Info about Metal Bringer:

Official game description:
In this roguelike action-adventure, control humanoid "Labor" and giant "Arms" to uncover the mysteries of the world.  
A young girl named Suria wakes up in a laboratory and finds out that she has been put in cryosleep for 1000 years without her knowledge.  
In order to search for the rest of humanity, she builds Labor with her trusty Buds, and sends them off to investigate...
Highly Customizable Player Characters and Arms
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Build and control android soldiers called "Labor", or have them pilot giant machines called "Arms". Each and every Labor and Arms you build is highly customizable. You can change the color and appearance of their features, or swap out parts to change their fighting styles. Create and fight with the mech of your dreams!
Effortlessly Wipe Out Hordes of Enemies
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Labor can be strengthened by installing different types of apps. App disks can be obtained by defeating enemies, but you lose all installed apps when you fall in battle.  
However, by analyzing an app's data, you can use it when you customize your next Labor, allowing you to perform better each run until you can freely trample all over your opponents with ease.
Obtain Enemy Arms Parts on the Go
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Even the most powerful Arms will eventually wear down, but when that happens, you can use Arms parts left behind by the enemy.  
What's more, you can analyze the blueprints of powerful Arms parts over the course of the game, which unlocks various customization options. Find out what kind of gear suits you best to build the ideal mech.
Ray Tracing and Ever-Changing Music
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This game uses the same retro art style as Samurai Bringer, but just like Samurai Bringer, it also implements a real time pixel art generating system, and will also feature the newest raytracing technology for beautifully lit environments.  
The music too is made with the newest technology, as it is played in real time and changes according to the situation.
The Story
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The sky is blue, infinitely high, and infinitely vast...  
Whose words were these again...?  
Ah, I remember... It was about a virtual reality Rudra told me about.  
A fairy tale.  
How many years has it been since humanity took refuge underground?  
No one alive has ever seen a blue sky.  
And now, I'm trapped in the depths, in a small, lifeless room.  
Just how long have I been here...?

Release date: 11 Mar, 2025

Categories: Roguelike, Action-adventure, Mech Combat, Character Customization, Equipment Customization, Horde Combat, Meta-Progression, Dungeon Crawler


- 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:
- Addictive and satisfying gameplay loop (weight 0.94): The core gameplay loop is highly engaging and addictive, with a satisfying sense of progression and increasing power. Players can mow down hordes of enemies, collect loot, and upgrade their mechs, leading to extended play sessions and a compelling 'one more run' feeling.
- Variety of weapons and parts (weight 0.74): The game offers a wide variety of weapons, parts, and skills to collect and experiment with. Players can acquire new equipment by completing missions, analyzing parts, or finding blueprints. This encourages exploration and experimentation, allowing players to discover new combinations and playstyles.
- Extensive mech and skill customization (weight 0.72): The game features extensive customization options for mechs, pilots, and skills. Players can modify parts, paint jobs, and color schemes, as well as combine skills to create unique playstyles. This level of customization is a major highlight, allowing players to tailor their experience to their preferences.
- Rewarding progression and permanent upgrades (weight 0.65): The game provides a satisfying sense of progression, with permanent upgrades and unlocks that carry over between runs. This allows players to gradually become stronger and overcome challenges, even after death. The New Game+ mode offers a properly challenging experience for players who have beaten the base game.
- Fun and exhilarating mech combat (weight 0.61): The game features fun and exhilarating combat, with satisfying mech action and hack-and-slash gameplay. Players can pilot mechs, mow down hordes of enemies, and utilize heavy industrial vehicles like forklifts and bulldozers for combat. The responsive controls and the feeling of mowing down enemies contribute to the overall enjoyment.
- Appealing blend of retro aesthetics (weight 0.17): The game features a visually appealing art style that blends pixel art with 3D rendering techniques. The unique aesthetic creates a charming and nostalgic atmosphere, reminiscent of early 2000s Japanese video games. The detailed pixel art and enhanced lighting effects contribute to the overall visual appeal.
- Improvements over previous game (weight 0.08): The game shows clear improvements compared to its predecessor, Samurai Bringer, with enhanced systems and a better meta. The removal of death penalties and the improved visuals contribute to a more enjoyable and accessible experience. Fans of Samurai Bringer will likely appreciate the refinements and additions in this game.
- Combo-based combat system (weight 0.04): The game features a combo-based combat system that changes based on the weapon equipped in each hand. Dual-wielding weapons of the same category opens up new attack patterns and animations, adding depth and replayability to the combat. This encourages players to experiment with different weapon combinations and find their preferred playstyle.

