Thoughts after ~10 hours.

[Swampbunches]

It really feels like there's not enough skill rewarded in this game. That's my overwhelming thought. Like I love this game. It sank its teeth into me and I thought about it constantly and craved jumping back into it. But I felt like I reached a threshold where my skill and decision making were no longer rewarded and the outcome was instead based of RNG almost entirely. I'm not saying I'm great at this game or anything. I'm just saying it started to leave me with a sense of hopelessness where progressing beyond ~25 days just didn't seem possible no matter what my strategy was or how well I performed. Maybe I'm off base or totally wrong. Feel free to call me out. But having tried so many paths and tactics I'm just starting to wonder how anyone is supposed to actually get better / further. In it's current state it doesn't feel like any kind of experimentation is rewarded. Just my thoughts, I'd love to hear from others who've put the time in. Looking forward to the next big update.

[Grackopolis]

138+ hrs here.
There are still a lot of balance issues being worked on and the list is long for upcoming additions of skill paths etc., so don't beat yourself up too much since this game is still in development.

I will say that you are right regarding the enemy generation. There are some runs that are absolutely insanely hard, and other runs where I easily blow past day 30 and on. There is a lot more in the works, so for now just know that you are not alone. Currently the path choices are pretty linear and limited, and the difficulty of the game scales much faster than you can keep up. Hang in there! ^^ If you get burnt out but still feel like playing, try going for some of the little achievements ppl have been suggestion the devs include in the NEW ACHIEVEMENTS thread. ;D

[RT1]

Originally posted by Swampbunches:

I'd love to hear from others who've put the time in.

47.3 hours here.

Keep practicing.

For a Hermit run, prioritize upgrading arc flail first, followed by a couple levels of rail. Always take the 600rpm rail option. Upgrade your RPM before taking any percentage and damage upgrades to the rail. You don't need to take the arc flares right as Operation Hermit is presented, but aim to have them within five days from it.

You want to have the three and five-enemy arc flail as soon as possible and max it out as soon as you can, sacrificing shield strength for the flail. Upgrade your shield to at least 125% in the meantime, grabbing the occasional 40% shield/flare recharge rate to get your shield back online as soon as possible.

Take the Cobalt shot as soon as it's presented and concentrate on upgrading its rate of fire. Take at least two or three gimbal upgrades as you'll need them in the late game.
Take the graphite upgrades as soon as you see them.

Once you have a strong cobalt shot at 3600rpm with both graphite upgrades and a strong arc flail, you can then focus on gaining reflex upgrades and blackout/blackout agreement.

https://steamcommunity.com/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=3437171545

[Swampbunches]

Originally posted by RT1:

Originally posted by Swampbunches:

I'd love to hear from others who've put the time in.

47.3 hours here.

Keep practicing.

For a Hermit run, prioritize upgrading arc flail first, followed by a couple levels of rail. Always take the 600rpm rail option. Upgrade your RPM before taking any percentage and damage upgrades to the rail. You don't need to take the arc flares right as Operation Hermit is presented, but aim to have them within five days from it.

You want to have the three and five-enemy arc flail as soon as possible and max it out as soon as you can, sacrificing shield strength for the flail. Upgrade your shield to at least 125% in the meantime, grabbing the occasional 40% shield/flare recharge rate to get your shield back online as soon as possible.

Take the Cobalt shot as soon as it's presented and concentrate on upgrading its rate of fire. Take at least two or three gimbal upgrades as you'll need them in the late game.
Take the graphite upgrades as soon as you see them.

Once you have a strong cobalt shot at 3600rpm with both graphite upgrades and a strong arc flail, you can then focus on gaining reflex upgrades and blackout/blackout agreement.

https://steamcommunity.com/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=3437171545

Hey there. Thanks for the tips. I have actually proceeded down this path a couple of times and this was definitely the playstyle that got me the furthest in the game. I'm not going to stop playing the game, I think it's fun. I'm just pretty disappointed that very, VERY specific routes are required to get anywhere given the current meta. For a game where choices are SUPPOSED to be part of the fun...they're not actually very fun here. I feel like I have very few chances to play with any kind of expression and it's been more about a trial and error exploration to find the very specific routes that will let me get anywhere. It's been super rare for me to feel like my skill had much to do with anything.

I'm just contrasting this to games I've played like Dead Cells or Noita where I could have a lot of fun and even beat the game with very unoptimal builds, falling back on my skill rather than my OP kit.

Anyway, I appreciate the discourse here and I'm looking forward to the next update. As it stands I think we need way more viable builds and fun options. I think the game would benefit a lot if every research selection gave an immediate bonus. I'd also like to be surprised by occasionally high powered options appearing earlier in the game. Have a good day!