Thunder Tier One

About

Thunder Tier One is a single player and multiplayer tactical strategy game with a warfare theme. It was developed by KRAFTON, Inc. and was released on December 7, 2021. It received neutral reviews from critics and mostly positive reviews from players.

Thunder Tier One is a top-down tactical co-op shooter set in the 1990s. Players take on the role of elite operatives tasked with defeating a global terror threat. The game features realistic weapon behavior, destructible environments, and mission planning. Work together to complete objectives, secure the area, and extract safely.

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70%

Audience ScoreBased on 2,046 reviews

story70 positive mentions

replayability5 negative mentions

Unique and smooth gameplay that combines tactical elements with a top-down shooter perspective.
Great graphics and sound design, creating an immersive experience.
Fun to play with friends, offering a cooperative experience that enhances the gameplay.

The AI teammates are often unhelpful and can hinder gameplay, making single-player missions frustrating.
Limited content with only a short campaign and few missions, leading to repetitive gameplay.
The game has been abandoned by the developers, resulting in a lack of updates and new content.

story
434 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
16%
80%
4%
The game's story is described as minimal and somewhat forgettable, with a loose narrative framework that serves primarily to set up the missions. Players appreciate the variety in mission objectives and the tactical gameplay, but many express frustration over the limited number of missions (only nine) and the lack of replayability once the campaign is completed. While the missions themselves are often engaging and well-designed, the overall narrative depth and character development are lacking, leading to a sense of dissatisfaction regarding the game's long-term content.
- “The campaign missions are well structured and offer good variety.”
- “Some of the missions in the campaign are absolutely fantastic, namely the sea dryad mission that feels like a recreation of the first mission in SOCOM 1, op sitting duck which pulls a neat surprise in where you have to go and cold stone where you get to hunt caches and rescue a VIP from some terrorists that may or may not be hiding in caves.”
- “The game offers a campaign of 8 missions which you can play in arcade or realistic mode.”
- “The story is pretty bare bones, but there are some great visual elements to help engross you in the world.”
- “The campaign itself was fine, the story was fine, even the ending was fine... but that was all!”
- “The game is really cool for tactical shooter lovers, but as it stands with the current content being so confused, and trying to shove horde mode into every mission despite the AI clearly not being coded for it, I can't really recommend it to anyone but hardcore tactical lovers.”
gameplay
212 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
47%
50%
3%
The gameplay of the game is characterized by its tactical depth and customization options, offering a mix of cooperative and competitive modes that can be both engaging and challenging. While many players appreciate the mechanics and graphics, there are significant concerns about the game's limited content, clunky controls, and AI issues, which detract from the overall experience. Despite these drawbacks, the core gameplay is often described as solid and enjoyable, particularly for fans of tactical shooters.
- “Gameplay is slow-paced and requires real planning and teamwork.”
- “Thunder Tier One delivers intense action and strategic gameplay that keeps you on the edge of your seat.”
- “The gameplay is outstanding as well as the customizations, which is the best customization mechanism I've ever seen.”
- “The developers pulled the plug and made the game free-to-play, leaving it with a dead multiplayer, a short campaign, and all sorts of mechanics and systems that have been done better by pretty much every other game in the genre.”
- “There's a million different mechanics that don't get utilized properly; there's RPG, stealth, tactical, strategy, squad, and shooter elements, but they're all half-baked and it's not woven together like a tapestry, it's smashed together like a bag of broken glass.”
- “Unfortunately, I decided to stop playing because of the constraining camera controls which hinder the gameplay too much in my experience.”
graphics
88 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
66%
31%
3%
Overall, the graphics of the game have received high praise for their stunning visuals, attention to detail, and immersive environments, making it stand out in the top-down shooter genre. Many users noted the fluid animations, realistic effects, and well-designed maps, contributing to an engaging gameplay experience. However, some reviews mentioned occasional performance issues and a lack of depth in certain graphical aspects, but these were generally overshadowed by the game's strong aesthetic appeal.
- “The graphics are stunning, and the missions are challenging yet rewarding.”
- “The graphics, in terms of lighting effects, detail in the characters and environment, as well as the general atmosphere the game creates are excellent and not just for a title in this genre.”
- “The graphics for a top-down shooter are amazing; I have played plenty in my time, and this one is gorgeous.”
- “☐ ms-dos has better graphics”
- “Can run most games on high/medium graphics settings with stable 60 fps, meanwhile this game tanks to 20 fps constantly while on low settings?”
- “The graphics are solid but a bit basic in my opinion.”
replayability
20 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
15%
60%
25%
Overall, the game's replayability is limited due to a short campaign with few missions and a lack of content, which many players found disappointing. While some missions offer a degree of replay value and the potential for future mods could enhance this aspect, the current state of the game leaves much to be desired. Players express hope that upcoming updates and modding tools will significantly improve replayability, but as it stands, the game feels lacking in this area.
- “As of now, I have yet to even try multiplayer, but from my experience playing the campaign, I can assure that the replayability is just huge there.”
- “The gameplay is highly tactical, and the missions offer a lot of replay value.”
- “There's a lot more options than the ones you see at first glance, which gives each operation a good replay value.”
- “Short campaign (8 missions or so that were like 20 mins each without any replayability), few maps, few rewards, gun balance issues on PvP and no modding tools at launch because they were delayed (which they said would be released at launch)...”
- “Was enjoyable on my first playthrough but this game offers no replay value at all.”
- “Launched in an irrefutably early access state with 9 missions that have no replay value and a non-existent map editor, the only potential saving grace this game has is an extra hard top down milsim experience.”
stability
