Aquanox: Deep Descent Reviews
Aquanox: Deep Descent is an enjoyable blaster that will keep you engaged for the time it takes to get through the story. The multiplayer modes feel a bit bolted-on, but the deep-sea environments are top-notch, the story is functional if not thrilling, and the shooting feels satisfying throughout.
Aquanox: Deep Descent works well enough to justify its existence. Performance is fine, gameplay is fine, story is fine, length and price are fine - Aquanox is just fine. It won't wow a lot of people, but the people it does impress will be enamored by it. And, you know what, sometimes that's all you want out of a video game.
Duking it out underwater is a lot of fun in this game. The visuals are well-done, it plays well, and the story is quite strong too. Very much worth a look for anyone intrigued by its premise.
The underwater combat in Aquanox: Deep Descent certainly feels right, however the lousy enemy AI, the consequent generally low difficulty, and several naiveties in the gameplay formula do not allow the game to be enjoyable from start to finish. It doesn't help that the plot and dialogue writing is abysmal. The end result is unfortunately an all too generic, sometimes soporific, submarine shooter.
Review in Italian | Read full review
With its interesting setting, engaging story, great combat mechanics, and tons of customization options, Aquanox Deep Descent is a more than worthy new entry in the classic series. Bland mission design and a repetitive structure does damage the experience a bit, but all those that enjoy dogfighting games, no matter where they take place, will find plenty to like in the game.
Similar vibe to free-space, this underwater adventure offers instant action with an interesting narrative story.
Decent controls can't save this game from being aggressively bland, boring, and average.
Still, there is no denying that Aquanox Deep Descent is a very flawed game that doesn’t live up to its pedigree. The modest budget and troubled development cycle are glaringly obvious in many places throughout the game, and there are a lot of janky mechanics and bizarre design decisions.
Aquanox Deep Descent is the "perfect" mediocre game. It does nothing bad, but nothing that good either. From the weak story, characters, and atmosphere, to the almost uninvolving gunfights, and unimaginative quests, this fails at being a big recommendation - especially to fans of the series. Oh, sure it has no competitors in the 'First-person Subaquatic Dystopian RPG' genre, but this doesn't mean it gets a free pass.
If you want to go under the sea in these pandemic times and blow up the creatures and enemy ships that come your way, it's perfect for you.
Review in Turkish | Read full review
Submarines, Bionts, Dystopia and shooty shoots, what's not to love? Buy this, slap on your cowboy hat, and stick some Linda Ronstadt on as you drive "every kind of rig that's ever been made" in the deep blue.
As a first project for Digital Arrow, Aquanox Deep Descent can be considered a good game, even though there are lots of issues regarding its combat and control system.
Review in Persian | Read full review
Finding Nemo. Seriously, it is one of the characters in good underwater story. And there is 4 player drop-in co-op and PvP multiplayer as well. But some ingredients could be better.
Review in Slovak | Read full review
AquaNox: Deep Descent is a wasted effort to revive a unique underwater submarine shooter game. It features a somewhat good story, but it is not strong enough to convince you to continue the game. It’s gameplay core mechanics are also mediocre and are not very exciting. The graphics are too old for a late 8th gen game. The game can be enjoyable for some players, but I cannot generally recommend it.
Review in Persian | Read full review
Aquanox: Deep Descent continues a journey into the depths of the sea started in 1996 and proves blowing things up underwater is more fun than the Bends.
Aquanox: Deep Descent invites the players to enter one of the most fascinating postapocalyptic worlds in gaming history. Sure, Fallouts and Wastelands are fine, but Earth covered with water? That’s simply better! Sadly, the rest of the game is as good as the setting. Submarine combat is quite fun, but between the fights the player has to swim through same-looking underwater caves, performing repetitive tasks and interact with boring characters. Still, it is worth playing solely for the eerie atmosphere of the ocean.
Review in Polish | Read full review
Aquanox Deep Descent is a “for fans by fans game”, the core combat mechanics and exploration are satisfying and will surely appease Aquanox fans. Too bad that the rest — especially its story beats — undermined by an annoying protagonist and an underwhelming plot.
Review in Portuguese | Read full review
Aquanox: Deep Descent is a decent game to play from start to finish. A dystopian world where the surface is uninhabitable and the only choice is to live under the sea is not quite believable, but also possible. The characters were quite relatable and pair that with great voice-acting, the dialogues were not boring at all. I can replay it in the near future, but I would not do so religiously.
If you’re a fan of the previous Aquanox games or if you enjoy underwater sub-simulators, then yeah, you’ll probably have a good time and I would suggest picking it up. If you prefer your games more action-packed and fast-paced like I do, then I would probably suggest you play something else.
Aquanox Deep Descent suffers from poor mission variety and an underwhelming story, but its combat and ship customization systems are solid and entertaining.