Transistor

 PlayStation 4
User Score
8.2

Generally favorable reviews- based on 678 Ratings

User score distribution:
  1. Positive: 529 out of 678
  2. Mixed: 95 out of 678
  3. Negative: 54 out of 678

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  1. A5ko
    Jun 5, 2014
    6
    TRANSISTOR [PS4]

    After reading the rave reviews about Transistor I took the plunge. Unfortunately I am struggling to understand where the multitude of perfect scores are coming from. It's by no means a bad game, I just don't believe it is worthy of such praise. GAMEPLAY The combat was initially very interesting but fell flat once a particular set of Functions were introduced. This    TRANSISTOR [PS4]

    After reading the rave reviews about Transistor I took the plunge. Unfortunately I am struggling to understand where the multitude of perfect scores are coming from. It's by no means a bad game, I just don't believe it is worthy of such praise.

    GAMEPLAY
    The combat was initially very interesting but fell flat once a particular set of Functions were introduced. This rendered the game unfortunately very easy, even whilst using every Limiter found. The game could have benefited from varying difficulties, which were beyond the players control.

    + Combat planning is initially quite interesting.
    - Combat AI could have been a little less stupid.
    - Targeting Packets amongst enemies could sometimes be problematic.

    STORY
    A promising start muddied by predictability, with only a surprise of how quickly it was all over. I found the Transistors monotonous droning sometimes annoying and unnecessary. Some cut scenes leant nothing to the game or the growth of the characters, with one being quite honestly very baffling, given the circumstances.

    + Starts off very promising, giving very little away.
    - Is over too quickly and without pay off.
    - Character interaction isn't great. I felt myself becoming annoyed at the Transistors mundane observations.

    MUSIC
    Pleasant most times, but on the odd occasion I felt it really didn't fit the atmosphere particularly well. Whilst I appreciate a brilliant score throughout a game, it should only be there as a compliment and not a selling point. At times I felt as if the music was the soul focus of Transistor and not the story.

    + Nice for the most part
    - Couldn't help but feel they were plugging the soundtrack, when it should have been focusing on the game.

    Overall I would recommend anyone giving it a go, but maybe when it's a little less pricey. Certainly not a 'mind blowing' game, even for it's indie heritage. It fell short in length but maybe that isn't such a bad thing when you consider the combat has the potential to become stale very quickly. (Depending on the Functions you use).

    Was hoping for something a little more.

    - A5ko    … Expand
  2. dwd26
    Aug 26, 2014
    6
    An extremely beautiful game with a haunting soundtrack. The gameplay is fun in parts, and I especially enjoy planning attacks making this more than just a hack and slash. The ability to mix and match weapons (or functions as the game calls them) allows for a huge degree of customization but you will need to experiment for a while.

    However combat becomes repetitive and sometimes    An extremely beautiful game with a haunting soundtrack. The gameplay is fun in parts, and I especially enjoy planning attacks making this more than just a hack and slash. The ability to mix and match weapons (or functions as the game calls them) allows for a huge degree of customization but you will need to experiment for a while.

