Chorus Review

Chorus

Release: December 3, 2021
Publisher: Deep Silver
Developer: Fishlabs
Genre: PlayStation 5 Reviews, PS5 Reviews, ReviewsXBox One ReviewsXbox Series X Reviews
PEGI: T
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Take control of Nara on a quest to destroy the dark cult that created her. Unlock devastating weapons & mind-bending abilities in an evolution of the space-combat shooter. Along with Forsaken, her sentient starfighter, explore ancient temples, engage in zero-g combat & venture beyond waking reality.

Google Stadia Update – We had the chance to play Chorus on Google Stadia and while for the most part the experience ran fairly smoothly, there were moments when the game did not perform at the standards we would have hoped. Most games run well on my Internet connection, so it is possible we experienced a dip in performance. However, in conversation with other Stadia users, the experience for them was predominantly steady and good, with a few hiccups here and there. Worth noting, but not worth skipping because of it.

Chorus is a space combat video game played from a third-person perspective. The game’s protagonist, Nara, pilots sentient starcraft known as Forsaken. Forsaken can be armed with a variety of weapons such as missile launchers, Gatling guns, and laser cannons. Forsaken also has three slots for mods, which can be used to alter the ship’s performance in combat. The game is set in an open world, and the players can complete various optional quests. As Nara explores the world, she will encounter various ancient temples. Upon exploring these temples and solving puzzles, Nara will gain aether powers that grant her new combat abilities. For instance, the “Rite of the Hunt” ability allows Forsaken to warp directly behind enemies.

Right from the get-go Chorus just feels a little different than your standard space shooters. Breathtaking visuals, open-world format, the ability to do things as you want to, the list goes on and on. The unique blend of ships’ capabilities along with Nara’s powers gives a different twist than your standard Star Fox-like adventure. The controls of the game work amazingly, sometimes in this style of game I would have a hard time targeting my enemies or following them in the middle of a dog fight, but Chorus makes it fun and easier to handle combat. While yes there are some truly challenging missions, I never felt at any point that even if I died that I “Couldn’t” beat it if I kept trying.

The soundtrack is pretty cool as well, a very fitting score for this space opera of sorts. Lots of times it just felt so epic and grand in scale it was like experiencing an Imax movie or something. The map layout and design are great with its open-world format. I can cruise around and select missions as I want (like a Far Cry game or something) and jump into each objective with a bit of dialogue to explain the mission. The game is really trying to tell a story here, and it’s a pretty big one, especially for a flight game. The game is broken into 3 distinct acts, which are relatively short but enjoyable, but the story did get tiring towards the end. The action and gameplay are really what sets this game apart from others.

Throughout my time with Chorus I experienced no technical issues, no graphical hiccups, no frame drops, and had lightning fast load times. Everything about the game is done quite well especially for this team’s first “full game”. The only technical downside is some of the facial animations in cut scenes seem to be a bit “off” for a lack of a better term compared to the rest of this game’s visual representation.

Chorus is a great entry for anyone who loves space combat and a surprisingly deep sci-fi story with some cosmic horror elements. With its tight control scheme and a slew of unique powers, combat never gets old and remains challenging throughout the campaign. This already great package is rounded off with great visuals and sound design as well as a solid technical performance throughout the game. The variety of missions make every side quest feel like it mattered and was worth doing. I just wish we maybe had a little time off the ship as well to break it up a little bit, it’s hard to make connections with characters when you don’t ever see them, for a game with so much story, it needed that connection.

While I don’t think Chorus is going to be on many folks’ top games of the year list, if you are looking for some great space combat, this is a very easy recommendation.

Trailer