Info about Scars Above:

Official game description:
Scars Above is a challenging sci-fi third-person action adventure shooter combining the rewarding feel of overcoming difficulty with a compelling and intricate story, set in a mysterious alien world to explore.  
**Some things were not meant to be discovered…**  
A colossal and enigmatic alien structure appears in Earth's orbit and stuns the entire world; humanity names it ‘The Metahedron’. The Sentient Contact Assessment and Response team (SCAR) - consisting of scientists and engineers - is sent to investigate.  
Things don’t go as planned and the Metahedron hauls the team across space onto a mysterious extrasolar planet. Playing the role of Dr Kate Ward - a SCAR member - who wakes up dazed, alone in a strange, hostile environment. Determined to survive, you set out to find your crew and unravel the mystery behind what’s happened.
SURVIVE AGAINST ALL ODDS
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Kate is an astronaut and a scientist – not a soldier - but she's resourceful and determined to do anything to survive.  
Use a combination of ranged weapons, devices, consumables and melee attacks, you need to manage stamina as you run, dodge, exploit weak points and discover effective tactics to defeat your foes  
Combine different elemental attacks to beat the odds and break through otherwise impassable obstacles.  
Craft different items and gadgets to aid you against the countless threats in this exoplanet.  
EXPLORE A MYSTERIOUS EXOPLANET
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Immerse yourself in a carefully crafted adventure, inspired by the sci-fi classics.  
Explore an alien world filled with countless threats, gorgeous landscapes and ruins hinting of an ancient - yet advanced - civilisation that somehow disappeared.  
Journey through different biomes, such as marshlands, freezing wastelands, underground caverns and alien facilities – all with their own set of challenges, enemies, secrets and environmental hazards.  
EMBARK ON A RESEARCH JOURNEY
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Kate is a scientist to her core and you'll use that scientific expertise to extract information from your surroundings by scanning artifacts, materials and creatures in order to learn about their features, properties and weaknesses.  
As you explore your surroundings, you will conduct analysis and gain knowledge which will allow you to craft new gadgets, weapons and unlock abilities in Xenobiology and Engineering trees.  
THRILLING BOSS FIGHTS
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Ghastly enemy designs - with diverse strategies and tactics - will keep encounters fresh, forcing you to find creative ways to defeat them.  
The Scars Above Experience:
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*   Immerse yourself in an exciting sci-fi adventure inspired by the classics of the genre  
*   Explore an enigmatic and intricate alien world - with plenty of mysteries to uncover  
*   Fight tactically, using a combination of elemental attacks, gadgets and items, exploit the environment and enemy weaknesses  
*   Engage exciting and challenging enemies and bosses, from hulking rock-covered monstrosities to nightmarish creatures lurking in the dark  
*   Gain knowledge and acquire new skills  
*   Scan enemies to learn about their weaknesses and behaviours  
*   Use your scientific skills to conduct research and extrapolate information
Mature Content Description
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The developers describe the content like this:  
Violence, Depictions mutated human bodies, Depictions of dead and mutilated aliens.

Release date: 28 Feb, 2023

Categories: Third-Person Shooter, Action-adventure, Exploration, Souls-like Combat, Character Progression, Crafting, Single-player Story, Research and Discovery


- Hardware Profile: No data
Feature extractions:
- Community Price: No data
- Playtime Metrics: No data
- Time-to-fun: No data
- Player Archetypes: No data


Below are summaries of things people say about the game per category.
Each point is assigned a weight that represents how often it is mentioned across all reviews.
What players like:
- Enjoyable and Engaging Experience (weight 0.81): Players found the game to be highly enjoyable, fun, and entertaining, often exceeding expectations, especially when purchased on sale. The game's length was frequently praised as 'just right,' preventing it from overstaying its welcome and offering a refreshing change from longer AAA titles. Many considered it a 'hidden gem' or 'underrated' title.
- Stunning Visuals and Atmosphere (weight 0.56): The game's graphics, environments, and overall atmosphere received high marks. Players described the visuals as beautiful, atmospheric, and immersive, creating a compelling sci-fi world. The sound design and soundtrack further enhanced this immersion, often drawing comparisons to titles like Mass Effect and Alien.
- Unique Elemental Combat System (weight 0.45): The combat system, featuring four elemental weapon types (electricity, fire, ice, corrosion) and various gadgets, was a major highlight. Players enjoyed the strategic depth, requiring them to exploit enemy weaknesses, combine elements, and utilize the environment. This system made combat feel like a puzzle and kept encounters fresh and engaging.
- Captivating Sci-Fi Story & Lore (weight 0.35): The game's story was consistently praised as interesting, intriguing, and captivating, often with a strong scientific and psychological horror bent. Players appreciated the unique premise, the well-paced narrative, and the rich lore that kept them engaged and eager to discover more. Many expressed a desire for a sequel.
- Accessible Difficulty & Progression (weight 0.16): The game offers multiple difficulty settings, making it accessible to both casual players and those seeking a challenge. Many found the medium difficulty to be balanced, while the easiest setting allowed for a more story-focused experience. Character and weapon upgrade systems were also well-received, making progression feel rewarding.
- Challenging and Varied Boss Fights (weight 0.14): Boss battles were frequently highlighted as interesting, unique, and challenging, often requiring tactical thinking and exploitation of weak points. Players enjoyed the variety in boss mechanics and found the experience of overcoming them to be rewarding, even on higher difficulties.
- Souls-like Mechanics for Broader Audience (weight 0.07): The game successfully integrated 'Souls-like' mechanics into a third-person shooter format, offering a challenging yet more accessible experience for players who might find traditional Souls-like games too difficult. This blend was seen as a fresh and entertaining approach to the genre.
- High-Quality Voice Acting (weight 0.06): The voice acting, particularly for the protagonist, was consistently praised as good to excellent, often compared favorably to AAA titles. This contributed positively to the game's narrative and overall immersion.

