Strafe Reviews
STRAFE gets a lot of presentational things right, and even though it undermines and contradicts its own mechanics in some places, the singular sense of style the game exudes is fantastic. Running through the swarmed halls of the dilapidated space station has a lot of appeal for classic shooter fans.
As I shoot robot enemies and monsters who want to slice me up, I am delighted. The screen goes red every time. I hit the restart button with a smile on my face.
STRAFE wants to be a shooter from the 1990s, but has worse mechanics than any of the games it hoped to imitate.
If you are an ingenious nostalgic and at the same time are not afraid of the difficult challenges we advise you to give it a chance; '96 is here.
Review in Italian | Read full review
As it stands it's still a few meaningful patches from becoming something that we'd recommend.
If you want a 90s game like how Kung Fury was an 80s movie, give Strafe a go. But if you want a more fleshed-out 90s game…just play a 90s game
While there are hints of fun to be had if you search hard enough, I don't think Strafe ever makes the small moments in between worth scavenging.
Strafe has the look and style to stand out, but Pixel Titans should have been focusing on making sure the game was not only fully functional, but actually fun to play, as well.
STRAFE as of now feel unfinished, and is too reliant on its successful marketing campaign. If you are an absolute diehard for these type of games, I implore you to look up Brutal Doom instead. It is a free mod that gives the original Doom a bit more oomph and visceral feedback, while changing some of the controls to feel both familiar and fresh.
This throwback to 1996 isn't what we hoped for. The underdeveloped roguelike aspects and lack of variability can't be salvaged even by the awesome soundtrack. In short bursts, it can be enjoyable, but continuous playtime will suffer from massive repetition.
Review in Slovak | Read full review
Strafe strives for old school difficulty and scores a little too well. Level design is not varied enough to endure the countless run-throughs required to proceed. Tight corridors, coupled with unfair monster spawns make your deaths feel cheap. The core gunplay is just not meaty enough to carry the game.
There is certainty some fun to be had, but you’ll tend to only find that in the first hour that you play.
STRAFE will certainly attract a very specific crowd, likely one filled with gluttons for punishment. The core game provides a solid offering, but nostalgia and gory gunplay need a bit more to make this game rise above the monotony and frustration that settle in over time.
STRAFE doesn’t quite do everything you expect, but being able to go into a game that looks like Quake that is infinitely replayable keeps the challenge up where memorization wouldn’t. I was never able to finish STRAFE, but that’s all well and good for its mindless and nostalgic return to classic-feeling FPS in the modern day era. STRAFE feels like a game that would have existing alongside Quake and Doom, but was accidentally sent forward in time and has learned the ways of 2017 gaming.
STRAFE proves to be a worthy spiritual successor of all the classics of the genre, while also introducing modern elements that fit well into the gameplay. While the experience can be frustrating sometimes due to unfair damage and bugs, Pixel Titans delivered a solid and addictive game.
If you feel like playing an old-style game brought to today’s standards, there are plenty of other games that are more deserving of your money.
STRAFE is a game lost in time and space. It might have been revolutionary in 1996, but today it is a stark reminder that nostalgia can only carry a game so far. The game is polished like a fine jewel, but lacks ambition—a shine that might place it among the classics.
Strafe is a love letter to 90s FPS games with a lot of potential that falls to the wayside due to a lack of polish as well as a slew of generic and boring design choices.