I was going to do a proper review of Miasma Chronicles since the combat and the world seemed interesting enough. However, the further I got into the game, the more apparent it becomes that it suffers from some seriously baffling design decisions. This cut my game time rather short as I just can’t be bothered with this type of gameplay anymore. I will explain.
What’s going on?
I will not go into too much detail here as I have not played it for too long. From the few hours I have, it seems competently made, at least going by aesthetics and atmosphere. The story is pretty basic, and unfortunately, it seems to be inflicted by typical modern writing with cringe characters and dialogue. Not overwhelmingly so, though. As for the narrative, the world has gone down the crapper, and Earth has been turned into a wasteland of some sort. A mega-corporation made something they shouldn’t have and unleashed it upon the world, turning everything to black mush. This black “substance” they created now infects everything and everyone. Several decades later during the ongoing apocalypse, you take over. Here on out you will play as a young man that can harvest this entity, and with that, you have to figure out the whys and hows.
The gameplay is turn-based in the form of modern Xcom games. It uses the two-action point system, with half and full cover and abstract “gameboard-style” shooting instead of simulated physics. I don’t mind this system for certain games, even if I prefer a more realistic simulated take. The percentage chance of rolling on bullet avoidance can get a bit silly. Who knew a solid concrete wall would actually provide zero protection? The combat in itself works fairly well regardless, and if you played any of these types of games before you will be right at home.
Gameplay wrecked!
What absolutely devastates the game, though, is that you need to take out sentries stealthily before you actually engage in full-blown combat. I have no issues with this per se as I like sneak gameplay. However, what makes this annoying beyond belief, is that the only person (in my crew so far) that can take out enemies silently, can’t do it reliably. Only the lowest grunts are guaranteed kills, everyone else above a certain health-point number requires to be critically hit to die. This means that you have to save before every attempt since a failure will bring the whole enemy team down on your head. When that happens you might as well say sayanora for good. And there isn’t even a quick save or quick load key, you have to go into the menus each time!
It turns the combat into a puzzle and a total RNG-fest. I wouldn’t mind failure if it was possible to fight through these encounters, but it’s not. Your characters do way too little damage, and the bigger enemies got a serious health boost in the form of bloat, forcing you to blast them several times while they easily chew through your men (and women). Another thing with this is that most enemies will stand completely still forever and ever, and the only way to get them to move is to throw empty bottles as a distraction. That moves them away, so you can attempt to take them out quietly (just make sure to pray to RNG gods first). The funny part here is that these bottles are almost invaluable. They are extremely rare and expensive to buy. Most enemies stay grouped as well, and from what I can tell, the only way to separate them from each other is to throw the goddamn bottles worth more than the rifle I’m using.
This whole stealth aspect of Miasma Chronicles seems to be designed to just piss you off, and artificially lengthen the game. I just can’t take it. I’m trying to wrap my head around why it is so, but I just can’t. I’m thinking; maybe I’m missing something here – is this really how the game is supposed to be played? Forced to forever collect bottles like some kind of wasteland hobo while praying to the RNG gods in the sky to be merciful? IS THIS MY FATE GAME?!
I have not decided if I want to continue or not yet. I’m not too far in, but I have a strong suspicion that this is just the beginning of all my problems. All encounters will probably play out the same, sneaking, bottle throwing, and menu surfing until the end of time, or well, a well-deserved rage-quit.
Thanks for reading.
/Thomas
| System: | PC (Steam) |
| Played with: | Mouse & keyboard |
| Mods/fixes: | None |
| Enjoyment rating: |  |
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