Introduction

Skopje ’83 right away grabbed my attention. First, it looks like a fusion between comic books and Borderlands. Top that off with a first-person survival game featuring roguelite elements. Lastly, it has tons of weapons! Yeah, Skopje ’83 seemed like a fun game to me. Developed by Dark-1, Skopje ’83 screams potential, but in a world filled with so many shooters and Borderlands clones, can this title shine among the rest? Find out in my review of Skopje ’83 for PC/Steam!

Gameplay

Skopje ’83 is at its core a FPS roguelite that is open world and survivor focused. You are a “project” that is summoned to bring an end to a possible dark future. All around you, brainwashed beings have arisen and are threatening the city. Powers at be plan on using nukes to end them once and for all, meaning time is not on your side. Luckily, you have weapons and a bus to scavenge from the land and find a means of escaping and stopping this threat.

Let’s first discuss the survivor gameplay. Skopje ’83 is all about finding resources scattered around. Water, health, and tools are needed to help push forward. You need to micromanage these resources to avoid issues like weaker aim or reduced movement. You even need to sleep, which really adds to you not just flying through exploration with no consequences. This part works exceptionally well, but the FPS gameplay is where the game gets much better.

Like Borderlands—minus the absurd amount of weapons—Skopje ’83 still gives you quite the arsenal. You have melee weapons, small handguns, and as you progress, you can make bigger machine guns and even fist-themed gauntlets. You’ll need these weapons as enemies grow tougher and less melee-focused. You also gain special powers like air dashes or empowering weapons with piercing shots or homing abilities. These add a nice progression, and even if you die—which will happen—you retain earned abilities but lose other items and tools. That’s the roguelite element. Death stings, but it teaches you not to be careless about which battles you pick.

If I had any gripe with the gameplay, it would be how easy it is to get lost. Maybe call me a noob, but after the first major objective, the game just throws you into the wild. You aren’t handheld—which is great for those who want to explore or play with friends—but finding the main missions feels like a chore. I don’t need giant arrows telling me where to go, but I don’t mind a bit of guidance.

Graphics

As a comic book geek, I love comic book–inspired games. There’s something so cool about seeing the visuals of a comic book in a video game—fusing two of my favorite mediums together. Skopje ’83 could be a comic book series based on how it looks, and I personally love its aesthetic. Every area you explore within the city oozes creativity. I do feel that sometimes Skopje ’83 looks a bit dated though, with some designs feeling lackluster. There are also a lot of pop-ins that highlight those dated visuals. Still, it looks good overall, and there’s a lot of variety while playing.

Sound

I’m fifty-fifty with Skopje ’83’s sound. There’s minimal music and voice work, and none of it is too great. It works, and I’ve heard worse, but it all feels very minimalistic. It might be intentional to keep the focus on survival and open-world exploration, but I would have liked more music and voice work. At the end of the day, there’s just enough—but only just enough.

Story

I always appreciate games that don’t hand-feed the story and instead let you uncover lore scattered throughout the world. It makes sense here since you’re revived as a “project.” The lore in Skopje ’83 is decent, and there are some interesting bits to find, but a lot of it feels cliché. A secret project, an experiment gone wrong, an apocalyptic world… all things I’ve seen so many times. I didn’t dislike the lore, but I wasn’t too impressed.

Overall Impression

Skopje ’83 for the price is a pretty impressive FPS roguelite even if it really feels co-op focused. I played alone and had a good time, but the game did begin to feel dull after the first few hours. Still, that’s my personal taste, and fans of survival FPS games will likely enjoy Skopje ’83. I genuinely advise grabbing some friends and playing together to make the experience more enjoyable.

Conclusion

I personally played Skopje ’83 alone, which might not be the best way to enjoy this FPS survivor roguelite. Unfortunately, I couldn’t find many friends interested in joining. Skopje ’83 isn’t the best survival game ever, and even the visuals can’t save the incredibly simplified gameplay. I do feel that with others, Skopje ’83 can be more enjoyable as you kill baddies and scavenge together. Still, even alone, Skopje ’83 is okay and I had a good time playing. I recommend it to fans of Borderlands-like games or anyone wanting a new survival title with roguelite features.

—Aaron