FTL: Faster Than Light

 PC
User Score
8.3

Generally favorable reviews- based on 1531 Ratings

User score distribution:
  1. Positive: 1,248 out of 1531
  2. Mixed: 185 out of 1531
  3. Negative: 98 out of 1531

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  1. Andrew_Paterson
    Dec 9, 2012
    4
    I want to like this game, I really, really do. But it's so frustrating that I'm not willing to take any more time to play it.

    Yes, it's a rogue like- and yes, rogue likes- are heavily dependent on randomness but FTL takes it to the extreme. I lost and lost and lost (and losing sees a restart from scratch - only the hardcore need apply); it's not even that there isn't a component of    I want to like this game, I really, really do. But it's so frustrating that I'm not willing to take any more time to play it.

    Yes, it's a rogue like- and yes, rogue likes- are heavily dependent on randomness but FTL takes it to the extreme. I lost and lost and lost (and losing sees a restart from scratch - only the hardcore need apply); it's not even that there isn't a component of skill. One does need to be skilled: managing your crew, sub-systems and power takes a lot of effort whilst also pinpointing attacks on the enemy.

    But chance and the increasing difficulty curve as you venture further across the universe outweigh the skill component solidly.

    Rather save money, get a dice, roll it till a six; then declare yourself a winner. It'll be far less aggravating all 'round.    … Expand
  2. Slackerboy
    Oct 22, 2012
    3
    This game has so much potential it could be a ton of fun, but most games are ruined by simple bad luck. In order to win you MUST get the right weapon upgrades or you are doomed, but getting them is a matter of pure luck.

    This could be resolved by re-balancing the sectors and allowing people to explore more, or making weapon drops more common. Until this is fixed I would avoid the game    This game has so much potential it could be a ton of fun, but most games are ruined by simple bad luck. In order to win you MUST get the right weapon upgrades or you are doomed, but getting them is a matter of pure luck.

