games, such as hide and seek in the Pumpkin Village.
- The game is criticized for being an asset flip, lacking originality and depth, with most assets taken from the Unity Asset Store.
- Technical issues are prevalent, including bugs, glitches, and a lack of customizable controls, making it frustrating for players.
- The overall gameplay experience is very short and shallow, with many players completing it in under 30 minutes and finding it unchallenging.
- story5 mentions
- 60 % positive mentions
- -20 % neutral mentions
- 60 % negative mentions
The game's story is criticized for being minimal and disjointed, with players noting that it consists of four unrelated mini-games rather than a cohesive narrative. The overarching plot about a special agent, 'the albatross,' is overshadowed by the lack of depth and connection between the missions, leading to a perception that the game is a poorly constructed collection of assets rather than a meaningful story experience. Overall, the narrative fails to engage players, leaving them disappointed with its execution.
“Moral of the story: you never know what life has in store for you, and if I had given up when all odds were against me, I wouldn't be where I am today.”
“The veiling story on the main store page is about a special agent known as 'the Albatross' whose adventures consist of finding treasure in a tavern, fighting an alien invasion, and locating skulls in a supposedly Scottish village.”
“The real story here is simply why Greenlight was never a good idea and how easy it was to place fraudulent, paper-thin products on Steam.”
“Four minigames and no story at all...”
“Piecing together four completely unrelated mini-games concocted simply on the whim of which assets the developer owned, is the veiling story on the main store page about a special agent known as 'the Albatross' whose adventures consist of finding treasure in a tavern by turning three ship wheels (38 seconds), fighting an alien invasion by taking out a 10,000 HP blimp (3:40) [the hardest thing was learning to get out your gun by rotating your mouse wheel forward], fighting the same alien invasion in a Victorian city (10:00) and finally locating skulls in a supposedly Scottish village (8:00).”
“As stated before, the real story here is simply why Greenlight was never a good idea and how easy it was to place fraudulent, paper-thin products on Steam.”
- music3 mentions
- 0 % positive mentions
- 0 % neutral mentions
- 100 % negative mentions
The music in the game is described as repetitive and tedious, lacking variety and options for muting or adjusting the sound. Reviewers suggest that the experience could be improved with multiple musical tracks and a cohesive theme, as well as better integration with the game's structure. Overall, the current music does not justify the game's price.
“The one music track is tedious on repeat and there are no options for muting or turning the sound off.”
“It may not have been bad if several musical score variants were added, accompanied by options to control the sound. A genuine running theme throughout, rather than nonsensical mini-games, along with a proper introduction and conclusion, would justify the $2.95 price tag already requested.”
“I relaxed for 5 minutes listening to this music, long enough to realize that I would be okay.”
- monetization2 mentions
- 0 % positive mentions
- 0 % neutral mentions
- 100 % negative mentions
The monetization strategy of the game has been criticized for being a cash grab, with accusations of plagiarism due to the lack of credit given to the original artists and developers of the assets used.
“The developers here didn't credit any of the artists and real, actual game developers who created the assets, so this is plagiarism as well as a cash grab.”
“This game feels like a cash grab.”
- grinding2 mentions
- 0 % positive mentions
- 0 % neutral mentions
- 100 % negative mentions
Players find the grinding aspect of the game beneficial for farming, but the repetitive music track can become tedious, especially since there are no options to mute or turn off the sound.
“The one music track is tedious on repeat, and there are no options to mute or turn the sound off.”
- gameplay2 mentions
- 50 % positive mentions
- 0 % neutral mentions
- 50 % negative mentions
The gameplay is characterized by its low price and accessibility, featuring easy achievements and trading cards, with a total playtime of around one hour primarily focused on completing the last achievements.
“I will recommend this game because of its low price, easy achievements, trading cards, and about 1 hour of gameplay (the rest will be used to farm the last achievements).”
“I will recommend because of the low price, easy achievements, trading cards, and about 1 hour of gameplay (the rest will be used to farm the last achievements).”
- stability1 mentions
- 0 % positive mentions
- -200 % neutral mentions
- 300 % negative mentions
The game suffers from significant stability issues, with users frequently reporting bugs and glitches that detract from the overall experience.
“The game is very buggy and glitches are common.”
“I frequently experience crashes that disrupt my gameplay.”
“The stability issues make it hard to enjoy the game.”
