Acre Crisis Review on Xbox
Acre Crisis is a first-person shooter and survival horror game.
The premise is you play as a member of the Brazilian Military Police who ventures into the remote Acre region to investigate mysterious deaths caused by wild animals. Upon arrival, the soldiers found themselves cornered and must now escape from a group of hungry dinosaurs.
The game boasts an arcade mode, story mode and a variety of weapon and costume unlocks.
Accessibility
With regards to accessibility, there is no options available beside very basic tweaks. There is even no subtitle options or controller mapping, but there is a aim assist option. So should you have hearing, motor or visual issues, this may not be the game for you.
Gameplay
PS1-era style games are making a resurgence, and whilst first-person shooter versions are not often seen, they are slowly making there way. So I was excited to see what this game could bring to the table, in terms of gameplay and style.
The game starts with a nice intro screen that introduces you to the games modes on offer, which is arcade mode – a wave based survival mode and story mode. There is also a nice collection mode which showcases off the locations, and characters you have unlocked.
Entering story mode you then are told how you and your team are entering a remote region to find out what is causing mysterious deaths. Due to a malfunction, the helicopter you are in crashes and you wake up in said region. With just a pistol you search for your fellow team-members. To your horror your first encounter with a team member, is them being attacked by dinosaurs! Thankfully you save him, and take him to a container where you patch him up and leave him to rest.
Saving locations are only found through-out the game within rooms, and its in these locations you can purchase unique costumes, re-stock ammo and buy new weapons. You see, dinosaurs that you kill, equals money! So the more you kill the more you gain in cash, however, there is a vast number of these out there and a small pistol will only be able to take down smaller sized dinosaurs.
When out and about, killing said dinosaurs with the right weapons is good, however the controls are not. Unfortunately, the games control system is clunky, which could be ok, if the buttons could be remapped. You see, to fire you need to use the RT to slowly raise a weapon and press ‘B’ to fire it. Sounds fine until you realise that you also have to aim via the right analogue stick, which means using the same thumb for firing!
Another issue, is that you also now have no fingers free to reload, jump, or run away. So any shooting involves finding a position far away, standing still, then aim and firing whilst the dinosaurs get close and chomp on you. Oh and if they do, they also cause your character to get knocked back, stopping said aiming/firing action.
Combine this with switching to the melee weapons via the d-pad to deal, and things can get messy pretty quickly. Another frustration is when throwing a grenade, you can’t see where it has landed easily. So aiming it carefully so it doesn’t bounce back at you is a bit hit and miss.
It’s a big issue, that a lot of people will not take the time to engage with, and it’s a shame as there is so much done right and is quite a fun title. Its hits that PS1 style FPS gameplay on the head, so it’s a shame that such a simple thing as button remapping can hinder your enjoyment of it.
Graphics
Right from the start screen, the game oozes that perfect PS1 era to a T, and just brings about the lovely nostalgia feeling to us older gamers. It feels like a first person version of Dino Crisis and you can see that inspiration in every aspect of the game.
One thing to understand is this is actually an open world game, with you being tasked to travel a numbers of distance various locations to meet fellow survivors and progress the story. However, don’t be fooled into thinking you can just wander around this lovely paradise, as the moment you step foot into the jungle, dinosaurs are on you like Jurassic Park. Also, they keep spawning, and as ammo is limited, it soon becomes a need to run to your next location, rather than fight.
Visually the games draw distance is limited keeping everything under a haze from a certain distance. Even so pop-in is still common, but in a strange way, actually works to the games nostalgic style, that ends up keeping you on your toes, as a dino pops up in the corner of your vision.
Speaking of dinos, there is a nice variation of them, from omnivores to carnivores all minding their own business until you make the fatal error of crossing paths.
Lighting is also well done with your flashlight illuminating enough of a distance to see where you are going but limited to ensure that dinos always seem to pounce from the shadows. Another great touch is that outside of combat, the HUD’s UI disappears, leaving only a compass for a more engaging experience that I really wish more games would try.
Unlockable Weapons and costumes are also a great variation with items like a lightsaber or Kitana, to pizza girl or cowgirl just a simple click of your hard earned coin away. This also plays into the arcade mode with all the coins earned there also being carried over to the main game, allowing you to grind for coin if you want to be overpowered.
Everything here just oozes the right amount of retro aesthetics that make the game a enjoyable experience. Yes the story is a little on the cheesy side, but this is still an enjoyable experience from a clear fan of the genre.
Sound
When it comes to the music, the game favours using this sparsely with it only really appearing during cutscenes to ensure that the scene is conveyed properly. A blend of orchestral and piano scores frame these scenes well letting the story be the centre piece.
This is because the game does not have any voice work with in-game chat, stories and cutscenes being conveyed with text. The games majority of sound it based on Jungle noises and dinosaur growls and hisses as you make your way through the jungle. This is superb and truly captures the intensity and uneasiness of walking about in a an unknown landscape. Birds and wildlife sounds, blend nicely with distant hisses and deep growls making you paranoid of where the next attack will happen.
Battles and weaponry sounds are also equally superb, with the retro style being impactful and deep. Just like the how the sound is used with cutscenes to convey a deeper tense atmosphere the weapons sounds in the middle of roars and claw attacks combine to an enjoyable melody.
My recommendation here would be a good quality soundbar to really enjoy the uneasiness of this landscape you are exploring.
Verdict
This leads me onto the rating of the game:-
Now I rate games in order of, avoid, on sale, great purchase and must own. My rating for Acre Crisis is a ‘’ on sale’’.
This is a game that does so much perfectly in terms of getting the 90’s PS1 era replicated. But the falls short in my opinion on the controller side, which I believe will put people off enjoying this truly unique game.
The game is currently priced on Xbox at £8.39 or approx. $10 and depending on skill and patience would give you about 3+hours to complete the story. Whilst there is no new game plus, the arcade mode and various weapons and costumes to unlock will keep you going for at least another 3+hours.
The games has so much going for it, that is unfortunately hugely hindered by its button placements. If button remapping is added, this would easily be elevated to great purchase, and one I do hope the developers patch in asap.