TimeShifters

About

"TimeShifters" is a Science Fiction Arcade game that offers both single-player and multiplayer options, including PvP. The game features fast-paced combat with a variety of weapons, and challenges that involve interactive environments and unique objectives. Players can also create and share their own levels using the mapmaker and Steam Workshop. The game includes 9 story missions, over 30 challenge missions, and multiple online game modes.

Genres & Tags

Play Modes

+12

94%

Audience ScoreBased on 250 reviews

story14 positive mentions

gameplay10 negative mentions

Captures the nostalgic feel of the TimeSplitters series with fun gameplay and quirky challenges.
Offers a variety of content including a map maker, free DLC, and a range of weapons, making it a good value for the price.
The developer is responsive and actively working on updates, showing dedication to improving the game.

The game is plagued by technical issues, including bugs, crashes, and unpolished graphics, which detract from the overall experience.
Story missions are short and linear, often lacking depth and variety, leading to a repetitive gameplay experience.
The AI is often incompetent, and the weapon mechanics can feel unbalanced, making some encounters frustrating.

story
124 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
11%
84%
5%
The story in the game is generally considered weak and uninspired, with many reviewers noting its brevity and lack of engaging plot elements. Players complete the nine story missions quickly, often in about half an hour, and find the objectives repetitive, primarily revolving around retrieving items. While some appreciate the nostalgic nods to classic titles like TimeSplitters, the overall narrative is described as a nonsensical jumble lacking depth and character development.
- “You basically get a game with a funny story.”
- “The story is structured like TS1 where you simply grab an object and return to the start, but the level designs and themes are a nice mix of TS1 and TS2 with some unique ideas thrown in for good measure.”
- “Its a super fun Timesplitters throwback, with some story levels, plenty of challenges to complete and lots of goofy characters.”
- “The story is a nonsensical jumble of time-travel tropes that fails to engage or entertain.”
- “The main story is very easy on all difficulties (really good for FPS newcomers), but the story is very short and there are no bosses in the game.”
- “This is obviously a Timesplitters inspired game; it's just not as long nor does it have any story to it, you just move through similar looking environments as in the original but the only goal is to find an item and bring it back to the beginning of the level.”
gameplay
36 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
8%
64%
28%
The gameplay in Timeshifters is characterized by a mix of fast-paced action and clunky mechanics, often marred by bugs, crashes, and repetitive design. While it draws inspiration from classic titles like Timesplitters and GoldenEye, many players find it unpolished and frustrating, with a map maker that feels underdeveloped. Despite these issues, some users appreciate the humor and fun elements, noting that the game has potential as a passion project from a small team.
- “The gameplay is very Timesplittersy, and whole levels are references to games (Timesplitters included).”
- “There is a decent chunk of gameplay here and this is clearly a small team's passion project; it's fun and works pretty well.”
- “The game is fast-paced with an easy-to-learn control layout, the game has stealth mechanics which are introduced in one of the later story levels, the guns are quite powerful and reload in a flash, so it might be quite surprising if you're used to more grounded shooters, but overall the weapons manage to balance themselves out and they are quite fun to use.”
- “It's a buggy, unpolished mess with repetitive gameplay, frustrating design choices, and a map maker that feels like an afterthought.”
- “The gameplay in Timeshifters is a repetitive slog.”
- “Frequent crashes, graphical glitches, and broken mechanics are commonplace.”
graphics
24 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
13%
75%
13%
The game's graphics are intentionally retro, reminiscent of PS1 and PS2 titles, which some players find charming and fitting for the overall aesthetic. However, frequent crashes, graphical glitches, and a lack of advanced options like anti-aliasing detract from the experience. While the art style reflects a passion for classic shooters, it is also criticized for being overly simplistic and lazy at times.
- “This game is full of a true fan's passion, and you can see and hear it in every little detail, from the intentionally blocky graphics to the meaty gun noises.”
- “The graphics, the weapons, the mood—everything fits old shooter games.”
- “From the retro graphics to the level design, all of it has been made well.”
- “Frequent crashes, graphical glitches, and broken mechanics are commonplace.”