    This could be resolved by re-balancing the sectors and allowing people to explore more, or making weapon drops more common. Until this is fixed I would avoid the game unless you want to lose or win based on pure luck.    … Expand
  3. HerrJoebob
    Sep 16, 2012
    4
    This is a great roguelike, but not a fun game by any stretch. You win or lose by the flip of a coin you have no control over - you might run into a (literally) unbeatable enemy, you may or may not find the upgrades you need, etc. It is incredibly unfair and this is exactly what they were trying for - it's a great gambling sim and addictive as heck because of that. The music's nice and theThis is a great roguelike, but not a fun game by any stretch. You win or lose by the flip of a coin you have no control over - you might run into a (literally) unbeatable enemy, you may or may not find the upgrades you need, etc. It is incredibly unfair and this is exactly what they were trying for - it's a great gambling sim and addictive as heck because of that. The music's nice and the graphics are decent. Once you get past the (again, intentional) unfairness, the biggest problem is that almost all combat is a tedious "click same keys over and over" thing. However, if you get boarded - and you will, a LOT if the coin flips go against you - it turns into intensive micromanagement with a UI that is not very responsive - not fun.… Expand
  4. Dravius
    Sep 20, 2012
    4
    The single biggest factor in this game is luck. As every encounter is completely random it removes any real sort of skill or challenge from the game, or a sense of achievement to more accurate. When you do 'finish' it you realise it wasn't because you did anything in particular, but because you happened upon the right encounters. The gameplay is fun, but the sheer amount of luck in theThe single biggest factor in this game is luck. As every encounter is completely random it removes any real sort of skill or challenge from the game, or a sense of achievement to more accurate. When you do 'finish' it you realise it wasn't because you did anything in particular, but because you happened upon the right encounters. The gameplay is fun, but the sheer amount of luck in the game completely detracts from it… Expand
  5. Vistance
    Sep 22, 2012
    3
    The people writing the high reviews have played the game for maximum of 2-3 hours. FTL seems fun when you first start out, but as you repeat the game over and over and over and over and over and over again you realize the entire game is rubbish because your chances of winning a particular run are controlled very minimally by you. All you do is steer the ship and click on parts of enemyThe people writing the high reviews have played the game for maximum of 2-3 hours. FTL seems fun when you first start out, but as you repeat the game over and over and over and over and over and over again you realize the entire game is rubbish because your chances of winning a particular run are controlled very minimally by you. All you do is steer the ship and click on parts of enemy ships. I had a run where I had nothing but the starter guns all the way up to the 7th sector, I explored many beacons and found nothing. The game is rogue like but fails to provide even a reasonably fair amount of random chance. Other times the game will reward you with something amazing that you can't use at the most inopportune time - one run I was given what was claimed by the game to be an amazing laser - but I had no means at all to operate this gun on my ship as I found it in the 1st sector. On another run I did great, but could not find a weapon like that laser to save my life - and was shafted by random chance. This SOUNDS like it could be fun sometimes, but after you play the game over and over you get real sick of "oh look, no weapons, oh look no new crew members" and you end up eventually running out of fuel and scrap and dying helplessly or you somehow get far then are ill-equipped for the higher powered enemy ships and die extremely quickly. The game has terrible pacing and while the mechanics operate fine, some things like the AI leave a LOT to be desired. I don't know why people feel like they must love indie games no matter how good or bad they are - if you give them false praise you're only hurting them. The game could be improved with patching, but somehow I sincerely doubt the odds the game will ever see an update - the developers got our money and have so far shown no real interest in doing much else with the game based on statements they've publicly made. For a half-working title like this I would not pay the price it's going for, $10 is too steep for a broken indie game and as gamers we should demand better quality from indie studios if we ever want them to replace corporate studios that just create more franchise games.… Expand
  6. Boris
    Sep 18, 2012
    2
    This is an indie game, made by two fellas like you and me, and because of that, I'll try to be as constructive as possible in this review. My rating is 2, and it's OBVIOUS that this game would deserve more. So, why do I give it only two? Well, there are a couple of reasons. A bit more actually. As someone else pointed out, this game is interesting and provides a strong "sci-fi experience".This is an indie game, made by two fellas like you and me, and because of that, I'll try to be as constructive as possible in this review. My rating is 2, and it's OBVIOUS that this game would deserve more. So, why do I give it only two? Well, there are a couple of reasons. A bit more actually. As someone else pointed out, this game is interesting and provides a strong "sci-fi experience". This is for the bright side. I've backed this game on Kickstarter, and I've had the chance to play it before its release. According to steam, more than 18 hours. To be honest, I must have spent the first 15 hours almost in a row, right after downloading it. The rest corresponds to a few tries I gave it from this moment until now; to see if the flaws were corrected yet. In fact, once a wave of enthusiasm has passed, the game becomes really boring : its main problem is re-playability. The experience which feels great at start becomes repetitive really rapidly. Each play-through is really not different. And the game is quite difficult, you find yourself dying all the time (this is relative to the genre, I think), which doesn't help at all about that. Indeed, the difficulty lacks a normal mode : the easy mode is damn easy, and the so called "normal" mode is kinda hard. The second complaint I have is : things are WAY too random. The fact that you flee before an entire fleet means that you don't have the leisure to explore your surroundings. As a consequence, you either are lucky enough to find some weapons, a new crew member or some good stuff; or you have bad luck and your only outcome is usually to start a new game. I could throw dice instead, I would have pretty much the same feeling. And because of the "balance" of the game, you often don't have the choice but to upgrade your shields ASAP, and pray to find good weapons soon enough. So the "freedom" upon upgrade choices isn't really there, at least if you want to survive. Your skills are very rarely involved, it's only gambling. To such extent, that after a hundred of games or so, the only new things you have are a bunch of unlocked ships which don't modify game experience that much. Same goes for the music : it's really entertaining at first, pleasing and so. And after some time, you find yourself muting it, and listening to Internet radio or so. So, even if this game is made from good ideas and obviously a lot of work, it lacks a lot of polish to reach the intended replayability. I was hoping something really different and way more satisfying. I really hope I will have to rewrite this review because the developers corrected these mistakes. Until then, that's not worth buying, really.… Expand
  7. deweee
    Jan 1, 2015
    3
    Are you ready for a "literally" unbeatable enemy which spawns randomly in your journey when you think you are going really well which destroys you in 3 seconds even though you are with full crew? No, you aren't.

    This games presentation, playability is so good but I have to give it a low score because of its retarded difficulty system. If you are a lifeless moron who can take the    Are you ready for a "literally" unbeatable enemy which spawns randomly in your journey when you think you are going really well which destroys you in 3 seconds even though you are with full crew? No, you aren't.

    This games presentation, playability is so good but I have to give it a low score because of its retarded difficulty system. If you are a lifeless moron who can take the developers mocking which drives you to restart over and over again for no reason, go play it in endless cycles to finish the game. If you want to see your investments in game turn out to a good game play, don't play this game. The difficulty system is really retarded. Whenever when you are beaten (10-15 mins in easy mode, tops) your game will be RESTARTED! I mean, restarted. All the progress of yours are gone, probably multiple times in your gameplay.    … Expand
  8. yosa1
    Mar 29, 2016
    3
    I played the original and liked it well enough for all its flaws. I figured I'd try this enhanced edition though, my line of thought being there would be some real improvements; there were, but not enough to make me like it.

