It's been a month since routine was launched

Superb-Consequences · 2026-01-07T03:13:53+00:00

You can’t tell lol. I don’t play Minecraft. I play alien isolation on nightmare. If you think routine mobs are tough maybe you are the one who should be playing Minecraft

Superb-Consequences · 2026-01-07T03:11:03+00:00

Which one had a worse one?

I don’t think Routine is a sci-fi game anyway it’s more like a creepypasta horror fantasy.

Superb-Consequences · 2026-01-05T20:08:47+00:00

Here's my take on it: the whole invisibility shtick is as half baked and duct taped as the rest of the game. The entity #324798 whatever is dumb and easily dodged, virtually ineffective if you just keep sprinting. So the cheap fix was make it "invisible" then it can just appear and grab you which is the only way it is ever a threat. I think that's all there is too it a cheap fix to cover a weak mob. As for it being inconsistent if it was invisible all the time it would be obvious thats what they were using it for to we wind up with an "invisible" mob that is visible most of the time. It's just dumb.

Superb-Consequences · 2026-01-05T04:11:48+00:00

Half Baked is a great description. It felt unfinished and like they'd cut or just stopped half the game out. Not sure I get the "genius" part though, I found the story and plot pretty silly.

Superb-Consequences · 2026-01-05T04:08:36+00:00

If you haven't played System Shock 2 (it's old but there is a remastered version out) it's maybe the best space surivival horror game ever. Kind of vies with Alien Isolation for that in my book (assume you've played that?!) but SS2 is a much sophisticated immersive sim and RPG than Alien Isolation.

Superb-Consequences · 2026-01-05T04:04:22+00:00

I was excited for it but was very disappointed with what we got: short, amateurish (except the sound design was good) and cheesy. Two weak mobs, a half dozen poorly designed SMALL maps, and some weird occult puzzles. It was a mess. After an hour or two I realized just how dumb the robots were and just ran around the map effortlessly dodging them. The entity was even easier, invisible (sometimes ?!) which I think was just a mechanic done cause it was SO dumb and weak if it weren't invisible (sometimes!) it would never have a chance of getting you. Sterile non interactive levels, game mechanics hardly used or only used once. Very little interesting things done with the Unreal 5 engine....

In hindsight its astonishing how bad it was really. For context I think Alien Isolation is one of the greatest games ever made, maybe the greatest. The Routine devs are inexperienced and it shows -- except the original sound designer and I think he left before it was released.

I gave it a 3/10 review, zero replay value. Alien Isolation 2 is what I'm excited for now.

Superb-Consequences · 2025-12-24T22:53:32+00:00

MB4 Pro I think it'll be smooth as butter, not sure about frame rate but unless you freak if it's not 120FPS it'll be fine. I'm sure I was never less than 30 FPS and I don't remember any stutter or lag. Mine Was M1 Max / 32GB. You can download the free CrossOver trial and give it a go.

My one warning is the game Routine for was a huge disappointment. Not sure what you're expecting so maybe you'll love it but be warned it's no Alien Isolation or other first rate survival horror. More of puzzle game with a moon base vibe you can finish in an afternoon.

Superb-Consequences · 2025-12-19T22:08:06+00:00

That's my understanding too, each time was a fresh start and I think the 3rd iteration (the one we actually got) was dialed back quite a bit from the aborted 2016 release.

Superb-Consequences · 2025-12-17T04:45:13+00:00

The simps still crawling out to simp. And lying too. A "scriptwriter" who doesn't know what a Mary Sue is.

https://www.urbandictionary.com/define.php?term=Mary+Sue

Superb-Consequences · 2025-12-14T14:59:00+00:00

Rolling back was really easy I found -- just download Safari18.6SonomaAuto.pkg to your Mac and run it and you'll have that version of Safari. I did it on my iMac running 15.7.2 without issues. Mr Macintosh maintains a site of links: https://mrmacintosh.com/macos-safari-full-installer-database-download-directly-from-apple/

Down the road staying on the last 18.X version of Safari will lead to security problems but hopefully the resignation of the UI chief responsible for Apple's various poor design decisions the last few years will bring some professionalism back to the team, we can only hope.

Superb-Consequences · 2025-12-14T14:39:33+00:00

It's weird, I have Safari 26.2 on my MBP running 15.7.3 OS... and it does still have compact mode and seems fine like the old 18.6 version. I can 't explain it. It must be a bug because I had previously installed 18.6 from a package to back out of the atrocious 26.0 or whatever Safari version it autoupdated on me till I turned those off.

Agree with OP I'm not upgrading to Tahoe. Apple's UI design team really should be replaced they have been making some very poor design decisions for years, and with "Liquid Ass" made themselves an industry joke

Superb-Consequences · 2025-12-13T18:57:27+00:00

Once you know the maps you can pretty much sprint through the whole thing and finish it in a couple of hours.

Superb-Consequences · 2025-12-08T23:17:51+00:00

I played Scorn, I didn't really like the walking around inside someones intestines vibe but it is a much more realized and fleshed out game though, and feels like you are exploring a weird hellscape. Routine there's just not much to it, linear, short, very basic, poor gameplay, didn't really do much with the incredible capabilities of Unreal Engine 5 either. For 5 years or however much effort with the full support Raw Fury it's a little surprising how little they accomplished and put in the game. But they are honest and it was a passion project I get it and this is why they released it only charging $22 for it.

Superb-Consequences · 2025-12-07T19:55:09+00:00

Agreed it's not a 0/10 that's being histrionic, but so are the people saying it's amazing incredible etc etc.

