Conscript Review (PlayStation 5)

Conscript Review, During the First World War, a lone French soldier must navigate twisted trenches, scavenge for limited supplies, and solve complex puzzles – all whilst fighting for survival in the midst of mankind’s most brutal and horrifying conflict. CONSCRIPT is a new take on classic survival horror.

Conscript Review Pros:

  • Beautiful PlayStation 1 era-style graphics.
  • 932.2MB download size.
  • Platinum trophy.
  • You get the PlayStation 4 and the PlayStation 5 versions of the game.
  • Ten save slots.
  • Gameplay settings – Hud, screenshake, screen blood, bag style (horizon blue/khaki/Englishman), tutorials, action prompts, and challenge notifications.
  • Controller settings – set run and aim to toggle or hold, can remap controls and set the aim sensitivity (slow/normal/fast).
  • Accessibility options – bright flashes, text speed, gore, and highlight color.
  • Own in-game achievements called challenges.
  • Records will show completion times based on difficulty and overall time played.
  • Four difficulties – training, recruit, soldier, and veteran.
  • Saving options – unlimited saves (don’t need ink to save) and checkpoints (autosaves) or you can select to your neither.
  • Has an original Resident Evil 1 vibe to it all.
  • Glorious in-game cutscenes that match the PlayStation 1 era for the fmv.
  • Sort of like a top-down view.
  • Very atmospheric with the light and dark areas bringing the tension.
  • Central storage chest that can be accessed from any chest in the save rooms.
  • The text in the game is in high contrast font so you can read it fine.
  • The map shows points of interest, locked, and unlocked doors and save rooms. You can toggle the room/location names on and off.
  • Items in your inventory can be equipped/unequipped, examined, and assigned slots for quick access.
  • Uses controls similar to Resident Evil. (not tank controls)
  • Tutorial-style signs are scattered around.
  • A stamina bar system is in place for running and combat.
  • They have nice little touches like war posters to add to the atmosphere.
  • You can combine items to make new ones.
  • Have up to four items/weapons assigned to the d-pad for quick access.
  • Aiming with melee or ranged weapons is a case of holding a button down to charge and then the attack button. With melee, you can do quick attacks but they are weaker.
  • Anything collectible will sparkle.
  • You can pause the game.
  • Excellent level of design and world-building.
  • The game is split up into chapters.
  • Earned challenges will pop up.
  • Unlock and equip new costumes.
  • Puzzles throughout.
  • Dies have stealth in the game as you can hide in cupboards to surprise the enemy.
  • Find gun parts and exchange them for weapon upgrades.
  • Cigarettes are currency and you can use these to buy weapons and items from vendors found in the world.
  • You can sell unwanted items.
  • Certain weapons will have a durability meter that goes down as you use it, repair kits can fix them back up.

Conscript Review Cons:

  • Early on it’s hard to know who is the enemy.
  • The game doesn’t tell you a lot about the controls and mechanics like combining and assigning.
  • Takes a while to get going.
  • Shooting takes some practice.
  • It isn’t as scary as Resident Evil.
  • Combat is a bit off especially when Switch between melee and ranged.
  • You don’t get a lot of help in terms of guidance or knowing your tasks.
  • The AI is a bit stupid a lot of the time doing weird maneuvers or just standing still.
  • Picking things up requires pinpoint precision.
  • Won’t let you combine ammo with weapons to reload them.
  • The health bar is small and hard to see at times.
  • A lot of key collecting to open doors.
  • Not the biggest fan of all the low-light sequences as they don’t really serve a great purpose.
  • What makes combat a nightmare is that you stay still when swinging a weapon or by just using your sights or charging your melee weapon.
  • Only charged melee hits break crates and barrels.
  • Doesn’t offer a quick save or anything so you have to find the too far apart save points.

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Conscript:

Official website.

Developer: Catchweight Studio

Publisher: Team 17

Store Links – 

PlayStation

  • 9/10
    Graphics - 9/10
  • 9/10
    Sound - 9/10
  • 9/10
    Accessibility - 9/10
  • 8/10
    Length - 8/10
  • 9/10
    Fun Factor - 9/10
8.8/10

Summary

Conscript offers a nostalgic experience with its beautiful PlayStation 1 era-style graphics and an impressive download size of just 932.2MB. Players can enjoy both PlayStation 4 and PlayStation 5 versions, complete with ten save slots and a platinum trophy. The game provides extensive gameplay settings, including HUD customization, screenshake, screen blood, bag styles, tutorials, action prompts, and challenge notifications. Controller settings are flexible, allowing players to toggle or hold run and aim, remap controls, and adjust aim sensitivity. Accessibility options are also well-considered, with settings for bright flashes, text speed, gore, and highlight color.

The game features its own in-game achievements called challenges and records completion times based on difficulty and overall playtime. With four difficulty levels—training, recruit, soldier, and veteran—players can choose their preferred challenge. Saving options are generous, offering unlimited saves without the need for ink and checkpoints for autosaves. The game exudes an original Resident Evil 1 vibe, with glorious in-game cutscenes that match the PlayStation 1 era’s FMV style and a top-down view that enhances the atmospheric tension with light and dark areas.

Conscript includes a central storage chest accessible from any save room, high-contrast font for easy reading, and a detailed map showing points of interest, locked and unlocked doors, and save rooms. Inventory management is user-friendly, allowing items to be equipped, unequipped, examined, and assigned to quick access slots. The controls are similar to Resident Evil but not tank controls and tutorial-style signs are scattered throughout the game. A stamina bar system adds depth to running and combat, and the game includes nice touches like war posters to enhance the atmosphere. Players can combine items to create new ones and assign up to four items or weapons to the d-pad for quick access. Aiming with melee or ranged weapons involves holding a button to charge and then attacking, with quick but weaker melee attacks available.

However, the game has its drawbacks. Early on, it’s hard to distinguish enemies, and the game doesn’t provide much guidance on controls and mechanics like combining and assigning items. It takes a while to get going, and shooting requires practice. The game isn’t as scary as Resident Evil, and combat can be frustrating, especially when switching between melee and ranged attacks. The AI is often unintelligent, performing strange maneuvers or standing still. Picking up items requires pinpoint precision, and you can’t combine ammo with weapons to reload them. The health bar is small and hard to see, and there’s a lot of key collecting to open doors. Low-light sequences don’t serve much purpose and can be annoying. Combat is challenging because you stay still when swinging a weapon using sights or charging melee attacks. Only charged melee hits break crates and barrels, and the game doesn’t offer a quick save, so you have to find save points that are often too far apart.

Despite these issues, “Conscript” excels in level design and world-building. The game is divided into chapters, with earned challenges popping up and new costumes to unlock and equip. Puzzles are scattered throughout, and stealth elements allow you to hide in cupboards to surprise enemies. You can find gun parts and exchange them for weapon upgrades, and cigarettes serve as currency to buy weapons and items from vendors. Unwanted items can be sold, and certain weapons have durability meters that can be repaired with kits.

In summary, Conscript is a well-crafted game that successfully captures the essence of the PlayStation 1 era with its graphics and atmosphere. While it has some flaws in combat mechanics, AI behavior, and guidance, its strong level design, world-building, and nostalgic appeal make it a worthwhile experience for fans of classic survival horror games.

Jim Smale

Gaming since the Atari 2600, I enjoy the weirdness in games counting Densha De Go and RC De Go as my favourite titles of all time. I prefer gaming of old where buying games from a shop was a thing, Being social in person was a thing. Join me as I attempt to adapt to this new digital age!