The Solus Project Updated Review

This is an updated review with some similar information as provided in my previous review for The Solus Project and since it has been removed from the preview program and includes the full release as intended from the developers Teotl Studios and Grip Digital who also published this game. We have also added a new scoring system to our site that it’s my pleasure to add to the game. I’ll make special notations when I’ve changed something, added or subtracted some information. Some things you will notice just by how I mention the full release. The original review during the preview stage can be found here.

In the following paragraph I’ve added more detail information as some things are more apparent then they were during the original writing of this review.

The Solus Project is a first person open world single player survival game on a distant planet with the future of mankind held in the balance of your success. Mankind had left earth in order to survive a comet heading towards our solar system and after several years traveling and living in space the time has come where it must find a planet to make home. Your mission with your crew is to find this planet however on the way there an asteroid shower destroys your ship that is blown apart in the atmosphere of the uncharted planet called Gliese-6143-C you where on your way to explore. You made your way to the surface on a single person escape pod. Other teams have also been sent to other possible planets and during intermittent reception of the home ships please for contact you find out that none of them have made contact with the home ship. You will need to craft tools, find parts to get a satellite link established to your home ship to report your findings by exploring the mysterious planet and surviving by keeping track of your vitals with your PDA. What strange things will unfold on your exploration of this planet, will you find any other life or even your crews that took separate escape pod and will you be able to save mankind from extinction?

Awesome Graphics – The very first thing that jumps out is how beautiful this planet is. The graphics are especially satisfying and in fact I couldn’t stop taking screenshots during day and night. I’m even still using one of the screenshots I took while it was still under the preview programs as my background on my Xbox One. Everything you discover immerses you in this strange planet as you set off exploring. Even the loading screens are enjoyable to watch. The weather effects of which are plentiful look and feel as if you experiencing them and they could actually effect you. I would sit in a cave and wait for the downpour rain storms to stop before I would go out in them. These are challenging to your survival and your first meteorite shower could be your last. They did add several more weather effects including a tornado that if you are not careful will end your life as you are watching it. They enhanced the graphics even more and the weather effects are even better than they already where. I didn’t think this was possible however they took something that was already an upside and made it even better.

Fantastic Story – This is the ultimate “save humanity” story. The back story is told within the first minutes of the game using text and cut scenes to catch you up to your survival which is where the game begins. There are plenty of notes spread throughout this world to catch up on what life has been like including the life of your crew mates during their survival struggles and it is a nice personal touch to the game. I had mentioned pictures of the crew and pets here however they either removed them or they are more scarce and harder to find then they were in the preview version. Your struggles to find and keep plentiful the supplies needed to survive while working towards the goals needed are challenging yet rewarding when accomplished. Progress can be saved anytime just by sleeping but don’t try to fall asleep if you are cold, hungry, and/or wet. You can also be awakened from your slumber due to a number of events. This is still the ultimate story and being that it takes place on an unknown planet added to the enjoyment for me.

Amazing Open World– This game does a good job of leading you to your next objective, called forward vectors, but it is a fully immersible open world that is worth exploring. One of the first things I tried to do was swim to one of the islands that look interesting to get to. This was not a forward vector and after I took off for my long swim I realized it was further away than I thought. I died on the attempt due to hypothermia. You’ll find interesting plants, strange etchings on rocks, notes, pictures and plenty of items that will help you survive. You may even run into other crew members and find out what they been doing to survive themselves. There are caves to explore and grave sites to fill in the story of the ancient civilization that lived here previously as well as a strange underground facility where if you are not careful you will never return from.

Suspended Reality– I realize most all games have this in one way or another however it does take away from how good this game could be. As I stated before you are in a protective suit but after you open up a can of food (why they had unmarked canned food in space is beyond my understanding) you simply put the can to your face shield and it’s gone. This goes for drinking water as well. It could use some graphical representation of how this is done, either by some sort of tube or something to make this seem more realistic. They spent so much time making everything else look realistic that this stood out.

On my previous review I had included two other downsides that they have corrected and I’m not going to include them on this review. One was Troublesome Controls which they fixed and it controls very well now compared to when it was on the preview program. I also had Missing Soundtrack as a downside and now when you find the cassette player you can now listen to music on it and even carry it with you and listen while you explore. The sound is actually an upside now compared to where it was in it’s infancy. These will be reflected in my scoring of this game

Overall The Solus Project turned in to one of my favorite game releases this year. The fact it was in the preview program allowed me to enjoy the updates when they came and once the final release was out I was pleased to see that some things that distracted from the game previously had been improved upon. I can safely recommended this game to anyone and think you will find something very enjoyable about it. Whether its the story line or the graphics or the challenge of survival and crafting your items needed to survive get your hands on this hidden gem of a game.

The Solus Project was developed by Teotl Studios and Grip Digital and published by Grip Digital. It was fully released on Steam June 7th, 2016 and in the preview program on the Xbox One starting on February 26th, 2016 with the full release on July 12th, 2016. A press review copy was provided for The Hidden Levels. Many studios submit copies for site review but this is in no way factored into our review scores. Games are scored on their individual merits and our rating system is explained here.