here’s always something satisfying taking down something bigger than you in video games. Just look at Attack on Titan. The whole David and Goliath story comes to mind, and when you factor in a fantasy world that’s combined with this idea, you get Extinction. On paper this sounds like an epic adventure of good vs evil, humans vs monsters and light vs dark. Does it have a happy ending, or will the Ravenii emerge as humanities destroyers?
The game gives you control of Avil, the last remaining Sentinel, and the world’s only possible saviour. The one man capable of dishing out justice to the destructive force of the Ravenii, who are gigantic Ogres. When I say gigantic, I mean it. They are totally huge, and quite adept at crushing Avil under their size 142 feet. A wild guess but damn they’re big. Avil is no ordinary human though, and capable of dispensing his on brand of punishment via his extraordinary abilities and sword, he can glide through the air, use his grappling hook to launch himself into the air and chop off limbs of the Ravenii, once the armour has been dealt with.
Upgrading Avil is pretty much essential as you progress through the campaign as Ravenii become equipped with better armour the further you advance, and that’s not mentioning the Jackals that litter the ground. They may be smaller, but in large groups they can prove a problem for you. You can avoid them should you choose, but it’s worth dealing with them and saving the civilians to boost your meter that once fully charged will allow you to perform a finisher on a Ravenii.
The world isn’t open, instead offering set levels which are colourful and almost cartoon like in appearance, and each house a small or large city that Ravenii will seek to destroy. So long as at least 1 building stands, you won’t fail the level. This does mean you have a fighting chance to succeed, even though you’re out-sized from the word go, and you’d think that a tough difficulty setting is ahead of you, and you’d be wrong. In fact, it’s not all that hard until you factor in the camera and how you’ll end up fighting that more than any enemy that stands before you. It seems to have a mind of its own, and I died far more often from having to divert my attention away from enemies to deal with it than actual fighting.
Aside from the Campaign, there are other modes on offer which are pretty much the same formula as you’ve already found. Daily Challenges see you completing either a set amount of kills of Ravenii, defending a tower or saving civilians. Then comes Skirmishes and Extinction to test your mettle. The latter is a one-life, one chance scenario. Fail and you must start all over again. Again, an upgraded Avil is a must and I can testify to this. Aside from related achievements to these modes and leaderboards to set a position on, it may or may not appeal to you given that there’s little to notice in terms of difference from the campaign.
As a Sentinel, Avil is privy to a set of combos that can be unleashed, all with the use of one attack button. A bit underwhelming truth be told, and remembering them is a chore, and resulted in me just mashing the button until something died. Movement is actually fun, being able to run faster than a normal human, glide great distance, and use his grappling hook to launch himself up into the air with the greatest of ease. That’s not eveN mentioning his ability to scale walls and the backs of Ravenii like it was something anyone could do. This makes traversal around the world simpler than one would have expected going in blind.
One fun addition that get unlocked once you’ve progressed the story enough, is a Trials Mode, where you have to move across the landscape saving civilians aiming to smash a time fast enough to earn 3 stars. These are undeniably tough as the time limits are for the best of the best at speed running. Or in this case, gliding and jumping. You’ll need to be at your best for those elusive 3 stars, and put in a fair amount of practice. Unless I’m just bad at it.
Verdict
Extinction is a game that’s fun to play at being a total badass as you cut down giant Ogres, and even cut their limbs off. But if you break it down to the bare bones, that’s all it is. Once I got halfway through the campaign, it felt as though I’d done and seen it all and repeated it constantly. It does get repetitive if I’m honest, in a Dynasty Warriors kind of way, and I don’t necessarily mean that in a negative tone. I love Dynasty Warriors games, and being able to hack and slash your way through a game mindlessly when you don’t want or need a challenge is fun sometimes. That’s how I see Extinction, in short bursts it’s a fun game that doesn’t tax the grey matter, and just lets you get on with it. That said, you should certainly think about what I’ve just said before you buy, else you’ll perhaps regret that asking price, which may be a little bit higher than I’d pay.
Overall Score 7/10
Developer: Iron Galaxy Studios
Publisher: Maximum Games
Release Date: 10th April 2018
Price: £54.99 Standard Edition - £64.99 Deluxe Edition - £:45.99 Physical
File Size: 3.05GB
Xbox One copy provided for review purpose.
Available on Xbox One, PlayStation 4 & Steam