    Aside from the labels it has been given, it is a progressive turn based side scroll styled game, there is some choice in the form of left or right path though they    I played the original and liked it well enough for all its flaws. I figured I'd try this enhanced edition though, my line of thought being there would be some real improvements; there were, but not enough to make me like it.

    Aside from the labels it has been given, it is a progressive turn based side scroll styled game, there is some choice in the form of left or right path though they could be randomly good or bad, very limited and any encounter is going to be an rng nightmare.

    This is one overrated game, its a snakes and ladders with some stats.    … Expand
  9. sealedinterface
    Sep 11, 2015
    4
    I don't have a lot of experience with difficult games, since I'm mostly a casual gamer. I was looking forward to the "space simulator" part of this game; managing a spaceship seemed quite appealing. Instead, the game puts far more emphasis on the "roguelike" part of this game. In order to do well in this game, you have to know exactly what to do in every situation, have the skill to do so,I don't have a lot of experience with difficult games, since I'm mostly a casual gamer. I was looking forward to the "space simulator" part of this game; managing a spaceship seemed quite appealing. Instead, the game puts far more emphasis on the "roguelike" part of this game. In order to do well in this game, you have to know exactly what to do in every situation, have the skill to do so, and of course befriend the forever hostile RNG. If anything goes wrong, you're doomed to die, and you lose all the progress in your entire game.

    The tutorial gave a basic tour of the interface and showed me how combat works, and left me confident enough to start an "easy" game. Little did I know that "easy", "normal", and "hard" translated to "hard", "harder", and "hardest". Just a couple of jumps in, the rebel fleet has already taken control of the start location, my pilot gets trampled to death by tiny blue horses, and I get blown up by the first enemy I run into because I can't penetrate its shields.

    I'm very much regretting buying this game, and I would recommend NOT to get it unless you're prepared for an extremely difficult and frustrating game.    … Expand
  10. tastybaldeagle
    Feb 5, 2018
    0
    An absolutely must play game. I don't like adventure games but this one goes above and beyond.
  11. JustSomeGamer
    Jun 27, 2017
    0
    pure cancer..........................................................................................
    100% luck.............................................................................................
  12. marc5477
    Apr 4, 2015
    2
    Insanely overrated. Its basically a casino game where you get lucky and get the items you need or you simply dont and there isnt a thing you can do about it. For example, i had a run where I did not find a single weapon (aside from starter weapons) anywhere and died in the 4th system... not fun. In another quickie run, the very 1st fight had me go up against a shielded missile shootingInsanely overrated. Its basically a casino game where you get lucky and get the items you need or you simply dont and there isnt a thing you can do about it. For example, i had a run where I did not find a single weapon (aside from starter weapons) anywhere and died in the 4th system... not fun. In another quickie run, the very 1st fight had me go up against a shielded missile shooting ship and as you might have guessed, I missed my 1st 4 salvos and he hit me every time, disabled my weapons, started fires and I simply couldnt do anything and lost on the 1st encounter (lol). In another run, i got to the end boss, but the only weapons I had were very slow (vulcan, starter stuff, and beams), somehow I reached the 3rd stage only to get get slammed on every surge with laser attacks that... as you might have guessed, took out my guns every time. Again, nothing I can do, it lasted 5 minutes but I could never peal his shield and he just whittled me down with his cheap surge (albeit I took out all the landing parties).

    Its just a rng based game... ive won several time (its easy if you get the items you need) but its just pure luck. There is little to no skill needed aside from timing firing salvos (something a 1st grader can figure out).

    The game is overhyped. It reminds me a lot of gem quest many years ago (around 10 years ago). It was all luck too and was the talk of the town but now no one even remembers that game. The same will happen here. It needs more depth and more strategy.    … Expand
  13. Nhin
    Jul 19, 2013
    4
    Overall, FTL is worth the money. Until 22nd of July it's 5 bucks on steam, and I would suggest you try it out if you haven't. But I will say, i'm glad I did not pay more for it. FTL is simply to random and way too frustrating for the average player. And that's a shame, because the game has the potential to be very entertaining and enjoyable. But it seems the game designers, out of someOverall, FTL is worth the money. Until 22nd of July it's 5 bucks on steam, and I would suggest you try it out if you haven't. But I will say, i'm glad I did not pay more for it. FTL is simply to random and way too frustrating for the average player. And that's a shame, because the game has the potential to be very entertaining and enjoyable. But it seems the game designers, out of some misfit idea of game design or general stubborness, on purpose have made it so. A shame because most books on game design written by the professionals, will tell you to avoid exactly these frustration points, if you don't want to trow away customers. That's why I can only give it a 4.