Common complaints:
- Mediocre and Unpolished Gameplay (weight 0.99): Players frequently describe the game as mediocre, clunky, and unpolished across various aspects, including combat, movement, and overall design. Many felt it was not worth the asking price, citing a lack of innovation and a feeling of being rushed or unfinished.
- Frustrating Save and Progression Systems (weight 0.13): The save system is a major point of frustration, with a lack of manual saves, infrequent checkpoints, and the deletion of save files after completion. This, combined with respawning enemies and long backtracking, leads to significant loss of progress and a lack of replayability.
- Unbalanced Skill and Upgrade System (weight 0.07): The skill and upgrade system is poorly balanced, with skill points being scarce early on but becoming excessive and unspendable by the late game. This leads to a lack of meaningful progression and a feeling of wasted potential.
- Forced Souls-like Mechanics (weight 0.07): Many players felt that the 'Souls-like' elements, such as high difficulty, respawning enemies, and dodge-focused combat, were awkwardly implemented and did not suit the game's linear structure. These mechanics often felt forced and detracted from the overall experience.
- Poor Level Design and Invisible Walls (weight 0.06): Level design is criticized for being linear, uninspired, and often featuring invisible walls that break immersion. This, combined with issues like character clipping and poor camera behavior, contributes to a clunky and frustrating experience.
- Lack of Map and Navigation Issues (weight 0.05): The absence of a mini-map or clear quest markers caused frustration, leading to players getting lost and engaging in tedious backtracking. This design choice was seen as hindering exploration and immersion.

Gameplay feedback:
- Variable Souls-like Difficulty (weight 0.47): Player perception of difficulty is highly varied, with some finding it too easy for a Souls-like game, even on higher settings, while others find it challenging, especially early on. The game incorporates Souls-like mechanics like respawning enemies and fixed save points, but often without the same punitive consequences.
- Linear Story & Progression (weight 0.24): The game features a linear, narrative-driven story that is generally straightforward and easy to follow. Progression is mostly linear, with some minor exploration off the main path, and the overall campaign is relatively short.
- Sci-Fi Third-Person Shooter (weight 0.18): The game is primarily a third-person sci-fi action-adventure shooter, where players control Dr. Kate Ward, a scientist stranded on an alien planet. It blends shooter mechanics with RPG elements, exploration, and some puzzle-solving.
- Respawn & Save Mechanics (weight 0.14): Save points (monoliths/pillars) replenish health, ammo, and energy but also cause all non-boss enemies to respawn, similar to Souls-like bonfire mechanics. Dying typically returns the player to the last save point without loss of items, making death less punitive.
- Accessible Achievements & Skills (weight 0.14): The game is noted for its easy achievement completion, with many achievements tied to the main story and obtainable in a single playthrough on any difficulty. Players often find themselves with surplus skill points after maxing out all abilities, indicating a generous progression system.

