Rive Reviews

Rive is ranked in the 63rd percentile of games scored on OpenCritic.
7 / 10.0
Sep 12, 2016

It is not a complicated game and it’s easy to understand, so it would practically be for anyone. I do recommend it, if you would like to shoot massive amounts of robots and feel awesome doing it.

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8.5 / 10.0
Sep 12, 2016

Overall, Rive is a riveting romp throughout, and continues to impress, challenge and entertain even a few hours in; the world and challenge keep puling me back, and I believe that you'll find the same sense of daring danger infect you too.

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7 / 10.0
Sep 13, 2016

While the difficulty won’t appeal to everyone, there’re plenty of obstacles to overcome especially if you thrive on one hell of a challenge.

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78 / 100
Sep 14, 2016
RIVE - Quick Game Review video thumbnail
Evan Norris
Top Critic
Unscored
Sep 15, 2016

Two Tribes promised RIVE would be their last and best game. It's certainly the best. Let's hope it won't be the last.

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9 / 10.0
Sep 15, 2016

Furious and reckless action, tricky jumps and a crazy amount of bullets: if you're an hardcore enthusiast who loved the 16-Bit era and if you're in for a real challenge, do yourself a favor and give a chance to Rive... You won't regret it.

Review in Italian | Read full review

7 / 10
Sep 15, 2016

If this is indeed Two Tribes' swansong, then it's a goodbye wave accompanying tears and smiles. This is a fine way to leave, and it's pertinent to think that its final legacy is accomplished through the use of aspects which are, sadly, already in the rear-view mirror. It takes a lot of commitment for a relatively small game, and it's sometimes a little too eager for you to suffer its wrath. However, the charm, style, and sophistication by which it mixes up so many different styles successfully is a testament both to RIVE's great design and also some of the most beloved games of years gone by.

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Sep 16, 2016

If Two Tribes' plan was to go out with a loud and glorious bang, they have succeeded in doing just that.

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8 / 10.0
Sep 16, 2016

RIVE is a masterfully crafted game that can be easily recommended to hardcore shooter fans. It’s high difficulty level may scare away potential players, but those who stick with Two Tribes‘ final game until the end will not be disappointed.

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8 / 10
Sep 16, 2016

Rive is a challenging side-scrolling shooter with tight platforming and a tenacious affection for over-the-top action.

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3 / 5.0
Sep 19, 2016

Difficulty is a good thing when managed correctly. Most players want to beat an area and be overcome by a feeling of pride and accomplishment, not be glad it is over. RIVE often prompts the latter emotion and while the levels, art, and hacking are fun and well-designed, the main take away from Two Tribes’ game is a feeling of frustration.

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7.8 / 10.0
Sep 19, 2016

RIVE is an old-fashioned shooter. Brutal by vocation and well capable of entertain hardcore gamers, it loses some of its appeal during the last missions.

Review in Italian | Read full review

6.5 / 10.0
Sep 20, 2016

While it is obvious that Rive was a well-crafted digital love letter to arcade classics of yesteryear, this is not a game that will be joining that pantheon of remarkable releases. Just because a game is hard, doesn’t mean it is gratifying. Though it certainly has moments of brilliance, these glimpses are few and far between. It also doesn’t help matters much when the borderline mean-natured presentation and combat mechanics continue to over-emphasize failures, instead of trumpeting successes. This will most likely find a small, loyal audience among the already converted and fairly neglected arcade shooter crowd. Ultimately, Rive lacks the approachability that would help it preach the shooter gospel to those not already singing in the choir.

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T.J. Hafer
Top Critic
6.5 / 10.0
Sep 20, 2016

The effort that went into creating Rive is apparent, from the art to the music to the precise controls, but it manages to be extremely punishing without enough sense of reward and the depth of options in combat are substandard. The story is an afterthought and the characters’ seeming self-awareness of that doesn’t connect with enough of a comedic punch to save it. It’s a side-scrolling shooter with stock parts that I don’t foresee leaving a mark on the genre, but is at least worth a spin if you’ve got the patience for it and a thirst for a major challenge.

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8 / 10.0
Sep 20, 2016

Aside from the initial impressions of Rive it has never set a foot wrong, and never needed to fight its way into my good books.

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7 / 10.0
Sep 21, 2016

As the last game Two Tribes will ever make, the few remaining employees there can hold their heads high with what they created. It's not the best game in its catalog, and the difficulty will be a turn-off for many, but Rive leaves its mark as one of the more challenging games of this generation. Gluttons for punishment will have no trouble eating it up, but others should satiate their appetite elsewhere.

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5.8 / 10.0
Sep 21, 2016

I wanted Rive to be a good game.

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7 / 10
Sep 22, 2016

Rive doesn’t quite reach its full potential, but shoot ’em up fans should give it a go anyway. The frustrating difficulty spikes are hard to ignore, but when it comes together, it’s a fantastic fast-paced corridor shooter which could have been considered one of the best 2D shooters in recent years. Either way, it’s a good send off and farewell for Two Tribes.

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Sep 23, 2016

Checkpoints are frequent and the Game Over message keeps comically cycling between nostalgic pleas to “Insert Coin” or puns based on your method of death (“Kentucky Fried Pilot” if blown up, “What the Hell?” upon burning alive). These grim jokes serve to reassure players that Rive knows exactly what it's emulating (“Cool, a rising lava level” and “That AI activated my auto-scroller somehow!”), and that each scenario, no matter how ludicrous, is beatable.

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9 / 10.0
Sep 24, 2016

RIVE is an incredibly well-designed game with wonderful characters, a good sense of humor, and fantastic art design.

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