    FTL forces you to abandon all progress you have made in a game, if you die. Be that by mistake on your own or random chance. And the game is way to random. Here's an example: On one try I entered a fight in the 2nd sector in my basic Engi ship. Then 3 rockmen beams on board, while a solar flare is erupting in the background. I have only 1 human and 2 engi (all worse than rockmen) to fight, so they loose almost by default, and in the meantime the solar flares are setting most of my ship on fire that the rockmen isn't destroying. Not really much of a chance. 10-15 min of gameplay... complete waste due to random chance. And this happens ALOT in FTL.

    The bad things about this game could have been fixed in a rather simple way. Introduce saving when out of combat for example, maybe just on easy mode but not on normal (or make a hard without it). But taking away the choice completely is not clever. Reduce/remove certain ship/encounter combinations on easy mode, corresponding to your chosen ship layout (I.e. the above example would be OK in the mantis ship, but not on a Engi ship). Oh, and introduce higher resolutions, this isn't 1990 anymore.

    It's too bad, cause as it is, FTL only makes me annoyed when playing. Succeeding 1 times out of 5 mostly because of bad luck is not good game design.    … Expand
  14. reinaldons
    Jul 21, 2013
    4
    Frustration. If you wanna a game to get your space full loaded and shine, forget, this game is a simple one chance strategy game for you train your detachment by your items and game progress. You will die easy by chose the wrong sequence of upgrades and get a stronger enemy without any advice. You have no options for randomness enemies encounters.
  15. sweet
    Dec 8, 2012
    2
    People have far too romantic a view of games depending on the source, or having been an early supporter of the game pre-release are unwilling to look at it with a truly critical eye. As a marketing exercise it's been fantastically successful, but as a game it fails miserably. It is no better than a slot machine. Yes, there is some strategy and tactics involved that improve your odds, butPeople have far too romantic a view of games depending on the source, or having been an early supporter of the game pre-release are unwilling to look at it with a truly critical eye. As a marketing exercise it's been fantastically successful, but as a game it fails miserably. It is no better than a slot machine. Yes, there is some strategy and tactics involved that improve your odds, but they're so outweighed by random circumstance as to be virtually pointless, it's like buying two lottery tickets instead of one. It needs to be fixed and that won't happen as long as people are willing to put a smiley face on any old rubbish.… Expand
  16. Lacuentadejoako
    Dec 24, 2012
    3
    There is a big difference between hard and unfair, this game is unfair and not hard because the outcome of the decisions you take ,your rewards and enemies are random. It doesnt take any skill to beat the game is just having a lot of luck, every time you die because of bad luck you will have to start all over again so the game becomes boring very fast. Pirate the game,play it on normal andThere is a big difference between hard and unfair, this game is unfair and not hard because the outcome of the decisions you take ,your rewards and enemies are random. It doesnt take any skill to beat the game is just having a lot of luck, every time you die because of bad luck you will have to start all over again so the game becomes boring very fast. Pirate the game,play it on normal and if you like it buy it, that way you will understand what all the negative ratings mean when they say this game purely about luck.… Expand
  17. Jintoss
    Oct 10, 2012
    3
    A glorified waste of time which punishes any poor sap the longer he sticks around. Poorly designed, with all the addictiveness of a flash game. Steer well clear, you'll be glad you did.
  18. Crimson
    May 12, 2013
    3
    The game starts off as fun, but once you peer past the curtain you quickly become annoyed/frustrated. Once you realize that every single action in the game is random, it quickly dawns on you that there's little point to playing the game. Its like solitaire, everything is pre-determined, you simply go through the actions and pray the RNG comes out in your favor. There's absolutely zeroThe game starts off as fun, but once you peer past the curtain you quickly become annoyed/frustrated. Once you realize that every single action in the game is random, it quickly dawns on you that there's little point to playing the game. Its like solitaire, everything is pre-determined, you simply go through the actions and pray the RNG comes out in your favor. There's absolutely zero strategy involved, each turn you 'pull the level' and hope the slot machine rolls in your favor. Quite disappointing.… Expand
  19. happy-argentine
    Nov 10, 2013
    3
    It's been said by the top reviews: game starts out a lot of fun, you feel that if you'd just got that shield upgrade in time you'd take on the entire galaxy, so you try again, and again, and again..

    Then it hits you: winning has very little to do with you and more to do with a RNG decreeing whether or not you get that upgrade, or the store sells the weapons you want need. Battles    It's been said by the top reviews: game starts out a lot of fun, you feel that if you'd just got that shield upgrade in time you'd take on the entire galaxy, so you try again, and again, and again..

