Contemplating simply what number of Star Wars video games exist, making one that may be thought-about an all-time nice is an more and more robust activity. That makes Star Wars: Zero Firm all of the extra spectacular. Evaluations for the XCOM-style ways recreation simply landed, and it appears to be like like Bit Reactor has created one thing that made its approach onto the Mount Rushmore of Star Wars video games.
On the time of writing, Star Wars: Zero Firm sits at an 86 on Metacritic. Which may not sound like a wildly excessive quantity, but it surely’s sufficient to place it within the high 5 finest reviewed Star Wars video games of all time, based on Metacritic. It’s presently tied with Star Wars: Knights of the Outdated Republic 2, although it is a bit behind Jedi Knight 2: Jedi Outcast (89), Rogue Chief: Rogue Squadron 2 (90), Jedi Knight: Darkish Forces 2 (91), and Knights of the Outdated Republic (94).
Judging by the evaluations (together with a glowing one by our personal Elijah Gonzalez), it’s no shock that critics are resonating with Zero Firm. In a 9/10 evaluate, IGN’s Dan Stapleton famous that Zero Firm is “excess of a easy Star Wars reskin of XCOM.” Stapleton praised the narrative particularly, calling it probably the greatest Star Wars tales we’ve seen since Rogue One, passing a few of that credit score alongside to the story’s villain, Fathom.
“It is a welcome change of tempo to be up towards one thing at the very least a bit extra unique than one more Sith-like villain,” Stapleton wrote in his evaluate. “Thankfully, Fathom is basically allowed to stay mysterious throughout her chilling efficiency, and her relationship along with her henchman son prevents her from changing into a two-dimensional villain.”
PC Gamer was equally impressed, scoring it a 90. Reviewer Ted Litchfield agreed that the story is a powerful level right here, and famous that it didn’t get in the best way of what’s nonetheless a posh, systems-heavy ways recreation that understands what makes XCOM nice.
“I used to be stunned at how a lot RPG buildcrafting there may be in Zero Firm,” Litchfield wrote. “We’re not fairly at Rogue Dealer ranges of spreadsheet psychosis, however there are some enjoyable synergies to take advantage of. Slightly methods in, Zero Firm introduces multiclassing, after which we’re actually off to the races.”
Not each critic is on the identical web page about its strengths. In an 8/10 evaluate for Recreation Informer, James Galizio was much less impressed by the “competent if unremarkable story and characters.” Galizio agreed that the RPG techniques shine, and in addition gave flowers to the robust mission design that makes character-building worthwhile.
“Rising and enhancing your operators is effectively sufficient by itself, but it surely wouldn’t be very satisfying if the sport didn’t have robust map and mission design to again it up,” Galizio wrote. “Fortunately, it does; one standout mission had me coping with enemy models, whereas on the similar time fleeing in the direction of an extraction level. Each flip, an increasing number of of the map behind me grew to become a dying zone.”
Whereas there are some various opinions on the story, critics appear to agree that Zero Firm is a powerful riff on the XCOM system. GamesRadar’s Alex Spencer admits that it doesn’t do a lot to evolve the ways style, however notes that the Star Wars of all of it goes a great distance in the direction of making it distinctive: “I am keen to forgive so much, for a recreation that may depart me feeling like I’ve dropped a proton torpedo down the exhaust shaft of my very own private Demise Star,” Spencer wrote in a four-star evaluate.