Developer: Armature Studio, Comcept, Asobo Studio
Publisher: Microsoft Studios
Platform: Xbox One, PC
Tested on: Xbox One
ReCore – Review
The war of having the best exclusive titles per platform still rages on quite fiercely. Most of these exclusive titles get paraded around as if they will evoke the next gaming revolution, and for the most part they tend to win over a lot of the stragglers who haven’t decided on a platform yet. Then, Microsoft drops ReCore on us, which was hardly promoted over here and, as far as original IPs go, went by rather unnoticed. Nonetheless, we were able to pick up this quirky little title and for the most part, we were pleasantly surprised.
Story
Imagining what our world would look like in two hundred years is a rather hard task, as we are constantly evolving, but also wrecking the planet. ReCore fast forwards us to that future, but sadly, it seems our planet is no longer viable and thus humanity planned to move to Far Eden, a utopia that was being prepared by sentient robots, allowing the humans to find immediate comfort upon their arrival. Sadly nothing seems to be further than the truth in this scenario, as you, Joule, wake up in your personal vessel (Crawler) to find the planet deserted, at least of human life. You’ll only come across Corebots, who have gone rogue and you can’t help but wonder what happened to the rest of humanity, or even the Corebots to have them behave in such a fashion.
Overall the game has a rather slow flow when it comes to the plot, but the setting is quite pleasant. Nonetheless, you start off in the middle of things and the information you get after the introduction is rather slim, which might scare off gamers who are looking for an epic tale.
Graphics
ReCore is probably one of the cutest interpretations of the ‘end of days’. You’ll be treated to a desert-like landscape, with enough flair to make it interesting thanks to the many bright colors. Joule looks like an adorable protagonist, and even though the game is rather different, it’s fairly reminiscent of Jak and Daxter or Ratchet and Clank. Most items prove to be rather detailed, even with the lack of different enemy types, as most of them prove to be the same model with a different color.
Even though the game is certainly worthy of being called a next gen title, there are some minor flaws that make it feel as if it was created for the previous generation. When certain items are stuck in the ground, or walls, they don’t seem to be properly embedded, but just cut in half and glued on said surface. While this never hampers the playing experience, it makes these rather big items feel sloppy compared to the rest of the game.
Sound
While the game doesn’t have stellar music, it is able to set the proper atmosphere, by offering you a tranquil background tune when exploring, but immediately slamming the pedal to the metal when enemies are nearby. This small simplistic mechanism is something more and more games don’t have any more, which is a shame.
Voice acting in this game is done in an amusing way, as the normal human beings, at least Joule and those she hears on her old recordings, are voiced in proper English. Everything else, has its own weird robot language, which is actually still quite pleasant to hear. Even though you won’t understand a single word the bots utter, Joule’s replies will immediately tell you enough to know what is going on.
Gameplay
ReCore is an action adventure game with a lot of platforming elements. You’ll basically roam around on Far Eden, one of our planet’s colonies that should have led our race to an utopian paradise. Sadly you’ll be treated to sand, and lots of it. You’ll run around, jump on platforms, boost your way through the sky to reach even higher platforms, fight Corebots, all while developing your own set of Corebots. Explore at your heart’s content, albeit on a fairly limited map.
From the start it becomes clear that this game is all about exploring and crafting better gear for your robot companions. You will also level during the game, unlocking different rifles, corresponding to the color of your enemies, which will allow you to deal more damage if you attack them with the same color as their type. Nonetheless, the gear system situates itself around your fellow Corebots, of which you’ll only have one at the start. The robotic canine Mack will be your first ally, but more will follow sooner or later. Each of these Corebots has its own equipment, which you can unlock by exploring the world and use materials in order to actually craft them. If you want to improve the base stats of your trustworthy allies, you’ll have to use the many different colored cores you find around the world, by defeating the hostile Corebots. Overall things are pretty straightforward and you’ll get the hang of this after mere moments.
When you have more Corebots at your disposal, you’ll have to switch between them, as they posses different abilities, allowing you to find treasures or items, while other might help you cross obstacles or climb structures otherwise out of your reach. Sadly you can’t have more than one active companion at all times, but then again, it would only make you overpowered in combat, as they tend to deal a hefty amount of damage as well.
Even though the above sounds very interesting, and for the most part it is, the playing field is quite empty, and you’ll encounter the same robots over and over, albeit with slightly different colors or skins, which might make the game repetitive. You’ll always have to ‘platform’ your way through obstacles, find certain items and fight the baddies that litter the way to your destination. Due to the lack of gear for Joule, combat feels a bit dull.
Nonetheless, the game offers great controls, which is important for a title that has you climbing and jumping platforms nearly all the time to reach new loot, or the locations for your quest. The latter aren’t always marked that well, making it sometimes a bit annoying when you have to find the next destination. The double jump and boost mechanic work like they should, and allow you to aim precisely, thus not overshooting certain jumps.
Conclusion
ReCore is a fun, simplistic title that has a rather catchy setting. While the story only kicks in properly after several hours, it does strike close to home when needed. Even though the game tends to be repetitive at times, and the world might not be that interesting anymore after a fixed amount of hours, this title does have fun mechanics surrounding the Corebots and holds proper platforming elements. If you’re a fan of games such as Jak and Daxter or Ratchet and Clank, this one is up your alley.
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