Transformers: Rise of the Dark Spark

"Transformers: Rise of the Dark Spark feels like a game rushed just to coincide with the movie’s release, which ultimately led to a disappointing follow-up to a great game series."

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Transformers: Rise of the Dark Spark is a science fiction shooter game that offers both single-player and multiplayer modes, allowing for up to 2 players to team up in co-op mode. The game features a variety of characters from both the fourth Transformers movie and the Cybertron universe, making it a must-play for fans of the franchise. However, it is worth noting that the game has been reported to have a number of bugs.

Genres & Tags

Play Modes

Reviews

34%

Audience ScoreBased on 236 reviews

story31 positive mentions

graphics10 negative mentions

The game features enjoyable gameplay mechanics similar to previous titles, allowing for smooth transformations and combat.
The Cybertron levels are visually appealing and maintain the aesthetic established in earlier games.
The voice acting is top-notch, with many returning characters from the previous games.

The story is poorly executed, lacking coherence and failing to connect well with the previous games or the movie universe.
There is no competitive multiplayer mode, only a horde-style Escalation mode, which limits replayability.
The game suffers from numerous bugs and performance issues, including crashes and poor optimization for PC.

story
160 mentions
19 % positive mentions
66 % neutral mentions
15 % negative mentions
The story of "Rise of the Dark Spark" has received largely negative feedback, with many reviewers criticizing its lack of coherence and depth compared to its predecessors, "War for Cybertron" and "Fall of Cybertron." While some appreciated the attempts to bridge the Cybertron and movie universes, most found the narrative confusing, predictable, and poorly executed, leading to an overall underwhelming experience. The campaign's focus on Earth missions was particularly noted as a weak point, detracting from the more engaging Cybertron segments.
- “The graphics are very good, the gameplay too, the story is a little different from the movies/cartoons but interesting and enjoyable, and the fact that the campaign takes you to play on Cybertron, on Earth, and in different times (past and present) makes this a very nice game and a good sequel in the Transformers games series.”
- “The storyline is more than adequate; it kept me interested and wanting to play more to see what happens next.”
- “The cybertron story, however, shines brighter than the movie story because it bridges some gaps between War for Cybertron and Fall of Cybertron; we see Shockwave discover the Insecticons, Ironhide's apparent death, and so on.”
- “The story is weak and the design of the Earth levels is very unpleasing to the eye.”
- “The story doesn't make sense, and doesn't dovetail the universe's timelines well at all.”
- “The game feels completely unfinished and rushed; the storyline is pathetic.”
gameplay
69 mentions
16 % positive mentions
74 % neutral mentions
10 % negative mentions
The gameplay of "Transformers: Rise of the Dark Spark" has received mixed reviews, with many noting that it closely resembles its predecessor, "Fall of Cybertron," which can be both a positive and a negative. While some players appreciate the familiar mechanics and smooth controls, others criticize the game for being clunky, buggy, and lacking innovation, leading to a repetitive experience. Overall, the gameplay offers a blend of enjoyable elements and frustrating issues, with a significant portion of players feeling it falls short of expectations compared to earlier titles in the series.
- “Smooth, fun gameplay.”
- “The gameplay is right on par with the previous ones, with perhaps a few new weapons. The new abilities are really fun and add variety to each mission.”
- “Gameplay-wise, this game plays almost exactly like 'Fall of Cybertron', so if you've come to love the gameplay of this series, then there's no worries on that front.”
- “Rotds gameplay 0/10 - clunky, crashed, developers provide no support for a broken game.”
- “The terrible and forced meshing of these game universes aside, the gameplay was just a clunkier, less responsive, and often times buggy version of the Fall of Cybertron game.”
- “Unfortunately, not much new stuff is added to spice up the gameplay.”
graphics
56 mentions
14 % positive mentions
68 % neutral mentions
18 % negative mentions
The graphics of the game receive mixed reviews, with some players praising the visuals on Earth and Cybertron as impressive, while others criticize the overall quality as outdated and lacking polish, particularly in cutscenes. Many users note that the graphics do not meet modern standards, with some even stating they appear worse than previous titles in the series. Overall, while there are moments of visual appeal, the game's graphical performance is often seen as a significant drawback.
- “The graphics are very good, the gameplay too, the story is a little different from the movies/cartoons but interesting and enjoyable, and the fact that the campaign takes you to play on Cybertron, on Earth, and in different times (past and present) makes this a very nice game and a good sequel in the Transformers games series.”