Performance notes:
- Generally strong performance and optimization (weight 0.18): Many players report excellent optimization, smooth gameplay, and high frame rates across various hardware, including lower-end systems and the Steam Deck. The game is noted for its stability, with few crashes or major bugs reported by a significant portion of the player base.
- Occasional frame rate drops (weight 0.06): While generally smooth, some players experienced minor frame rate drops in specific scenes, during heavy snowfall, or in certain areas on the Steam Deck. These drops are usually within a tolerable range but can be noticeable.
- Vsync issues reported (weight 0.03): One specific technical issue mentioned is Vsync not functioning correctly, leading to fixed FPS at 240 on a 165 Hz monitor, indicating a potential display synchronization problem.
- Minor character and visual glitches (weight 0.02): Some players noted minor visual issues, such as characters looking 'weird' or getting stuck in the environment, requiring a pillar re-activation. The game's overall graphical quality is described as 'AA look' or budget-friendly.
- Inconsistent loading times (weight 0.02): Loading times are generally fast, especially after death. However, some players reported unusually long loading times in specific biomes, particularly after dying in the icy biome.
- High RAM usage and crashes (weight 0.02): A few players reported extremely high RAM usage, with one instance of the game consuming around 50GB of RAM. This issue, along with occasional PC crashes, suggests potential memory management problems for a small subset of users.
- Historical Alpha issues (weight 0): One piece of feedback mentioned the game had issues getting past the Alpha stage, which is historical context and not directly related to current gameplay experience.
- Steam Deck settings unchanged (weight 0): One user noted they did not change Proton or basic settings on Steam Deck, which is a statement about their setup rather than a review of the game's performance.

Recommendations:
- Best Value on Sale (weight 0.42): A significant majority of players recommend purchasing the game only when it is heavily discounted, often suggesting prices below $10 or specific percentage off sales (e.g., 80% off). Many feel the full price is not justified, but at a reduced cost, it offers decent entertainment for a single playthrough or a weekend.
- Sequel Highly Desired (weight 0.23): Many players express a strong desire for a sequel, indicating that the game has potential and they are interested in seeing the developers expand on the mechanics, story, and character development in a future installment. This suggests a positive core experience despite any flaws.
- Recommended for Sci-Fi Fans (weight 0.21): The game is highly recommended for players who enjoy sci-fi themes, action-adventure, and third-person shooters. It's often described as a solid choice for those who appreciate the genre, especially if they are looking for a good story and challenging combat.
- Mixed Reception, Not Essential (weight 0.11): A notable portion of players cannot recommend the game, citing it as not worth the time or money, even on sale. Some suggest there are better alternatives available, while others found it mediocre or a one-time play at best.
- Souls-like Combat Appeal (weight 0.07): The game appeals to fans of Souls-like games due to its challenging combat and boss fights. However, it is not recommended for casual players or those unfamiliar with the genre's difficulty, as it can lead to frustration.
- Difficulty Settings Impact Enjoyment (weight 0.02): Players suggest experimenting with difficulty settings, with some recommending higher difficulties for a more balanced and engaging experience, while others advise playing on easy for a more adventure-focused playthrough.
- Try Before You Buy (weight 0.02): Some players advise watching gameplay videos or trying the game to see if it aligns with personal preferences, especially if gameplay is the primary interest. This suggests that the game might not appeal to everyone.
- Developer Appreciation (weight 0.01): A small but positive sentiment exists towards the developers, with players commending their work and expressing gratitude for the game.
- Completion Time Varies (weight 0.01): The time taken to complete the game varies among players, with estimates ranging from 7-8 hours to 18 hours, suggesting different playstyles or engagement levels.
- Review Status Changes (weight 0.01): Some players have changed their review status, either to positive or expressing satisfaction with a refund, indicating that their initial experience or perception of the game evolved over time, possibly due to updates or personal reflection. This is based on limited feedback.

Other player notes:
- Short but engaging playtime (weight 0.18): Players generally agree the game is on the shorter side, with most playthroughs ranging from 6 to 10 hours, even for 100% completion. Despite its brevity, many found the experience enjoyable and intense, with some wanting to replay it.
- AA production quality (weight 0.16): Many players identify the game as an 'AA' title, striking a balance between indie and AAA productions. It's seen as a small-budget project with soul and original ideas, often exceeding expectations for its perceived budget, despite some rough animations.
- Mixed comparisons to other games (weight 0.1): The game draws frequent comparisons to titles like Returnal, Mass Effect, and Metroid, particularly in its combat, music, and sci-fi setting. While some see it as a 'Wish version' of Returnal, others find it distinct, and its difficulty is sometimes likened to Souls-like games.
- Minor technical and quality issues (weight 0.05): Some players noted minor issues such as rough animations, occasional glitches, and certain quality-of-life features that could be improved. While not universally praised, these issues are generally not considered game-breaking.
- Good monster and creature design (weight 0.03): Players appreciate the impressive and well-designed alien creatures and monsters within the game. The local bestiary is noted for its cool appearance and interesting world-building.

