Dustborn Reviews

Really great story, 14 hrs plus is massive but really worth it. I highly recommend anyone to play this.

This game is a sleeper hit unfairly judged! I honestly don’t understand the negative feedback surrounding Dustborn. From the aggressive reviews to the dismissive YouTube comments, it feels like people are judging it with a strange level of hostility. Sure, it’s not a groundbreaking masterpiece—but it’s far from being the disaster some are painting it to be. In fact, Dustborn is actually fun. It offers a unique atmosphere, light narrative choices, and a road-trip dynamic that instantly reminded me of Road 96. No, it’s not as fun or as emotionally resonant as Road 96, but it gives off similar vibes—like you’re part of a larger story unfolding on the move, with a hint of dystopia and personal drama baked into the scenery. And I personally enjoyed the combat and the fighting techniques! The pacing isn’t perfect, and it might not appeal to those looking for high-octane gameplay, but for anyone who enjoyed the slower, story-first approach of Road 96, this one is worth checking out. (just make sure you get it on sale, it’s overpriced) Bottom line: Dustborn doesn’t deserve the hate. It may not be a perfect ride, but it’s a journey worth taking—especially if narrative-driven games are your thing.

Dustborn combines a story-driven, choices-matter adventure game with a comic book aesthetic with beat-em-up combat and musical rhythm games. If you like story-driven games like Life is Strange or the Telltale games, I recommend this one to you. If you are bothered by LGBTQ+ people or diversity, steer clear. The Good: High-quality comic book/cell shaded graphics Catchy music that I found playing in my head even when I was not playing the game Difficulty levels and the option to skip combat allow a wide range of players to enjoy the story All of the dialog is voiced and the voice acting is pretty good. I used every conversation option and listened to all of the background lines that the characters say to each other when you are not interacting with them. A conversation system that sometimes adds or removes dialog options depending on whether you wait to speak in a conversation. I like the flow and uncertainty that this injects into the conversations. I also like that you can tap the button for a response to see more about what Pax is thinking about before you select that response. The Bad: There are some moments in the game that feel like you should be offered a real choice, and instead you just have to do what the game is waiting for you to do because the story requires it. What should be the last Act of the game is crammed into the last of 10 chapters. It feels like the developer ran out of time to allow the last part of the story to unfold, so things get skipped or relayed in cut scenes or dialog instead of gameplay. Other comments: Combat is pretty easy at the normal difficulty, in my opinion. I mostly button-mashed my way through it. If you want your games to be difficult, this game is probably not for you. It's hard to know without doing multiple play-throughs how much the game reacts to your choices. Characters definitely reference your choices in dialog and there are some moments where the game indicates a certain scene is happening because of a character's level of relationship with you. But I would guess that the overall story does not change much based on your actions - the writer had an idea of the story and you are riding that rail to the destination no matter what. Final Thoughts: This is one of my favorite games of 2025. There is enough of the story left unfinished that I hope the developer can make a sequel, or at least a DLC that adds some more chapters to the story. 9/10