Common complaints:
- Poor visibility, excessive visual clutter (weight 0.74): The game suffers from poor visibility due to excessive visual effects, pixelation, and a zoomed-in camera. This is compounded by large numbers of enemies, making it difficult to track the player character and understand what's happening on screen. This leads to frustration and eye strain.
- Inconsistent, artificial difficulty curve (weight 0.68): The game suffers from inconsistent difficulty, with brutal spikes (especially around level 3) that necessitate grinding, followed by periods of being too easy. This issue is exacerbated in the second playthrough. The game's balance feels artificial, inflating playtime through unbalanced enemy stats and overwhelming enemy numbers.
- Frequent crashes and technical issues (weight 0.64): Multiple reviewers reported crashes, freezes, and save data corruption issues. Some also experienced performance issues like frame rate drops, especially when many units are on screen. These technical issues detract from the overall experience.
- Awkward, unintuitive default controls (weight 0.54): The default keyboard and mouse controls are unintuitive and poorly optimized, requiring extensive remapping. The game lacks combo customization options and the action feels limited. This makes the game feel clunky and unresponsive.
- Inadequate tutorials and guidance (weight 0.47): The game lacks sufficient tutorials and guidance, leaving players to learn mechanics through trial and error. Key systems and story elements are poorly explained, leading to initial frustration and a steep learning curve. This makes it difficult for new players to understand the game's mechanics.
- Poor camera and lock-on system (weight 0.14): The camera and lock-on system are poorly implemented, making it difficult to target desired enemies, especially at long range. The camera actively fights the player, and the lock-on range is too short. This makes ranged combat frustrating and ineffective.
- Challenging mech acquisition, limited customization (weight 0.11): Acquiring a fully functioning mech is challenging due to low part drop rates and reliance on RNG. The game focuses on passively enhancing the player character rather than allowing for deep customization and enhancement of individual robot parts. This limits player agency and customization options.
- Tedious APP preset management (weight 0.07): The game lacks a preset saving function for APPs, requiring players to manually reconfigure their setups each time they want to switch playstyles. This is inconvenient and tedious, especially for players who like to experiment with different builds.
- Repetitive, unpleasant background music (weight 0.05): The game's background music is repetitive, unpleasant, and forgettable. Some reviewers found it to be hypnotic or sleepy, making it unsuitable for an exciting action game. This detracts from the overall atmosphere and immersion.
- Grindy roguelike progression (weight 0.04): The game relies on grinding to progress through the dungeons, similar to many roguelikes. Players may have to resort to stationary grinding to whittle down the health of elite enemies before entering the boss room. The roguelike elements are not very prominent.
- Restricted, uncomfortable camera angle (weight 0.04): The limited camera angle adjustment makes the field of view uncomfortable, especially considering the amount of action on screen. The camera feels too zoomed in, and there is no option to zoom out. This restricts the player's view of the battlefield.
- Item collection issues, unwanted transitions (weight 0.03): Several reviewers noted issues with item collection, such as items getting stuck in doorways or unwanted area transitions occurring when trying to pick up items. These issues disrupt the flow of gameplay and can be frustrating for players.
- Second playthrough difficulty spike (weight 0.03): Bosses and rivals become much faster in the second playthrough, making them hard to target with the game's aiming and projectile speed. The reviewer felt that the second playthrough with ARMS became a button-mashing experience with no need for evasion. The second playthrough is very difficult.
- Inconsistent progression system (weight 0.03): The progression system feels like a snowball, making it easy to acquire desired items quickly. Collecting items in the early game can be difficult. The progression system ('App') is initially unfamiliar and may be off-putting.

Gameplay feedback:
- Dual character control: Pilot/Mech (weight 0.27): Players control both a human pilot (Labor) and a mech (Arms), switching between them as needed. When the mech is destroyed, the player fights as the pilot, emphasizing the need to quickly find or steal another mech. The pilot can also be customized with weapons and skills.
- Challenging, replayable roguelite structure (weight 0.2): The game is designed to be challenging, encouraging players to repeatedly play and power up their mech to progress. Runs are open-ended, without timers, allowing for grinding and exploration. Clearing the game unlocks a harder difficulty with more enemies and resources.
- Randomly generated dungeon crawling (weight 0.05): The game features randomly generated dungeons with freeroam-like exploration. Players can choose their path and encounter minibosses before facing the final boss. The open-world map allows players to progress without clearing every area.
- Puzzles and content collection (weight 0.04): The game includes puzzles, but they can be complicated and not always worth the effort. The game also has a large amount of content to collect, but it boils down to weapon collecting and upgrades to maintain motivation. The game seems designed for simple controls, favoring a controller over keyboard and mouse.
- Roguelite shooter with ARPG elements (weight 0.03): The game is described as a roguelite shooter with ARPG loot explosions and hack & slash combat. It involves fighting hordes of enemies and collecting weapons and perks. The game is a mix of survivors, roguelikes, and hack and slash elements.
- Currency and meta-progression (weight 0.03): Credits are gained by killing enemies and used for meta-progression. Currency and chips drop from defeated enemies, used for in-game and out-of-game upgrades. Skills scale with earned currency, incentivizing players to fight more enemies despite the increased challenge.
- Chip and robot farming (weight 0.02): Chips and robots are acquired in-game and can be permanently unlocked with currency. Players can choose whether or not to pilot a robot. The game involves repeatedly farming chips and weapons to build your own Gundam.

