- Publisher: Focus Home Interactive , Maximum Games
- Release Date: May 16, 2017
- Also On: PC, Xbox One
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- Critic score
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May 19, 2017The Surge is a satisfying sci-fi RPG that pleasantly surprises in more ways than it disappoints. Fans of Dark Souls-style titles will find a lot to like here and the unique combat system keeps it from feeling like a rip-off. It’s just a shame that the narrative and world building isn’t stronger.
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Playstation Official Magazine AustraliaJul 7, 2017Deck13 has stepped up to take a lash at Souls’ patented sadism. Some swings are short of the target, but the bulk have landed where they should. [July 2017, p80]
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Playstation Official Magazine UKJun 24, 2017Lacks the finesse and charisma of its inspiration, and the exhilaration of nippier titles such as Bloodborne. A decent action RPG that finds itself in with a tough crowd. [July 2016, p.83]
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games(TM)Jun 23, 2017A challenging and fresh take on Sci-Fi. [Issue#188, p.84]
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May 31, 2017The Surge takes the Dark Souls series formula and throws it into a sci-fi setting. And while it suffers from poor narration, a huge and interesting world combined with a fresh and innovative combat system prove to be more than enough to consider it a success. If you are up for a Souls-like challenge in a sci-fi world, The Surge is a great choice.
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May 30, 2017Deck13 has improved their offering since Lords of the Fallen but this action-adventure RPG still fails to dazzle. It works well, but nothing more.
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May 26, 2017The Surge adds some new elements to the Souls formula that for the most part work well. It fails to live up to its inspiration in the design department, with samey environments and a lack of enemy variety but the combat holds your interest to its conclusion.
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May 26, 2017The Surge is a decent step forward compared to Lords of the Fallen, that manages to avoid the copycat characterization that the latter had. The modern factory setting may be somewhat drab and the difficulty needs to be more balanced, but nevertheless combat is hugely improved and the dismemberment mechanic manages to provide a very welcomed personality to the game.
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May 22, 2017The Surge is a surprisingly fun hard core hack-and-slash experience. It offers a grim story and great level design, but does not quite manage to reach the heights and overall quality and offering of its main competitors - the Soulsborne games.
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May 17, 2017It's a pity that a quarter of the time I spent with The Surge was far from enjoyable, because the game itself is pretty good. When level design isn't your worst enemy, this game checks all the boxes required by the Dark Souls fans and expands on a well known gameplay mechanic with an interesting setting and some new additions. It's worth it but be very patient.
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May 15, 2017The Surge is a rather unfair experience. It tries to be a difficult product but ends up lying in flagrant errors.
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May 15, 2017The Surge is technically strong, has good ideas and fascinating environments, but also a lot of flaws, especially when it comes to important elements for the soulslike genre, like level design and character’s customization/improvement.
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May 15, 2017The Surge is a flawed but ultimately enjoyable action RPG. While it can be incredibly frustrating at times, the fantastic combat and body part targeting system does enough to overshadow the bad parts.
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May 15, 2017An even better Dark Souls clone than Lords Of The Fallen, but there are too few unique ideas and the difficulty often undermines the rest of the gameplay.
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May 15, 2017The Surge gives a lousy first impression with it bland sci-fi setting and grab bag of obvious influences. Given time, though, there’s an unrefined gem in here for those willing to put up with its quirks. If this is Deck 13’s next step to building something truly great, it’s solid, if flawed one.
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May 15, 2017It may seem reductive calling The Surge a sci-fi Dark Souls clone, but the truth is, it doesn't really try to be much more than that.
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May 15, 2017I didn't mind investing over 50 hours to the grind in The Surge. I felt powerful at times and exploring every little area rewarded me with a nice bounty. It just clings too tightly to a one-note approach to world building, enemy encounters, and level design. This is a genre that has a rich history of wowing players, sometimes from the look of a boss, and maybe even the design of the world it inhabits. I was never dazzled by The Surge. I mostly felt like I was battling animated junk in a junkyard.
