This review is based on a review copy played on both PC and Steam Deck.

(In-depth analysis below)
Subverse promises sinful pleasures but pulls out at the best part, plenty of buildup with no real payoff. While the voice acting and animations shine, the gameplay struggles to find its footing, and the erotic scenes, though well-produced, lack engagement and feel disconnected from the core experience. With a hefty price tag and more teases than thrills, Subverse ultimately falls flat.

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You play as the thrill-seeking, opportunist, and self-proclaimed captain of the Mary Celeste, a spaceship found drifting in space after a series of unfortunate circumstances where you wound up in the Prodigium Galaxy. One day, you get contacted by a former partner from past smuggling illegal goods efforts and heists. She drags you into an underground rebellion against the Imperium, a theocratic regime that rules the galaxy, driven by an ideology that values purity over anything sexual.

Given the nature of the game, you might expect a barebones story. Surprisingly, the narrative is detailed and engaging, with enjoyable twists you would not expect. It does have an acquired taste of humor as it is unapologetically crude.

https://gtm.you1.cn/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=3410072352
It combines visual novel storytelling, turn-based strategy, and bullet-hell gameplay with erotic elements, but spreads itself too thin, excelling at none. That's not to say there isn't a fair share of fun or raunchy thrills, but the experience feels undercooked, lacking various aspects even in its lewdness.

Core Mechanics
In the bullet-hell segments, you pilot a small spaceship through swarms of enemies, dodging projectiles and unleashing a barrage of bullets, unlocking upgrades and new abilities with each new crewmember recruited. It’s the most polished and enjoyable gameplay element, with fluid mechanics and responsive controls. However, it quickly becomes repetitive due to how simplistic it is. The space setting is limited by a restrictive circular arena, diminishing the sense of scale and freedom in what would be giant space battles. Boss fights attempt to mix things up but often boil down to uninspired bullet sponges, and awkward stealth sections further disrupt the flow without adding meaningful variety. https://gtm.you1.cn/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=3415746894

Unfortunately, the turn-based tactical gameplay fares no better; it feels clunky, shallow, and hindered by an almost non-existent AI. It’s a grid-based battlefield where you deploy a crew member with three manticores, genetically engineered combat beings, all of which have unique attacks, abilities, and a decent variety. However, enemy encounters quickly become mechanically stale as each mission feels identical. Strategy and positioning should matter, but the AI's glaring incompetence removes any real challenge, reducing tactical depth and making boss fights underwhelming. https://gtm.you1.cn/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=3415747219

Events are painfully bad. You click a button, get resources, and move on. They feel like an afterthought, with unvoiced dialogue that lacks depth and intrigue, making exploration feel trivial rather than rewarding. Fortunately, if you really dislike these segments, then there is a mechanic where once you’ve failed three times, it allows you to automatically “win” and proceed.

Mary Celeste
Mary Celeste is your central hub for everything you need. It’s where you chart a path through the galaxy, upgrade your ship, crew, and manticores, but more importantly, indulge in the pleasures of your crew. There are up to nine characters that you can recruit and romance. Progressing the story and building relationships with them unlocks cosmetics, backstories, motivations, and activities in Pandora, a menu where you unlock and view fully animated intimate scenes. The animations are incredibly well done, but they’re short, looping sequences with limited interactivity, only allowing you to adjust the thrust or move the camera slightly. While initially pleasing, the repetitive and minimal engagement feels underwhelming over time, especially considering it's one of the main selling points. Its disconnection from the gameplay, relegated to a separate gallery rather than being seamlessly integrated into the experience, further diminishes its impact. There are also more nonchalant activities you can do throughout the ship, such as gifting items to boost relationships, doing photoshoots, replaying missions, reviewing cinematics, decorating your captain's room, and more, but none of these are required.

Visuals
Overall, the graphics aren’t inherently bad, quite the opposite, many aspects look impressive even, but the quality is wildly inconsistent. For starters, the fully rendered cutscenes either have captivating environments or perfectly show the characters with expressive animations and details that bring their personalities to life. However, often followed by visually uninspired gameplay sequences, with sloppy animations and visual novel-style dialogues where the characters are limited to only a handful of poses with no unique reactions or particularly stunning visuals. Aboard the Mary Celeste, rooms serve as static backdrops with only a few basic interactive elements, making the hub feel more like a decorative menu than a living, breathing environment. Of course, the explicit cutscenes in the story and the activities in Pandora are excellently done with smooth, high-quality animations, but this constant fluctuation makes the presentation feel rough.

Audio
Genuinely surprised by how good the voice acting is, each VA delivers their lines with a sense of exaggerated flair that is full of life and matches the lewd and comedic tone perfectly. Not to mention, of course, their performances during erotic scenes, and while some might find them a bit over-the-top, they perfectly capture the essence of the game. The soundtrack features solid pieces that enhance immersion, with energetic battle themes, atmospheric melodies, and a couple of unexpected bangers.

I'd be short. This game worth every penny, all day every day.
You will get:
- Solid combat system with startship
- Solid and funny story with amazing voice narration
- Super high quality adult scenes
- Super beautiful characters

What else do you need?
Such games are not much in the steam and this is a TOTAL GEM

This game is more fun and better written than Veilguard