    Then it hits you: winning has very little to do with you and more to do with a RNG decreeing whether or not you get that upgrade, or the store sells the weapons you want need.

    Battles are always the same: target weapons, disable them. Then shields. Accept surrender, proceed.

    The difficulty curve is non existent: it's not a curve, it's a series of grades you are forced to climb.
    First level, ok getting the gist of this.
    Second level: well this is getting heavy.
    Third level: "holy where did THAT come from?".
    Fourth level: "oh COME ON, how am i even supposed to fight that? Time to run away"
    AND I'm not mentioning the completely cheap three stage final boss (well, I kind of am, aren't I?)

    I ended up feeling cheated.    … Expand
  20. DocGonz1897
    Jul 14, 2013
    1
    I had to make an account to finally write my first review because of this game, to warn anyone else who got lured in by all the good reviews. If you are a PC gamer that does not enjoy watching hours of your time go down the toilet because of RNG, do not play this game. It is just a glorified slot machine with a GUI, not a game. You can be the most seasoned veteran of strategy games, andI had to make an account to finally write my first review because of this game, to warn anyone else who got lured in by all the good reviews. If you are a PC gamer that does not enjoy watching hours of your time go down the toilet because of RNG, do not play this game. It is just a glorified slot machine with a GUI, not a game. You can be the most seasoned veteran of strategy games, and still suck at it, simply because everything in the game is randomized and has a built in chance of success/failure. The "quests" you get can easily be broken on each random map, sending you to planets you can't get to because of the "rebel creep" mechanic, you can be destroyed by a much lesser ship just because they landed 2 lucky shots with OP missiles, etc. Is it fun? Sure, kinda. Will it be enormously frustrating? Absolutely. I realize it is cheap, but your wasted time is the real expense.… Expand
  21. rynoth
    Jun 21, 2014
    2
    Reposted because of steams one-sided review system.

    Gameplay: You play in a top down view of your ship as you jump to different star systems to warn your Federation of a Rebel invasion fleet. From here you control your crew to man stations, you fire weapons, repair systems, manage power output, defend against boarding parties, and can even have boarding parties of your own. If you like    Reposted because of steams one-sided review system.

    Gameplay: You play in a top down view of your ship as you jump to different star systems to warn your Federation of a Rebel invasion fleet. From here you control your crew to man stations, you fire weapons, repair systems, manage power output, defend against boarding parties, and can even have boarding parties of your own.
    If you like games where the majority of the events are determine by the RNG, you'll love FTL.
    Resources, rewards, events, maps, enemy encounters, shop location, shop items for sale are all determined by the RNG. After playing for 34 hours I have determined that very little is left up to player control.
    You may have a run where you get tons of resources and upgrades gifted to you, or where you're left a pauper scrounging for scrap to repair your ship. Standard fair if you've played Binding of Isaac.
    The biggest issue I have with this game is that it takes control away from the player.
    Binding of Isaac you took direct control of Isaac and had to aim your shot manually.
    Combat in FTL is largely turn-based where you sit around waiting for your weapons to charge.
    After that you target a system on the enemy ship and fire. It's up the RNG whether your shot will hit or miss. If you have transporters you can get guarenteed shots by porting crewman into their cockpit to attack their pilot so there is a way to mitigate this.
    But the word is "IF"
    If you had the scrap, if you found the shop, if the item in question was for sale.
    That is the one thing that every "strategy guide" fails to mention is that all encounters, loot, etc is determined by the game.
    Many [strike]fanboys[/strike] fans of the game will argue it's skill based rather than luck.
    Please don't be fooled.
    Every strategy I've seen on FTL fails to mention that pulling it off is contingent on HAVING the right gear for it. If the game doesn't give it to you during an encounter or for sale in a shop, you can't do it.
    Other useful "protips" include not repairing your ship to full health, juggling power between systems rather than spending money to upgrade your reactor to save money for future upgrades.
    Both those "strategies" are going under the assumption that you will run across a mission that will result in free hull repairs, or free system upgrades. (Which can happen)
    CAN happen doesn't mean it will. If you happen to run into an enemy ship that gets a few lucky shots it could kill you. What they're doing is playing the odds, but a card-counter can still lose.

