Abyssus Review: Under The Sea Isn't as Nice as Sebastian Promised

Roguelites have become so ubiquitous over the last decade or so that it's sometimes difficult to muster up much excitement when the next one hits virtual shelves. The perfect antidote is a roguelite that has a real hook. A difference maker. Whether it's in the presentation or the gameplay, a successful genre entry needs something a little bit out of the ordinary to really pull me in.

Abyssus absolutely has that, and in several key areas, but it's hamstrung by one or two inconvenient truths that stop it from being a truly shining example of what it means to be a roguelite.

To start with the basics, Abyssus is a self-described brinepunk FPS that puts you in the shoes of an explorer tasked with securing a large deposit of brine, an extremely powerful substance in this game's universe. The issue is that the deposit lies beneath the remnants of a sunken civilisation whose inhabitants were presumably considerably luckier than the inhabitants of Atlantis, in that they're still alive. They're also corrupted and very cross, doing anything they can to get between you and your goal.

Obviously the nature of the game would usually put the pseudo-narrative and story somewhat on the backburner, but that isn't really the case here. Yes, the gameplay is still an immensely important part of the overall experience (more on that later), but the setup in Abyssus does actually do enough to elevate it pretty noticeably after playing for the first time. This is thanks, in large part, to a memorable and backstory-appropriate aesthetic that drives home exactly where you are and what you're doing, repeatedly. Whether it's the way the scenery is dressed or the design of the enemies, you never lose sight of why you're there and it quietly becomes more immersive because of it.

The game features 64 hand-crafted levels which are then procedurally sequenced in an effort to make every run feel like a new experience. A fine idea in theory, but in practice it's here that we run into our first, and arguably most damaging, issue. Abyssus held up very well to scrutiny over my first day or two playing. It was undoubtedly good fun. Beyond that, the levels started to feel formulaic and a little samey. Sure, the routes through my change, enemy density and type might vary, but in the cold light of day it did start to feel like I was doing the same thing over and over. Again, it wasn't that there was no fun to be had with each new run, it's just easy to see how the appeal could wear off with the game in its current form.

That tangentially relates to the game's progression systems, which are fairly run of the mill for a roguelite, though admittedly effective in what they're designed to do. As experienced players of the genre would now come to expect, the game uses an incremental upgrade mechanic that will allow you to progress further and further with each successive run. While this can be frustratingly slow in your earliest hours with the game, it quickly expands outwards to allow buildcrafting that is probably the most impressively deep (excuse the pun) feature the game has. There are only eight base weapons to get to grips with but these are highly customisable, with 45 mods available at launch which drastically change how the weapons look and feel.

Add to this a bunch of skills and a suit that you can also change drastically from its base form, and it becomes clear that a lot of care went into curating the powers and synergy on offer. It's so well done in fact that it works regardless of whether you're playing solo or in a team. If you're alone, simply build the suit/weapon/skill combat that matches with your preferred playstyle and skill set the best. If you're in a team, you can really get in the weeds of the whole thing to work out how your synergies might interconnect to maximise the effectiveness and cohesiveness of your squad. And if you're playing in a team you're going to want plenty of both.

I'm saying that because there is a bit of a dichotomy between playing solo or in a group and it's probably the opposite way round to what you would expect. Waltzing through the briny depths alone is a relative breeze, and you'll find fewer enemies who seem to fall quickly beneath your onslaught. Grouped up it's a whole different kettle of fish, and the fish in this kettle are a lot more aggressive, numerous and deadly. I totally understand why this adaptive difficulty is important, but the way it's currently implemented feels too harsh and like a bit of a culture shock. Not that this is an issue that can't be rectified, but it definitely does need some considerable tuning in its current form.

The gunplay itself is actually very smooth and pleasant to play, with a learning curve that rewards those who put the effort into understanding the strengths and weaknesses of their loadout. It’s difficult to think of a 1-1 comparison but there’s a touch of DOOM, a sprinkle of Borderlands and the movement focus of Returnal (though delivered in first person here). That’s not to say that it quite manages to hit the heady heights of those, but it is a solid effort at recreating some enthralling features.

Enemy types are also varied enough to keep things interesting, without being really spectacular in their design. Many of the mechanics on offer present a challenge to overcome and there is a learning curve that feels rewarding to conquer against the games tougher foes. There are certain points where it did feel like a climactic fight was a little underwhelming, with some enemies lacking in a sense of scale that makes them appear trivial at the very least.

All things considered, Abyssus is a good game with a solid foundation, that could easily be a great game come future patches. Even now, it’s great fun to dive in and blow enemies away, particularly with a squad of friends, even if that does inordinately ramp up the difficulty. At the introductory offer price being offered in the Steam store until August 19, I’d feel more than comfortable recommending it to a friend, and it has the potential to be a staple evening’s enjoyment if it can get over the biggest hurdles discussed in this review.

Pros: Interesting movement, tight gunplay and rewarding buildcrafting

Cons: Repetitive levels, occasional lack of enemy variety

For fans of: Deadzone: Rogue, Warhammer 40,000: Darktide, Bioshock, DOOM

6/10 - Good

Abyssus is available now on Steam. A review code was provided by the publisher. Read a guide to our review scores here.