«Prehistoric» Level of Optimization
FEROCIOUS is developed on Unity, and this is noticeable in the nature of visual artifacts and the overall structure of the levels. A significant part of the models, textures and special effects are taken from free libraries — this directly affects the style, quality and unnaturalness of the environment. This same decision can be considered the reason why the final picture is so inferior to the trailers.
Locations are assembled with a large number of holes in the textures. For example, in the coastal zone you can swim to the ship and see that there is no deck, no side, or anything else inside. And on rocky hills there are trees hanging in the air, as well as empty spaces beyond them. The player clearly should not get into such zones, but the developers simply did not place invisible fences through which we could not pass.
The situation is aggravated by regular loading of objects. Vegetation, stones, buildings and even enemies are constantly loaded during the game. There is no shader compilation or similar processes here, which is why during the passage you may encounter blurry textures and enemies materializing from the air.
The most problematic element is lighting. The sources work extremely incorrectly and form sharp contrasting highlights. In caves, on the contrary, there is low readability of the relief: the shadows are dirty, the contrast is blurred, and objects lose their outlines. Special attention should be paid to the highlighting of interactive points. It is too aggressive and stands out from the overall palette. And, unlike yellow paint, it cannot be turned off.
Graphics settings are minimized. They do not allow you to flexibly control the quality of the picture or adjust the operation of light and shadows. The player remains within a narrow set of quality options. With all these disadvantages, the game places increased demands on the system. The load on the video card and processor is noticeably higher than you would expect from such a picture — there is no optimization here. The longer you play, the worse FEROCIOUS will work.
To great surprise, you can complain about all these problems and bugs. In the game menu there is a large button «report a bug». After clicking on it, you will be directed to the developers' website with an application form, where you need to describe the bug in detail and attach screenshots and videos with evidence. On the one hand, this is a very correct and responsible approach to the debut project. On the other hand, the button in the most visible place hints that the developers initially understood how raw a product they were releasing.
Living, but Lifeless Open World
FEROCIOUS features 5 open locations available for free exploration. However, their content suffers greatly. The maps look extensive, but their basis is outposts, which have to be cleared in order to advance through the plot. The whole gameplay is built on this: you move from one camp to another, eliminating everyone in your path along the way.
There is not much optional content. The research boils down to searching for tombs and temples, which serve as a source of money and collectible dinosaur figurines. These locations contain unique mechanics, do not affect the plot and do not open up new opportunities for the protagonist. And the main problem with collecting values is that it always falls underground — the deserved reward has to be either fished out pixel by pixel, or left untouched.
The structure of the levels is built in such a way that the game regularly forces you to go back. After completing the next task, the player is forced to move across the entire map for a new quest or an opened path. New routes rarely appear, and a new garrison may appear at already visited outposts, which delays the passage.
The game has both basic running with jumps and slides, as well as specific points where you can climb up and down: ropes, as well as lianas on rocks. These objects will always glow and hint that they can be used. Another option for moving around is vehicles, presented in three types: a car, a boat and a combat robot. But there are complaints about all three: the car suffers from broken physics — it can fly into the air due to a small bump, but does not react in any way when it knocks down objects in its path. The kayak has terrible turning mechanics, and it is impossible to aim from its built-in turrets in the robot.
Gameplay According to the Ubiosft Formula
The basis of battles is shooting with fighters of the «Manifesto» — the local evil corporation. Formally, the system includes all the usual gameplay elements: firearms, melee attacks, shelters, interaction with the environment and stealth mechanics. However, the quality of execution is extremely low.
The enemies have a very narrow viewing angle, which is why they react strangely to threats. They notice corpses, but do not take any measures to search for the intruder. In most cases, bodies are an excellent bait for a neighboring enemy. When it comes to an open clash, they behave no better: some stick to the only shelter, others shoot at the last known position of the player, and still others run to raise the alarm.
But the strangest thing about human opponents is the presence of a red signal flashlight, which is fixed next to the head of each of the opponents. Its glow immediately indicates the location of the owner. On the one hand, this helps to see the target in such a blurry and dirty picture. On the other hand, this approach explains the developers' laziness to work with the development of the environment: it is easier to mark opponents with flashlights than to make normal lighting and locations.
The situation with hostile fauna and wildlife is even sadder. Despite the fact that FEROCIOUS was actively promoted as a game with dinosaurs, there are not so many of them in the game. In total, the game features 3 types of hostile individuals, as well as giant ants and crabs. This is where the list ends. None of the representatives has unique behavioral models or mechanics — all creatures attack according to one pattern and do not require hunting tactics for them.
The main marketing hook — large dinosaurs — is implemented weaker than the others. They don't look like a threat. On the contrary, they will become allies! There will be exactly two episodes associated with them, and in both you will command them. For this, the game offers a special device for interacting with lizards. Another use of the gadget is related to opening locked doors in tombs. To do this, you need to take control of the smallest representatives of the fauna and give the command to interact with the levers. This is where all the puzzles end.
The arsenal in FEROCIOUS cannot boast of variety. There are only about a dozen types of weapons here. There is also a basic weapon customization mechanic. You can put a silencer, a sight and an LCU. But there is no practical difference between the barrels. Any weapon in the player's hands will feel unnatural: the visual recoil is strong, but the bullets themselves always fly exactly at the target. It is worth noting the strange operation of grenades and explosive barrels — they inflict damage through shelters and obstacles, which is effective both against the enemy and against you.
Another important game mechanic is the ability to craft items and collect resources. The player collects various gifts of nature and interacts with the menu-notebook to create useful items: first-aid kits, cartridge pouches and small improvements. The resource collection process is also slowed down by animations.
The trading mechanic is implemented in the strangest way. There are shop rooms on the levels where the player can purchase any weapon available in the game. At first glance, this mechanic is understandable, but there are a number of complaints about it: the shops are located in enemy outposts and are almost always locked. To get inside, you need to look for the key from the guard. And secondly, there is no merchant in such rooms. The player enters an empty room, sees loot and is forced to give money into the void in order to take only the most necessary.
What is most upsetting is that you will not write about these shortcomings to the support service. This is not a bug, not a system error, but the true vision of game designers. It will take even more time to fix these flaws than its technical condition. And therefore, if the developers react to criticism, they will simply promise not to repeat such mistakes in the future.
Diagnosis
FEROCIOUS, despite two years of development and the status of a single-player story project, was released in an extremely raw state. The game does not demonstrate a holistic approach either in the structure of the levels or in the game design: the locations are built with holes and force you to run back and forth forever, and the gameplay is monotonous and feels outdated. The main emphasis on dinosaurs does not work as stated at all.
The plot plays the role of a formal plug and serves only as a justification for the sequential destruction of the corporation's outposts, without offering a full-fledged narrative. Even taking into account the price of 720 rubles at a discount, the game does not pay off.
As a result, 300,000 gullible gamers received a weak fake on Unity instead of a high-quality project in the spirit of Dino Crisis or Far Cry. Avoid!