Volume Reviews
Mike Bithell once again unleashes another creative title onto the indie scene, but Volume's addictive sneaking and fantastic cast can't distract from the lacking story.
Volume is a strong game that is not without its flaws, but finds a nice home in the class of stealth games this year has already offered.
All in all, Volume is a solid game. Its new-age telling of a certified classic is intelligently done.
Volume has an intriguing story and fun stealth techniques, but the game's repetitive mission structure and easy-to-evade enemies keep it from being one of the genre's standout titles.
Stealth hasn't felt this good, this pure, since Mark of the Ninja. Volume is tightly-designed and lovingly-crafted vivacious fun.
However, such considerations are minor, and there's an awful lot of pleasure to be had from Volume. Its uncluttered gameplay emphasises the puzzle-solving aspect of stealth, the level design is brilliant, the gadgets are sometimes clever enough to make you chuckle out loud and the whole experience is both surprisingly meaty and absorbing to the point of distraction. It may not be as wildly inventive as Thomas Was Alone, but it's a wonderful homage to what constitutes the very essence of stealth games.
Because the challenge stays reasonable enough throughout, Volume's stealth systems remain satisfying and, most importantly, a consistent echo of the game's narrative.
While the main story missions are a little easy, it still is really fun to play with, and there are already plenty of user-generated missions to play with. Volume's purity of focus in creating simple stealth works well for the most part.
Volume isn't without its flaws, but the highs that it's able to hit completely squash the minor gripes players might have. One of the best pure stealth titles in recent years, Mike Bithell and his team have not only captured some of the storytelling magic that made Thomas Was Alone so special, but they also managed to capture the best parts of a genre that sees a great deal of failures.
Story and gameplay with depth, as well as volume.
Volume mixes familiar stealth controls and perspectives with a bevy of intriguing, new mechanics. While its enemies won't really hound and hunt you - and the checkpoints provide more than enough support - Volume is a nice, low-fi experience for both casual players and hardcore stealth fans.
Volume is one of the most engaging and fun stealth games in years.
This game is not bad by any stretch, it just might not hold your attention for long enough to get through it all. A little more variety in the game and the way you play it would go a long way.
On the whole, there's very little wrong with developer Mike Bithell's sophomore title. It's one of the strongest efforts in a genre that seems to facing an identity crisis.
Volume makes full use of its updated setting and, in doing so, tells one of the freshest Robin Hood tales in decades—maybe even centuries.
Volume's strengths are primal but simple, at times feeling like a Crossy Road-style time-passer with a cyberpunk sheen. It tries but ultimately doesn't say much of modern society or governments beyond the elementary. Indeed, it is the modern videogame incarnate, warts and all.
Volume has a carefully considered set of mechanics and it will certainly appeal to those who love stealth action and are interested in completing each of the levels as quickly as possible, moving smoothly and without having to get saved by the checkpoints.
Volume deserves credit for being fresh and accessible, but after a couple of dozen levels or so, it starts to grow repetitive. It was easy to pick up the controller and play, but without a lot of new innovations and a middling storyline, it was also entirely too easy to take breaks and move onto something else.
Bithell's wonderfully witty scripts complimented with Wallace's performance is a match made in heaven; I just wish I could love it all when mixed together with the game mechanics
Fans of stealth games will definitely find plenty to enjoy here but others may find themselves left cold by a game that seemingly refuses to acknowledge that less can be more.