Interesting story, terrible combat.

The game plays statwise an progression wises like Disco Elysium. However, the combat is just bad. Your characters progress via armor, feats, and implants. They then have a slow progression by doing things in combat... but it's randomized who and seemly how much they get. However, outside of armor and evasion the HP pools don't increase.

This leads to the game essentially being built around save scuming because the RNG can allow for a character to be killed before you even get a chance to act. This experience was on the underdog setting, but it doesn't poor design.

Edit for reply to Dev: Appreciate the reply! At least in my two runs, the log after the fight showed no skill point gains for characters that were shot at, shot with, etc. Even when they did the gains are very small for the amount of hits given and taken.

The experience of getting slaughtered turn one happened were always with either a energy shield or distortion field. Energy shield (at least in it's early stages) feels useless. The first energy armor you get seems to mechanically work, but the energy shield far too much damage straight bypasses it. If you pop stims on a weaker character first round, the enemies just shift to the next weakest character. So you end up popping several stims to cover everyone and then it's race till debuff. Grenades work, if the enemy is susceptible to them which mindworms aren't.

The save scumming need feels escalated by the scars mechanic. If you get to turn 4-5 and a character goes down from lucky hits (because they focus fire on the most susceptible) it's basically an auto start over. No sense in dragging forward a permanent debuff, especially when it's HP.

I'm sure it's possible, plenty seem to enjoy it. I guess I'm just just more of a movement and action use strategy than a mandatory consumables strategy person.

Interesting story, terrible combat. The game plays statwise an progression wises like Disco Elysium. However, the combat is just bad. Your characters progress via armor, feats, and implants. They then have a slow progression by doing things in combat... but it's randomized who and seemly how much they get. However, outside of armor and evasion the HP pools don't increase. This leads to the game essentially being built around save scuming because the RNG can allow for a character to be killed before you even get a chance to act. This experience was on the underdog setting, but it doesn't poor design. Edit for reply to Dev: Appreciate the reply! At least in my two runs, the log after the fight showed no skill point gains for characters that were shot at, shot with, etc. Even when they did the gains are very small for the amount of hits given and taken. The experience of getting slaughtered turn one happened were always with either a energy shield or distortion field. Energy shield (at least in it's early stages) feels useless. The first energy armor you get seems to mechanically work, but the energy shield far too much damage straight bypasses it. If you pop stims on a weaker character first round, the enemies just shift to the next weakest character. So you end up popping several stims to cover everyone and then it's race till debuff. Grenades work, if the enemy is susceptible to them which mindworms aren't. The save scumming need feels escalated by the scars mechanic. If you get to turn 4-5 and a character goes down from lucky hits (because they focus fire on the most susceptible) it's basically an auto start over. No sense in dragging forward a permanent debuff, especially when it's HP. I'm sure it's possible, plenty seem to enjoy it. I guess I'm just just more of a movement and action use strategy than a mandatory consumables strategy person.