The Ascent

 PlayStation 5
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Metascore
77

Generally favorable reviews - based on 11 Critic Reviews What's this?

User Score
6.4

Mixed or average reviews- based on 39 Ratings

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  • Summary: You belong to the corporation.
    Can you survive without it?
    The Ascent is a solo and co-op action RPG set in a cyberpunk world. The mega corporation that owns you and everyone, The Ascent Group, has just collapsed. Confusion and chaos ensue, security and order are in disarray, and without    You belong to the corporation.
    Can you survive without it?

    The Ascent is a solo and co-op action RPG set in a cyberpunk world. The mega corporation that owns you and everyone, The Ascent Group, has just collapsed. Confusion and chaos ensue, security and order are in disarray, and without protection, everyone is left to fend for themselves. Stop gangs and hostile corporations from taking over and discover what really happened.    … Expand
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Critic Reviews

Score distribution:
  1. Positive: 7 out of 11
  2. Mixed: 4 out of 11
  3. Negative: 0 out of 11
  1. PlayStation Country
    Mar 28, 2022
    90
    The Ascent is cyberpunk done right. It might just be the best looking game on PSN and with its excellent action and wide range of weapons and upgrades, The Ascent is truly a joy to play.
  2. COGconnected
    Apr 4, 2022
    85
    Overall, The Ascent is a fun twin-stick shooter that comes to the Playstation with an absolutely beautiful world design. The wholesale violence is very engaging but may feel a bit redundant as you can be pretty well maxed out about halfway through. I had a lot of fun with The Ascent, especially with multiplayer. It’s a beautiful-looking game that’s a blast to play that’s worth checking out.
  3. PSX Brasil
    May 7, 2022
    85
    The Ascent is, for fans of a good isometric RPG with a futuristic theme, one of the best experiences in recent years. Aesthetically beautiful, it is not the most innovative experience in terms of both story and gameplay, but it manages to be competent in everything it proposes, resulting in an intense and surprisingly immersive journey.
  4. Finger Guns
    Mar 24, 2022
    80
    The Ascent has the kind of graphical and audio design prowess that many games can only dream of. While some technical and mechanical issues disrupt the immersion, there’s no denying the sheer sadistic joy that comes from shredding through the neon glazed tiers of Veles. A critique of the Cyberpunk genre this isn’t, but damn is it a blast to play.
  5. God is a Geek
    Mar 24, 2022
    75
    The Ascent on PS5 is the same game with a few tweaks. Best played with friends, it provides a gorgeous, if inconsistent, experience.
  6. PLAY
    Apr 1, 2022
    70
    The story and its telling are a little disappointing, as is the way you suddenly find yourself out of your depth if you’re slightly underlevelled. And we really want to get more hands-on with this world! Still, it’s a great (and great-looking) option for anybody with an itchy trigger finger. [Issue#13, p.79]
    All this publication's reviews
  7. Digitally Downloaded
    Mar 28, 2022
    60
    I must reiterate that The Ascent is gorgeous, and for a team of just a dozen developers, they have outperformed themselves in that regard. Unfortunately, because the narrative is so anaemic and there is so little that connects the narrative to the aesthetics and gameplay, The Ascent ends up feeling empty. There’s nothing memorable about the characters, the world is dull and far too large for how little it offers, and while, yes, the story hits those key cyberpunk talking points, the developers largely missed the nuances that elevate cyberpunk beyond pulp fiction. So, again, the game’s fine, if you are looking for a generic sci-fi shooter (and can ideally drag a friend along). As a work of cyberpunk, though, it’s a failure.

