Bubblegum Cyberpunk
HIGH The cyberpunk aesthetics are on point.
LOW The combat is underwhelming throughout.
WTF Later weapon unlock challenges can be excruciatingly laborious.
Oh no! There’s a great big floating space station known as the Arc, and it’s been taken over by a malfeasant AI virus which wasted no time in swarming it with bloodthirsty robokillers and techno-murderers! This sure sounds like a pickle for anyone swept up in the chaos, but fortunately another nicer AI was able to stay corruption-free and wisely downloaded the player into various clone bodies so that they’re able to fight back and regain control of the Arc. Whew!
ArcRunner plays out as a third-person roguelike shooter. Players are initially ill-prepared for the trials ahead, lacking decent abilities or power-ups to assist them, but each run will allow them to pick up a currency (Nanites) which can be spent to make their character sturdier and deadlier, making the next run just that much easier until they’re able to storm through the entire campaign in a single attempt.
The upgrades tend to be pretty standard fare, but the ability to heal a portion of lost health, doing more base damage with each attack or having a life support system to jolt players back after catching too many bullets still helps tremendously when the difficulty starts ramping up.
There are three classes to choose from in ArcRunner, though one is initially locked behind story progression. The solider class carries an energy shield and a hammer, allowing it to smash groups of bad guys with melee while also taking cover as needed. The ninja is a stealthier option, able to carve up foes with their katana and utilize firearms while zipping around breaking line of sight with an invisibility cloak. The unlockable hacker class can hover around and infect enemies with viruses to suck out their energy, recruit them temporarily or overload their systems.
Once out of the garage and set loose on the deserted, rain-slick streets, it’s time for ArcRunner to get started for real… which is unfortunately where its various weaknesses become apparent.
First off, it’s pretty mediocre action at heart. Enemies spawn in waves and show little sign of intelligence, wobbling around taking potshots while the player typically strafes around, firing back with weak-feeling weapons. Pistols, machine guns, shotguns or even more exotic options like bows and electrical beams coursing through enemy groups… it doesn’t matter what weapons are used, they all lack impact. Sure, enemies blow up and fall over, but it feels curiously empty overall.
Speaking of the enemies themselves, they’re largely forgettable. Drones, grunts, snipers, mechanical ninjas and more… it’s not accurate to say that they all feel the same given that each enemy type has a different approach to combat, but within their given style they never show any signs of shaking things up before shuffling off their robotic coil leading to overly predictable battles.
By default there’s a strange aim-assist option which seems to lock the cursor in place relative to the enemy’s hitbox. In shooters I’ll often use character movement instead of camera movement to strafe foes into my reticle and remove them from existence. ArcRunner‘s default aim-assist makes this borderline impossible, actively pushing the reticule away from the enemy I’m trying to get into my sights. It’s not a huge problem, but only because it can be tweaked or turned off.
ArcRunner also features some of the most redundant bonus challenges I’ve ever seen. Upon entering an area with a special chest, players will be tasked with, say, killing ten enemies with melee attacks in order to open it. Simple to the point of absurdity. Then there’s killing a certain amount of enemies in midair, which ultimately equates to hitting the jump button a nanosecond before shooting them. There are a few challenges that aren’t quite so soul-crushingly dull, like when an orbital cannon unexpectedly shuts down in the docks biome and the player has to avoid incoming asteroids until it powers back up, but for the most part these challenges are inane and do little more than pointlessly slow down the proceedings.
The multiplayer option does improve things somewhat, allowing players to revive fallen companions rather than having them sent straight back to the start of the campaign — a handy thing when the endgame features insta-kill traps such as pitfalls, murderously lethal laser grids and other such delights. I appreciated that another live person was on the field with me, but it’s not enough to save ArcRunner from mediocrity.
Needless to say, I’m disappointed in ArcRunner. The concept is cool, the music isn’t bad and I’m a fan of the visual style, but its overall execution is extremely lacking. It’s not even that it’s bad — it’s just plain boring. From the underwhelming combat system to the slow start of each new run (and the fact that a full run takes around two hours doesn’t help!) it just can’t stack up against the competition, whether we’re talking shooters, roguelikes, or both.
Rating: 3.5 out of 10
Disclosures: This game is developed by Trickjump Games and published by PQube. It is currently available on XBO/X/S, PS4/5, Switch and PC. This copy of the game was obtained via publisher and reviewed on the XBX. Approximately 10 hours of play were devoted to the single-player mode, and the game was completed. 3 hours of play were spent in multiplayer modes.
Parents: According to the ESRB, this game is rated T and contains Violence. The official description is as follows: “This is an action game in which players assume the role of an android trying to cleanse a space station of a virus/infected AI. As players make their way through sections of the space station, they use futuristic blasters, electric rifles, and laser swords to destroy waves of fantasy enemies (e.g., infected drones, robotic sentries). Battles are fast-paced and accompanied by frequent blaster fire, impact sound effects, and explosions. Boss encounters with larger robots depict more protracted combat in arena-style environments.”
Colorblind Modes: There are no colorblind modes available, although the aiming reticule can be recolored.
Deaf & Hard of Hearing Gamers: This game offers subtitles. Kinda. There’s no spoken speech to subtitle, but any dialogue is conveyed through text. The subtitles cannot be altered and/or resized. I didn’t find any lack of audio cues that would hinder players. There are enough visual clues to tell where enemies are attacking from, for example. In my view, it’s fully accessible.
Remappable Controls: No, this game’s controls are not remappable.
The chance discovery of a muddy, burnt out copy of '50 Shades of Grey' in a hunting pit gave him an appreciation for complex plots, characters and overarching narrative, and the unexpected gift of a Spectrum 48k allowed him to indulge in these newfound sensibilities with intelligent, highbrow games such as 'flee from the badly animated spinning turquoise dolphins' or 'avoid the deadly glowing bricks of doom'.
The fusion of both these interests finally culminated with Darren teaching himself how to write by basically guessing at what words might look like when jotted down on paper as opposed to being howled inarticulately at the skies.
Now others occasionally get to read his scribblings. Lucky them.
- Shinobi: Art Of Vengeance Review - October 29, 2025
- Absolum Review - October 22, 2025
- Ninja Gaiden: Ragebound Review - September 7, 2025