Robots at Midnight Review

One of my favorite things about PAX is discovering new games as you walk around the floor. The said game is added to your Steam wishlist, and you patiently wait for the release. If luck is on your side, a demo will be available so you can try the game in the comfort of your own home (don’t get me wrong, I love trying games out, especially with the developer at your side, but standing up for 8 hours takes a toll). One such game from PAX East 2024 was Robots at Midnight, which we covered (click me!). Well, the full game is now available on Steam. Can it deliver on the hype we had when we first tried out the live demo over a year ago?

Developed by Finish Line Games, Robots at Midnight “is a retro-futuristic action RPG set on the ruined planet of Yob, a luxury world now left in decay and haunted by the machines once built to serve it (Steam).” You take on the role of Zoe, who has just woken up after 20 years of cryosleep, when she crash-lands on the planet. Her robot companion is in dire need of repair, and her father is missing. “Just be home before midnight.” (*More on this later)

After being pulled from your pod by Doug, a robot, and meeting Hawkings, another robot, Zoe is off on her quest. Doug just wants to get back to his couch and TV, but don’t we all? As you venture forth, the thought that this open(ish)-world action RPG is a Soulslike may cross your mind. While it has many characteristics found in a typical Souls game…

Poor Gary

What makes a Souls game is a story for another day, but a huge feature is the stamina-based combat. That said, stamina-based combat does not solely make a Souls title. If this is a Souls game, it will go down in history as the most forgiving of Souls games. For starters, being a little overzealous in combat will not necessarily lead to death. Secondly, if you do die, you are not gambling with everything you have. Anyway, Zoe has access to light and heavy attacks, both of which can be performed while jumping. She can also dodge (a cool little backflip, if I don’t say), parry, and block. If you manage to parry an attack, you briefly stun your opponent. If you miss the parry, you can block the attack provided you have block tokens. Block tokens regenerate over time, but if you do not have any available, it would be in your best interest to dodge away. Note: block tokens do not always seem to appear in-combat. This should be a permanent fixture on screen as soon as you enter combat. The star of Zoe’s arsenal, though, is MITT.

Mobile Impulse Traversal Technology - yeah, we’ll stick with MITT

MITT serves several offensive and defensive functions. On the defensive side of the ball, Zoe can quickly dash away from unblockable/unparryable attacks or large-scale explosions. She can also kick off an enemy, disrupting their attack and creating some distance. Offensively, MITT can perform a supercharged punch, which can not only damage enemies but also knock them down. As you progress further into the story, Zoe can swap the punch for other abilities. MITT also serves as a double jump, propelling Zoe long distances. All of your attacks, MITT included, can hit multiple enemies, although it is rare for encounters to have more than 2-3 targets at any given time.

The slice of gameplay from the demo that was shown last year is actually in the current version of the game. The big takeaway from the demo, though, was, after defeating a particular enemy, a cutscene occurs, and midnight arrives. Of course, as we said in the demo coverage, the game went The Sopranos route and faded to black. Well, now we know what happens. Something does happen indeed. The Steam page references midnight, and even good ol’ Doug has something to say about it.

Thanks Doug

To be fair, there is a chance I hyped this up in my mind way too much, leading to what I consider a major letdown. This is a minor spoiler warning about the story, but I envisioned something akin to Breath of the Wild’s blood moon or maybe Fallout 76’s nuke strikes, where you need to evacuate the area or risk taking damage over time.

The blood moon idea was partially correct, as the area becomes overpopulated with robots regardless of what was cleared on your pass through. These are also far more aggressive robots. THIS is not the disappointing part. The disappointing part is that this is just a story moment that only happens once more in the game. I imagined some form of day/night cycle or, at the very least, a countdown timer. Perhaps certain quests could only be done if you ventured out at night, or certain NPCs could only be found at specific times of day. Again, this could just be a me thing due to overexcitement or a vivid imagination.

I might have hyped it up but they do mention it enough to wonder

On to the suggestion box portion of the review. Zoe comes across a decent selection of weapons in her adventure. The inventory screen desperately needs a way to compare the weapons without having to commit stats to memory. Piggybacking on this, the upgrade system for MITT needs a better UI than just Hawkings letting you know if you have enough hard drives for an upgrade. Hard drives are found when defeating named enemies. The problem is that Hawkings just tells you he needs more hard drives. How many more little guy? Did you have a number in mind? Are you just guessing at this? Several times, I fast-traveled back to Doug’s house in the hopes of upgrading the MITT, only to be told Hawkings needs more. Last on the list is actually something that the developers are currently working on, so this is more of a heads-up. When you finish the game, there is an option for New Game +. What happens when you complete the story is unlock survivor mode. There is no New Game +, so clicking on it now (as of this writing) just starts a new game with a choice of difficulty from hero and master, which were always there, plus survivor. Admittedly, it is a weird placeholder, but at least I was able to get some clarification.

Is Robots at Midnight a bad title? Not at all. Would I recommend it, even at full price ($19.99 or your regional equivalent), and with all the issues I mentioned? Absolutely. I actually had a blast playing through, and it is quite an enjoyable action RPG. Is it possible that I overhyped the game so much for myself since my first look at PAX? Without a doubt. That fact should not detract others from enjoying this title. On the easy (hero) difficulty, you are looking at a 5-6 hour game with master difficulty probably sitting around 8-10. Survivor mode adds a new level of replayability as healing and fast travel are limited. I would keep my eye on this game, though, and any future projects from Finish Line Games, as there is something to appreciate here.