Metal Garden

Metal Garden is a compact yet deeply atmospheric first-person shooter set within a sprawling, decaying megastructure. Players traverse large, often nonlinear levels combining exploration, platforming puzzles, and combat. The game draws strong inspiration from classic titles like Half-Life and manga such as BLAME!, resulting in a unique blend of environmental storytelling and gameplay mechanics. While the combat is engaging, it remains relatively simple and sometimes clunky, with a notable system where damage to specific body parts affects player capabilities. The graphics adopt a deliberately retro, minimalist style that complements the game's brutalist aesthetic and vast environments. Despite its brevity, with most playthroughs lasting around 1.5 to 3 hours, Metal Garden leaves a lasting impression through its immersive world-building and haunting soundtrack. However, some players express frustration with limited enemy variety, occasional bugs, and the absence of manual saving, which can lead to repeated sections upon failure. Overall, it is praised for atmosphere and design, though some desire a longer, more polished experience.

Highlights

Players widely praise Metal Garden's distinctive atmosphere and environmental storytelling, highlighting the megastructure setting as both unique and captivating. The game's world design and art direction receive acclaim for their brutalist aesthetic and scale, evoking comparisons to Half-Life and BLAME!. The movement mechanics, including jumping and traversal, are described as smooth and satisfying, enhancing exploration. The soundtrack and ambient sounds effectively deepen immersion. Despite being short, the game is considered a compelling, bite-sized adventure that balances exploration, combat, and puzzles well. Many appreciate the strategic layer added by the body-part damage system during fights, and the overall package is regarded as a strong indie title with potential for future expansions or sequels.

Criticisms

Common criticisms focus on the game's short length, with many players wishing for extended content or a sequel. Combat is sometimes described as lacking impact, with weak weapon feedback and limited enemy variety. Platforming puzzles can feel obtuse and frustrating, especially due to the lack of manual save options, causing players to replay sections repeatedly. Some reviews mention inconsistent or floaty jumping physics and occasional bugs, such as sound cutting out during UI interactions. The graphics, while stylistically fitting, are seen by some as rough or uninspired. Additionally, invisible walls and restrictive movement boundaries detract from the exploration experience for a few players. Overall, these issues prevent some from fully enjoying the game's promising concept.