Matching recycled ideas with ingenious new ones has bred a challenger to one of gaming's greats. [July 2017, p.74]

Like Lords of the Fallen, The Surge is another rock-solid souls-a-like, losing a little of its predecessor’s strong storytelling and atmosphere, but gaining from the change from fantasy to sci-fi and the ingenious mech smashing and harvesting upgrade system. It’s not quite on the same level as the Dark Souls trilogy, Bloodborne or Nioh, but that’s more down to the lore and art style than the brilliant gameplay. If you like the sound of a gritty dystopian take on Dark Souls, The Surge is an easy game to recommend.

The Surge is a whirlwind of action-RPG fun with a fast and frantic melee-focused combat system, addictive loot systems and an immersive sci-fi horror atmosphere.

Clearly imitating the Dark Souls’ combat system and resources management, The Surge can give more action to the “masocore” crowd. The plot is not especially deep and enemies not so charming, but the high difficulty and a nice look can satisfy the fans that are searching for something to get angry for after the end of Miyazaki’s series.

A challenging and fresh take on Sci-Fi. [Issue#188, p.84]

The Surge is a rather unfair experience. It tries to be a difficult product but ends up lying in flagrant errors.

The Surge had potential, but its excellent combat systems are baked into a game that can’t do them justice. The repetitive and drab environments are a huge hindrance, and when combined with a confusing network of corridors, hallways, and ledges, it’s easy to become frustrated, misled, and lost. You may find some fun experimenting with your attack options and the smooth framerate on the PS4 Pro does help to make that a better experience, but expecting anything more than that will only set yourself up for disappointment.