Damn I just assumed that this game will be a sequel with similar gameplay so I was really excited. My fault for not paying attention I guess, seems like the info's been out for a while. I don't even enjoy horde shooters normally, DRG is the only exception and the mining and exploring is the main attraction to me. I really hope the devs realize that DRG has it's own playerbase and don't abandon it.
So what the fuck happened with Ghost Ship Games? How did they go from something as good as DRG to something as middling (and le heckin transheartingly WOKE) as Rogue Core? Like why didn't they just make it so that instead of everyone having to share upgrades, everyone just got 3 or 5 random ones like the machine events. (Trit deposit, Omen, Ebonite). I'm sure the fugly neanderthal-looking female dwarfs was probably from the Embracer Group. But the other stuff I just don't get unless all the people behind the good shit in DRG left like with most game studios that fall off. Also no mission control (or unique ores aside from green Nitra) (or anything similar in quality) so the game sucks regardless
How does this game compare to Helldivers? Are they similar enough that if a person already has DRG there's not much reason to branch out to Helldivers too?
A buddy and i were discussing about getting the game(mostly him, but since we play drg together occasionally, he wanted me to get it) after taking a day to watch reviews we reached the same conclusion. Rogue core is basically the zoomer version of DRG.
Is like they heard the retards that complain that the downtimes in DRG are boring because theres nothing to shoot at and decided to make a game around that. Now assuming im right, they decided to cater to the wrong part of the community. Instead they should had made a direct sequel with new mechanics and ways to go around doing objectives, maybe include space mining and we get a cool little ship to min surrounding asteroids and such. Expand customization and add new classes. Like they have the solid foundation but they decided to go with rogue core. Lastly i dont really give a shit about the female dwarf inclusion because ive played with women in drg and they wanted to have their own female dwarf so it is whatever, my main problem is how ugly it looks.
When designing rogue core, the main design principle was "We need an excuse to shoehorn in a woman into a game about roughneck miners." and everything else came secondary, which probably explains why its so shit.
Had my hands on the game for a few hours now, here's my thoughts on it thus far.
Positives:
The new guns are neat, and I kinda wish we had those in the regular game. GSG, fix your shit inventory system and give us more toys in season 7 please.
Class progression is relatively fast. You get what you seek in a few runs (so far).
Most side objectives are pretty enjoyable.
Negatives:
Core spawns are far less interesting enemies than glyphids. None of them interact in a meaningful way with each-other, and bring no meaningful obstacle or variation in how you approach them. Pop heads and move on, I guess.
Enemy variety is nonexistent considering it's fucking Hoxxes. We went from caves full of hostile wildlife to maybe 3-4 types of core spawns, with the occasional cave leech here and there. Imagine creating entire ecosystems of invasive critters beloved by players, only to not add them in your sequel and replace them with whatever this is. The rival company you fought against in DRG doesn't even appear to take advantage of a situation where the company is actively getting buttfucked.
The new classes are boring and don't flow with each-other like they do in DRG. Teamplay feels more like an accidental outcome of you pulling off a solo play that benefited everyone instead of having your toolset cover a weakness somebody playing another class has (e.g. Scout+Engineer, Gunner+Driller turtle strats).
Gear and perks are dispensed through negotiations, with everyone taking turns picking between 4-5 rewards that can't be shared or picked together. Whoever's picking last gets fucked, and you are guaranteed bickering over who's taking what, and/or one of your players turning into a liability in longer runs.
There's not that many perks, and most of them aren't interesting. 3/4ths of them are percentage-based stat increases.
Engaging negotiations requires everyone to meet around a point of interest. It only takes one clueless retard to completely grief a team and have everyone be forced to lose precious time trying to have said player get to where you're all waiting at. This completely breaks pacing. As I'm writing, I realize that whoever designed gameplay loops in Rogue Core believes in trolling as a game-design language.
As many have said before, the timer is a retarded way to put pressure on players, not just because it's too quick and it forces efficiency over exploring, but also because you can tell that cave generation Rogue Core has been designed around that. We went from complex cave systems to straight lines to your main objectives. No more exploring for you, unless you wish for a permanent swarm and invincible worm thingies that can instantly grab and end you in seconds.
There is literally nothing to mine outside of expenite, and like I've said before, very little reasons to explore caves. I get you're not supposed to play as contractual prospectors anymore, but c'mon man.
Since runs are very time consuming (~50 minutes -> 1h30), all of the above will inevitably have you and many of your friends crash out. It's only a matter of time.
Omega is boring, and I miss Mission Control.
The fucking bar requires you to exercise for pints. While it's kinda funny to have somebody playing bottom bitch and exercise so that the rest of the team gets to drink at first, it gets annoying extremely quickly. Just let me get smashed before I deploy already, I get plenty of exercise surviving missions as-is.
