Positioned as the big AAA title for Xbox in the first half of 2023, hopes were high for Redfall. Developed by Arkane Studios Austin, whose last title was 2017’s Prey, the game made a big splash on reveal at E3 2021 with an air of mystery around it. An open-world first-person shooter with single-player and co-op modes, players choose one of four heroes to reclaim the town of Redfall from vampires.
It’s fair to say that most of the Koalaty Critics found that Redfall didn’t live up to expectations based on Arkane’s reputation. A sparse open world filled with repetitive missions and combat left many to find the game merely fine, while a push toward live-service elements seems to have come at the expense of the story Arkane Austin set out to tell.
Redfall is available now on Xbox Series X|S and PC, and is included with Xbox Game Pass.
Koalaty Critics — Australian Critics
Checkpoint Gaming — In Progress (Elliot Attard)
Redfall is an interesting concept with some valid ideas, some cool lore, and some great moments driven by solid visual design and a knack for leaning into the supernatural. But with a vapid and dull open world, excruciating mission design, constant backtracking, and a plethora of performance issues—this release ends up sucking the life out of you one dumb glitch at a time.
GamesHub — 3/5 (Leah J. Williams)
In leaning towards multiplayer mechanics, Redfall has seemingly lost part of its identity… In fits and starts, the game’s story is wonderfully intriguing… but these moments are spreadeagled over a barebones story filled with disparate set pieces.
MKAU Gaming — 8/10 (Shane Walsh)
Redfall is an amazing FPS game that will make players work for their rewards and is backed with great storytelling, some cool boss encounters, and great characters to meet and play as.
Player2 — B- (Matt Hewson)
Arkane is responsible for so many excellent and unique FPS titles that I couldn’t help but be excited for Redfall… What it did deliver was a competent, co-op FPS… Redfall isn’t broken or even bad, it is just average, something I never thought it would be.
PowerUp Gaming — 5/10 (Leo Stevenson)
Overall, Redfall isn’t really a bad game, it’s just a very average one… While touted as playable solo or in co-op, it’s clear Redfall has co-op at the forefront as playing by yourself is less than ideal though playing in co-op adds little to the experience.
Press Start — 6.5/10 (Brodie Gibbons)
It feels as though Redfall began life as a smaller project… and decided to pad the experience out with anything but a checklist of things to do in the titular town.
Stevivor — 7.5/10 (Steve Wright)
Despite these gripes… Redfall is a truly exciting experience. It’s great solo, has the potential to be great with friends… It’s also on Xbox and PC Game Pass of course, so you’ve got the ability to try with little risk.
WellPlayed — 4.5/10 (James Wood)
A disjointed experiment in melding the house style with modern open-world tendencies and multiplayer leaves Redfall in an uncomfortable flux… Redfall is more of a beige stumble.