- “The file sizes are huge given that the art style is incredibly lazy, for lack of a better term.”
- “Graphics are certainly accurate to PS2 games, which is clearly what they're going for, but some graphics options should be included, like anti-aliasing.”
music
18 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
56%
28%
17%
The music in the game has received high praise, with many users highlighting its fitting composition and nostalgic feel reminiscent of classic titles like Timesplitters. Reviewers appreciate the quality of the original soundtrack, describing it as relaxing and enjoyable, especially for the price point. Overall, the music significantly enhances the gaming experience, contributing to the game's positive reception.
- “The music is great.”
- “For £4, you are getting a killer soundtrack, 32 fun challenges and of course the classic story.”
- “I relaxed for 5 minutes to this music long enough to realize that I was going to be okay.”
- “Music: 9 (the music fits. I love the main theme. Feels like Timesplitters to me.)”
- “Music: 9 (the music fits. I love the main theme. Feels like Timesplitters to me.)”
stability
16 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
13%
88%
The game's stability has received mixed reviews, with many players reporting frequent crashes, graphical glitches, and broken mechanics, particularly in the mapmaker feature, which is described as buggy and unpolished. However, some users have noted that the core gameplay runs smoothly and can be enjoyable, especially when played on sale, suggesting that experiences may vary significantly among players. Overall, the game's stability appears to be a significant concern for many, overshadowing its potential enjoyment.
- “The game runs great overall, but spawning a ton of NPCs in community Steam Workshop maps can be very taxing on hardware. Still, I find the game pretty fun and would recommend it on sale.”
- “The game runs smoothly, but I noticed that loading community Steam Workshop maps with many NPCs can put a strain on my hardware. Overall, it's an enjoyable experience, especially when on sale.”
- “When I first played this, it was a buggy mess.”
- “It's a buggy, unpolished mess with repetitive gameplay, frustrating design choices, and a map maker that feels like an afterthought.”
- “Frequent crashes, graphical glitches, and broken mechanics are commonplace.”
humor
16 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
100%
The game features a mix of sharp and creative humor, reminiscent of classic titles like Timesplitters, with amusing character selection dialogues and quirky weapons that add to its charm. However, some reviewers feel it lacks the overall polish and charm of its inspirations, despite its entertaining gameplay and story. Overall, the humor is a notable highlight, contributing to the game's fun and engaging atmosphere.
- “The humor is sharp, the gameplay oh so grand.”
- “Selecting characters is funny as hell and original too (character selection dialog only).”
- “The humor very much captures the style of Timesplitters, and so do the story levels and challenges as many other reviews have mentioned.”
optimization
6 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
33%
33%
33%
Overall, optimization in the game is lacking, with users reporting constant FPS drops and significant lag spikes on lower-end hardware, particularly during enemy wave challenges. While some players noted that the game runs fine aside from these issues, the need for improvement in performance is a common concern.
- “Beyond the one minor hiccup in performance, I'd say this ran perfectly fine.”
- “Optimization could definitely be improved; I get constant FPS drops.”
- “I'd also like to note a performance issue - at least on lower-end hardware, during challenges that involve waves of enemies, you will get a very noticeable lag spike in between waves as the enemies spawn in.”
replayability
4 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
50%
50%
The game's replayability is rated moderately, with a score of 6, indicating that it can be enjoyable for multiple playthroughs, particularly if online features or split-screen/bot options are introduced in the future. Players appreciate its simplicity, which contributes to its replay value, though experiences may vary based on personal preferences for multiplayer modes.
- “Replay value: 6 (mileage may vary depending on the amount of online play and if split-screen/bots are added later. I'm more old school as far as multiplayer goes.)”
- “It's simple but replayable!”
grinding
2 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
100%
Players find the grinding aspect of the game tedious, particularly due to a challenge involving multiple rounds of blackjack that relies heavily on RNG, making it feel less enjoyable and more like a chore.
- “My only gripe with it is a 'challenge' where you have to play multiple rounds of blackjack, which is completely RNG-based. Instead of being fun, it just ends up being tedious.”