    FTL's most impressive accomplishment is the psychology based around it.
    The gameplay is tedious and repetive, but addictive. This is accomplished by rewarding the player at random intervals with scrap, weapons, new crewman. Sometimes just for jumping into a system.
    By bestowing these rewards upon the player, it encourages the player to continue pumping in hours of their life into the game. If you're having a good run you're motivated by greed and a sense of empowerment. "I want more weapons more scrap, give me MOAR!! I am invincible! HAHAHA!"
    If you're having a bad run you're motivated by hope and desperation. "Just have to make it to a shop to repair. I can do it. Maybe this system...no...maybe the next system."
    The point being to get the player to get sooo close to victory or even die based on bad luck so you’ll run it back.
    Regardless of whether you're having the most amazing run ever, the final boss can still curb-stomp you into the dirt with just a few well placed shots.
    I had one fight where the Rebel Flagship couldn't hit the broad side of a barn and every shot that did connect would hit systemless rooms.
    On the other hand I had encounters where I couldn't hit the Rebel Flagship to save my life and everyone of their shots seemed to hit just the right system at just the right moment.
    There are intances where the boss fight will rage on and it feels like you're both on equal ground, or somethings his first volley will cripple every system you have and you'll die in mere minutes.
    FTL is a game where you can do everything right and still lose.
    That's not a game. Not a good game anyway.
    In FTL you win or lose based on the randomness of the enemy AI and everything that followed before that.
    It's not skill when you defeat an opponent who spent the entire fight teleporting bombs into systemless rooms.
    And it's not a lack of skill if you lost because you all your shots missed thanks to the RNG.
    It's luck, plain and simple.
    If this review keeps one person from buying this travesty I've done my job.
    FTL is more roulette than space simulator. Avoid.    … Expand
  22. upi
    Sep 25, 2013
    3
    It is my fault, really, for picking up this game. I guess the "running the spaceship" and "saving the galaxy" part got me confused. Or perhaps the "strategy" and "simulation" categories made me think that the actual gameplay would involve either of these. I must admit, that I missed the "rogue-like" part mentioned in passing on the steam store page. (BTW "saving the galaxy" part is theIt is my fault, really, for picking up this game. I guess the "running the spaceship" and "saving the galaxy" part got me confused. Or perhaps the "strategy" and "simulation" categories made me think that the actual gameplay would involve either of these. I must admit, that I missed the "rogue-like" part mentioned in passing on the steam store page. (BTW "saving the galaxy" part is the galaxy is never in peril throughout the game. It's there in all its randomness, and it's feeling just fine.)

    So please, if you do not have a deep love for the rogue-like genre, do NOT pick up this game. Being at the mercy of the random-number god for scraps (literally) will not be fun for you as it was not fun for me. The game goes out of its way to make running your starship feel static and lifeless. The scenery never changes: there's your ship on the left, there's a smaller enemy ship on the right. You wait for some bars to fill, and occasionally pause to ponder where to shoot next. The interface follows the "hover over icon if you want to understand this" principle. (Except when it doesn't, in case you want to know the systems or weapons of an enemy ship, you have to look for a similar icon on *your* ship. In case of weapons, just forget it.)

    The soundtrack starts feeling repetitive about 10 minutes in and is basically the same two tunes over and over. Ugh.

    Gameplay 2/10 (ymmv, more if you enjoy a Random Events Plot)
    Sound: 5/10 (decent quality, but very repetitive and gets boring quickly)
    Design: 3/10 (see above)
    Visuals: 3/20 (very 90's)    … Expand
  23. Planex
    Aug 7, 2013
    4
    Frustrating. People are quick to point out that the game is this or that. It's a "roguelike." It's brutal. It's unforgiving of mistakes. All these are true, but what does that add up to? Pure frustration. Yes, the game is fun for a few hours, but once you realize that you can do everything right and still lose the game due to random chance, then all the novelty is gone. No matter how hardFrustrating. People are quick to point out that the game is this or that. It's a "roguelike." It's brutal. It's unforgiving of mistakes. All these are true, but what does that add up to? Pure frustration. Yes, the game is fun for a few hours, but once you realize that you can do everything right and still lose the game due to random chance, then all the novelty is gone. No matter how hard you try, the game will always decide your fate for you and without a real sense of fair play there's no point in playing the game at all.… Expand
  24. GameReviews35
    Jul 13, 2013
    2
    This game is crap. It's all random, and everything is designed to kill you. Don't get any weapons on the first two levels, you're dead. Don't find enough fuel, you're dead. Down to two crew members, you're probably dead. Enemy boards in your oxygen room, dead. Spend resources upgrading the wrong thing, dead. Don't find a store, dead. Don't upgrade enough, dead. Don't save enough, dead.This game is crap. It's all random, and everything is designed to kill you. Don't get any weapons on the first two levels, you're dead. Don't find enough fuel, you're dead. Down to two crew members, you're probably dead. Enemy boards in your oxygen room, dead. Spend resources upgrading the wrong thing, dead. Don't find a store, dead. Don't upgrade enough, dead. Don't save enough, dead.

