Iron Galaxy's EXTINCTION: Initial Verdicts Suggest "A Good Blueprint For A More Interesting Game"

Extinction is a great game, though patience can be required at times.  Running around and blowing through enemies is fun, and the cartoony, mostly polished gameplay could be an incredible game after a few patches.  As it is, it is still a blast to play, interrupted by quick frustrations that come from missed attacks that can completely stop an assault.  If you are looking for a hectic hack-n-slash boss fighting game, Extinction is absolutely worth picking up.  Those who can be quickly frustrated from bugs, however, may want to wait for a couple of patches.

This dizzy dance of frustration and elation perfectly encapsulates my time with Extinction. I loved the feeling of annihilating the Ravenii. Mastering the slow-motion rune strikes meant I could bounce from limb to limb, disintegrating armor and severing limbs with reckless abandon. Yet I was stonewalled by the combat controls and the camera more often than I could ultimately reconcile. Eventually, the lows outnumbered the highs, leaving with me with a sort of grim determination to see my task through to the end. I was compelled to continue if only so the game didn’t get the best of me. In the end, Extinction delivers on what it promises: the opportunity to go toe-to-toe with 150-foot tall monsters, with the odds stacked soundly against you. Whatever other problems I may have had with the game’s execution and design, this one goal is achieved with admirable precision. As long as your expectations are narrowed in focus to this one particular task, Extinction will be just what you’re looking for.

A good idea (albeit not very original) that doesn't feel as good because of imprecise controls, a camera that constantly gets in the way and a gameplay system that becomes repetitive too son. If this doesn't bother you too much and if you've been looking for an action game that puts you against giant orcs, then Extinction will not disappoint you.

Extinction had the potential to be something special, but a few too many flaws and frustrations hold it back from true greatness. Despite that, we still think this adventure of epic proportions is very much worth a purchase if the grand scale even slightly grabs your interest.

Once you get used to the gameplay loop after the first few missions, different types of Jackals and Titans that sport progressively tougher armor begin to be introduced, but it turns into a bit of a chore after a while. Extinction is just too simple of a game to justify its price tag and didn’t hold my interest for the entirety of the campaign or its side activities—which include time trials, your everyday horde mode, and basic multiplayer functionality. It just seems like a project that is too big, yet too small, for the developers at Iron Galaxy, and the times when it does all click together are few and far in between.

Extinction’s campaign consists of seven chapters you could, conceivably, best in around seven or eight hours. It took me closer to 20, as the game’s difficulty curve is a mess and kept throwing brick walls in my path. I persevered through these challenging missions, because, well, it’s my job, but I have a feeling most players won’t have the patience. You can level up your character and may eventually master Extinction’s quirks to become an adept Ravenii killer, but once the frustration melts away, all you’re left with is tedium. The game’s side missions and Extinction and Skirmish modes just offer more of the same. Extinction peaks the first time you kill a Ravenii within its first 20 minutes, and it’s all downhill from there. Stick to the actual Attack on Titan games.

Perhaps the game's most damning quality is the fact that its story missions are often set in procedurally generated environments. That isn't bad in theory, but Extinction's random stages are typically flat and incredibly similar, and they aren't even in predetermined locations, which completely nullifies any chance of connecting with the story at hand. If giants level a city in one mission, how is it suddenly rebuilt in the next? Your guess is as good as mine. Likewise, the random generation of locations and giants (and their arrangement) can change the difficulty of a particular level from one playthrough to the next. You never quite know if you should press on during a challenging run, or just re-roll and try out a different permutation from scratch.

While there’s joy to be found in decapitating a seemingly-endless army of building-sized beasts that put up an immense fight, Extinction sadly never delivers a true killing blow in any one area, just a bunch of solid strikes with some notable misses. Quick combat, challenging battles, and an opportunity for strategic gameplay are all sadly bogged down by monotonous missions, generic ground troops and a few cheap shots. While the game is still decent overall and possibly worth taking a peek at, here’s hoping such a killer concept can be executed more expertly down the road.

From time immemorial, the world has been at war. For generations, humans have fought one another for land and riches while our true enemies have lurked in the distance: throngs of ravenous monsters standing 150 feet tall that aim to destroy our kind. Only those trained in the ways of the ancient order stand a chance at defeating these monstrosities, known colloquially as "ogres." You are one of the world’s last defenders, a warrior named Avil equipped with the skill, speed and strength to oppose the endless wave of Ravenii and prevent a fate worse than death: Extinction.