Made in Abyss: Binary Star Falling into Darkness Reviews
Made in Abyss: Binary Star Falling into Darkness retains very little of the heart and soul that made the anime and manga it's based on so appealing and engaging. There's a promising survival RPG campaign in the Deep in Abyss mode, hampered by some annoying game design decisions, but the fact that you're forced to trudge through a barebones adaptation of the anime in order to unlock it just makes a bad experience even worse.
While Made in Abyss: Binary Star Falling into Darkness sports an excellent art direction and adapts the early part of the series' story quite well, it unfortunately fails to provide an enjoyable gameplay experience.
Fans of the anime will still want to play Made in Abyss: Binary Star Falling into Darkness, but do so with caution. The main draw for new fans will be exploring the abyss and seeing all its layers. There’s just a lot of garbage to sift through to get to the good stuff.
I wouldn’t even tell fans of the show to play it.
To be clear, Made in Abyss: Binary Star Falling Into Darkness is not an irredeemable game. It has its high points, and the core experience is one that even non-anime fans could find enjoyable and worthwhile. It’s held back by needing to adapt material from the anime, though, and as a result, the full product is so much less enjoyable than it otherwise could have been.
Made in Abyss: Binary Star Falling into Darkness is a good game marred by poor pacing and the inability to blend game mechanics with the story they came from. If this game was purely the "Deep in Abyss" mode, it would be a great action-survival game with elements of RPG mechanics and even some horror mixed in. However, the contrast between the game modes both in gameplay and presentation is shocking and leaves one wondering why "Hello Abyss" needed to be a requirement to access what feels like the "actual game."
Made in Abyss is an odd game to recommend; the gameplay is great once you unlock the mode that actually features it, but until then you're stuck having to trudge through a stripped-down, too-long-for-what-it-is easy mode that isn't actually easy. If you aren't willing to do that, you won't get to play the actual game that makes the price tag worth it. For those who do make it past that hurdle, the survival mechanics are well-implemented, the character progression is satisfying, and this is overall a perfectly enjoyable release. We wouldn't necessarily recommend you pick up Made in Abyss, nor would we say you should pass on it outright; it's an interesting game with plenty of redeeming qualities, but it's gonna make you work to see them in ways that feel unnecessary.
Although it has some interesting ideas as a survival action RPG, Binary Star Falling into Darkness will primarily appeal to hardcore Made in Abyss fans and offer very little to newcomers.
This game should be tossed into the depths of the titular abyss.
Riko and Reg's descent to the netherworld is a classic in existential dread and worldbuilding. Playing in this broken world imparts an even worse sense of dread.
Mediocre Survival RPG gameplay and a poorly tutorialized mandatory prologue saps Made In Abyss: Binary Star Falling Into Darkness of its merits
All in all, Made in Abyss: Binary Star Falling into Darkness sadly provides a more frustrating experience than enjoyable. Despite making a good effort to adapt the series' best attributes, its gameplay, short story, and poor performance greatly hinder the overall experience.
Ultimately, as a fan of Made in Abyss I’m disappointed more than anything given the potential of the source material. The game’s writing carries most of what’s good here and it’s a good introduction to the first part of the manga’s story.
Made In Abyss: Binary Star Falling Into Darkness is a game with good ideas, but poor execution and an awful adaptation of the source material. Both the gameplay and the story leave something to be desired and the only abyss that the game will inhabit being that of oblivion.
Review in Portuguese | Read full review
I can’t imagine the niche for this game will be too big, but even as someone who doesn’t know the anime, I found myself enjoying the unique take on hell that Made in Abyss throws at players. Once you learn to play it within its rhythms, rather than expect it to be something more conventional, it has a charm all of its own.
Made in Abyss: Binary Star Falling into Darkness is a beautiful-looking game with an interesting story, unfortunately, you have to play through the repetitive Hello Abyss mode first before you can get to the really good parts in Deep in Abyss.
A bizarre adventure through and through, Made in Abyss is an excellent adaptation of a very popular and interesting anime! The gameplay loop, story and design make this a great little adventure game with plenty of unique challenges and gameplay elements. For fans of the anime this is a no-brainer, absolutely buy it and enjoy! For non-fans, if this genre appeals, then this game is one to watch. It's absolutely worth the time it takes to learn how to play it correctly, even if the goal is just to see what gruesome event takes place next!
Made in Abyss: Binary Star Falling into Darkness is a good RPG game that adapts the first season of the series on which it is based. The game has an original and interesting story that anime fans will love. The gameplay is a little repetitive as well as the scenarios we go through, but if you are one of those who likes to explore, collect and create new objects and complete hundreds of missions, this is your game.
Review in Spanish | Read full review
Made in Abyss: Binary Star Falling into Darkness is a direct action RPG where we have to explore the depths of the abyss. It's not a graphic wonder nor does it look for it, but together with its mediocre gameplay and its repetitive mission system, it makes exploring the abyss recommended for fans of manga or anime.
Review in Spanish | Read full review