The Waste Land

About

"The Waste Land" is a survival-horror adventure game set in a post-apocalyptic world. Players must navigate through a bleak landscape, scavenging for supplies and battling mutated creatures. The game features a rich, immersive atmosphere and a haunting original score. However, some players may find the controls and combat mechanics to be clunky and dated.

Genres & Tags

Play Modes

Single-Player Play through the game's story or campaign solo

+17

44%

Audience ScoreBased on 104 reviews

story4 positive mentions

music14 negative mentions

The game has a unique and atmospheric design that appeals to fans of retro Metroidvania titles, particularly those who enjoyed Castlevania 2.
Some players appreciate the nostalgic elements and the challenge it presents, reminiscent of older games that required exploration and problem-solving.
The graphics and pixel art are well-done, contributing to the overall aesthetic and mood of the game.

The controls are clunky and unresponsive, making gameplay frustrating and difficult to enjoy.
The game world is vast but feels empty, with repetitive enemies and a lack of meaningful rewards for combat, leading to a tedious experience.
The soundtrack is monotonous and can become grating, detracting from the overall enjoyment of the game.

music
38 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
8%
55%
37%
The music in the game has been widely criticized for its repetitive and monotonous nature, with many players finding the limited soundtrack of only eight short loops to be grating and intrusive, leading to frustration during extended gameplay. While some appreciate the nostalgic chiptune style, the overall consensus is that the music detracts from the experience rather than enhancing it, often feeling lifeless and annoying. Players have expressed a desire for more varied tracks to alleviate the boredom caused by the constant repetition.
- “The unusual but effective music sets up a somber and dead serious tone.”
- “As you are exploring the kingdom you doomed, both the music and the graphics will help you feel an ambient sadness.”
- “The 8-bit yet sophisticated graphics, dark and purposeful palette, chiptune music, mature and frightening enemy design, and cryptic and quirky dialogue show the developer's intimacy with that era's games that most 'retro' games miss.”
- “I spent 3 hours exploring multiple similar looking locations in the first region, and all of this time I was listening to the same monotonous endless soundtrack loop that really starts to get annoying after only 5-10 minutes.”
- “The gameplay is totally broken, the graphics are confusing and uninspired, the repetitive short loops of boring music for dozens of minutes will drive you nuts; the level design isn't interesting at all... you don't get satisfaction nor gratification with any action in the game.”
- “Oh, and the music that plays through the opening areas is just awful and repetitive, somehow both droning and intrusive, yet it goes on forever without variation.”
gameplay
26 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
12%
42%
46%
The gameplay has received mixed reviews, with many players finding it broken and frustrating due to poor controls, repetitive mechanics, and uninspired level design. While some appreciate its challenging simplicity and retro appeal, others criticize the lack of satisfaction and the overwhelming difficulty, suggesting it may only appeal to dedicated retro gamers. Overall, the gameplay is seen as mediocre, with significant room for improvement.
- “I thought this would be good due to its style of metroidvania gameplay.”
- “Overall, if you love that old school Castlevania type gameplay, and really want more wasteland related stuff, buy this when it is on sale.”
- “Huge world and a deep sense of exploration and discovery and Nintendo-hard gameplay.”
- “The gameplay is totally broken, the graphics are confusing and uninspired, the repetitive short loops of boring music for dozens of minutes will drive you nuts, the level design isn't interesting at all... you don't get satisfaction nor gratification with any action in the game.”
- “The game lacks mechanics, the controls are messed up.”
- “Gameplay itself is simplistically boring and repetitive.”
story
18 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
22%
61%
17%
The story starts strong with an engaging plot hook but quickly loses momentum, leaving players feeling disoriented and disconnected from the narrative. While the world design and boss battles are praised, the lack of fast travel and excessive backtracking detracts from the overall experience, making it difficult for players to stay invested in the unfolding story. Despite its potential, many find the narrative ultimately falls flat after the initial scenes.
- “The story is pretty cool, though, and most of the boss battles are pretty neat.”
- “It has a cool story and a really neat metroidvania world puzzle.”
- “Next, what is going on in this story?”
- “The early plot hook is well done, but the story quickly falls flat on its face after the initial scene.”
- “Gets disorienting fast, and the plot is not good at keeping you on the rails towards progression.”
- “The problem is that there is too much featureless open space (save the cool background graphics) between location nodes and no fast travel, so you walk and walk and walk before you get to the next important quest -- and lord help you if you get off of the beaten path!”
graphics
14 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
29%
50%
21%
The graphics of the game receive mixed reviews, with some praising the 8-bit aesthetic and dark palette that evoke nostalgia for classic titles, while others criticize them as confusing, uninspired, and ugly. The level design is noted to suffer from featureless open spaces, detracting from the overall visual experience. Ultimately, appreciation for the graphics seems to hinge on personal taste, particularly for those fond of retro styles.
- “Great NES Castlevania aesthetic with a day and night cycle.”
- “The 8-bit yet sophisticated graphics, dark and purposeful palette, chiptune music, mature and frightening enemy design, and cryptic and quirky dialogue show the developer's intimacy with that era's games that most 'retro' games miss.”
- “As you are traversing the kingdom you doomed, both the music and the graphics will help you feel an ambient sadness.”
- “The graphics are confusing and uninspired.”
- “Graphics are not 'pixel art' or whatever indie darling buzzword you want to use, they're just ugly.”
- “The gameplay is totally broken, the graphics are confusing and uninspired.”
atmosphere
14 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
86%
14%
The game's atmosphere is widely praised for its uniqueness and immersive qualities, drawing comparisons to influences like "Vampire Hunter D" and Miyazaki's "Nausicaa." While many players find it captivating and well-suited for exploration, some note that it can become tiresome at times. Overall, the atmospheric design contributes significantly to the game's appeal, despite its mixed reception.
- “I believe this is a unique and atmospheric adventure.”
- “Plus, he enjoyed Eliot and his tale, and it is true that the atmosphere in this game is unique and peculiar.”
- “This game plays well and has a great atmosphere, plenty of exploring and gearing, and period-perfect music.”
grinding
10 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
20%
80%
The game eliminates traditional grinding by removing leveling up and experience points, instead allowing players to strengthen their character through better equipment and collectibles. However, late-game combat lacks incentives as enemies do not drop money or experience, leading to potential tedium and backtracking. While the absence of grinding is a positive aspect, some players still find the gameplay can become tedious at times.
- “Late game there are no incentives to fight enemies as they drop no money nor experience (while that negates any form of grinding, it is still an issue).”
- “Be warned though - the game is tedious at times with a lot of backtracking and tough enemies.”
- “The complete noninvolvement of 'leveling up' or 'experience points' eliminates grinding; you become stronger by finding better swords and bows, can endure later-game damage levels by finding what are essentially heart tanks in a metroidvania style collectibles system, and are largely rewarded in combat for maintaining defensive footing and being observant.”
humor
4 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
100%
The humor in the game is described as subtly amusing, particularly in the contrast between the engaging audio track and the otherwise tedious gameplay, which leads to a unique experience of time dilation. Players find themselves laughing at the absurdity of their situation, such as feeling more engaged while exercising than while playing the game.
- “I find it kind of funny considering how good the title audio track is.”
- “(Interestingly enough, though many parts of the game were tryingly tedious when I just simply sat on the couch and played, my one-hour stationary bike sessions blazed by ultra-quick, quicker than when I play more exciting games. Yeah, a real funny feeling of time dilation... maybe I felt like I was pedaling through those monster-infested wastes with the guy, eh?)”