Reviewed on: PS4

When we think of a game about protecting the future of the human race, we usually imagine powerful heroes in epic battles… But sometimes the future of humanity may rest on the shoulders of a single person, isolated on a strange and threatening world.

Narrative: 7

The Solus Project is the story of an explorer sent to scout a planet that may (or may not) be the human race’s next home. Planet Earth has been destroyed, and what remains of humanity sleeps in cryogenics on a ship drifting through space. You were one of those chosen to explore space and find a sanctuary capable of sustaining human life, and you end up crashing on an inhospitable but promising planet.

You then need to find ways to survive while collecting information about the environment around you… And finally find a way to transmit this data so someone can analyze it and decide whether this will be the new home of the men and women who will rebuild society.

The premise is quite interesting, and the world really builds a mysterious and oppressive setting. Failing to survive could prevent humanity from finding the only planet able to sustain life – but failing to collect detailed information could lure humanity’s last survivors into a fatal trap… For there are signs that there was life on this world… And perhaps there still is.

Mechanics: 5

This is a game with a big focus on exploration and, in theory, survival.

On the exploration side we have a vast world, packed with secrets and mysteries. At every moment you come across hidden corners or caves that offer protection from intense weather or even some useful item or piece of equipment to improve your chances of surviving one more day.

The survival aspect, on the other hand, doesn’t shine as much. You need to pay constant attention to the PDA in your left hand, which monitors your vital signs and environmental characteristics:

• Your general health (injuries/illness)
• Your body temperature
• Your remaining energy (calories)
• Your hydration
• The time since your last rest (sleep)
• The temperature around you
• The humidity of the air around you
• The speed of the winds around you

On paper it sounds quite interesting, but after a while managing your health becomes a repetitive and uninteresting task… One that often seems to be there to distract you and get in the way of your mission to explore and document the planet.

It doesn’t help that the game doesn’t have good controls. The same button picks up items from the scenery, combines an item from the scenery with an item in your hand, or even interacts with an item in the scenery using the item in your hand… And it isn’t always clear which action will be taken.

You have to manage your small inventory space to carry the essentials for your survival with you… But this also seems pointless when you realize items, water and rations fall from the sky regularly, amid the wreckage of ships crossing the atmosphere.

You can’t help but get the impression that the game suffers from trying to balance difficulty and fairness, or open exploration and obtuse puzzles that block your progress.

Audiovisual: 7

As with every other aspect, the presentation of The Solus Project would benefit from a bit more polish.

All objects, whether part of the scenery or items the player can interact with, reveal quite simple textures and models when seen up close. Still, the game manages to build creative, wide and stunning scenery – the art direction is spot on in building immersive, truly alien environments.

The game uses low, weak sounds to heighten the sense of emptiness and desolation, but at times this complete absence of music leaves the world not just empty… but also dead.

Final thoughts

The Solus Project manages to deliver a scary and oppressive experience, creating a genuine sense of wandering an alien world. The game is marked by a constant contrast between good ideas and execution that suffers from a lack of polish, a reminder that there was immense, poorly explored potential.

Score

Fun = 7

Mechanics = 5

Audiovisual = 7

Overall : 6.4

PlayStation 4 version