Dustborn |OT| Anomal (Found) Family

[lojo]

Game Info:
Release Date: August 20, 2024
Developer: Red Thread Games
Publisher: Spotlight by Quantic Dream
Platforms: PC, Xbox, and Playstation
Price: $29.99(Digital), $39.99(Physical)
Review Thread

"Dustborn is a single-player, story-driven action-adventure game about hope, love, friendships, robots…and the power of words.

You play Pax: exile, con-artist, Anomal — with the ability to weaponize language. Looking for a new life and a way out, Pax has been hired to transport an important package from Pacifica to Nova Scotia, across the Justice-controlled American Republic. Sounds like a legit reason for a road-trip, right? So pack your bags, assemble a crew with their own peculiar powers, and get ready to travel the country!
Explore the stunning Neo-Western landscapes of an alternate history America on a robot-driven tour bus, and stop at a dozen locations along the road to build your crew, manage relationships, complete missions, and face increasingly difficult challenges. But the people you stole the package from want it back, and the authoritarian Justice is hot on your heels, so don't forget to pack your baseball bat!

(And, oh yeah, you're travelling undercover as a punk-rock band, so you'll definitely need to brush up on your musical skills before your next gig.)

At the end of the road lies salvation… but to get there, you'll need to cross an entire continent."

"In each location you'll explore, investigate and chat with the people you meet, use the crew to overcome challenges, craft new Shouts and Vox, and rehearse with your band. You might also find yourself throwing Molotov cocktails from a motorbike, swing a baseball bat to take down helicopters…and more. You know, just normal everyday stuff."

Game Play Overview:

View: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gkNsTk7Tgs0

View: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fbg2T-7twts

View: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tqLF1aEs4Yo

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[fifthblight]

pretty excited for this one!! i still love dreamfall chapters despite it being a tiny bit jank and i'm sure i'll have an equally good time with this one (even if it is, as pre-release reviews have implied, also a little bit jank)

 

[Cali32]

Thanks for the OT! The physical version looks sweet so i might grab it this coming paycheck.

 

[Uzzy]

This one is extremely Uzzycore, so I'm excited for it. Hope the reviews are good.

Great OT too!

 

[doops.]

Excellent OT, lojo! This should be a fun time! my deluxe edition copy should arrive tomorrow :)

 

[Rumenapp]

Did anyone tried it already? It's been available on xbox for a while now.

Other platforms at 3pm GMT

 

[doops.]

My deluxe edition copy arrived (it's glorious!) and I played the first chapter - Oh yeah, this is extremely my shit. (not that that was ever in doubt)

 

[lojo]

Game is out now, here's the launch trailer
View: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TiBhYBG6bEE

 

[LiquidDom]

I have it downloaded but going to try to get to it after Wukong. Hopefully I can get through both before Outlaws.

 

[Hassansan]

Oof at that regional pricing, may have to wait for a sale with this one, it's the same price as the most expensive edition of Age of Mythology lol.

 

[barjed]

Fuck, the numbers are DREADFUL on Steam so far.

Noooooooo

 

[RockmanBN]

Fuck, the numbers are DREADFUL on Steam so far.

Noooooooo

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Made me check and holy crap that's abysmal. Only 36 people at this moment

 

[Sorder]

Game is pretty great at times and the cast and premise is awesome, but the combat is mediocre at best. Fortunately it asks you if you want less of it.

 

[Dancrane212]

The goodies that come with the physical release are surprisingly well made. Comic was a nice little read while the game installed.

 

[Lord Fanny]

I can see this game is not going to get any attention here lol.

So playing it for a few hours and really like the style, character and writing (even if it can get a little too…YA'y at times). But boy, does it just suck ass to play lmao. The combat is just sort of bad and the rhythm game part of it just feels kind of off.

Feels like this is going to be this year's Thirsty Suitors for me. Going to like almost everything around it, but the combat and other gameplay mechanics are going to be a hinderance.

Like TS, I really wish they would have gone another direction. The general idea is actually perfect for a LiS style adventure game or something, or just dropped the combat and stuck with rhythm stuff and just worked to make that a lot better.

 

[derFeef]

I feel for them. They reached a bit too high with the gameplay there. It's just not their expertise. At all. Wish they would have made it less action focused.

 

[Sorder]

I can see this game is not going to get any attention here lol.