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May 15, 2017Clearly imitating the Dark Souls’ combat system and resources management, The Surge can give more action to the “masocore” crowd. The plot is not especially deep and enemies not so charming, but the high difficulty and a nice look can satisfy the fans that are searching for something to get angry for after the end of Miyazaki’s series.
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May 15, 2017The Surge offers an interesting world to explore, and a few new tricks that set it apart from the competition, but often falls short of its inspiration due to wonky combat and uninspired enemy designs.
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May 15, 2017In our present-day world, the game's prediction of a violent worker-versus-worker future feels hauntingly plausible.
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May 17, 2017The Surge is one of those games that shows a lot of promise but the experience itself just doesn't live up to its potential. You may have some fun within the first 5 hours or so but everything after that slowly evolves into nothing more than a tedious grind.
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May 15, 2017The idea of soulslike ready to approach dystopian science fiction was not only intriguing, but potentially winning. The incipit of The Surge clearly shows a great potential: despite some flows in the combat and growth systems, the game still manages to capture the player, awaken his curiosity. Unfortunately, too much of this potential is lost, due to a bad level design, poorly inspired environments, and a distressing lack of contents.
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Jun 12, 2017While the difficulty may seem like a bad thing to have, it is as much a reason not to play these types of games as it is a reason to play these games. If you seek a challenge with a simple story, rather fun combos and some tough bosses, The Surge should be your next stop! Maybe wait for a price drop, though.
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May 29, 2017The Surge obviously got its inspiration from other games in the genre, but when it comes to world building and level design the German Deck 13 simply does not impress.
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May 26, 2017The Surge’s engaging risk/reward combat system and obsession with gear will compel you to want to fight your way through a cataclysmic sci-fi hell. But the repetitive enemy types, uninspired visual design, and unfortunate lack of polish leaves the game feeling soulless.
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May 15, 2017The Surge is a mix of interesting ideas and hiccups in execution. While there's no doubt that it will resonate with a specific, hardcore audience, it's missing just enough to alienate a generalized audience. Its combat is challenging, but not perfect; its story starts with a compelling hook but falls flat shortly after. There are echoes of something special running throughout The Surge, but it never escapes its own shadow.
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Edge MagazineMay 27, 2017FromSoftware's second stab at this stuff produced Dark Souls. Deck13 still has a way to go before it really delivers on the concept it holds so dear. [July 2017, p.112]
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May 16, 2017The Surge is something really promising – challenging but fair with a strong sense of progression. At the same time the story, characters and game world is uninspiring and boring. Right now it’s only a descent Dark Souls tribute without a strong identity of its own.
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May 16, 2017For all its mechanical competency, The Surge feels as mechanical as its enemies through most of the experience. No where near enough was done with the science fiction theme, and after catching my attention with an intriguing set up, the game then lost me with a generally dull plot that it was never quite able to claw back.
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May 15, 2017The Surge started off great. The combat was fun, the story seemed interesting, and the crafting was enjoyable that is until I got a dozen or so hours into it where everything went from being doable to insanely hard, grindy, and uninspiring.
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May 15, 2017The Surge is occasionally electrifying, but combat issues and cheap enemies dampen enjoyment levels.
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May 15, 2017The Surge had potential, but its excellent combat systems are baked into a game that can’t do them justice. The repetitive and drab environments are a huge hindrance, and when combined with a confusing network of corridors, hallways, and ledges, it’s easy to become frustrated, misled, and lost. You may find some fun experimenting with your attack options and the smooth framerate on the PS4 Pro does help to make that a better experience, but expecting anything more than that will only set yourself up for disappointment.
| This publication does not provide a score for their reviews. | |
| This publication has not posted a final review score yet. | |
| These unscored reviews do not factor into the Metascore calculation. | |
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May 16, 2017It's sure to find a decent following among the Souls hardcore as there's a lot here that's familiar for them to enjoy, but really these players have two fights on their hands - that against the enemies of The Surge, and that against the feeling The Surge isn't all it could have been. And that bloody, incessant song, of course.
Awards & Rankings
User score distribution:
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Positive: 176 out of 357
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Mixed: 100 out of 357
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Negative: 81 out of 357
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May 16, 2017
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Mar 3, 2018
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May 16, 2017