    And take note: there is NO SAVE FEATURE. You can play for two hours, feeling like FINALLY you might win EASY MODE, and then you equip the wrong weapons for the final battle and you're dead, no retry, just start the entire game over.

    A lot of random encounters waste your resources and give you nothing back. You can't upgrade your actual weapons (just hope you find more), there's very little way to repair your ship, and there's absolutely no way to stop some enemy weapons.

    The thing is, this could be really fun if they'd make it more about skill than dumb luck. (Crew members gain abilities, multiple battle strategies, each play is a little different, and there are no time sinks at all.) And I'm sure we all get tired of games that force us to memorize what enemies are where and how to beat them. But they make it just too stupid and frustrating. if you want a game that is winnable based on clever or crafty playing, don't even waste $5 on this one.    … Expand
  25. urbanrot
    Aug 7, 2013
    4
    The game has merits but it needs to be noted that this game is intended for people that have a great deal of time to sacrifice as you could easily become attached to a ship & crew you’ve built up, only to have it completely annihilated during a random stacked encounter. This can literally fill you with anger and frustration, something adults prefer to avoid when playing games.

    It’s    The game has merits but it needs to be noted that this game is intended for people that have a great deal of time to sacrifice as you could easily become attached to a ship & crew you’ve built up, only to have it completely annihilated during a random stacked encounter. This can literally fill you with anger and frustration, something adults prefer to avoid when playing games.

    It’s important to understand that "spaceship simulation roguelike-like" means there's no saves or checkpoints, whatever time you invest can be easily wiped and you need to start from scratch simply because of bad luck.

    Pros include an enjoyable ambient sound track, an intuitive interface, a varied experience due to the random nature of the game and plenty of unlockables with achievements.

    Cons include a poor method of enhancing longevity by introducing an artificial roadblock in terms of checkpoints which really aren’t necessary what with all the unlockables and achievements the game provides.

