TRON: Catalyst pulls you into the digital grid, but the overall ride is a mixed bag. It manages to capture the essence of Tron through its narrative, which proves to be its most compelling element. Though, the overall gameplay experience struggles to meet the bar set by its engaging story.
The lore is rich, and conversations are mostly interesting, offering numerous tidbits that fans of the Tron universe are sure to appreciate. But Catalyst trips and stumbles into the void with its combat and gameplay.
Let’s Disc-us The Combat
It’s all super basic, with combat offering zero inspiration. While successfully landing a counter-attack can be satisfying, and some of the upgrades you unlock do enhance the experience, combat quickly becomes repetitive.
Enemy variety is also severely lacking; you can count the total number of unique enemy types, including bosses, on one hand.
There’s also some very questionable platforming…
READ MORE: Review | Catto’s Post Office: ‘A mini meow-sterpiece’ (PC)
Catalyst incorporates some RPG elements, but they feel underdeveloped. Towards the end of my playthrough, I was left wondering what to do with the abundance of upgrade currency I had stashed, as the impact of these systems felt minimal.
It’s a top down experience, which isn’t a terrible thing, but TRON: Catalyst rarely shifts perspective. It sticks to a largely static camera. A more dynamic camera, closer to the action, would have significantly enhanced the visuals, though it might have further highlighted the lack of enemy diversity.
The game also features some voice-acted cutscenes presented as a series of still images. While the voice acting itself is fine, I never truly connected with the main character or felt invested in their journey.
READ MORE: Review | Battle Train: ‘Too much railroad, not enough explosions’
Light on the Light Cycle
Catalyst does include vehicle sequences, which are among the game’s more enjoyable moments. Unfortunately, these segments are often short-lived or rendered obsolete, failing to be consistently integrated into the overall experience.
Sure, the light cycle is a speedy way to navigate the city level, but it doesn’t offer much more than that. An occasional combat sequence using the bike’s trail and that’s about it.
The core gameplay loop, while initially interesting, eventually leads to fatigue, especially when forced to backtrack to previously visited locations repeatedly.
I won’t go into further detail about the gameplay “loop”, it’s a cool discovery if you choose to play it. But just know that it gets old… and fast.
Should I buy TRON: Catalyst?
For fans of Tron, you’ll likely find some enjoyment in the narrative and world-building. However, those seeking a truly rewarding and engaging gameplay experience would be best to look elsewhere.
TRON: Catalyst is out now on Nintendo Switch, PC, PlayStation 5 and Xbox Series X|S. It’s only $25 on Steam, and there’s games worth a lot more than do a lot less…
Quest Daily scores TRON: Catalyst:
7/10
A review copy of TRON: Catalyst was supplied to Quest Daily for the purpose of this review.
