REDEEMER: ENHANCED EDITION / DEVELOPER: SOBAKA STUDIO / PUBLISHER: BUKA ENTERTAINMENT PUBLISHING / PLATFORM: PC, PS4, SWITCH, XBOX ONE (REVIEWED) / RELEASE DATE: OUT NOW
Now living a peaceful life in an isolated monastery, former “security guard” Vasily has been keeping himself to himself, staying far away from the assassinations, torture, extortion and general untoward goings-on that were everyday occurrences in his previous employment. When his old bosses discover his whereabouts, Vasily will have to revisit the dirty deeds of his past if he wants to live to see the future…
Redeemer is a top-down RPG brawler where everything is exactly as it seems and nothing really surprises. Vasily’s main attacks are limited to a single kick and punch, with no real combos to speak of, and he can also pick up weapons and firearms to add a bit of extra oomph, although these tend to break after just a few uses. Attacks can be upgraded through a slightly weird and unpredictable skill points system that relies on finding manuscripts and stone tablets, but none of the upgrades really feel like they change the game in any way, which is a shame as the lack of tangible rewards for your efforts can make it difficult to maintain motivation and enthusiasm beyond the first few levels.
Combat itself is very basic, but also very bloody, which adds something to the entertainment factor. Weakened enemies can be finished off with an execution, and smaller enemies can be taken out with a stealth attack if you’re able to sneak up on them undetected. The camera occasionally zooms down from above to show the effects of your final blow. It’s a nice touch that helps to make combat feel a little more exciting, but it’s still difficult to escape the feeling that you’ve seen and done this sort of thing a hundred times before.
Level design is reminiscent of 90s computer games like Alien Breed, both in layout and overall simplicity. The locations change, but never to anything memorable, and levels never amount to anything more than “walk through a bunch of rooms and corridors and kill everything.”
Redeemer isn’t a bad game by any means, just very derivative and, despite its simplicity, it still manages to feel a little rough around the edges. It’ll pass the time on a rainy afternoon, but it might not be something that you need to pick up immediately.