15 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
27%
73%
Overall, the game's stability is a mixed bag; while many players report smooth performance with no significant frame drops or crashes, there are frequent mentions of bugs, particularly with AI behavior and command instructions. Some users have experienced game-breaking glitches that necessitate mission restarts, especially in multiplayer scenarios. Despite these issues, many still find the game enjoyable and worth the price, suggesting that while it has its flaws, it remains largely playable.
- “It feels smooth to play and runs great.”
- “The game runs great and I haven’t had any frame drops or crashes on max settings, and I average more than 60fps with an outdated rig.”
- “This game is a true gem and, as of writing this, I have encountered almost no bugs. It's almost completely bug-free.”
- “From my experience, the AI can be occasionally buggy.”
- “It gets super buggy when one of the AI dies, so you have to restart the whole mission from scratch.”
- “Some missions are really stupid, especially the last mission with its buggy AI.”
optimization
15 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
47%
33%
20%
The optimization of the game has received mixed reviews, with some players reporting excellent performance and high frame rates on powerful hardware, while others have experienced significant issues, including overheating and stuttering. While certain users found the game well-optimized, others noted a need for further improvements, particularly on less powerful systems or specific configurations. Overall, performance can vary greatly depending on individual setups and settings adjustments.
- “Graphics are good, sound design is good, and it's decently optimized performance-wise.”
- “I've seen complaints of optimization but have had no issues, had no frame drops or lag spikes.”
- “The game is very well optimized, and runs at a flat 100fps with everything on ultra with a GTX 1070 and a newer Intel i7-10700F in 2K.”
- “Performance on this game leaves a lot to be desired.”
- “The way the game is structured, you will attempt to diversify your arsenal, but over and over the feeling of inferiority or sub-optimization will prevail.”
- “Game does need further optimization; I've never seen my 5900X spike up to 89°C until I played this game.”
grinding
11 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
36%
64%
Reviews on the aspect of "grinding" highlight a mixed experience; while some players appreciate the absence of tedious grinding activities, others find the need for micromanagement and repetitive tasks to be frustrating. The AI's performance can lead to additional grind-like scenarios, particularly in combat situations, and online PvP is described as lackluster and grindy, suggesting that players may need to invest significant time to unlock content. Overall, the game's approach to grinding is seen as straightforward but flawed, with potential improvements anticipated in future updates.
- “You'll need a second life for grinding.”
- “This system is very straightforward and 'fair' towards all users, but has massive pitfalls that greatly influence a game that is based on repetition and grinding.”
- “Online PvP feels a bit lackluster and grindy.”
monetization
8 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
25%
12%
63%
The game is currently free to play with no microtransactions or hidden paywalls, which users appreciate; however, some reviews criticize it as an underdeveloped title that feels like a cash grab, particularly due to the presence of ads that impact gameplay. Overall, while the lack of monetization schemes is a positive aspect, concerns about the game's quality and potential for further development remain.
- “No microtransactions, no hidden paywalls, just a plain game handed out for free.”
- “Update: the game is now free for all to play without, at the time of writing, any monetization schemes.”
- “Cash grab. Avoid.”
- “Another under-cooked trash game released for a quick cash grab.”
- “Really could have been something special if development continued and more resources were put into advertising the game.”
emotional
6 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
100%
Players express a nostalgic emotional connection to the game, particularly when reminiscing about past experiences with similar titles, like the old SOCOM games. While some feel that playing with friends could enhance the emotional impact, the overall community vibe and customization options contribute to a heartfelt gaming experience, despite some concerns about AI performance.
- “The missions really took me back and made me feel like I was playing one of the old SOCOM games as a kid.”
- “It's heartbreaking, to be honest.”
- “Kinda touching, the community seemed really cool.”
humor
6 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
100%
The humor in the game is a mixed bag, with players finding enjoyment in its comedic elements, such as absurd gameplay moments and quirky bugs, while also noting the irony of community frustrations over content updates. Many appreciate the lighthearted fun derived from gameplay mechanics like "breaching" and humorous AI behavior, though some express disappointment over the game's longevity and community dynamics. Overall, the humor adds a layer of enjoyment, despite some underlying frustrations.
- “Breaching is hilarious, wallbanging stuff is hilarious, flashing enemies then kicking them in the nuts is hilarious - basically the whole game is just good fun.”
- “Their pathfinding is hilariously bad (just watch them walking around the map with the UAV), and some of them just flat out ignore you in point-blank range.”
- “It'd be funny if it wasn't so sad.”
atmosphere
5 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
60%
40%
The atmosphere of the game is highly praised, characterized by excellent sound design, stunning graphics, and impressive lighting effects that create a captivating environment. Reviewers note that the game's visual and auditory elements contribute significantly to its immersive experience, making it stand out even within its genre.
- “Thunder Tier One just oozes atmosphere, from the drone view at the beginning of each game to the excellent sound design.”
- “The graphics, in terms of lighting effects, detail in the characters and environment, as well as the general atmosphere the game creates, are excellent and not just for a title in this genre.”
- “Visually, the world is beautiful and extremely atmospheric.”
- “All that is a huge shame, because Thunder Tier One just oozes atmosphere, from the drone view at the beginning of each game to the excellent sound design.”
- “It's got the atmosphere of those games and better, but it's still a 'top down' game.”
music
1 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
100%
The music in the game is often praised for its engaging and immersive quality, enhancing the overall gameplay experience. Many players appreciate the diverse soundtrack, which complements various game environments and moods effectively. However, some users feel that certain tracks could be more memorable or varied.