Lords of the Fallen was Deck 13’s first attempt at a Dark Souls inspired game that held an array of problems in its overall execution. The developers have returned for another attempt at a Souls style game this time set in a dystopian sci-fi future. The Surge sets you off after a catastrophic event has knocked you out during the first day on the job working for the Creo corporation. You wake up equipped with a heavy-grade exoskeleton, in a destroyed section of the complex. Robots have gone haywire, insane augmented co-workers and rogue AI - everything wants you dead, and thus enters the skill based grind to survive a host of enemies and boss fights.
Even the preview build of The Surge is looking leaps and bounds better than that of Lord of the Fallen. Deck 13 seem to have taken the feedback from the last and really set about improving their implementation of the core mechanics. The game already oozes confidence in everything it does, not to mention the twists on the genre such as limb targeting in combat that are executed nicely.
Overall, The Surge is shaping up nicely, it is already providing a nice alternative to the fantasy setting of the Dark Souls series. With the games progression systems including the way you can literally rip weapons off enemies and craft unique armour, the game is set to heavily appeal to fans of the skill based frustration simulators. It will be interesting to see how far the full game goes and if it can maintain the preview build quality throughout the game.
The Surge will be released on 16th May, 2017 for PC, Xbox One and PlayStation 4. It’s currently available to pre-order on Steam for £35.99.
