[h1] Overview [/h1]
[b]Subdivision Infinity[/b] is an [b]arcade space shooter[/b] that proposes a [b]straightforward gameplay style, without any overly-complex frills to it[/b], which may be a good or bad thing depending on taste. Impersonating ace pilot Jon Riddle, players will find themselves [b]fighting and exploring throughout various sectors of a distant quadrant[/b], in pursuit of a mysterious threat that already taken many lives, while also [b]upgrading their arsenal with new ships, weapons.[/b]
The title features [b]only Campaign[/b] as game mode, which is divided into chapters, composed [b]each of five Story missions and two optional Exploration missions[/b]. Missions have to be unlocked and completed in order, as customary. During each level, [b]players will find themselves fighting a decent variety of enemies[/b], ranging from fighters, stationary emplacements, to capital ships and gunships - [b]these enemies, when destroyed, drop resources used in crafting new ships or upgrading existing ones, weapons as well[/b]. The objective variety proposed is [b]rather limited[/b], and mainly will be about destroying every enemy in an area, finding several items, or escorting an allied ship for a set time.
Between missions, [b]the Hangar allows ship customization and upgrading, albeit not in a very articulate manner[/b]. New ships can be [b]bought with credits or crafted if the player acquired Blueprints and Resources for them[/b], which are the whole point of doing Exploration missions. Crafted ships are usually better, especially when Evolved (upgraded), so it's worth putting extra time in finding the schematics. [b]The weapon variety proposed is decent enough[/b] though a [b]few weapons outclass pretty much every other one[/b], making the usage of any other than these two a worse choice. [b]Only two difficulty levels, Easy and Normal, are available, which may be a disappointment for more skilled players[/b]. On Normal, the game's challenge level is modest, and rarely it presents obstacles or enemies really hard to beat.
[b]Overall, Subdivision is a quite nice space shooter, even if a rather simplistic one, that does not feature character progression, skill systems or many RPG mechanics at all. It's a game that proposes a straightforward gameplay style and does it quite well, but also, players seeking a deeper, more faceted experience may find it lackluster. For this budget price range, the game features around 6-8 hours of content depending on skill level and time taken to explore, grind resources if needed: it's a decent price and if you do like this genre, buying it for this tag is a good choice.[/b]
[h1]Rating:[/h1][b] Decent [/b]
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[h1] Pros & Cons [/h1]
🔵 [b] Pros [/b]
+ Good graphics quality in general, with lighting, effects and environmental art direction being more prominent.
+ Simple but functional gameplay formula, proposing a straightforward number of mechanics that ultimately work well.
+ Very few and minor bugs or technical issues, making it a well-polished experience.
+ Good enough overall variety and progression to keep players interested from start to end.
🔴 [b] Cons [/b]
- No graphics options of any kind in Video settings, apart from Resolution, Fullscreen and Vsync.
- Challenge is generally on the easy side, as there is no difficulty higher than Normal.
- Two specific weapons are simply better than any other ones if used correctly, creating balance problems.
- Story, characters and setting are generic and uninteresting for the most part.
[h1] In-Depth Breakdown [/h1]
🎮 [b]Gameplay Analysis [/b]
The gameplay of [b]Subdivision Infinity[/b] is divided into Story MIssions, Exploration Missions, Hangar Management, and Combat.
[b]Story Missions[/b] feature plot-relevant events and objectives allowing players to progress the story, of course. Each one has different objectives, some of which are rarely unique, but most of the time they will be classics of the genre such as eliminate all enemies, destroy something, recover / scan this particular object, or kill the boss. There is some degree of repetition but not that much to become annoying. Missions are divided into phases, triggering the next objective when one is completed. Generally Story missions are not very long, 15 minutes as average duration is a good estimate. Getting killed will result in restarting the mission from the beginning. These missions reward substantial amounts of cash to spend in upgrades or ships and will be the main income source, they can be replayed, but rewards will be much smaller.
[b]Exploration Missions[/b] put players into a free roam environment, where enemies periodically spawn to hunt them. In this mission type, the main goal is to get as many blueprints, resources and materials as possible before escaping back through the Portal. Asteroids can be mined with the proper tools, and depending on sector and asteroid type, they will release different resources, some for crafting, others just to sell for an extra buck. Blueprints are the real deal: very hard to find without a Radar Probe, which is expensive and single use, they allow players to craft unique ships when all fragments are collected. In case of death, everything collected in that run is lost and has to be acquired again.
[b]Hangar Management[/b] is the only way to upgrade weapons, ships or buy new ones. A handy shop menu features a list of weapons, unlocked progressively through leveling, and also gadgets such as Probes. The ship vendor features two types of them: standard, obtainable with hard cash, or Special ones crafted with blueprints, rare resources, and also some cash. Every ship can be Evolved with enough Evolution Kits, which enemies drop, and doing so will boost armor rating and cargo space. Weapons can be upgraded as well with Gear Crates, boosting damage, rate of fire and ammo capacity. Materials acquired during exploration can be also sold for extra cash, if needed.
[b]Combat[/b], as expected from this genre, is very fast-paced and based on dodging enemy volleys, engaging high speed dog-fighting against multiple enemies, while also keeping an eye on Shield and Health meters. Individually, small enemies will be quite fragile, but almost always their numbers will be plenty. Medium and Heavy enemies, such as gunships, guard drones or even capital ships on the other hand are tough and equipped with multiple weapons. Player weapons can be bullet based, having to reload them, or energy based, overheating over time but with unlimited magazine. In both choices ammo reserve is unlimited, so no running out of it. While certainly fun, sometimes spectacular, and engaging, combat lacks more beefy challenges for those players requiring so, and also those few weapons standing above all others for raw DPS are a balance problem. For the rest, do not expect additional mechanics, combat formula is as straightforward as it gets, which is not a bad thing.
🔩 [b] Performance Analysis [/b]
The game does have some rare slowdowns in more crowded situations or complex environments, even on an high end config, but generally optimization and stability are good and it runs well in 1440p. No major issues to report. [i7 4820K, GTX 1080, 16GB RAM].
[h1] Final Thoughts [/h1]
[b]Subdivision Infinity[/b] is definitely a decent budget-indie space shooter that does not try to overdo it and keeps it simple, clean, functional, and does it well. The lack of harder difficulties and imperfect balance are dents, for sure, but overall it's definitely a nice game.
[i]This product was reviewed using a free key provided by the Developers.[/i]