See all 11 Critic Reviews

User Reviews

Write a Review
Score distribution:
  1. Positive: 11 out of 21
  2. Mixed: 4 out of 21
  3. Negative: 6 out of 21
  1. P4E4T4O
    Apr 7, 2023
    10
    **** awesome
  2. DaeGurth
    Jul 21, 2022
    9
    Rare couch co-op. Cyberpunk done right. Seems straightforward at first, but pleasantly surprises, that not everything is so simpleRare couch co-op. Cyberpunk done right. Seems straightforward at first, but pleasantly surprises, that not everything is so simple (Augmentations scale with stats, weapons need to be handled correctly and they need corresponding stats). But what I liked most was the feeling. You are one of many, in a big, stinky world of garbage, rain and chrome. Played on hard and enjoyed it. Not sure how it feels when playing it alone.… Expand
  4. DarkSamurai
    Mar 25, 2022
    8
    Decent game,with good amount of action to keep you Intrested. I would say it's best that this game was Available on gamepass. I could discoverDecent game,with good amount of action to keep you Intrested. I would say it's best that this game was Available on gamepass. I could discover this game… Expand
  5. JrDouble
    May 12, 2023
    8
    I like this game a lot and it is only held back by the complete lack of communication about the inability to complete specific side questsI like this game a lot and it is only held back by the complete lack of communication about the inability to complete specific side quests until after specific main story quests are completed first. It is also very difficult unless you take the time to grind and increase your level before trying certain missions. If you walk everywhere and fight everyone instead of taking transit or cabs, you'll have a better time play as your level will be more appropriate for the challenge.… Expand
  6. Naedeslus
    Jun 19, 2023
    7
    + Good combat.
    + Good-looking game with a great cyberpunk atmosphere.
    + 10 or so hours but it has extra content. Doesn't feel like it's    + Good combat.
    + Good-looking game with a great cyberpunk atmosphere.
    + 10 or so hours but it has extra content. Doesn't feel like it's padding anything out and it's a good length.
    +Replayability.

    - The story is hard to follow and can be overwhelming with cyberpunk terminology.
    - Difficulty feels a bit unbalanced. Even on easy or normal it can be a struggle and the last mission is a pretty big difficulty spike.
    - 'Final boss' is a joke.

    The Ascent is a good game. It's not perfect, far from it. The gameplay was fun, has some catchy music and the environments look good but it does have some repetition, mostly in going from the overworld to the actual missions. The missions themselves are fine, but the overworld drags on and on and it can be hard to figure out the best route to take. The combat is good and enjoyable but there are some difficulty spikes and a very lackluster final boss.

    The story makes no sense and is full of confusing terminology and I'm familiar with the genre but if you never experienced anything cyberpunk related, a lot of it will probably go over your head. For the price though, it is worth playing and I enjoyed my time with it. I probably won't return to it, even with a New Game + but I did like it and would definitely like the studio to revisit this world one day.    … Expand
  7. 5thavenuecrazy
    Sep 13, 2022
    5
    I could only play for around 3 hours before I quit.
    The game environments look great but everything else is sub-par.
    I couldn't care about    I could only play for around 3 hours before I quit.
    The game environments look great but everything else is sub-par.
    I couldn't care about the story right from the beginning so then i felt like I was just roaming around doing side-quest-like main missions for no reason. The shooting mechanics and RPG upgrades were just fine but the shooting in general got stale after about an hour. Navigation and backtracking through the boring world that all looks the same was probably the worst thing about this game. Even once you get to the part where you can fast-travel, it still is a confusing mess. The game just felt like mindless, boring shooting followed by 5+ mins of walking/backtracking, 1 min of shooting, walking/backtracking again for 5+ mins, etc. Once you have played through the first hour you've basically seen the whole game and nothing changes.    … Expand
  8. RGNS
    Jul 9, 2022
    0
    extremely difficult. i am glad that hacking exists. i go to playlist stupid game for free. stupid mouse aim does not work. do not buy thisextremely difficult. i am glad that hacking exists. i go to playlist stupid game for free. stupid mouse aim does not work. do not buy this game. i say again do not buy this game. stupid story difficult combat boring stupid game. the stupid character doesn't even talk. eight zero stupid idiot devs.… Expand

See all 21 User Reviews

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Awards & Rankings

55
#55 Best PlayStation 5 Game of 2022
65
#65 Most Discussed PlayStation 5 Game of 2022