(developed by experiment 101 and published by THQ nordic)

Biomutant is a 2021 zen-type RPG that was in the works for almost half a decade. With major delays and some big development hells, the most awaited RPG has finally dropped on steam on 25th May this year with some mixed opinions from both gamers and critics. Being a gamer and writer, I will give my own thoughts and opinions on it detailing every aspect.

AESTHETICS

Without a doubt, every human being can agree on the fact that Biomutant looks extremely beautiful. It has a solid art direction that makes its world look organic. For reference, it looks like Breath of the Wild but less toon-y and more realistic. It’s a balance. Even the water pops out since it’s a major part of the game’s map and not any point does it look like it’s repeating itself. The color difference between a dark area and an open sunny world is vastly different and that gives each location its own standing factor changing the vibe totally for the player.

Watching a sunset from the top of a mountain is the most non-violently satisfying thing I have done to date in any video game. The random graffiti work on walls of random buildings is well made and is in a lot of variety, so much so you may not see one artwork at any other location. The 3D character model (I am not a furry), looks adorable. Even the most dangerous bosses look pat-level of cute. Some other NPC’s too have variants in their clothing depending upon the area to area. Every character pops out of the environment to be easily distinguishable.

The soundtrack is also very lively. The combat music might not be that good, but some other “theme” music tracks are well composed to fit the mood of the situation. The random babble that other NPC’s speak is also kinda cute to listen to.

GAMEPLAY

First things first, the character customization is almost Saints Row level. Almost. No, you cannot customize the spacing between eyebrows on your face, but you can choose your breed, body structure, fur type, fur color, and class. Choosing a class will help you a lot in your starting battles. A class is a preset of armor and weapons you can choose to start out your game. A class also gives you an exclusive unlockable set of perks. Players who did pre-order the game, like me, got an extra mercenary class. Overall there are better unlockable weapons further in the game and the special perk set doesn’t add up much to what you can do. Though I still recommend choosing one as per your playstyle.

Speaking of the combat it is kinda tedious at first, but when you unlock and upgrade better and stronger equipment, it actually becomes very fluid and fun. There are also some melee weapons that can do specific tasks. For example, there is a rocket glove that can be used to punch weak walls.

Speaking of weapons, they are insanely craftable. You can change anything and everything about them to suit your playstyle. Melee weapons, which are unlocked in the beginning, are weak and weightless while the rarer ones found later in the game (most of them are hidden) are way stronger and heavy. The same goes for ranged weapons, but the ranged weapons at the beginning of the game are better than melee, which creates a misconception in the mind of players that they think there is an imbalance. Ammo can also be modified with bio-fuel to get perks like flaming effect, electric effect, and venomous effects along with many many more. Good luck finding every weapon!

Apart from weapons, you can also unlock cool abilities like a firing trail, teleportation, some magic purple sparkles that hurt enemies, vomiting on the floor, and much more stuff along with other RPG elements like leveling up and unlocking perks/skills. You can also find, unlock, and modify clothes and armor, which are available in a ton of swag-filled variants.

Tutorials are presented in the form of childhood memories. Now many people complain that these tutorials are boring, but I actually like them since it tells us more about our past.

Everything has a name, and they are very weird. Almost feels like a Rick and Morty inter-dimensional episode. There is a main character named Goop, yeah. Weapon items also have weird names. So strange I feel like an idiot whenever I talk to someone about it but that’s part of the experience.

There are also upgradable resistances against specific biomes. If you are not properly leveled up against a specific biome, you will die. So I recommend taking proper steps before entering a new region. To upgrade your resistances, you need to have bio points that are scarce and these are the same points used to unlock abilities. So obviously, you will not be able to level against everything at all times. That is why a biohazard suit against each biome can also be found in-game.

There are also several ways you can unlock travel across land or water. Any vehicle you unlock can be summoned anywhere you want, at no cost. There are all sorts of transports for land, sea, and air which only the peachy players will be able to find. One major unlockable is a mech (only spawnable at specific regions) or as the game calls it, a Mekon. Apart from mechanical vehicles, many animals can also be tamed as rideable as well. Like a variety of goats and horses, a frickin shark, and even a Skyrim dragon! There is a lot to find and explore and if I had to take a guess, there are at minimum 100 plus vehicles.

At the beginning of the game, you can choose between two tribes. Each with its pros and cons, though, you can change them if you want to later in the game. Further in the game, you can choose from 6 tribes depending upon whose ideology you like. Though once you join a tribe, the others will become hostile to you though their weapons and skills remain with you. If you defeat a tribe, you get their weapons and skills either way.

Speaking of the open-world design, it kinda feels like Ubisoft. You climb towers to unlock more map sections, clear outposts to progress, and travel from point A to B to do missions. However, in this case, you don’t climb towers but rather piss on signposts (I am not joking). Claiming the opposite tribe’s outpost, not only makes them weaker but also gives you their traditional weapons and skills which you had to join them to get otherwise.

There are also a lot of side quests, each rewarding you with either a rare loot or an important upgrade that will majorly impact the gameplay. I first did all the sidequests, which helped a lot in the main quests and I recommend you to do the same too!

There are four main bosses, which the game does not tell how to defeat and the narrator also suggests non-affective methods. So you gotta figure them out on your own. Any other enemy combat plays out just the same, only with different character models. If you feel they are getting repetitive, try using different abilities and weapon combos.

Also, a tip, unlock adrenaline perk first no matter what!

PLOT

The plot is set in a dying world where four world eaters are eating the world. The world of the game is sustained by the tree of life which is dying, and it wants someone to either protect it or bring it down. The game begins with the player escaping a big beast proceeded by escaping a bunker and learning more about his past. The story, as I feel it, is not that special or groundbreaking. It is a very generic story for kids where you are the only hope of the world. The player’s back story is like a Disney movie, your parents die and you have to avenge their death.

Somehow every NPC has known you since you were a child and asks you to go on the right path. Heck, every point at this game asks you to follow the right path. The NPCs also remark that you were a good little boy when you were a baby and they provide you with the same two options, “Do you want peace or revenge?”

I hoped the NPCs talked about anything else other than my childhood, but meh. There is no single NPC interaction that plays out differently. “Oh hey I remember you since you were a good little mama’s boy, my name is Poopie, and I will give you this bang ass rock if you could find 8 schummleclamp for me. Also, I saw your friend getting murdered by a world eater, so… do you want revenge or to forgive and forget?” And the narrator telling me what their gibberish means is a bit annoying.

Overall a decent story but not much to ponder over. Characters are like tissue, once you get what you wanted from them, you can just totally ignore them for the rest of the game.

ENDNOTE

This game has good stuff and bad stuff and they blend so well that someone can have alot of fun and enjoy the journey. It is not an action or a hardcore RPG, but if you like more of a chill, zen-type RPG…this one is for you.

PROS:

• Amazing art direction and optimized graphics
• Chill atmosphere for casual exploring
• A lot of room for exploration
• Fluid combat
• Rich open world
• On the spot exploring and crafting
• A lot of items and areas to explore and abilities to learn
• A lot to do and see
• A solid zen experience

CONS:

• A new formula of RPG not everyone may like
• Requires patience
• Repetitive (objectional)
• Underwhelming melee combat
• Most of skills do nothing
• Story is all over the place
• Good looking cosmetics have horrible stats
• Yeah sure weapons are insanely craftable, but at the end of the day we all run before better stats

Fun little furry game 😀