Emotions:
- Satisfaction (weight 0.32): Players felt satisfied by the game's engaging story, well-implemented combat mechanics, and overall polished experience. Factors like good graphics, atmospheric design, challenging but fair gameplay, and value for money, especially on sale, contributed significantly to this positive emotion. The game's appropriate length and lack of major bugs also enhanced player enjoyment.
- Disappointment (weight 0.19): Disappointment stemmed primarily from the game's perceived mediocrity, particularly regarding outdated graphics, stiff animations, and generic character models. Players also expressed dissatisfaction with clunky mechanics, a bland or underdeveloped story, lack of enemy variety, and unfulfilled potential, often feeling the game did not live up to expectations or its price point.
- Frustration (weight 0.15): Frustration was frequently caused by high and often unfair difficulty spikes, particularly with boss fights, coupled with poor checkpointing and respawning enemies. Clunky controls, game-breaking bugs, invisible walls, and repetitive gameplay also contributed to players feeling annoyed and stuck, hindering their progress and overall enjoyment.
- Enjoyment (weight 0.08): Players found enjoyment in the game's engaging combat, intriguing sci-fi atmosphere, and compelling story. The strategic elements of combat, rewarding exploration, and overall fun experience, even with some difficulty, were key drivers. Many appreciated the game's ability to provide entertainment and a good time.
- Excitement (weight 0.06): Excitement was generated by the game's unique combat system, captivating story, and interesting boss designs. Players were thrilled by the sci-fi setting, psychological horror elements, and the overall high quality of the game, often leading to a strong desire for a sequel or more content from the developers.
- Joy (weight 0.02): Joy was a result of a thoroughly positive and fun gaming experience, often leading to a desire for sequels. Players found happiness in the game's beautiful design, engaging mechanics, and the overall pleasure derived from playing, especially for those who appreciate cosmic horror or easy achievement hunting.
- Anger (weight 0.02): Anger arose from severe issues such as game-breaking bugs, perceived unfair game design, and unresponsive developer support. Players were particularly incensed by enemies spawning without warning, poor controls, ugly graphics, and the feeling that their time and money were wasted on a 'broken' or 'unplayable' product.
- Surprise (weight 0.02): Players were positively surprised by the game's unexpected quality, especially given its budget or the developer's previous work. A brilliant story twist, fluid controls, and the game exceeding initial low expectations contributed to this pleasant surprise, often leading to a recommendation.
- Appreciation (weight 0.01): Appreciation was shown for the game's value as an AA or indie title, acknowledging the developers' effort and originality despite budget limitations. Players valued the scientific feel, detailed environments, and the overall quality achieved by a small team, often overlooking minor flaws due to the perceived dedication.
- Hope (weight 0.01): Hope was primarily focused on the desire for a sequel, with players looking forward to future improvements and more games from the publisher or developers. The ending often left players wanting more of the story and universe.
- Boredom (weight 0.01): Boredom was caused by repetitive gameplay, constantly reviving enemies, and a lack of clear direction or engaging narrative. Players found the overall experience monotonous, with a generic story and recycled enemies contributing to a loss of interest in the game.
- Mild disappointment (weight 0.01): Mild disappointment stemmed from minor flaws such as outdated graphics, stiff animations, and repetitive mechanics. Players noted clunky moments, a cliché story, and shallow exploration, which, while not game-breaking, detracted slightly from the overall experience.
- Neutrality (weight 0.01): Players expressed neutrality when the game was considered 'okay' or 'competent' but not exceptional. This sentiment arose from a perception of the game being derivative, not bringing anything new, or simply being an acceptable experience for its price without strong positive or negative feelings.
- Confusion (weight 0.01): Confusion arose from unclear lore, monster designs that didn't make sense, and difficulty in navigation or understanding game mechanics. Discrepancies in personal difficulty experiences compared to others, abrupt endings, and bizarre XP distribution also contributed to player bewilderment.
- Annoyance (weight 0.01): Annoyance was caused by frequent, nonsensical achievements, tedious puzzles, and outdated saving mechanics. Players were also irritated by difficulty scaling issues, repetitive multitasking during boss fights, and the lack of a map or clear XP system.
- Engagement (weight 0.01): Engagement was driven by the game's ability to hook players with its story, universe, and overall experience, often leading to completion in one sitting. The incredible alien world and initial narrative drew players in, making them want to continue playing.
- Admiration (weight 0.01): Admiration was directed towards the small studio's achievement in developing a glitch-free, story-driven, and visually appealing experience despite budget constraints. Players were impressed by the developers' ambition, quality, and potential, especially given their 'upgrade' in game genre.
- Neutral (weight 0): This emotion reflects a factual description of the game's features, genre, length, and overall acceptable experience without expressing strong positive or negative feelings. It indicates the game was average but suitable for a single playthrough.
- Amusement (weight 0): Amusement was experienced due to unexpected elements, such as the low difficulty compared to expectations, a character's resemblance to a streamer, or the progression of boss difficulty. Sarcastic tones in reviews also indicated this emotion.
- Acceptance (weight 0): Players expressed acceptance of the game's flaws, such as dated graphics or older mechanics, often attributing them to the low price or budget limitations. This indicated a willingness to overlook imperfections given the context of the game's development or cost.}