    However combat becomes repetitive and sometimes frustrating. Your health is depleted over four sections and as it drops below each level, you lose one of your powers, which I found quite annoying, effectively making me weaker at the worst moment. You actually lose them and can only repair them by reaching 2 save points before you can get them back, so you are stuck with a weaker functions for some time. As a casual gamer who hasn't got the time to go really deep into the game, I found this irritating.    … Expand
  3. jeffreymccarty1
    Feb 13, 2015
    7
    At first I didn't think this game was going to be worth much of my time but after an hour I actually found it very interesting. I like turn based strategy games and this is an odd twist to one of those. I would not pay a lot of money for the game but as a free PSN game it is excellent. The game is not very long and I was able to beat it in a couple of days with moderate play time. I doAt first I didn't think this game was going to be worth much of my time but after an hour I actually found it very interesting. I like turn based strategy games and this is an odd twist to one of those. I would not pay a lot of money for the game but as a free PSN game it is excellent. The game is not very long and I was able to beat it in a couple of days with moderate play time. I do recommend giving it a try.… Expand
  4. Pronto
    Feb 10, 2015
    7
    Transistor is a very aesthetically pleasing game. The story slowly unveils as you progress through the game, and as you near the end, you feel more and more motivated to keep going.
    The landscape, soundtrack and story are all amazing and really helps immerse the player.
    I give this game a 7 because the combat becomes quite repetitive and feels like a chore towards the end.
  5. pzol
    May 22, 2014
    5
    The game is very beautiful, the soundtrack is awesome, the narrator is thrilling, it looks and sounds great, but after playing 30 mins I still have no idea what this is about, the battles seem random, I mean I am just randomly using the powers I have winning most fights... It doesn't feel like wanting to play anymore than that...
  6. tsakiym
    May 18, 2015
    6
    This review contains spoilers, click expand to view. I do not have to say anything. But i need to write one hundred and fifty characters. i think my score can describe it.................................… Expand
  7. JS99
    Apr 13, 2016
    6
    The soundtrack to this game is terrific, the combat is repetitive. It really is just a mobile app and probably shouldn't pretend to be much else. It's not a bad game, it was fun at times. The story is just okay, but confusing at times. Game was also a bit short. Buy it on the cheap and you will feel good about it.
  8. lamashu
    Apr 15, 2016
    7
    Lo descargue gratis por ps plus y la verad me gusto, artisticamente fue un delirio me encanta sus modelados y escenarios que se aprovecham muy bien con esa vista elevada. Jugabilidad simple que permite muchos combos y algunos incluso epicos, por el lado de la historia flojea bastante no por el hecho de ser mala (de hecho es normalita) sino por esa mala costumbre que parece que se extiendeLo descargue gratis por ps plus y la verad me gusto, artisticamente fue un delirio me encanta sus modelados y escenarios que se aprovecham muy bien con esa vista elevada. Jugabilidad simple que permite muchos combos y algunos incluso epicos, por el lado de la historia flojea bastante no por el hecho de ser mala (de hecho es normalita) sino por esa mala costumbre que parece que se extiende cada ves mas de no mostrar el argumento prinicipal claramente ya que todabia me cuesta entender cual es la historia de la protagonista. Para ser un juego gratis esta mas que bien aunque no lo recomendaria comprar, ya que de seguro no lo terminarias si posees otro juego, la historia simplemente no engancha y a pesar de tener un jugabilidad bastante buena no se compara a juegos que incluso valen 15 dolares. El juego es bueno pero nada mas.… Expand
  9. drlowdon
    Jun 27, 2015
    7
    With its ‘end of the world’ type plot, isometric viewpoint and interesting graphical style Transistor certainly retreads a lot of the ground walked in Supergiant Games debut title Bastion, a title I did enjoy to some degree a few years back.

    The big difference here is that the combat is much less action orientated with the game instead playing like a fast paced strategic RPG. Your    With its ‘end of the world’ type plot, isometric viewpoint and interesting graphical style Transistor certainly retreads a lot of the ground walked in Supergiant Games debut title Bastion, a title I did enjoy to some degree a few years back.

    The big difference here is that the combat is much less action orientated with the game instead playing like a fast paced strategic RPG. Your opinion of the game will depend on how much you enjoy this combat as, aside from an interesting and flexible levelling up system, that is literally all the game consists of. I wasn’t immediately sold on the combat but given a little bit of time it does show itself to be suitably deep and entertaining and, although it’s debatable whether it is quite enough to support a six hour title by itself, the unique plot and atmosphere created certainly help prevent things from ever becoming repetitive.

    I’m not sure I could ever unequivocally recommend Transistor as it will certainly be an acquired taste but gamers that appreciate something that breaks from the norm should give it a go, particularly if you enjoyed Bastion.    … Expand
  10. Goo4you
    Jan 15, 2018
    7
    This is less of an point for this title alone and more for the "indie game" scene at large: The game had a wonderful look, great soundtrack, enjoyable and varied combat system, well thought out story....

    but a lackluster limp noodle finish. And that's about how every Indie title is. 90% of the game is good-to-great but the ending is executed poorly; like a first year poet writing    This is less of an point for this title alone and more for the "indie game" scene at large: The game had a wonderful look, great soundtrack, enjoyable and varied combat system, well thought out story....

    but a lackluster limp noodle finish.

    And that's about how every Indie title is. 90% of the game is good-to-great but the ending is executed poorly; like a first year poet writing their final poem of the year. Good marks all the way thru but the ending is found wanting.

    And I get that resources and time play a factor when making a title, but that isn't the excuse that gives way to being the norm in the ecosystem.

    Of course this review is YEARS after the release but I have seen this trend since and still in the sector. Don't simply give up at the end, put more effort into it! I would have liked to have had less of a quick finish/cleanup at the last moments and more exposition of the process (literally and ironically).

