As a seasoned gamer with over two decades of gaming under my belt, I must say that my experience with Dustborn was like watching a well-intentioned puppy trying to play fetch with a rusty tin can. The game had potential, but it seemed to have lost its leash and wandered off into a field of mediocrity.
Fascism has always been fought with weapons and words alike, but the two approaches are more complementary and not directly intertwined. Italian dictator Benito Mussolini was not dethroned via aggressive poetry, after all. Dustborn, however, is an action adventure game set in a dystopian United States that turns words into literal weapons and, while a novel concept for a game, its wordplay is nowhere near sharp enough to be wielded in such a fashion.
In Dustborn, a lackluster sense of humor prevails throughout, affecting both the gameplay and dialogue. The dialogue, in particular, is problematic given its emphasis on storytelling. A varied ensemble of misfits offers multiple viewpoints on the struggle for freedom, yet the irritating characters fail to live up to their potential. Their constant chatter is seldom amusing or endearing, undermining efforts to make each character relatable. The stream of trivial comments is wearisome and pales in comparison to games like Marvel’s Guardians of the Galaxy and Uncharted that artfully utilize dialogue. Dustborn struggles to justify its extended playtime by being neither engaging nor entertaining enough.>
Dustborn’s Dialogue Is Only Part Of The Problem
In Dustborn, the conversation moves slowly and can’t be skipped, which is one aspect of the game’s larger storytelling problems. As players traverse a crumbling America under authoritarian rule, Red Thread Games has an opportunity to present their unique take on how such control might develop in our country. Misinformation and polarization are significant factors driving this nation’s decline, making Dustborn a potentially believable allegory for real-world events because, regrettably, it seems quite realistic.
Rather than exploring the complex reasons why people might support tyrants and oppressive systems, the story simplifies the issue by attributing it to enigmatic objects called Echoes that deceive their victims and instill fear. By attributing complex societal issues to bursts of unseen signals, the novel Dustborn loses its potential for a profound message, as this oversimplification removes any substantial or thought-provoking themes to analyze. It’s puzzling to blame the collapse of a republic on a tiny, ethereal orb that essentially overdoses its target with misinformation. Although the novel’s progressive and anti-fascist ideals are admirable, its superficial portrayal of authoritarianism and reluctance to delve deeper undermines its potential to serve as a powerful allegory.
In simpler terms, the game’s climax suffers due to the Echoes, which serve as a confusing link to an ancient language often explained excessively with technical jargon that seems unnecessary for the overall plot. The game’s concluding journey is hurried, skipping over vast distances and crucial moments, and introduces some unexpected twists without proper setup. Dustborn‘s narrative could benefit from a more straightforward approach to avoid potential letdowns. Additionally, the use of dialogue to manipulate or attack, a unique power many characters possess, is inconsistent, making it unclear when it will be effective.
Dustborn’s Combat Lacks Depth
In contrast to many other games in its casual-style genre, Dustborn’s narrative is disjointed, but it shares this disorder with an equally confusing combat system. The melee fights are marred by unresponsive controls and limited options, resulting in each battle becoming a tedious grind that feels like a replay of the previous one. To make matters worse, characters persistently chat during battles and restart their lines after every special move, thereby extending Dustborn’s annoying dialogue to other parts of the gameplay. It is noteworthy that the game actually inquires whether players wish for less combat following the initial intense encounter.
Since Dustborn is cluttered with unnecessary systems and features, it also includes a rather uninteresting rhythm mini-game. Although not as problematic as the melee combat, this mini-game lacks effective tutorials to unlock new songs, making it easy to play the same average track repeatedly throughout the game. Furthermore, the band’s disguise is weak, leading to some absurd or forced situations that cast doubt on the necessity of these musical elements.
The mini-rhythm game within Dustborn serves as another example of its overall lack of development. Its story unfolds unevenly, and it presents an oversimplified perspective on authoritarianism. Moreover, the crew, though they’re central to the plot, can be quite annoying due to their constant chatter. The combat mechanics are basic and suffer from poor control responses. The game’s various systems don’t mesh well together because they’re all either underdeveloped or prone to bugs. Unfortunately, Dustborn struggles to challenge authority when it seems preoccupied with internal conflicts at every turn.
The game titled “Dustborn” is set to release on August 20, 2024, and will be available on PC, PlayStation 4, PlayStation 5, Xbox One, and the latest Xbox Series X|S. For this review, Game Rant was given a PC access code.
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2024-08-14 17:06