PC Critic Reviews

The game can be crushingly difficult, but it always remains engrossing. Despite going back and forth between loving and hating it, I’m still addicted some 20 hours later.

As unforgiving, repetitive, and frustrating as it can be, the urge to jump back into the game and take out that frustration on hordes of enemies to the tune of the most-proper soundtrack with a toy box of guns is hard to resist. Strafe wears its influences on its sleeve but stands on its own as a fun, intense, and fast-paced shooter with distinguishable charm.

STRAFE is a gore fest with very old graphics, fast paced first person shooting and roguelike mechanics. Slightly unbalanced and maybe too rough for some players, it's still a worthy and pleasantly ironic homage to the nineties.

Strafe is hard, gory and full of references for those who enjoyed the classic Doom or Wolfenstein 3D. If you like how it sounds, try it.

Strafe styles itself as both "the future of videogames" and "the most action-packed game of 1996", and there's a ring of truth to both gags. In folding together and drilling into layers of FPS convention, Pixel Titans has created a game that is at once sentimental and sharply contemporary. It doesn't so much take us back to '96 as transport '96 into the present, picking up threads left by Doom and Quake and weaving its own tapestry out of them, every time you play. [July 2017, p.116]

STRAFE is an engaging and captivating roguelike with a solid, 90's FPS gameplay (and graphics), tailored for fans of the "old school" genre. The procedural maps are well designed and varied, and the idea of having a single, moddable weapon throughout the game is pretty unique. The recently released Millenium Edition fixes a lot of bugs and adds some new game modes.

Strife hides a merciless challenge behind his well crafted Nineties costume. Not only old-style FPS lovers can find death on Icarus but also who's searching for a demanding moment of pure gore. Perhaps different levels of difficulty could have expanded the audience.

Strafe is a game where you need to know what you’re getting into before jumping in. It looks like Quake but it absolutely is not; it’s a roguelike FPS with a retro art style. It’s a harsh mistress, and masochistic players will love that, but Strafe personally left me frustrated and cold.

Strafe skillfully recaptures the look and experience of a full-tilt twitch 1990s shooter while faltering at building upon its potential.

Over and over again, you will die. Maybe you’ll get better, faster, more responsive to the various threats that assault you. Maybe you’ll learn all the tricks and strategies needed to steamroll most enemies like target practice at a gun range. This still won’t help you when you round a corner and get ganked by some goddamned sentry the second before you reload. Then you get to watch the blood stream down your screen before you start the whole ordeal over again. Perhaps this masochistic dance will light a flame in your heart. You’ll think to yourself, “Finally! A game with some real challenge!” To you, I say good luck, godspeed and always be reloading. You’ll run out of health long before you run out of ammo.