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The Ascent or Signalis?

Švejk

Švejk

Banned
Feeling a bit burned by the shittiness of Flashback 2's reviews, but still wanted something pseudo sci-fi/cyberpunkish vibe that's shorter and more low key (indie) than CP2077.

The Ascent is on sale for $7.50 atm, and the game looks stunning. Is it good to play solo, or does it lean too much into needing co-op to enjoy?

Signalis isn't on sale, but hear nothing but top praises for it. I like shooters, but like the puzzle solving RE style horror/item management stuff too, to a degree.

If only one could be picked to play through right away, what would you all choose between the two?
 
killatopak

killatopak

Gold Member
Signalis is like a mix of RE and Silent Hill. It’s very well done and very replayable due to it having multiple endings and difficulty.

Have no idea about Ascent so I can’t compare the two.
 
Punished Miku

Punished Miku

Human Rights Subscription Service
They're both great, but The Ascent blows away Signalis. Buy them both. Ascent just barely got edged out by Metroid Dread for GOTY for me that year. One of the best top down shooters ever made. Just don't give up if it gets a little sticky with the map. It's actually well done because it tells you where to go, but lets you figure out the details on the height since there is so much verticality in the city areas. They hide chests with a lot of winding paths and hidden staircases.

I played all of Ascent solo no problem, but I actually paid attention to how the systems work. I'd use energy weapons on robots. I'd carefully pull people out of crowds if I could to not get overwhelmed. I'd equip element resistance gear if I was getting worked. It wasn't that bad at all for me. Had a blast. Some people say it has harsh difficulty spikes though.

Signalis is a much shorter game but if you want a PS1 survival horror meets sci fi meets anime, this is a ton of fun and well worth going through once.
 
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Švejk

Švejk

Banned
Thanks, folks.. Was hoping one or the other would have been a freebie on PS+ by now, but hasn't this year. Will most likely play both eventually, just wanted some opinions on both of them. Need a break from AAA opwn world stuff I overly saturate myself with as a palette cleanser. lol
 
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U

ungalo

Member
Didn't play Signalis, downloaded it while it was on Gamepass but never had the motivation to start.

The Ascent has flaws, at launch i remember it had some very dumb things, like the fact they gave you side quests without ever telling you they were in areas you didn't have access to yet. Minor problems like that but that were frustrating, i don't know if it was corrected since.

But the game was pretty good, absolutely gorgeous visually, perhaps the most beautiful game i've ever seen in isometric 3D.
 
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Švejk

Švejk

Banned
winjer said:
They are different games.
The Ascent is a top down shooter. Signalis is a survival horror.
Pick the genre you like best.
Click to expand...
I like both equaly, hence the reason I was putting feelers out. :messenger_smiling_with_eyes:
Both appear to be rather short too based on howlongtobeat.com, so that's good (for me) also.
Both look aesthetically awesome. Feels like both are rather immersive too, in one way or the other.
 
Bartski

Bartski

Gold Member
Signalis is one of the best games released in 2022 and I'm not talking indies but in general. I'd stil recommend it over Ascent which I played for 120+ hours and loved every minute of it. So get both if you can.
 
winjer

winjer

Member
Svejk said:
I like both equaly, hence the reason I was putting feelers out. :messenger_smiling_with_eyes:
Both appear to be rather short too based on howlongtobeat.com, so that's good (for me) also.
Both look aesthetically awesome. Feels like both are rather immersive too, in one way or the other.
Click to expand...

Play both.
Start with The Ascent, as it's cheaper. With a bit of luck, there will be a promotion a couple of weeks from now.
For example, Steam will have it's winter sale start on the 21st of December.
 
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TheDarkPhantom

TheDarkPhantom

Gold Member
Hmmm, two very different games. I loved Signalis, kept me hooked from beginning to end, old-school survival horror with a brilliant narrative. I played about 5 hours of The Ascent before getting pulled away by something else, lost interest and haven't returned to it.
 
RDaneelOlivaw

RDaneelOlivaw

Member
The Ascent was pretty rough to play on launch, I couldn't get over that and had to quit, but it did get lots of updates. I'm not sure how polished it is now.

Signalis however was amazing when I played it on the Deck, highly recommend.
 
Švejk

Švejk

Banned
Yeah... Definitely gonna have to play both essentially. Probably go with Ascent first solely for being heavily discounted currently.