    If you can grab it cheap do so it's worth it.    … Expand
  11. AnonJ
    Jun 15, 2015
    6
    The battle and atmosphere were good. But the story is weak and definitely rushed and just makes no sense whatsoever. Much worse than Bastion where they really worked their heart out. Transistor is such a slacking off.

    After being quite abruptly put through the ending and then plowing through various plot explanations online I'd say just damn it. Why wouldn't we just accept the    The battle and atmosphere were good. But the story is weak and definitely rushed and just makes no sense whatsoever. Much worse than Bastion where they really worked their heart out. Transistor is such a slacking off.

    After being quite abruptly put through the ending and then plowing through various plot explanations online I'd say just damn it. Why wouldn't we just accept the possibility that the writers totally rushed the story, possibly changing it and adding self-contradictory/senseless things halfway through, and then had to meet the production deadline, so in the end they probably couldn't even explain many things themselves? This is so commonplace in various TV Series, especially in Japanese manga but definitely also in American ones. It's also just like so many lyrics floating around out there, which seem to be saying a lot but actually are saying nothing at all because the lyric writer either intentionally or hastily left it vague/contradictory and doesn't really know what he/she is writing after all. The fact is that fans of such TV Series/songs would come up with all kinds of imagination they could to justify the story, because they somehow like it a lot and wouldn't really accept the fact that the writers just muddled through. The producers would be exactly happy for the story to be left this way in fan communities and for fans to debate incessantly what the story "meant" at all, because this probably adds to a lot of controversial/mysterious appeal to the game/TV Series/song etc. to boost its sales. However the undeniable fact is just that the story has a load of nonsense, and will never ever be able to fix so many gaping holes it has left.

    Anyways. I'm not treating anything I read out there negatively. You guys did a wonderful job coming up with quite coherent and thoughtful analyses on a untenable story which is so full of cracks. What I'm getting at is SuperGiant's attitude in producing this story, which totally disappointed me coming from an excellent one that was Bastion, not people's fantastic devotion and writeups.    … Expand
  12. Warhorde
    Jul 31, 2023
    7
    Transistor really enjoyed playing this game , a beautiful sountrack combat was intense and fun only downside that I found is it is a very short game but understandable. Recommend to play!
  13. lemoche
    Feb 19, 2023
    6
    got the game initially after i played bastion. tried it out but stopped playing pretty fast and moved on but couldn’t really remember why. then i went completely down the hades rabbit hole for over 300 hours and thought, "hey you still have that other game made by them, perhaps try it out again".
    so I did. and the art work, music and seemingly also the story are great. but the combat is    got the game initially after i played bastion. tried it out but stopped playing pretty fast and moved on but couldn’t really remember why. then i went completely down the hades rabbit hole for over 300 hours and thought, "hey you still have that other game made by them, perhaps try it out again".
    so I did. and the art work, music and seemingly also the story are great. but the combat is just not for me. the "turn feature" is an interesting concept, but doesn’t change that the combat feels clunky and complicated, at least when you compare it to bastion and hades. i’d rather have either a strategic or the hack and slay approach, but for me this doesn’t really mix well, at least not the way they have done it here. which is really a shame, since i'm very curious where the story would take me, but the combat is just way too frustrating and confusing for me.    … Expand

Awards & Rankings

23
#23 Best PS4 Game of 2014
33
#33 Most Discussed PS4 Game of 2014
45
#45 Most Shared PS4 Game of 2014

Critic Reviews

All reviews »
Metascore
83

Generally favorable reviews - based on 57 Critic Reviews

Critic score distribution:
  1. Positive: 51 out of 57
  2. Mixed: 6 out of 57
  3. Negative: 0 out of 57
  1. Pelit (Finland)
    Sep 3, 2014
    90
    Transistor is an atmospheric and action-packed sci-fi RPG with excellent combat mechanics and deep customization options. The top-notch audiovisuals are complemented with a gripping storyline. Overall, Transistor is an excellent role-playing adventure. I sincerely hope, that other game companies are smart enough to copy the smartest ideas from this indie pearl. [Aug 2014]
  2. SpazioGames
    Jul 18, 2014
    85
    Transistor is an example of style and courage, an action RPG with an intriguing combat system, a fascinating story and characters. This game is also simply sublime in the field of graphics and sound. A great game by the creators of Bastion.
    Read full review
  3. Playstation Official Magazine UK
    Jun 29, 2014
    80
    A unique creative vision that's not to be missed. [July 2014, p.82]
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