Scars Above Review (Xbox One)

STAFF REVIEW of Scars Above (Xbox One)

Wednesday, March 22, 2023.
by Adam Dileva

I’ll admit, whenever I see or hear “soulslike” in a game description, I let out a small groan and probably roll my eyes a bit. Not a fan of the genre or the difficult ‘git gud’ game design they tend to utilize, I went into Scars Above with an open mind. Even though there may be some light Souls influences, it’s really not as much of a copy as I expected and does have some interesting mechanics. Scars Above is a third person shooter from smaller studio Mad Head Games, melding a genuinely interesting story, fantastical backdrops and some clever yet challenging gameplay.

You play as Kate Ward, a scientist member of SCAR (Sentient Contact Assessment and Response) who is a part of a highly specialized group of people tasked with investigating and trying to communicate with a massive and mysterious object that appeared nearby Earth’s orbit. Humans call it The Metahedron, a massive upside down pyramid-like structure that simply appeared one day. Naturally, when a strange alien structure appears, we can only assume the worst, so the SCAR team is sent to investigate and attempt contact.

Like most times when we mess with things we don’t understand, this awakens the Metahedron and Dr. Kate Ward suddenly wakes up alone on a mysterious planet that is nothing like Earth, unsure where her team went. Being a scientist and not a soldier, Kate will need to use her scientific brain to try to piece what has happened and where her team is, but that doesn’t mean she won’t have to fight, quite the opposite actually.

As events unfold and you learn more about the planet, the hostile creatures and more, you’re guided by a ghost-like figure that speaks to you requesting help. Who is guiding you and how? As Kate analyses her environment, she will become more adept at learning enemy weak spots, crafting new gadgets, how to survive in harsh areas and more. It’s honestly quite an interesting story that hooked me from its opening cutscene, and while it does dip here and there, getting to the next story piece and cutscene is what pushed me to further figure out who and what The Custodian is.

Played as a third person shooter, while Kate isn’t particularly well trained in combat given she’s a scientist first and foremost, she will need to do everything she can to survive, and that includes a whole bunch of shooting. There are three difficulty settings, and even on Normal it can be a bit of a challenge for your first playthrough as you figure out the mechanics and best way to handle each enemy type. While not quite as difficult as a Souls game, there is challenge at figuring out the best strategies and weapon combinations.

As you explore the alien landscape and come across beasts you’ve never seen before, you’ll need to be quick on your feet to survive if you want to find out what has happened to the ancient civilization that was here once before. As you progress you’ll explore completely different and unique biomes, each with their own challenges, such as literally freezing to death in open sections if you don’t have fire nearby to keep warm. While the main design is pretty linear, there are some branching paths that loop back around, usually housing some secrets and collectables that will make the detour worth it.

The opening tutorial will teach you the core basics of melee and maneuvering, slowly introducing you to its other mechanics as you gain new weapon types, gadgets and abilities. While not trying to replicate a Soulslike too obviously, there are some similar features such as managing your stamina for running and dodging as well as the save points. There are large crystals strewn about the alien landscape for you to discover, acting as a save point and refilling all your health and gadgets, but this in turn also resets all enemies. Sound familiar?

While Kate only starts out with a simple blade, it’ll be your last resort to defend yourself should you run out of ammo during your adventure. The vast majority of the time though you’ll be using your unique weapon that can utilize different elemental attacks as you unlock them throughout your journey. Combat itself isn’t overly complex, as you simply need to know where an enemy weak point is and what element is best used against them. Obviously the bigger and badder foes will add more challenge, like protecting the weak spot in their chest as they rush you, but there’s always a strategy that will work somewhat easily once you figure it out.

There’s also some Bioshock-like gameplay where the different elementals can combine for extra damage. For example, use your electricity shots to an enemy that is standing in water and it’ll take massive damage. Or maybe you want to slow them down, so you use your ice shots when they are in the water instead. Combining fire and acid are another lethal combination, so the initial challenge comes from not only knowing what weakness your enemy has (thankfully the color coded glowing spots on their body is an indicator) but also the best way to use the environment around you.

You’ll eventually have to manage four different ammunition types of fire, electricity, ice and acid, and while ammo isn’t necessarily scarce, it’s not abundant either. Certain flora around the world act as ways to refill your ammo, such as electricity or fire plants. On top of the different weapon types, you’ll also unlock new gadgets at a steady pace as you explore the mysterious and dangerous world you find yourself trapped on.

These gadgets can be useful in the right situation, but I found myself constantly forgetting to use them quite often. The two I found most useful was the shield that allows you to absorb some incoming damage for a short time, always helpful when fighting new enemies and bosses, and a grenade-like tossable item that slows down enemies as they pass through it, allowing you to escape or get around to target weak spots. These gadgets use portions of your battery, its own resource, but can be filled by finding Fiber around the world or of course resting at one of the crystals.

Scars Above does have some light puzzle elements as well, but nothing really all that challenging or had me becoming stumped. Some are shooting specific points with the right type of weapon and others will be researching items to find more information about it, focusing on specific points of the device and clicking 'A'.

Kate is a scientist, so naturally she’s going to want to research and investigate any new objects and creatures she comes across. This not only gives you more information about your enemies and surroundings, but finding more knowledge is how you’ll earn new ability points. Scars Above doesn’t use the typical ‘souls’ currency for defeating enemies. Actually, you get really nothing for defeating enemies, instead having a more exploration focus to find more knowledge. This encourages you to explore off the main path, almost always having something for your troubles. As you fill the knowledge meter you’ll eventually earn skill points to use for a variety of different skills and perks. Don’t worry though, before the end you’ll not only max out your skill tree but probably have a handful of leftover points as well.

Keeping in mind that Scars Above isn’t a AAA release at a full asking price, the visuals can be impressive at times. The world Kate finds herself abandoned on are quite beautiful at times, no doubt that will entice you for some vista screenshots. Enemies are designed quite well, though there isn’t a whole lot of variety, instead being recycled quite often and simply changing their weakness to be ‘different’, though the boss fights certainly stand out. Characters are modeled decently and my only real complaint here is that every cutscene stutters quite harshly for its first few seconds, even on an Xbox Series X.

As for its audio, the background soundtrack sets the tone based on the biome you’re exploring or kicks in a bit more when you’re taking on a massive boss. You’re able to hear the bulkier enemies coming from afar as their foot stomps get louder as they approach, and the main characters do a decent job at delivering their lines, so no real complains there.

I did quite enjoy the narrative from its opening moments and was compelling me to continue to move forward, even if combat could be a bit challenging and save points sometimes a bit too far stretched out, causing frustration when I had to replay a good half hour all over again. Combat does get repetitive and tiresome over time, but as an overall package, Scars Above feels like a much larger story wrapped in a AA package.

**Scars Above was provided by the publisher and reviewed on an Xbox Series X**

Overall: 6.8 / 10
Gameplay: 6.5 / 10
Visuals: 7.0 / 10
Sound: 7.0 / 10

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STAFF REVIEW of Scars Above (Xbox One)

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