The playerbase feels far less cooperative and fun than in the regular game. I blame the game's retarded design, and every hub element being less interesting to interact with.
You're told you're DRG's special forces sent for missions rank-and-file miners can't handle, yet your gear is fully procured on-site. The ship has a fully-stocked armory and you're not allowed to pick anything before deployment.
Unlike the orbital station, the ship is too large, and too bland. 3/4ths of it has nothing interesting to look at.
Since you do nothing else outside of mining monster energy minerals within biomes that get increasingly monochrome and dim as you dig deeper, the game takes on a faded green tint. As you go deeper into your runs, there's a good chance you'll forget where you even landed. Not that it matters outside of a few biomes.
You just know female dwarves were Embracer's decision, and GSG accepted to appease Discord trannies. I don't find them particularly annoying in missions, but it really kills the vibe the original game has. Not even my mining corporation running on fantasy robber-baron slave labor is allowed to be sexist anymore.
This is basically DRG if Embracer faggots made it. It's neither bad nor good as it stands, but at best, it's an expensive premium alternative gamemode to the original game. It's not worthy of being a standalone game, let alone one that bears the DRG namesake imo.
These studios that get lucky with a one hit wonder must hate what put them on the field. GSG rips out everything that was fun in DRG and completely shits on the rock and stone culture between players of DRG.
I can wrap up all of my opinions about Rogue Core with a simple statement. Rarely has a video game just really made me not give a shit about it. There is nothing to care about it Rogue Core and I got bored after two missions. It's just a shame that somehow this means that now I'm over the 2 hour limit to refund the game. I could write a long ass rant about it but why should I put in more effort than the devs did?
Is like they heard the retards that complain that the downtimes in DRG are boring because theres nothing to shoot at and decided to make a game around that.
It's so much worse than that. There is so much dead time in Rogue Core and countless mini-objectives and mini-games that break up the flow of the game. It's like you're supposed to do mini-games, fight off a wave, do mini-games, defend the elevator shaft, and repeat until you reach a boring boss fight that can be summarized as a bullet sponge with an intermission phase.
To be honest they became complacent with DRG even before Rogue Core. All that seasonal stuff was stretched thin beyond anything acceptable. Meaningful content was a constant drip feed and perks have been left in a desolate state for years. I think they just managed to catch lighting in a bottle with DRG and never were able to properly expand it at a certain point. Rogue Core coming out in a shitty state, despite the core issues having been complained about for a long time even before the launch, just solidifies that Ghost Ship were always hacks.
I had this idea long ago of a minecraft-like in an asteroid belt, based on vague memories as a kid of playing Lego Rock Raiders.
This is just like an action game version of what I had in my mind. If they made one where you're building industrial infrastructure to exploit stuff - not just as theming around shooting bugs but in the sense Subnautica is about expeditioneering - I'd pay top dollar for it. Bet there'd be a real market for that too, compared to whatever this Rogue Core thing is that nobody ITT seems to like.
Character design and customization wouldn't be in the top 8 complaints I have about the game. The classes are basically interchangeable because they share a weapon and utility item pool. I'm not actually sure why they have classes in the game at all. It's probably just padding to waste the player's time unlocking cosmetics multiple times.
To be clear, the inclusion of female character models has basically no bearing on the playability of the game. Grifters will spend hours whining about this sort of thing to ragebait their audience despite it being immaterial to any of the core gameplay. 10 to 1 odds people complaining about the female dwarf models haven't played the game and thus haven't gazed upon how badly designed the actual game is. The game is bad and I've submitted a ticket for a refund. It is just not fun.
To be clear, the inclusion of female character models has basically no bearing on the playability of the game. Grifters will spend hours whining about this sort of thing to ragebait their audience despite it being immaterial to any of the core gameplay. 10 to 1 odds people complaining about the female dwarf models haven't played the game and thus haven't gazed upon how badly designed the actual game is.
Other problems existing is not a reason to excuse smaller problems. Female dwarves have been a huge meme in DRG for years, requested solely by they/thems or trolls. Adding them only shows how the devs decided to spit on their playerbase in order to chase bigger profits.
Just because YOU don't care, doesn't mean anyone who does is a grifter who hates games or whatever bullshit you're on about.
A woman's voice would annoy me in the mine and make it less fun.
If I can just be with da boyz it makes even shittier situations better than having to hear the whining of a woman.
Female dwarves although generally being a meme in DRG. If they wanted the inclusion of such, they should have tried to make it work earlier in DRG. Maybe introduce a female dwarve as some sort of nurse or worker we see in the hub. Maybe as the seasons passed maybe she could have been included as a medic class for the dwarves and such. Finally they should have made female dwarves prettier because they lok ugly as sin.
