Awaken Reviews

So in short. ths game is unplayble with the controller. and with keyboard idk... hack. since i was on controller all the bottoms setup you cant change and the bottom replace is garbage. i guess for a game that 10 buck does saw the lack of enough in the game. so whatever. i recommend no one to buy this. its a waste

don't like the design choice of giving normal enemies super armor even if it can be broken after a few hits, by the time they can be combo'd they're already half dead

I really like this game so far. The combat is innovative, flashy, and fun -- with more depth than meets the eye. I'm about 3 hours in, and i already prefer this combat to the vast majority of party based 2d games i've played. The basic idea is you have three characters in a party at a time, but only one that takes damage in the front row. You avoid damage by activating a character in the back row's attack (but they need energy, cooldown based). A single press will cause the front row character to sort of briefly "dodge" while the rear character attacks. A double press will have the rear character take over, and come to the front row. So right now I have the mech character in the front row to tank, and the rear characters will add ranged attacks (a splash damage shotgun blast + a shockwave knock down attack) at the end of a combo. If I "break" an enemy and knock them down, I'll switch the rear characters in who are squishier but have higher DPS. Currently they apply burn (dot), corrode (dot), and freeze (slow debuff). Then I switch the mech back in and continue the loop. The mana system is cooldown based, with each battery icon representing an available elemental attack. There are also ultimate attacks that are charged based on doing damage. Lastly, there are jump cancels that involve ending a combo early and also doing damage (but cost a battery). So if one is feeling aggressive, they might break an enemy -- use both rear characters elemental attacks. Then switch one in, do a full combo that ends in a jump cancel, and then lastly an ultimate attack. The ultimate attacks are ongoing, so you can switch back to your main character who will do their elemental attack if they have the energy. I'm not doing an elegant job at describing it, but in my opinion the system is something very special and unique. Added to this is a leveling system that is quite extensive for each character -- that can extend combos, add HP, increase maximum energy reserve; as well as socket chips that can add elemental effects to attacks or increase armor/hp/etc. Highly recommended Pros: +Each character feels quite varied in attacks, specials ,etc +Excellent art direction. The balance of 2d characters in 3d environments is very aesthetically pleasing +Decent depth in leveling (imbue corrosion to attacks, boost armor, etc) +Runs perfect on steam deck (~5 TDP, 60 fps) Cons: -The lack of a dedicated evade/dodge/block feels a bit wrong to me. Repositioning during fighting could be a bit quicker -Story feels a bit sparse so far. I'm a sucker for cyberpunk style with rich versus poor dynamics, but so far the factions and characters we meet don't seem to have much personality or substance -Crafted chips are destroyed if you want to remove them from a character. In my opinion they cost too many resources for this to happen. It reduces flexibility and adds an unnecessary tedium in my opinion Suggestions: ~Add an automatic recycle mechanic to enemy material drops when returning to base. I don't see the point of recycling each material one-by-one, when they are only useful after recycling ~Make every save/teleport point resurrect dead allies. Since there is no penalty on returning to base and resurrecting, I don't see the point in adding the extra step ~Add an obvious indicator or sound effect when an enemy's guard is broken, add critical hits after they are broken ~Enhance automatic targeting / lock on. I often will attempt to attack someone that is locked on, and will miss them because I'm in the wrong row of the 2d/3d space. I'd honestly prefer an "execute" mechanic after an enemy is broken with some proximity based lock on (see Nioh 2 execution when enemy ki/qi is depleted). ~Consider adding more ways to avoid damage, or more detailed tutorials for advanced fighting techniques. I think a horizontal dash that costs one battery to use would be perfect and make the combat more elegant. Consider some advanced tutorials or example videos in-game so that combat can be more understood ~Make the red flash brighter when an enemy is attacking ~Reduce the requirements for crafting an implant chip, or alternatively allow them to be replaced without destruction. A simple fix would be adding a yellow currency cost to replace a trip without destroying it ~Increase materials returned when recycling a character. It's a serious decision to do, and currently feels unrewarding Final thoughts: Buy it. It's a great price, great gameplay. Innovative fun. I wrote more about cons and suggestions because I really like what's here currently, and want to see it improve

TLDR: Game is a bug-infested unplayable mess. On download you get asked which language you want the game to have - this has no impact whatsoever, the language settings are in game, it always starts in Chinese. This game has no controller support - keyboard only. In the tutorial, you start as a cube of energy or whatever - I got placed behind the map, and the camera moves off the map to the right, letting you adore the blue nothingness. It took me a bit to find out I can walk straight through walls, letting me back in the map to where Im supposed to go (its indicated by a marker). There I find a broken automaton and finally completely break the game. A cutscene plays in which all characters disappear and it says that you now repaired the automaton and why not try moving around with it. After the cutscene the automaton as well as your energy cube are gone and youre softlocked, all you can do is jump (which moves the camera, you still dont ahve a model) and quit the game. Ive tried this numerous times, Ive tried changing the difficutly, window mode, resolution, graphic quality, nothing helps, I cant finish the tutorial. Since the game barely released there is nothing I can find about this online either, my pc also easily surpasses the minimum requirements for this game, I cant find any problem on my end. Gonna refund now I guess.

Interesting take on beat em' ups. Each character is assigned to a button. They have their basic combo that ends with an oddly long unsafe state. To avoid taking damage you can quickly switch to another character to continue the combo or get out of Dodge. So it is sort of like the combat system from the Valkyrie Profile 1. Each character has a special move they can do as a support attack. If you press the button again you will switch to them and combo. You can also do an ultimate attack. Some characters have long ultimate attacks and you can switch to one of the other characters while that attack is going on to attack another enemy or combo with the ultimate or even do another ultimate. The translation could use some work. The default controls for keyboard work fine but I prefer to play a game like this with a controller. So I made and uploaded a config based on the default keys for my Xbox controller. I may update this review with more information later but I am happy with my purchase.