So playing it for a few hours and really like the style, character and writing (even if it can get a little too…YA'y at times). But boy, does it just suck ass to play lmao. The combat is just sort of bad and the rhythm game part of it just feels kind of off.

Feels like this is going to be this year's Thirsty Suitors for me. Going to like almost everything around it, but the combat and other gameplay mechanics are going to be a hinderance.

Like TS, I really wish they would have gone another direction. The general idea is actually perfect for a LiS style adventure game or something, or just dropped the combat and stuck with rhythm stuff and just worked to make that a lot better.

Click to shrink...

It's so good when the adventure parts are going on, and the game just unravels when they force the combat sections on you. What a blunder to have so much of the game pull away from what makes it good.

 

[Aeana]

Absolutely loving this. Ragnar Tørnquist never lets me down. Combat isn't good, though I'm in chapter 2 and have only had to fight once. I immediately told it to give me less combat. I'll survive. Everything else about it is just lovely.

 

[nanhacott]

My physical copy arrived today, but I had to immediately send it back because the box was missing half the stuff :/

Oh well. Hopefully the replacement arrives soon.

 

[Oliver James]

This game appeared on my Youtube recs but for the wrong reasons, with channels calling it the worst game of the year and you already know why.

 

[Aeana]

Does anybody else have the issue on PC where some of the on-screen prompts are keyboard keys even when using a controller? It's driving me crazy.

 

[Renteka-Bond]

I can see this game is not going to get any attention here lol.

So playing it for a few hours and really like the style, character and writing (even if it can get a little too…YA'y at times). But boy, does it just suck ass to play lmao. The combat is just sort of bad and the rhythm game part of it just feels kind of off.

Feels like this is going to be this year's Thirsty Suitors for me. Going to like almost everything around it, but the combat and other gameplay mechanics are going to be a hinderance.

Like TS, I really wish they would have gone another direction. The general idea is actually perfect for a LiS style adventure game or something, or just dropped the combat and stuck with rhythm stuff and just worked to make that a lot better.

Click to shrink...

Over/Under on which has the 'worse' combat experience? I still need to get around to Thirsty as well, so I'd want to play the 'worse' one first, haha. Have them both installed but haven't booted up either.

 

[blackw0lf48]

View: https://x.com/dominictarason/status/1827036529522290872?s=46

It's so good when the adventure parts are going on, and the game just unravels when they force the combat sections on you. What a blunder to have so much of the game pull away from what makes it good.

Click to shrink...

You would think they would have learned their lessons from Dreamfall. Which is why Chapters had no combat.

 

[RockmanBN]

View: https://x.com/dominictarason/status/1827036529522290872?s=46

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Does Steam not remove reviews from people who use the 2 hour refund? Idiotic

 

[Aeana]

She said the thing!!

 

[airbagged_]

Picked it up. Excited to play as soon as I can.

 

[Lord Fanny]

Over/Under on which has the 'worse' combat experience? I still need to get around to Thirsty as well, so I'd want to play the 'worse' one first, haha. Have them both installed but haven't booted up either.

Click to shrink...

Dustborn is the worst of the two because its combat is actively pretty mediocre. Thirsty Suitors is just boring me, but it's perfectly passable as a basic turnbased game

 

[Aeana]

Further into the game, I'm not really that bothered by the combat anymore. You get some abilities that make it less of a chore, and you can flat out skip many encounters if you make the right decisions.

 

[Renteka-Bond]

Dustborn is the worst of the two because its combat is actively pretty mediocre. Thirsty Suitors is just boring me, but it's perfectly passable as a basic turnbased game

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Dustborn it is then, thanks. I've sat on TS this long already, it can wait a lil longer

 

[Sorder]

View: https://x.com/dominictarason/status/1827036529522290872?s=46

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Even with the brigading the game sits at "mostly positive", and if you filter out those with 30 minute playtimes it's at "very positive".

 

[Nameless Hero]

View: https://x.com/dominictarason/status/1827036529522290872?s=46

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I don't think this game looks like it would be for me but man, fuck these people

Not that it's shocking that they are hypocrites but this is just openly about silencing people now. This isn't even "they ruined a series I pretend to love by making it whatever I consider "woke" " (which was also always shitty excuse) but now it's "this tiny niche indie dev created the game they wanted to make and it's not for me". Pathetic.

Does Steam not remove reviews from people who use the 2 hour refund? Idiotic

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I think refunded games don't factor into the overall score, just like reviews for games where you bought the key outside of steam.

