Replaced - PC Review

The background shows trees and grass, blurred and in a sephia tone. The large black text in the center of the screen says 'REPLACED'.

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Replaced caught my eye from the beautiful screenshots on the Steam page. The game itself is developed by Sad Cat Studios, and is set in the alt history of the 1980s. Where a new bigger and smarter artificial intelligent has gone and ended up in a human body. The game is out now on Steam and is price at £16.99, and has a demo available too.

Limbs are replaceable, memories aren’t!

A large group of enemies is stood in front of the main character Reach, who has his back turned to the player. Some of these foes are holding shields, while others have a sickle. The whole area is being illuminated by a large fire in the background. — Well don’t all attack at once now.

Gameplay

So the game starts with Warren, who is a scientist working on a new A.I. named R.e.a.c.h. After something goes terribly wrong, which ends with the A.I. somehow entering Warren’s body. With mass hysteria in the facility this whole story starts in, we escape and wind up at the Station. A place where outcasts known as Disposals inhabit. Replaced is heavy on the platforming side, rather than the combat. When it does come to the combat however, it is more of a flow style, like that found in the Batman Arkham games. You can punch enemies over and over, until they go down. With each chapter after 2, R.e.a.c.h. will get a new bit of gear that he can then use, with that chapter mainly focusing on its usage.

A man jumping from a nearby building to another. A sign on the left is glowing a pink neon glow, while the words spell out hotel, except the L is out of view. — Always be prepared to jump.

For example, early on we get the pickaxe that lets us latch onto broken/cracked walls. And in combat, R.e.a.c.h. uses it to tear enemy shields and heavy amour apart. Another major bit of his kit is the gun, it only is able to fire one shot, but that round does kill. Before using it, the gun will need energy which is gathered from attacking foes. Finding items, or doing some side quests will provide equipment or health improvements, like quicker energy charging. For the platforming side Replaced, most of the time you will be avoiding spotlights or environmental hazards, with the odd chase scene for good measure.

Graphics & Audio

One very notable thing about this game is indeed the graphics, and it’s not the first time you’ll hear this, or the last. It’s an incredibly cinematic looking game, with excellent scenery shots, incredible lighting, and very well-designed pixel style (yet 3D) environments. The sunrise and sunsets you see are breathtaking, and some city areas grungy and dingy with editions of varying neon lights. The world is truly rich in details.

A large frame with a neon green glow, in the center is the main character stood with his back to the screen. — I have so many screenshots from this game, It is just that beautiful.

Though the character models appeared to be 2D, there are some instances where the character looks like they have a bunch of details, such as hair swaying as you move. The in game menus and HUD, especially the menu device you hold is incredibly reminiscent of the Fallout. While there’s no voice acting and I feel there isn’t a tonne of music, what music is there is beautifully done and definitely lends inspiration from the 80s and the sound effects are spot on.

Longevity

Replaced has 34 achievements to work towards, with most being based on doing specific moves over, and over. Such as shooting a certain amount of enemies. Other achievements are tied to collecting all notes or other collectables, like the health and energy boosts. But in the end my play-through took me a little over 14 hours, which honestly felt longer with specific chapters in Replaced.

Two character looking at each other while stood next to a vehicle all around them are flames just seen out of frame. The flames provide an ambient glow for the shot. — This isn’t the end.

Final Thoughts

First and foremost, Replaced is stunning to say the least, but what it does in visuals, it heavily disappoints in gameplay. Most of the players time is spent running through large corridors or vents that seem to go on, and on until R.e.a.c.h. drops into a swarm of enemies. Tie that with the constant avoid the spotlight segments and the whole game just tends to drag on. With some chapters being needlessly long or some too short and just padded for no reason. The best examples of this are chapters 2, 4, and 6. When it comes to chapter 2 and 4, R.e.a.c.h. is at the Station and here he can do exactly 2 side quests in each. But to go as far as have the whole area as a chapter seems odd.

Chapter 6 however, go on for too long for only a slight sniff of story to be actually meaningful in the last couple of areas. There is a lot that could have been cut down. On the actual combat side of things, it flows okay, but nothing we haven’t seen before. It is mainly there to break up the abundance of running and platforming. It feels as if the story suffers the most in all this, with anything meaningful actually happening until the end of chapter 6 out of 10.

I am giving Replaced the Thumb Culture Silver Award. Because Although the visuals are beautiful, it really gets destroyed by the boring and repetitive gameplay.

Disclaimer: A code was received in order to write this review.

About Author

Kyle McGrath

I’ve enjoyed video games for as long as I remember and I don’t think there isn’t a game I wouldn’t play. For reviews, I try my best to make them simple and easy to understand. With so many games released daily, I attempt to play them all.

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Replaced – PC Review