Evotinction Review – A Stealth Revival

Evotinction Review

The stealth genre rose to prominence in the late 1990s with pioneering titles like Metal Gear Solid. Over the years, elements of stealth have been integrated into other genres, making pure stealth experiences increasingly rare. Evotinction aims to step out of the shadows and bring the genre back into the spotlight. But will it sneak into the hearts of players, or will it sound the alarm?

Set in a self-sustained research facility named HERE, you play as Dr. Liu, the Head of R&D. When a virus breaches the network, the robots go rogue, forcing you to remain undetected. Your mission is to infiltrate the area, locate any survivors, and shut down the server. As you delve deeper into the facility, you uncover numerous secrets, realizing that things are far from what they seem. While the premise is intriguing, the delivery of the narrative is inconsistent. Though cutscenes help keep the story relevant, the sub-par voice acting and convoluted plot may alienate some players. Certain elements, like moral choices and text-adventure segments, add depth and interest, but the story struggles to hold attention, partly due to weak character development.

Hack the System

Dr. Liu is a man of science and due to this, you must not engage in combat. While you are unable to use close-quarters combat, you are able to use the technology within the environment as a tool to aid your quest. Similar to Watch Dogs, you can hack sprinklers, cameras and much more to help you remain hidden or to quietly discard robots. Stealth is well implemented with sections designed with this in mind. Enemies have visible vision cones and parole areas allowing you to work out the optimal time to sneak past. You can also hack bots to disrupt their movement, vision or sound, giving you ample time to sneak behind and scan their barcode to deactivate them. Although a great idea, it can get a little awkward as you have to maintain the same distance to read the code which can result in having to repeat the scan.

As you progress, you’ll be able to modify your arsenal, selecting particular skills to suit your playstyle. As certain bots are tethered to one another, making use of your virus skill is vital. With this, you can feed enemies a particular virus and initiate it when you wish. This will confuse all connected and allow you to scurry past or deactivate enemies. Another useful skill at your disposal is the complete network hack. If you can see your destination and have no idea how to get from A to B, this gung-ho technique could help. This will put everything in the vicinity offline for a few seconds so that you can progress.

In the Shadows

Evotinction is a traditional stealth experience. This means, if you get caught, you’ll have to retry the section. Although this may add frustration due to it being near impossible to revert back to being hidden once seen, I applaud the no-nonsense approach to the genre. Due to this, you’ll need to scour environments and plan your course of action. You can scan the area to identify interactable items and then use these to your advantage. It’s refreshing to play a game that harkens back to the true form of the genre and because of this, it manages to scratch that itch that many have been vying for.

The only time when the gameplay begins to falter is during combat-based sequences. In the final third of the game, there are a few segments where you’re required to defend a location or fight through an area. Since gunplay is a minor feature throughout most of the experience, these moments feel jarring. Some of these sequences enhance the cinematic tension as the game reaches its climax, while others, like a poorly designed mission, add unnecessary frustration.

The environments possess a futuristic aesthetic with a monochromatic color palette. Areas manage to communicate the appearance of a working office as well as a laboratory. The absence of humans can make areas feel lifeless, especially when sprinting through safe areas. Due to the art direction, the game builds a strong atmosphere which helps to add a foreboding anxiety to segments. However, immersion is often impeded due to issues with the sound. There were times when the ambiance came to an abrupt halt in certain areas only to jump back in when entering a different corridor. While not a game-breaking issue, it did hinder the experience.

Restore the System

Evotinction pays homage to traditional stealth games while introducing fresh and intriguing ideas. Though the narrative doesn’t quite reach the heights of its inspirations, it offers some clever twists on the formula. The sound design has a few issues, and the combat feels a bit clunky, but overall, it’s an enjoyable adventure that stays true to its roots.

***A PS5 code was provided by the publisher***