Ludography
59/100
Players15 ratings
80/100
Critics1 review
More scores
Metacritic23 critic reviews
69/100
Metacritic usersuser score
66/100
GameFAQsJust Right-Tough
3.21/5
Player reviews
76% positive2,835 reviews
Steam Deck
Playable
Runs on
Windows
Price
US$29.99

Where to get it

Scars Above cover

2023 · Mad Head Games · Action · Action-adventure

Scars Above

Scars Above is a challenging sci-fi third-person action adventure shooter combining the rewarding feel of overcoming difficulty with a compelling and intricate story, set in a mysterious alien world to explore.

Released
28 February 2023
Platforms
PlayStation 4PlayStation 5WindowsXbox OneXbox Series X/S
Genres
ActionAction-adventureAdventureScienceShooterThird-person shooter
Developers
Mad Head Games
Publishers
Prime Matter
Modes
Single-player
Perspective
Third person
Themes
ActionScience fictionHorror
Country
Serbia
Age ratings
ESRB TACB MPEGI 12USK 16GRAC 15+CLASS_IND 12CERO C
Languages
Chinese (Simplified), Chinese (Traditional), English, French, German, Italian, Japanese, Korean, Polish, Portuguese (Brazil), Portuguese (Portugal), Russian and 1 more
Time to beat
7.5hmain story7hwith extras9hcompletionist

About

Scars Above is an action-adventure / third-person shooter video game developed by Mad Head Games and published by Prime Matter in 2023.

›Story

A colossal and enigmatic alien structure appears in Earth's orbit and stuns the entire world; humanity names it ‘The Metahedron’. The Sentient Contact Assessment and Response team (SCAR) - consisting of scientists and engineers - is sent to investigate.

Things don’t go as planned and the Metahedron hauls the team across space onto a mysterious extrasolar planet. Playing the role of Dr Kate Ward - a SCAR member - who wakes up dazed, alone in a strange, hostile environment. Determined to survive, you set out to find your crew and unravel the mystery behind what’s happened.

Players say

Media

The articlegameplay, story, development, reception

Gameplay

After examining a structure in Earth's orbit with her crew, scientist Kate Ward wakes alone on an alien planet. Players control Ward as she attempts to learn what happened and how to return. Scars Above is an action-adventure game played from a third-person perspective. Ward must battle her way through the hostile creatures on the alien planet using weapons and utilities that she crafts.

Ward can heal herself and recharge her devices using alien monoliths, but doing so requires her to backtrack and fight through enemies that she previously defeated. The monoliths are also checkpoints that she returns to when she dies.

Development

Mad Head Games is a game development studio with offices in Belgrade, Novi Sad, and Sarajevo.

Prime Matter released it for PlayStation 4 and 5, Xbox One and Series X/S, and Windows on February 28, 2023.

Reception

Scars Above received mixed reviews on Metacritic. IGN said it "shows a lot of potential" but the overpowered weaponry and gadgets cause it to become boring. NME praised its Soulslike combat but said the exploration and puzzles were at times confusing. Hardcore Gamer called it "almost aggressively unoriginal" that "rarely, if ever, takes any sort of risks". Push Square praised what they felt was a likeable protagonist and interesting premise, but they disliked the animations, combat, variation among enemies, and environmental design.

Releases by platformdates and regions as published

PlatformReleasedRegions
PlayStation 428 February 2023Worldwide
Windows28 February 2023Worldwide
PlayStation 528 February 2023Worldwide
Xbox One28 February 2023Worldwide
Xbox Series X/S28 February 2023Worldwide

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Collections2 collections

Years

Description adapted from its source, CC BY-SA 4.0.