Deck & Conn

Deck & Conn is a lovely game! It does a great job of making the player feel like they're commanding a vessel rather than just playing one of the stations, and the dynamic war is enjoyable and easy to pick up. I was surprised at how much stuff is clickable, and enjoyed little touches like logging into the command computer to check on messages and orders. The only downside is that the initial learning curve is a bit steep, only because some buttons aren't the easiest to find (looking at you, "dock" button), but after getting past this it's been a blast!

At first I was going to put this as do not recommend due to the biggest oversight of modern gaming history. This game rewards you for staying out on long patrols, making enemy interactions somewhat difficult to come by. Initially there was no save system mid patrol, so I couldn't play it given I have a very busy life. But they listened to the community, released mid patrol saves, and now we see all those downvotes turn into upvotes. A very fast turn around of less than 4 days might I add. These devs clearly listen to the people. I am very excited for future systems additions, upgrades, and mechanics as right now the entire game can pretty much be beaten in one patrol if done correctly. I would love a dynamic system with technology unlocks and dynamic warzones. We had that technology in the Silent Hunter games, and I think it would make the game feel incredibly dynamic to do something like that. I want to feel like I have an impact on the war. All in due time I think, it's got lots of potential, and I think a few more mechanics is going to really make this game shine.

I'm going to recommend this with a big caveat. What is here is good, excellent even. The vibes are good, controlling the ship is just technical enough to make you feel like you're a spaceship commander without really requiring more than 15 minutes to learn if you are a quick study. The core loop is solid, go out on patrol, decide how much you care about doing your job properly compared to how much you want to chase kills and glory, get in and out of trouble then go home to earn your medals. The problem is that there doesnt seem to be much content, and the game frankly isnt difficult enough to drag out what content there is for longer by scaring you into being careful. So far ive gotten the same patrol mission 4 times in a row for my tour of duty, in the same sector. I feel like this will struggle to keep me engaged for a full tour of duty, which should really be the minimum it can do. The game needs more content, and for a lack of a better term I think it could really do with more "events" happening during your patrol. Hostiles ambushing you, friendly or enemy ships grouping up to push into a sector forcing a response that might put you in a tactically disadvantegous position and/or real danger. More dangerous tasks in general, like deep strikes against the enemy. The base game is good enough that I cant bring myself not to recommend it, but I really, really want to see more content added before I can do so without adding the caveat here that there is a serious lack of stuff going on when you get past the 6 hour mark.

NO SAVE OPTIONS. In 2026. Wut? DEV: YOU MUST PLAY MY GAME HOW I WANT YOU TO AND FEEL THE BURN!!! lol pathetic.

One word : frustration. Why ? Because this is a great concept, promising gameplay, promising world building... BUT : It's empty, unfinished, short, bleak. So frustration, but frustration to see what the game could be, but isn't. This isn't early access, or release after playtest, just a full game release, and it doesn't feel like it, at all. My 2 cents : don't buy it for now, and everybody cross their fingers that the devs actually improve the game (a lot) and listen to the community feedback. I don't want to see another Objects in Space abandoned project. See you then ! (I'll update the review if anything changes)

I'm old now. I remember games looking like this. I also remember games playing like this. There is no save in-between missions, this is also how I remember games. I also remember being mildly worried that the USSR was gonna bomb us into the next century. Granted, I was like 5 when games and the USSR threatened to do all that uncomfortable bombing crap. Still, I'm glad to pay somebody to remember what these things felt like. The game itself has a very distinct feeling of being exact and thinking ahead. I like that. I like the graphics and what is being represented. This is a good time.

The vibes are immaculate. Edit: Did you know nuclear weapons have a minimum safe distance?

Honestly, lots of fun and a really cohesive experience for what it is. Well worth the $11.99 I paid. Hope there's a roadmap with more depth in the future - I would honestly love to keep playing but it gets repetitive after a few hours.