Performance notes:
- Ray tracing enhances visual style (weight 0.06): The game utilizes modern graphical technologies like ray tracing, which contributes to its unique visual style. The game runs on Unreal Engine, which allows for strong metallic textures and good lighting effects. However, some players feel that the visual upgrade from previous titles isn't significant considering the performance cost.
- Mouse drifting and freezing issues (weight 0.02): Some players have reported issues with mouse drifting outside the game window in keyboard and mouse mode, which can be resolved by using borderless mode. Additionally, switching windows during loading screens can cause the game to freeze, disrupting the gameplay flow.
- Wireless DualSense controller support (weight 0.01): The game's store page states only USB support for PS5 DualSense Controller, but the controller works perfectly in wireless mode. This is a positive surprise for players who prefer to play wirelessly.
- Small memory footprint, large content (weight 0.01): Despite having a small memory footprint, the game offers a large amount of content. This is a positive aspect for players who are looking for a game that is both lightweight and has a lot to offer.
- Visuals not significant upgrade (weight 0.01): The game's visuals are good but not a significant upgrade from Samurai Bringer, which runs much better. This is a negative aspect for players who are expecting a significant visual upgrade.

Recommendations:
- Enjoyable, worth the price (weight 0.38): Many reviewers find the game enjoyable and worth its price, especially if purchased on sale. They recommend trying the demo to assess personal enjoyment of the gameplay and visual style before committing to a purchase. Some suggest that the game is a good value for the content it offers.
- Great for mech/roguelite fans (weight 0.23): The game is highly recommended for fans of mechs, roguelites, and hack-and-slash games, particularly those who enjoy customization and fast-paced combat. Reviewers draw comparisons to games like Custom Robo, Armored Core, and Dynasty Warriors, highlighting the appeal for players who like cleaving through hordes of enemies with melee or hybrid builds.
- Humorous/Irrelevant comments (weight 0.1): Some reviews contain jokes, sarcasm, or cultural references, such as comparing the game to a solution for "electronic impotence". These points are not included due to their lack of specific feedback.
- Hopes for future updates (weight 0.1): Reviewers express hope for future quality of life updates, balance adjustments, and new content. Specific requests include UI scaling, resolution options, improved guidance systems, and fixes for crashing issues, indicating a desire for continued development and refinement of the game.
- General emotional responses (weight 0.03): Some reviews contain general emotional responses without specific details, such as calling the game a "hidden gem" or comparing it to a 90's arcade game. These points are not included due to their lack of actionable feedback.
- Poor Steam Deck performance (weight 0.03): The game's performance on Steam Deck is disappointing, and reviewers recommend specific settings and third-party apps for optimal visuals. This indicates potential compatibility issues or a lack of optimization for the platform.
- Too many weak enemies (weight 0.02): Some reviewers suggest that the game suffers from an excessive number of enemies and recommend reducing their quantity while introducing stronger elite enemies and bosses. This indicates a desire for a more balanced and challenging combat experience.
- Excessive grind makes game worse (weight 0.02): Despite improvements over the previous title, Samurai Bringer, the excessive grind makes this game worse. This suggests that the game's core loop is negatively impacted by the amount of repetition required.
- Ranged weapons need improvement (weight 0.01): Ranged weapons are not recommended due to issues with lock-on range and predictive aiming. This suggests that the ranged combat mechanics need improvement to be viable and enjoyable.

Other player notes:
- Numerous mecha anime/game references (weight 0.05): The game is filled with references and homages to various mecha anime and games, such as Neon Genesis Evangelion, Gundam (Zaku, Dom), Zone of the Enders, and Metal Slug. These references contribute to the game's overall theme and appeal to fans of the genre.
- Simple story, text-heavy delivery (weight 0.04): The game features a story about a girl who awakens after 1000 years in a robot-filled world and searches for other survivors, similar to Breath of Fire 5. However, the story is primarily delivered through text and serves mainly as a backdrop for the combat.
- Similar to previous 'Samurai Bringer' (weight 0.03): Metal Bringer shares the same developer, publisher, engine, and visual style as its predecessor, 'Samurai Bringer,' inheriting much of its structure. However, unlike the previous title, Metal Bringer features an original world and characters.
- Opaque, frustrating game mechanics (weight 0.02): The game's mechanics, particularly stat upgrades and damage calculations, are poorly explained and frustrating. Energy management is also criticized for being a simple numerical comparison that doesn't require much player skill.
- Content locked behind playthroughs (weight 0.02): Certain game content, such as new arms and parts, are only accessible after completing the second playthrough or playing on hard mode. This is relevant for players aiming for item completion.
- Bright, colorful retro pixel art (weight 0.02): The game features a bright and colorful art style with cute robots, using modern techniques to recreate a retro pixel art aesthetic, including mirror reflections.
- Unconventional weapon options (weight 0.01): The game allows players to fight with unconventional weapons like a drill, bulldozer, or shovel car, adding variety to combat.
- 12-hour initial playthrough (weight 0.01): The initial playthrough of the game, leading to the ending, takes approximately 12 hours to complete.

Emotions:
No emotions}