    I’d probably rate this game considerably but the minority of diehard fans that troll anyone who innocently asks on forums how to save has soured my experience of the game and thus I’ve advised my friends to avoid it.    … Expand
  26. Lamring
    Apr 11, 2014
    3
    First I want to begin by saying that I really wanted to love this game, however after playing though for many many hours I can say with confidence that this game is completely luck based. If you wanted a space exploration game based on skill and cunning look elsewhere. I was able to beat the game on one of my first five playthroughs, ever since then I have not been able to beat the gameFirst I want to begin by saying that I really wanted to love this game, however after playing though for many many hours I can say with confidence that this game is completely luck based. If you wanted a space exploration game based on skill and cunning look elsewhere. I was able to beat the game on one of my first five playthroughs, ever since then I have not been able to beat the game once! I have been playing the game for months now and I just give up. I hope they patch the game to make it more fair soon, because I like the mechanics of the game and would love to play a fair version of it.… Expand
  27. Alpacalypse
    Aug 19, 2014
    0
    I'd like this to be formally renamed to FTL: **** than XCOM.
    Now that it's out of the way, let me explain why. The game is about 95% luck based. I think the only real skill is knowing when to restart because your luck ran out. I spent about 5 hours playing consecutively, and I only made it to the 8th sector once. Most of the time, it was because I would find a ship with 3 layer shields in    I'd like this to be formally renamed to FTL: **** than XCOM.
    Now that it's out of the way, let me explain why. The game is about 95% luck based. I think the only real skill is knowing when to restart because your luck ran out. I spent about 5 hours playing consecutively, and I only made it to the 8th sector once. Most of the time, it was because I would find a ship with 3 layer shields in the 1st sector, or all 3 of my crew would die in a single event, etc. Games like these need to understand that relying solely on luck make a game bad. You can have something like XCOM which incorporates luck into skill-based gameplay, but when your entire game is a living random number generator, you know you have a **** game. See: FTL. I wanted to like the game. Arguably, the most fun part is boarding. But, until you unlock ships that start with the capability of boarding enemy ships (Which can only be unlocked if you get LUCKY enough to find the sector the RANDOMLY placed event is in. Emphasis on the luck part. There is NO WAY that involves the slightest amount of skill or understanding of the game.), you have to be LUCKY enough to stumble across enough scrap, and then lucky enough to find a shopkeeper who will sell the teleporter bay, letting you board. Oh yeah, and you'll need to be lucky enough to find a suitable crew for boarding.
    If you couldn't tell my by obvious subtlety, let me give you a metaphor on how you win or lose. A computer rolls a 24 sided dice. If it lands on 20, you win. Anything else, you lose. If you try to roll the dice yourself for better odds, the computer burns your house down. If you're a person with a lot of luck, and you just won the lottery, go buy a car. Don't waste your time on this game. Even at 10 dollars, it was a pathetic waste of money.
    This is the constructive part of the review. The game has a nice way of telling you what happens, albeit a lazy one. You get a text box. But, the text box is charming, and less generic than the game is. So, 1/10. Other than that, dog **** Your entire experience is based around a random number generator. It's like if a game took the worst part of a strategy game, combined it with the worst part of an mmo (grinding), and then combined it with the worst part of Dungeons and Dragons (Random, uncontrollable outcomes), an then had it brained on the wall, you'd get FTL.
    Don't pick this game up. Ever. It's abysmal. And this is coming from someone who LOVED the luck-based part of XCOM. My only hope is that I'll be able to obtain a ship that lets me board from the beginning of the game (Because boarding yields more scrap, meaning more upgrades, meaning an easier time. It also triples the chance of recovering a ship augmentation, a potential crewmate, a weapon or a quest trigger), and until the unlocks are based less around throwing a dice at a speeding train, I'm not going to bother. Even the combat, the ONLY part that requires skill comes off as half-assed and generic. The starting ship has a gaping weakness to missiles, as enemy weapons charge 50% faster than yours, meaning they ALWAYS get off a first shot. If a missile hits your shields, it takes you 50% longer to repair it than the enemy ships, meaning that you might as well restart, because you're boned.
    TL:DR; A game that is only luck, with generic combat, and NO progressive rewards. So, nothing ever gets easier. There is no progression. There is no real plot. It's 3 words. "Run from rebels". There is no GAME. Just a number generator. And that is why FTL: Rapist's Delight is one of the worst "games" of the decade. It's definitely the worst strategy game.    … Expand
  28. Vonnd
    Jul 20, 2013
    3
    My friend liked this game and I decided to check it out. It reminded me a lot of those java games where you have to fill an order in a cafe or a burger place. In fact I've played better java games with similar settings. I wouldn't recommend it to anyone. This game has no depth. On the other hand if you want a really simple game with absolutely nothing more to offer to you than what you'reMy friend liked this game and I decided to check it out. It reminded me a lot of those java games where you have to fill an order in a cafe or a burger place. In fact I've played better java games with similar settings. I wouldn't recommend it to anyone. This game has no depth. On the other hand if you want a really simple game with absolutely nothing more to offer to you than what you're given at minute 1, then be my guest.… Expand
  29. The_Norwood
    May 18, 2015
    1
    A game that cheats like hell as its main feature. Unless you purify yourself every morning and enjoy cold showers, inserting nails into your scrotum, self-flagellation and such, then steer clear, it will just wind you up.
  30. Puzzola
    Jan 8, 2013
    4
    This review contains spoilers, click expand to view. Well, at first I was lured into this game and I enjoyed it. But after 3 weeks of games I found that it's a game based mostly on LUCK, not on skill. I made it to the last boss 9 times. All lost because I didn't have enough firepower, enough shields or enemy shots hit me all in the right rooms while mine missed 3-4 times in a row. Well, I suggest you of restarting game each time you reach 4-5 zone and you don't have the right equipment. Another font of disappointment is the random encounters. Some are matched to your strenght. Others are IMPOSSIBLE to kill. At least 4 times in a row I found 3 enemy ships with 4 (FOUR) shields. After third my missiles were gone, so the fourth killed me without any hope. Well, It's a nice game, but sometimes it seem only a loss of time.… Expand
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Awards & Rankings

28
#28 Best PC Game of 2012
21
#21 Most Discussed PC Game of 2012
13
#13 Most Shared PC Game of 2012

Critic Reviews

All reviews »
Metascore
84

Generally favorable reviews - based on 42 Critic Reviews

Critic score distribution:
  1. Positive: 41 out of 42
  2. Mixed: 1 out of 42
  3. Negative: 0 out of 42
  1. Gamers' Temple
    May 27, 2013
    87
    Fulfill a sci-fi fantasy by becoming the Captain of your own starship! Don't expect great graphics, but do except to lose many hours to FTL and expect to lose your ship ... a lot.
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  2. PC Master (Greece)
    Feb 6, 2013
    85
    Kickstarter has accomplished its mission in this one, giving the opportunity to an original, non-mainstream title to go public and meet its well-deserved success. Especially for sci-fi fans, it’s a no-brainer; buy this game at once and live the life of a courageous pilot that only has one mission: survival. [November 2012]
  3. GameStar
    Nov 24, 2012
    77
    Quotation forthcoming.
    Read full review
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