Steel Seed Review: A Stylish Sci-Fi Adventure That Misses the Mark

Steel Seed caught my attention with its cool sci-fi setting—dimly lit metal halls, neon lights, a huge mechanical world, and a cyborg ninja protagonist. As a fan of quirky B-tier sci-fi, I was excited to try it. But despite its interesting look, the game falls short. The stealth action and energetic platforming stand out as its best features, but they are inconsistent throughout the 12-hour campaign. Cool moments and unique creatures get lost in a sea of uninspired spaces, frustrating combat, and a weak story that drains the game’s potential.

The main character, Zoe, is one of the game’s first issues. As the daughter of the creator of the dystopian world she inhabits, she feels out of place in this post-apocalyptic setting. While she’s well-voiced, her character is poorly written, filled with shallow self-reflection and superhero movie-style banter. Zoe’s role as the last human on Earth, tasked with saving humanity, feels less urgent when overshadowed by her constant quips.

While Steel Seed’s tale is rich in legend regarding a company that once represented humanity’s final chance, the plot is shallow and doesn’t inspire players to do more than complete the next task. Although there is a purported storyline surprise, it is so obvious that it is completely unimpressive.

A big portion of the gameplay revolves around navigating this broken world, hopping on platforms, and climbing walls. It’s reminiscent of Uncharted, where tense moments and jump scares make even the simplest actions exciting. Steel Seed takes it a step further by adding intense sequences where you must slide through collapsing structures or outrun gunfire, making the stakes feel higher, even if they are often difficult to master.

The World of Steel Seed Feels Empty and Forgettable

Steel Seed features some light puzzle mechanics that occasionally slow you down in fun ways. You’ll often rely on your robotic companion, KOBY, to shoot distant buttons while you climb walls or dodge obstacles. These moments keep the gameplay engaging, even though platforming isn’t the game’s main focus. Sometimes, the game even switches to a 2D view during high-speed chase scenes, adding some excitement—but sadly, these clever touches are rare.

The game world is a mix. Most places are just basic sci-fi hallways or rusty junkyards. Sometimes, you’ll see cool things like giant robots or weird creatures, but most of Zoe’s journey feels forgettable.

When it comes to enemies, Steel Seed gives you two main options: sneak past them or fight head-on. Early on, stealth is basic, thanks to limited enemy variety and your starting skill set. But as you progress, things improve. Enemy types mix well, and areas grow more complex with overlapping patrols and tighter security. Some stealth sections feel well-designed and tense—but later ones drag on, and strict checkpoints can force you to repeat 15–20 minutes of gameplay if you fail.

Combat in Steel Seed is where the game struggles. The lock-on system doesn’t work well, attacks feel slow, and the animations are unexciting. Even after unlocking better abilities, the fighting still feels boring. When stealth fails, it often feels better to restart a checkpoint than deal with the poor combat. Luckily, combat sections aren’t common, but when they do appear, they are the weakest part of the game.

As you play, you can unlock new skills for Zoe and KOBY, but many of them require doing tasks that feel like busy work, like scanning enemies or finding hidden items. Some upgrades come naturally, but others feel pointless and repetitive.

Steel Seed has some great ideas, but it doesn’t stand out as an excellent game because of its uneven gameplay and boring environment design.

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Steel Seed – Pros and Cons

Pros	Cons
Cool sci-fi world and robots	Boring story
Fun platforming and chase scenes	Combat feels slow and clunky
Stealth sections are fun at first	Most areas feel empty and repetitive
KOBY, the robot buddy, adds some fun	Main character feels out of place
Some great moments with big robots	Unlocking skills feels like busy work
Mix of 3D and 2D perspectives is nice	Stealth sections get repetitive
Good voice acting for Zoe	Not many exciting parts

Conclusion: Steel Seed Is Easy to Forget

Steel Seed feels average in almost every way. The combat is so bad that I often restarted levels instead of fighting. The story is boring, the characters are dull, and the places you visit don’t stand out. Even the stealth parts, which are fun at first, get old fast. There are a few cool moments, but they’re buried under too many problems. In the end, it’s a game that’s easy to forget.