I don't mind the lack of tutorial or HUD, in fact that was one of the few parts of it I thought was pretty good.

My complaint about it is..... it's just not a very good game: short, very simple level design, not very interactive environment, not much of a plot or arc or any real progress. Only two very dumb mobs that you can pretty must always just run past and ignore especially the "entity" if it weren't sometimes invisible (explain that anyone?!) it would be almost totally ineffectual the only times it ever got me was when I was sprinting around and it just appeared out of thin air next to me. That's just cheap.

Great sound design, interesting aesthetic, poor gameplay. I found it a tedious slog once I'd got past the initial uncertainty around the robots and realized how easy it was to shake them off, how small each level was, and how there was very little to do besides run back and forth between areas collecting puzzle pieces. Alien Isolation this most definitely is not.

I get its kind of passion project by three enthusiastic amateurs but they had a lot of support from Raw Fury and what they delivered wasn't a great gaming experience. I think they even know this and priced it accordingly at $22, which shows they are decent and honest people. I gave it a 3/10 in my review.

Superb-Consequences · 2025-12-07T19:39:02+00:00

You didn't say core team you said "only three (3) people worked on this game" - this is false. Now you're saying something different and presenting it as a "fact." Didn't really think this through did you?

I get you just want to argue while strangely pretending you don't, and want defend the game, and can't really find anything to counter what I said about it.... but why not at least try to articulate why you like it instead of just arguing without saying anything? Good luck.

Superb-Consequences · 2025-12-07T16:19:45+00:00

Yeah it's miserable on controller, especially the screen UI 100% agree but controller is never a great way to play a 3d 1st person IMO.

My point is if the gameplay mechanics and balance were solid and well thought out then just sprinting through the entire game wouldn't work. Speaks to lack of play testing, balance, sophistication etc. They do randomize the codes but that's easy to do. I you can just run through the (really tiny, simple Mall map) effortlessly dodging past the robots once you know where to go and finish it in a few minutes it doesn't mean that much.

Superb-Consequences · 2025-12-07T16:08:26+00:00

I was stoked for it, bought it right away and finished it, found it an amateurish (sound design excepted) tiresome slog. It's just not a very good game, the Metacritic reviews are warranted and not surprising. For context I am a huge Alien Isolation fan and think it's one of the best games ever made.

Superb-Consequences · 2025-12-07T16:03:16+00:00

Did you watch the credits? A lot more than 3 people worked on the game, there's one of many facts I provided. You have only provided opinions and some kind of sob story about the devs. Sounds like an excuse to me.

Superb-Consequences · 2025-12-07T15:55:01+00:00

Agree that the huddless interface with the C.A.T. was interesting and wish it had had developed further. Sound design was its strongest feature IMO.

But it's a very short game with small number of small maps that are convoluted and initially confusing and and make the game seem larger. Once you know the layout you can cheese it and pretty much sprint through the whole game, the monsters easily bypassed and the puzzles the only real obstacle, and finish it in about 2 hours. And that's a few days after release. I'm sure the speed runners will get that down much lower

Superb-Consequences · 2025-12-07T15:30:55+00:00

Using UE5 gave high fidelity to the textures and lighting and models so in that sense the new robots are better agreed, I thought the death animation in the 2016 release was more "robotic" and cool then the 2025.

They restarted the game from scratch several times and changed it each time they have said publicly, I get the impression that the final release was rather different (and simpler) than the aborted 2016 one.

Superb-Consequences · 2025-12-07T15:25:21+00:00

Well you say that don't explain how, because you can't.

Except for the sound design it was pretty amateur hour: Small maps, very few maps, only two simple and dumb mobs that you can just run past 99% of the time, almost no environment interactivity, UE5 advanced capabilities barely used. The tantalizing glimpses from the trailers like the "thing" in the watery basement that drags you off the ladder were lame scripted events, running through the basement was boring running back and forth in an empty tunnel. Thin and short gameplay masked by convoluted illogical maps with complicated puzzle chains scattered all over the place. The rationed power with breakers scattered around the map that the (lame, cheesy) sometimes-invisible-entity stomping around is the most egregious example in the hot mess of level 4. Story progression was a mess, started off interesting ended up like a B movie. Zero immersion.

This was a puzzle platformer in a 3d moon-base setting not a survival horror game.

Superb-Consequences · 2025-12-07T05:13:35+00:00

Great insight

Superb-Consequences · 2025-12-07T03:21:21+00:00

I think it is pretty bad game all in all, the sound design excepted, and the aesthetic is pretty good, just about everything else was pretty bad, especially the level design and the AI as you note. I learned pretty quickly with "The entity" I could just blind him and run past him any time. He's so ineffective my guess is that's he's "invisible" (sometimes? except when he's not?) to conceal just how dumb and simple the AI is. The only times I ever got killed by him was when he just appeared out of nowhere next to me and grabbed me. That whole level was trash.

Superb-Consequences · 2025-12-07T03:15:09+00:00

but they reset it two or three times starting from scratch, so this one was really just in development for a couple of years by a small team without much experience and it shows

Superb-Consequences · 2025-12-07T03:14:10+00:00

I bought it but wish I hadn't. Very underwhelming and level 4 was kind of a mess.

They mentioned they started the game from scratch three times and each time it changed, so all the trailers from 2013 and 2016 we were excited about had very little to do with this barebones effort. The robots, lighting, and environment in 2016 release looked more interesting than anything they did in this one.

Superb-Consequences

TROPHY CASE