Signalis; Everytime I see it mentioned or pops up in some feed, I instantly get intrigued. I think my dilemma on it was, since it was free on GP at launch, PS+ would follow suit eventually... Hasn't happened yet.

Sorry, should have specified in OP; PS5 is the platform of choice for me.

I appreciate all the suggestions!!
 
MagiusNecros

MagiusNecros

Gilgamesh Fan Annoyance
Signalis if you want a fantastic atmospheric game. You just get hooked and it's like reading a book and the puzzles require you to think/use brain a little.

The Ascent is just a fun Twin Stick Shooter.
 
MidGenRefresh

MidGenRefresh

*Refreshes biennially
Both are worth your time. It just depends in what mood you are right now. Signalis is slow, survival horror. The Ascent is fast action. Pick whichever you feel like doing now.
 
Thick Thighs Save Lives

Thick Thighs Save Lives

NeoGAF's Physical Games Advocate Extraordinaire
They're very different games, but great in their own way. If I were you I'd simply pick them both, at least that's what I did after first trying them on GP (picked this dope edition of The Ascent and the Switch physical of Signalis). :messenger_grinning_sweat:
 
GHG

GHG

Member
Svejk said:
Yeah... Definitely gonna have to play both essentially. Probably go with Ascent first solely for being heavily discounted currently.

Signalis; Everytime I see it mentioned or pops up in some feed, I instantly get intrigued. I think my dilemma on it was, since it was free on GP at launch, PS+ would follow suit eventually... Hasn't happened yet.

Sorry, should have specified in OP; PS5 is the platform of choice for me.

I appreciate all the suggestions!!
Click to expand...

It was added to PS Plus.

gamingbolt.com

The Ascent, It Takes Two, Sniper Elite 5, Undertale, and More Coming to PS Plus Extra/Premium

Twisted Metal 1 and 2 on PlayStation One and Gravity Crash Portable from the PSP era were also announced for Premium subscribers.
gamingbolt.com gamingbolt.com

No idea if its still there though.

But to answer your question I'd actually recommend Signalis more.
 
Alebrije

Alebrije

Member
The ascend is great of You don't care about top view style. Signals is good but different.

I will go for Ascend...but this is a case of :

why-not-both-por-que-no-los-dos.gif
 
Roberts

Roberts

Member
I loved them both for different reasons. If you play games for story then Signalis, though, but The Ascent is one of the most fun and amusingly violent sub-70 MC games ever made.

Would get them both if I didn’t own them already.
 
Chuck Berry

Chuck Berry

Gold Member
I go with Ascent but only because I love cyberpunk and isometric shooter RPGs

Reminded me of Crusader No Remorse on steroids. Damn near a dream game for me
 
Fess

Fess

Member
Tte Ascent is awesome if you like twin stick shmups with some Diablo-lite roleplaying. One of the most underrated games in recent times. Used to be on both Gamepass and PS+, don’t know if it’s there anymore.
 
MagiusNecros

MagiusNecros

Gilgamesh Fan Annoyance
Last note on Signalis. If you play it. Play it blind. Don't look anything up. You'll thank me later and love the game more.
 
Denton

Denton

Member
I had more fun with Ascent but stronger memory of Signalis.

Ascent is just fun, and has amazing graphics and good atmosphere.

Signalis is way less fun, but is even more distinct and atmospheric.

I recommend both.
 
Apocryphon

Apocryphon

Member
Svejk said:
Was actually eyeballing this one too. lol
Click to expand...
It’s relatively short, so pick it up in a sale, but it’s a blast to play and it’s stylish as fuck.

The Cyber Heist DLC for The Ascent added a bunch of melee options which gave the game some additional combat depth. For $7.50 it’s an absolute bargain and I’d recommend it to anybody that likes top-down shooters.
 
DragoonKain

DragoonKain

Neighbours from Hell
I need to go back to Signalis. I tried it but couldn't get into it. It was so slow. But I know so many people love it, so it's on my list to eventually go back to.
 
F

Filben

Member
Signalis for story, Ascent for action.

Personally, I wasn't enjoying The Ascent. Too much of the same until the gameplay loop starts to change but this is just my tolerance. Someone else might be fine with ten minutes killing sprees.

I was really enjoying Signalis, though. Some people might find it too slow and the story hard to follow.

So they're really two very different games scratching a very different itch.
 
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