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Update []: Since this was written, it's been reported that Samson developer Liquid Swords is facing bankruptcy. Our best wishes go out to everyone affected by the situation at the Swedish studio.
Original Story: Like many other Xbox fans, I've been intrigued by Samson ever since it was first announced. The game received a pretty bad reception when it released on PC, but the Xbox release a few weeks ago seemed to attract more positivity.
So, I had to give it a go. I've only put a couple of hours into Samson so far on Xbox Series X, but given that it's the weekend and we've got lots of busy stuff coming up in the weeks ahead (including GTA 6 and the Xbox 25th anniversary), I thought I'd share my initial impressions with you before they get lost to time!
In a nutshell, the story revolves around someone who owes a debt to some dangerous people, and therefore he has to complete various missions around the grimy and violent city of Tyndalston in order to pay them back.
The gameplay loop is (at least initially) split into three segments, which take place across morning, noon and night. You're given a series of missions to choose from in each segment, and if you're successful in them, you get money to help pay off your debt. We're talking simplistic but somewhat varied missions here - fighting a group of people in a certain area while trying to find specific items, getting away from rival groups in your vehicle, taking part in racing and time trials, acting as a taxi driver... you get the idea. There's definitely a vibe of old-school GTA in these missions, before the later GTA titles started to get more elaborate with their levels.
That's not to say they aren't fun though, and it's quite cool that you can actually fail them and keep progressing the story, adding a sense of high stakes to each mission you undertake. I have to admit I'm already finding them a bit repetitive though, mainly because there's no real backstory to the majority (although there are certain chapters that push the narrative forward and feature basic cutscenes).
I mainly have to shout out how beautiful the world of Tyndalston is. Samson developer Liquid Swords has never released a game before this one, and they're only made up of less than 50 employees at this point, and yet they've crafted a stunning open world that's really a joy to explore.
To be honest, I think this might be Samson's biggest drawback - you can really feel the ambition that's gone into creating an elaborate and extremely well-realised open world, and they've absolutely nailed it in the visual department, while everything around it feels just a bit more janky like it needed extra polish.
There's a decent amount of NPC chatter, loads of things to look at, some pretty nice vistas, and I've just naturally found myself reaching for the screenshot button while playing it so far. It's potentially worth the price of admission on its own.
But yeah, the gameplay is hit-and-miss. I actually don't mind the combat system, which features light and strong attacks, parrying, the ability to use weapons and a cool throwing system where you can launch your enemies into various aspects of the environment. It's a bit clunky compared to something like GTA for sure, and it's weird that there's no lock-on system for multiple enemies, but I've found combat to be one of the better aspects of gameplay.
I can't really get on with the driving so far though. For whatever reason, the handling just feels awkward to control, and I find myself fighting against it and somewhat dreading a mission that involves precise movements. Again, it's still early days for me and I might get used to it soon, but the initial impression isn't the best.
There's nothing overly great or overly bad about the gameplay though in my opinion. I think it's decent enough for what it is, and there's definitely fun to be had, but it also leaves you feeling like they could have done more with it.
The big question is whether Samson is worth buying, and while I don't want to give you a definitive answer based on just a couple of hours, there are a few extra things that I think are worth taking into consideration.
For example, I've seen reports online that people have faced many bugs and even softlocking issues in some cases, but at the same time, it's a game that has a lot of positive reviews on the Xbox Store - 3.9/5 based on almost 150 user ratings. Loads of Xbox owners clearly love it, which makes a change compared to the initial PC release!
It should also be noted that Samson is only £20.99 / $24.99 on Xbox, so it's a pretty low-priced offering compared to many other new releases. The game is Xbox Play Anywhere supported as well, which means you get a free PC version thrown in, and I've found that it runs very smoothly on my ROG Xbox Ally X.
I don't think I'll be playing Samson that much going forward, especially once GTA 6 rolls around in a few weeks' time, but that's not to say it's not worth your money, and if you really enjoy games along the lines of Driver and old-school GTA, there's every chance you'll get a kick out of this one as well. Just be sure to go in with the right expectations.