Remnant: From the Ashes Review

by: Capt Stiffy

DISCLAIMER: I am writing this at the 1-week mark of the game’s release. Some details may change with future patches.

VERDICT:

FPSGuides Rating: 8/10

Worth $40 (launch price) but is likely to drop in price fairly quickly if you can wait

Definitely buy if you are a fan of the Souls series (or similar titles) or looking for a fun co-op with friends.

Pros:

+ Engaging gunplay and melee combat

+ Interesting enemies and boss designs

+ Fun co-op style gameplay

+ Procedurally generated world offers high replay-ability

+ Challenging

+ Good for casual or hardcore players

+ Easy drop-in & drop-out co-op

+ Little to no grind necessary

+ Interesting storyline

Cons:

– Architecture/level design in some areas can look very similar, makes navigation difficult

– Random difficulty spikes during levels or bosses can make the game very difficult when played solo

– Most NPCs are somewhat forgettable

– No PVP

I think of Remnant as a very approachable “Souls-clone”. It doesn’t carry the innate difficulty that Dark Souls has, but it still has its challenges, as well as exploration, boss fights, builds, and secrets. It’s a great “co-op with friends” title, with hours of replay-ability thanks to the procedurally generated worlds. You and your friends can have completely different dungeons, bosses, and secrets. So if you are a collector, you will have to replay the game many times or join another’s world in jolly cooperation!

Combat is very engaging, weapons feel unique and powerful. The introduction of “Mods” add nice variety to enemy encounters without feeling too OP. Mods have many uses such as: heals, buffs, attacks, and crowd control. Most mods (besides Boss Weapons) can be swapped out on the fly. This allows you to settle into a build of your choosing, while still being able to be flexible if you need to change it up.

Co-op is very easy and can be accessed straight from the main menu, which is super nice. You can search for friend’s games or join a public game and help some “randos”. Unique to this game, you share any items picked up in your party. This includes EVERYTHING. Weapons, boss pickups, armor, materials, scrap (money) are all duplicated. So there is no loot hogging or disputes on who gets what. Ammo is actually not shared however, so be mindful. If you find yourself running through a level with plenty of ammo to spare, you are probably hogging all the pick-ups.

Exploration is great considering there are secrets and dungeons are on basically every level. However, the act of exploring can be frustrating at times. Many areas end up looking very similar, if you are not using the map or specific landmarks, it is very easy to get lost. So always know your location on the map and you should be fine.

The story, while somewhat cliché, is interesting enough. It’s presented via cut scenes, NPC dialog, and in-game item descriptions. It steadily becomes more engaging as the game progresses but it is not a major contributor to the game’s enjoyment, at least in my experience. Most NPCs are pretty forgettable, and if dialog not syncing with facial animations bothers you, then just skip through those asap. The main character’s role in the story is…uncertain. Similar to Dark Souls, you start out on this quest without any discernable background but you have a quest in mind from the beginning. But unlike Dark Souls, as the game story progresses, your presence in the story does not get expanded on. You just showed up to do a thing. But why? Why you? Why is this your destiny? We may never get the answers to this question. Or I completely missed the in-game explanation…hard to say.