I’ve put over 70 hours into the Arknights: Endfield bet🅘a, and overall, it’s been a pretty good time. Sure, there are a few bumps here and there; some stuff could use a little polish, and things can slow down at times, but nothing that’s really snuffed out the fun. It’s a unique game with a ton of potential, and with a few𒈔 tweaks, I think it could be really something special, something that stands outs out in a genre full of repetition.
The Narrative Soup: Hit or Miss
The narrative started with a bang and had me hooked, and then it kind of just… fizzled out over time. The initial world-building was intriguing, and there were some solid mysteries at play. Even by the time the story wraps up in the beta, there were still things to be ponderous about, as it’s obvious there will be more to follow up. However, as things went on, the pacing started to really drag, and the narrative suffered as a result.
Eventually, I found myself simply skipping through the dialogue because it just couldn’t keep me hooked anymore. The main cast? Honestly, they felt pretty forgettable. There was potential for some interesting dynamics, but something about the writing just didn’t bring them to life for me. They felt as if they knew they were just characters in a video game story. Odd as that sounds, it made them less engaging, turning what should have been memorable characters into ones I struggled to care about.
The story itself started off with some intriguing ideas, but soon fell into the trap of feeling pretty generic. It’s like Hypergryph was checking off all the standard boxes without ever really adding something new or engaging to keep me hyped for the next scene. Even the main antagonist was so forgettable that I can’t even remember her name now, and I was still actively following the story when she came around. That’s a real issue, especially in a game where the narrative should be one of its driving forces since there is plenty of story to follow. For me, it felt like a missed opportunity.
One standout character, though, was Perlica. She’s easily the most interesting of the whole cast. She’s the steadfast rule-follower type of character, which makes it all the more compelling when the group forces her out of her comfort zone, usually through comical moments. Her reactions add depth to her character, and even as everything else is dragging along, she remains the story’s relatable anchor.
The Combat Flow: Strategic Battles and Button Mashing?
Combat was another mixed bag for me. It starts slow. Very slow. Like, “Why am I just basic attacking all the time?” slow. At first, it feels like you’re just swinging away without much strategy, but as you unlock new abilities and mechanics, it starts to come together as a package.
The whole system revolves around the Skill Meter. You get three Skill charges, and once you’re out, you’re stuck with basic attacks until it regenerates (which is also quite slow). Final Attacks, attacks that end a character’s combo, help refill it, but even then, there are points where combat just lingers because of the inability to do anything but basic attack while you wait.
I see what the developers were going for here, but honestly, I think Skill Meter does more harm than good to the overall combat experience. You end up using most of your Skill Meter right at the start of fights to get as many early advantages as possible. This works for shorter encoun෴ters, but longer ones really highlight the pacing problem caused by this syste🌞m.
That said, the combo skills between your four-man team and the resulting status effects keep things from being completely dull. Timing and positioning matter more as you progress, and some enemies force you to actually think about what you’re doing, which is more than what can be said about most games in this genre.
Overall, I wouldn’t say the combat is bad. It’s actually quite good when the flow gets going, but I can’t shake the feeling that it could be so much better. It’s trying to be a tactical action RPG, but the tactical part feels half-baked most of the time because of all the basic attacking. Still, I think it’s far from beyond redemption. It’s fun/serviceable enough, and I do think feedback will result in improvements in the future.
The Factory Chain: Crafting the Perfect Machine
This is where Arknights: Endfield really shines. The Factory system is deep, complex, and absurdly rewarding if you love production lines and efficiency puzzles. Setting up automated workflows, optimizing material chains, and making sure everything runs smoothly is chef’s kiss. It’s the kind of system where you start thinking, just five more minutes, and suddenly, hours have passed. I spent hours figuring out the best ways to optimize my base, and it just never got old. If you enjoy games like Factorio or Satisfactory, you’ll feel right at home here.
The level of detail and customization in factory management is impressive. You need to balance power distribution, automate resource chains, and ensure you’re producing the right materials at the right time. There are even bottlenecks you have to troubleshoot, and the satisfaction of fixing an inefficient production loop is immensely rewarding. You’re not just plopping down buildings and calling it a day; you’re constantly fine-tuning and adapting to make sure your factory runs at peak efficiency.
But if you’re not into base-building, this game might not be for you. Progressing the story requires you to upgrade your factory, and there’s no skipping it. You’ll spend as much time, if not more, managing your factory as you will exploring the overworld. It’s not just a side activity; it’s part of the core game experience. And honestly, I love that. Every upgrade and efficiency tweak feels meaningful, and if you’re the type who loves min-maxing systems, you’ll be in heaven.
The Character Progression: Grind or Glory?
Character Progression is honestly standard gacha stuff. You grind for time-gated resources with your limited stamina pool to level up your characters, skills, and weapons. Nothing revolutionary, but it gets the job done. If you’ve played any other gacha RPG, you know exactly what to expect here. There are some neat upgrade paths, and the customization options for builds through gear are decent, but I wouldn’t call it groundbreaking. It’s fine. Serviceable. More of the same. Let’s move on.
The User Interface: Navigating the Game Without the Headache
For a game with so much going on, like tactical combat, gacha pulls, and factory management, you’d think the UI would be a mess, right? Surprisingly, it’s actually really intuitive and easy to navigate. It’s not every day you come across a gacha game with such a clean, well-designed interface. Switching between combat, base-buildiꦛng, and character managem🍃ent feels seamless, with no confusing menus to get lost in. Everything is laid out intuitively, so you can spend less time fussing around with the controls and more time actually playing the game.
The tutorials are smooth and to the point, with zero unnecessary fluff. The menus are super thoughtful and easy to use, making ♕everything feel effortless. It’s one of those t🦄hings that could’ve easily gone wrong but is actually a joy to interact with. Most importantly, it respects your time, something every game should do, honestly.
My Closing Thoughts
When I first jumped into Arknights: Endfield, I had no idea what to expect. The trailers made the game look cool, but I never fully grasped what the game was really about fully from them. Well, turns out it’s genuinely awesome. It’s like if Xenoblade Chronicles and Factorio had a love child, with a dash of gacha thrown in for good measure. It’s already a solid game, and I think it’s only going to get better from here. If Hyp🗹ergryph can tigh♏ten up the combat and make the story more gripping in the long haul, this game could really become something special.
The game strikes that sweet spot between strategy, manage💙ment, and RPG elements, and I’m totally here for it. I’m excited to see where it goes, espec🐽ially once the official release hits and beyond.
Published: Feb 1, 2025 09:06 am