 

[JustTeaThankYou]

Does Steam not remove reviews from people who use the 2 hour refund? Idiotic

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They do not. I think on the one hand this makes sense if there are legitimate reasons you refunded. Unfortunately Steam doesn't do any kind of moderation so it's by and a large a tool for brigading. You have to filter it yourself.

I think refunded games don't factor into the overall score, just like reviews for games where you bought the key outside of steam.

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AFAICT they do.

As of writing, it's at 74% Mostly Positive on the main placed score (to the right of the screenshots). This is the score reflected in the comments section as well.

If you filter reviews to minimum play time of 2hrs (to get rid of most though not all refunds: you can still request a refund after this, it's just not automatic), it goes up to 88%.

 

[Nameless Hero]

AFAICT they do.

As of writing, it's at 74% Mostly Positive on the main placed score (to the right of the screenshots). This is the score reflected in the comments section as well.

If you filter reviews to minimum play time of 2hrs (to get rid of most though not all refunds: you can still request a refund after this, it's just not automatic), it goes up to 88%.

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Oh sorry. I got it confused with the "review bombing" policy, my bad.
It does kind of make sense if you think about, if a game is bad enough so you refund it your review should still be up (especially if it doesn't run).

I guess I can't really blame Valve for not imagining people being so utterly pathetic that they would do this.

 

[Renteka-Bond]

I don't think this game looks like it would be for me but man, fuck these people

Not that it's shocking that they are hypocrites but this is just openly about silencing people now. This isn't even "they ruined a series I pretend to love by making it whatever I consider "woke" " (which was also always shitty excuse) but now it's "this tiny niche indie dev created the game they wanted to make and it's not for me". Pathetic.


I think refunded games don't factor into the overall score, just like reviews for games where you bought the key outside of steam.

Click to shrink...

The Goalpost has long been moved from 'don't change OUR stuff' to just straight up 'don't make anything at all'. Now that diverse creators actually have somewhat of a seat at the table, they can't say 'do it yourself' with the confidence that nothing will ever come of it, so they've poisoned the well to make bigots and impressionably ignorant people conflate entire act of diverse creation as a negative purely for existing, regardless of why it exists.

 

[fifthblight]

people who have legitimately played the game seem to be really down on pax as a protagonist but idk, i kind of like her even though she's a shithead. obviously i support women's wrongs, but it just also feels really rare to get a "grey" female protagonist who's angry and unpleasant in a realistic way instead of in like. a caricature way

 

[Sandglass]

I think I saw whole play through on youtube. What interesting is what inspired the story of game. But other than that. I hope this game gets on switch Someday.

 

[Popoirandi]

I'm probably out of the loop, but people here keep referencing backlash or controversy or bigotry or something around this game. What exactly has people up in arms?

 

[Lord Fanny]

I'm probably out of the loop, but people here keep referencing backlash or controversy or bigotry or something around this game. What exactly has people up in arms?

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It has black and queer people in it

 

[Renteka-Bond]

It has black and queer people in it

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Yup, which means that if it has any flaws or mediocre elements attached to it, instead of it just being one of the overwhelming majority of games in general that has aspect(s) you don't like, instead of just not liking it, it's bludgeoned as a target example of why X is ruining games; gaming is dying not because corporations have inextricably poisoned the well in regards to monetization and manipulative retention tactics, it's dying because a gay negro game has mediocre combat and is a little preachy at times. Why can't it just be based and epic like my mediocre jrpg featuring half-naked schoolgirls?!

 

[doops.]

Finally finished it earlier. Overall, I enjoyed it a lot and it definitely met my expectations going in. Whatever Ragnar and the rest of the team at Red Thread Games decide to do next and, to be honest given the low Steam sales, wherever they go - I am GAME.

YoDoops's review of Dustborn | Backloggd

To a degree, I can see why Dustborn triggers Gamers™ so much. It truly does represent everything they cannot stand. Looking at this game in online clips and snippets, it can come across as a product specially designed in a lab to be as over-the-top offensive to the most irritating group of...

www.backloggd.com

 

[derFeef]

Great review. Hoping to get to it after the hot summer period. And maybe after a few patches.

 

[IllGib]

I never heard of it before the backlash, i don't remember when someone said "If you wanna a woke go for Dustborne" and out of curiosity i played the demo.
I found it ok, a bit too "jumpy" being different parts randomly placed, but definitely woth a wishlist, think i'll definitely it buy when i can.

