Transistor is a RPG from Supergiant Games who first developed the game called Bastion. This new game from the developer adds even more creativity and is truly one of the best games you can get for the PC and PS4 right now.
Transistor starts off in a unique fashion because the game doesn't greet you with a typical tutorial or introductory cutscene like most other games do. Instead, you immediately control a red-headed girl named Red as she wields a huge sword.
The sword is named “Transistor” and has its own voice. The voice that comes out of Transistor guides Red as she walks around the neon-lit city of Cloudbank. Cloudbank is not a safe place to live in because Red is pursued by an organization called Process who has a lot of robots trying to kill her.
Transistor's design is what really makes the game unique as it's a different take on the RPG genre. First of all, you play the game from an isometric view point. The game's character models may look small at first from the camera angle, but you will soon get used to it. Cloudbank itself looks great and has a futuristic steampunk-like atmosphere.
The combat system in Transistor is the selling point that makes this game great. It's a mixture of turn-based combat as well as real-time combat. This is possible because Red can freeze time which in this game is called a “Turn”. When Red freezes time, she can walk over to an enemy's behind and unleash a set amount of attacks. The more hits she gets, the better the chances she can kill off her enemy more quickly.
The combat is limited to the number of skills Red can equip at one time. This is known as a Process in the game and Red can only equip four of them at one time. Some of these skills are more effective than others and some skills take a longer time to recharge as well. If Red takes too many hits from an enemy, she could lose a Process forever. It's in your best interests to never die in this game or else you will have no skills left to kill enemies with!
Transistor can get a bit tough at times since you need to know which skills are the most effective to use in battle. This is not a simple spamming hack-n-slash type of game that's for sure. You have to constantly move around to try and avoid getting hit too because some enemies can kill you pretty quickly with just two or so strikes.
If there's one thing I didn't like about the game, it is the isometric camera point of view. Sometimes the action is too far away and small for you to see. Objects can also obstruct your view during some intense battles. It's not too much of a pain most of the time, but can get annoying sometimes during combat.
Overall, Transistor is a wonderful and innovative little RPG. Its art style is unique and the combat is satisfying and doesn't get too repetitive or boring.
Verdict: 8.5 out of 10