- “If you have a computer capable enough to max out this game in terms of graphical textures, etc., this game looks visually stunning.”
- “Now, I will give it credit; the graphics on Earth are beautiful.”
- “Literally has no graphics options aside from resolution either.”
- “The quality of the graphics in the cut scenes was already showing its age in 2012, so you can imagine by now how jarring it is to see the high grain, low resolution animations between the standard, even if last-gen, graphics experience of the gameplay.”
- “When I first got into the game, I noticed right off the bat that the graphics were absolutely terrible; in fact, they were worse than Fall of Cybertron's graphics and they don't even make the characters textured.”
stability
15 mentions
0 % positive mentions
0 % neutral mentions
100 % negative mentions
The game has been widely criticized for its severe stability issues, including frequent crashes, freezing, and numerous bugs that significantly hinder gameplay. Users report low-resolution graphics, glitches that prevent progression, and a general lack of responsiveness, leading many to abandon the game entirely. Overall, the stability problems overshadow any potential enjoyment, making it a frustrating experience for players.
- “All in all, this game is a buggy pile of slag that borrowed elements from previous games and mainly came out as a way to make money off of the release of the fourth installment of the Michael Bay Transformers trilogy, Age of Extinction.”
- “It's buggy as heck - the graphics are terrible - when I started the game, most of the textures were in low resolution, and on top of that, I could literally see through buildings.”
- “It freezes or crashes constantly.”
music
8 mentions
25 % positive mentions
38 % neutral mentions
38 % negative mentions
The music in the game receives mixed reviews, with praise for the epic starting screen soundtrack but criticism for its repetitiveness and low volume during gameplay. Users note missing sound effects and poor voice acting, which detracts from the overall experience. Additionally, much of the music is recycled from "Fall of Cybertron," leading to disappointment among players seeking fresh compositions.
- “Pros: epic starting screen music”
- “The starting screen soundtrack is amazing.”
- “The soundtrack is repetitive, just like Resident Evil 6 was.”
- “I was looking forward to transforming, but that stinks. The story is unintelligible, the combat sucks, and the music is disappointing too.”
- “The game does have its own soundtrack, but the majority of the music you will hear is from Fall of Cybertron.”
replayability
7 mentions
29 % positive mentions
29 % neutral mentions
43 % negative mentions
The game has been criticized for its incredibly low replay value, with many players finding little incentive to revisit the campaign or engage in repetitive modes like horde and escalation. While there are some fun challenges during missions, the overall lack of new content and short campaign length significantly detracts from its replayability.
- “Some replayability in the form of challenges during each mission, which are quite fun and hard to complete.”
- “While the gameplay is reminiscent of the previous titles, the campaign and the escalation game modes do not significantly enhance the replayability of this game.”
- “Incredibly low replay value.”
- “Didn't anyone at this game studio even consider the incredibly terrible replay value?!”
- “While the gameplay is reminiscent of the previous titles, with the campaign and the escalation game modes, these alone do not add to the replayability of this game.”
humor
5 mentions
80 % positive mentions
-40 % neutral mentions
60 % negative mentions
The humor in the game is described as solid and memorable, particularly in its dialogue and characterization, though some players feel it falls short overall. While there are attempts at humor, many reviewers found only a few moments genuinely funny, with some expressing disappointment in the game's comedic elements compared to previous titles.
- “The dialogue and characterization are solid, hilarious, and memorable.”
- “They even try to add some funny parts into the game.”
- “Actually, there is only one thing in this game that made me laugh.”
- “The humor falls flat and feels forced, making it hard to enjoy the game.”
- “The jokes are stale and lack originality, leaving me more cringed than amused.”
- “It's disappointing that the comedic elements are so weak, as they could have added a lot to the experience.”
optimization
3 mentions
0 % positive mentions
0 % neutral mentions
100 % negative mentions
The game's optimization has been widely criticized, with users noting that it is poorly optimized overall, particularly for platforms other than Xbox. This lack of performance has been linked to the studio's shutdown, suggesting that the game's shortcomings may have contributed to its failure.
- “It is not optimized at all.”
- “I hear the studio responsible for these trio of games actually shut down, no doubt in response to this game's lackluster performance.”
- “The game was optimized for Xbox players and no one else.”