But yes, the Steam discussion it's a clusterfuck of the lowest any human being can go.
And i thought Resident Evil discussion board was terrible.

The major rebutall, when the "they made a new ip, what's up then if it's really not about black people?" are the money they get from the Norvegian state and Eu funds.

And the new parrotting it's they "stolen" an apartment from GtaV, i tried to let them understand that they couldn't "steal" an apartmen layout, even if cpied 1:1 because nobody can register an apartment layout, unheard obviously.

Plus the usual creeps "Then why you haven't bought?"

I'm on Steam from 12 years, it's the first time i started to use the block button, now the main page it's a long list of "A discussion from a blocked user", quite strange, i'm not used XD

But finally it's uplifting reading some nice words and feedbacks from people that had a chance to play it whitout some loony harrasing.

Edit some typo.

 

[Renteka-Bond]

Been playing it a bit (actually about to hop back on for another session) and I'm liking it so far. Earlier it was said that Pax was a somewhat unlikeable protagonist, which immediately made me think 'Oh, so she's like Frey', who's a character I feel like was similarly maligned for unlikability basically meaning not willing to just go along with whatever because someone tells her to. While the circumstances aren't the same, it definitely feels like a similar situation where the character isn't 100% good / making 'right' decisions and can choose to make up for wrongdoings or not.

I really like the time-based choice mechanics so far and how they seem to interplay with the emotions of the other cast members and the roleplaying you can do because of this. As an early example that isn't super spoilery, you're put in a few situations early on where you can be forced to use Pax's power to basically force her friends to do stuff in the heat of the moment. Later on, another character uses their power on you and you have the choice to try and stop it or let it happen; for me, in that scene, it felt like it might be too overpowered for Pax to be able to resist, as well as kind of hypocritical, so I decided to let the powers keep working and was slowly locked out of options as the scene progressed.

These choices can affect Pax's own personality (which impacts options you have in dialogue later) as well as those around you, while also having ramifications if you end up apologizing for it later, as sometimes characters are more upset at knowing that you did it than not; choices aren't binary good or bad so there's an element of actually needing to think about and react to the fact that characters may not react the way you WANT them to based on your actions.

Edit: Just beat chapter 1 and apparently 0% of people aced the concert? Bunch boobs playing this game I guess (probably a bugged result lol)

 

[IllGib]

Now they've vandalized the wiky page.

Dustborn Wiki

dustborn.fandom.com

People have way too much free time.

I can't.

 

[JustTeaThankYou]

Now they've vandalized the wiky page.

Dustborn Wiki

dustborn.fandom.com

People have way too much free time.

I can't.

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I have no idea why they even care. It's like a tiny indie game. There are dozens of tiny indie games with progressive politics in them. They are so weird and embarrassing lol

 

[IllGib]

I don't know, every time they move the goal post.
First it's the woke, but it's a new ip and nothing estabilshed was "ruined".
Then because it exist and suck, but then why care?
Then because they "stole" EU taxes, like what an US citizen should care?
EU fund thousands of things, for what i know they could have founded things i despise aswell.

I mailed RTG showing my concerns for the attack it's going on every media or site related the game, hope they read and do something, the thing it's way over the simple joke or trolling.

 

[derFeef]

They could play other video games you know, like Kingdom Come Deliverance or something... Instead they spend so much time on dumb shit like this. They devote more time to write reviews and manipulate the wiki than everyone else. Really weird.

 

[Typhonsentra]

It seems like if you watch anything about this game on Youtube you get funneled into an anti-woke pipeline pretty quickly.

The game looks presentable to me, with some odd narrative choices which stand out as corny.

 

[IllGib]

At the moment i'm quite broke (things are pretty rough lately) or else i have bought it in an earthbeat.
I've whislisted and keep an eye on it, but i would like to play more after the demo.
And the more i read here and there the more i would like to play it XD

Delivering days on Steam were always generally rough, but geez!

 

[IllGib]

They could play other video games you know, like Kingdom Come Deliverance or something... Instead they spend so much time on dumb shit like this. They devote more time to write reviews and manipulate the wiki than everyone else. Really weird.

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Ot, i seen it quoted a couple of time here, but i'm pretty out of all the stuffs running around games, there were troubles with devs?
I had on Egs for free and played around, half or three quarter the story? (With the help of a fighting mod, i suck badly at vanilla) but it's a while that's idling on my disk, and thought it was pretty good.