If I could put a 'Mixed' option instead of a blatant yes or no recommendation, I would. For what the game is - as a concept and marketed product - I can somewhat recommend it. However, unless you plan to be interactive in finding bugs and acting as a tester, you should probably wait until it's out of Early Access (or until a lot of the issues get fixed, whenever it happens) and see if it's still breathing. If not, you might want to give it a pass. As a concept for a game, Soviet Jump Game (SJG) is brilliant. It's Russian Mario meets PUBG/Fortnite/Battle Royale Genre. However, this very requirement and the weight behind it is it's downfall. It relies entirely on multiplayer and - in my experience as a player from Europe - I scarcely saw more than 4-6 players (myself included) per game. This lead to a lot of 'locked off' areas at the start and during matches. While the game has been shown to host a lot of players at once, likely allowing access to a lot more content, the lack of active players (visible on steam charts) massively cripples SJG. Small note here: If you're not in the US, don't try to join a US server to try to find more people to play with. The connection will be horrific and you'll start hitting/getting hit by things that aren't even near to you due to the horrendous lag and poor client/server communication. Another downfall of the game is a complete lack of an introductory tutorial. If you haven't watched someone else play the game and/or explain what the powerups and mechanics are, you'll be completely lost. You can only find out what powerups do during the matchmaking period where they're all available to be used and have infoboxes about their controls and abilities (nothing in the menus before you actually start). However, this says nothing about the actual basic controls (formatted in controller A/B/Select even if you're using a keyboard) and you're mostly left to learn through experience on how to play the game. I was mashing keys in the beginning trying to get to the controls screen so I could figure out what the 'Accept' and 'Back' buttons (A and B by the controller format) were relative to my keyboard (Z and X). It was a blind guess that the C key would spawn my 'stored' powerup (which I had only learned you could obtain and use through watching someone else play) due to the relative position to the other keys, and I'm still not sure if the C key does anything more because there's *no explanation*. Another problem with a lack of a tutorial is the obstacles you face in SJG. While you'll find bootlegged Mario enemies and obstacles, there's no tutor of what an obstacle will do to you other than learning through experience. Some obstacles, such as the spinning electricity poles (like the fire poles in Bowser's castles) just knock you back a bit and that's all. Others, such as spikes, will damage you (either removing a layer of powerup or outright killing you). Finally, certain obstacles - such as Stalin Heads (thwomps) and falling off the map - will instantly kill you regardless of state. What's even more confusing though is the map layout. Certain "biomes" allow you to fall off the map and end up in a different, lower area. However, other biomes will straight up kill you if this happens. There is no clear indication of which maps lead to others this way, and which maps will kill you (I once tried to drop down a map to escape other players near the end of a match, and ended up killing myself). Once you've finally figured out how to move in SJG, you'll find that your movements are also incredibly loose and sloppy. Whereas a similar retro-styled platformer like Shovel Knight or even the traditional Super Mario Bros. 1 (or even the recent 2.5D games for that matter) has had fairly tight and predictable controls, SJG's movement feels like you're on ice physics all the time. Reaching max speed takes a couple of seconds and gets reset entirely if you run into an obstacle or stop. Your jump height is also based on momentum, meaning that you need to awkwardly run about a bit to reach higher-up platforms instead of your jump height being fairly locked (as it is in the games I mentioned) or all areas being accessible without the need of momentum buildup - easily interrupted due to the aforementioned ice physics. Your jumps are imprecise and rely heavily on the direction you were moving before you jumped, rather than you being able to precisely and freely move about while airborne (somewhat like Castlevania), making jumping up onto nearby blocks a wrestle with physics and momentum rather than a simple upward movement. Another note here: In a very Mario-esce fashion, often the button to 'use' your powerup ability and 'run' are exactly the same. This leads to a lot of stuttered movement when trying to use the 'Battery' (Fire Flower) or similar powerups as you keep pausing to attack, and must rebuild your momentum again which makes movement very stuttered. This contrasts Mario itself (which SJG is clearly trying to mimic) where the titular plumber can throw a fireball and start a run at the same time, and movement is smooth. The heavy reliance on multiplayer really brings SJG down. No particular aspects get a chance to really shine or stand out when you'll scarcely see much of what the game can offer before you're either killed by another player or you kill the last player - since there were only five of you to begin with. I believe that if there was a supplementary single-player campaign, or even the inclusion of AI-controlled/bot players to pad out small lobbies, it'd give Soviet Jump Game the legs it needs to last. If it continues to try to ride on the popularity of it's publisher and advertiser - Game Grumps - it will barely make it out of Early Access before it sees an average of 3 players per day with the occasional peak when someone (likely Game Grumps themselves) streams it. The only reason I can give a positive rating for Soviet Jump Game is purely because of the fact that it is a free Early Access game. If either - or both - of these weren't true, I would say to stay as far away as possible. As a purchased game, any price tag on this would be too much and would feel like a scam (I only recommend getting the DLC if you have the cash to spare and *really* want to support Game Grumps and FantasticPassion. Otherwise, you're perfectly fine without the cosmetics). If this was released as a finished product, it'd be an incredibly lacking game with a gaping chasm of missed opportunity. I can only hope that by the time SJG is finished, it's a hell of a lot more polished than it is now, and it's garnered a more consistent - and much larger - playerbase. Short Summary: For a free game, it's a fun waste of time. However, a lack of players and a multitude of issues prevent it from shining and being little more than a flash game you play once or twice and then forget about.
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