Was absolutely laughing when they pitted me against the default robots. Stupid clankers, can't catch me when I'm sprinting. Ooooo, look at you, standing motionless while I walk right past. You ain't nothin'. Then I got pitted against something that wasn't a default robot and I immediately got down on my knees and prayed for those metal angels. Please. Bring them back. I can change! I won't bully you anymore! I'll even let you catch me once in a while! Just please. The other guy is gettin' his freak on and I really don't like it...

I requested a refund, and the reason is very simple: the graphics don't match the gameplay trailers from 12 and 3 years ago. Another failure that I had to wait 12 years.

As a new user - not someone who followed it from 15 years - I have no idea how to progress from the starting area, so that's the end of adventure for me.

no audio? resolution changes dont stick? chromatic abberation simulator? horrid graphics covered up by extreme post processing? this game feels like it was made with chatgpt. disappointing result after 14 years of development and waiting.

Years of hand-holding and blatantly telling the player what to do have done irreparable damage to gamers' critical thinking and attention spans. What's your ID? It's on your suit - look down. How do I get this thing to raise? Shoot the thing. You're a technician - how do you fix the thing? Turn it on and off. There's so many simple things with simple solutions that will filter out streamers like DSP. The game does very little hand holding. Everything is so diegetic in this game for the sake of immersion. There's no UI, but you can see relevant information directly on your CAT. You directly interact with the terminal without a secondary UI popping up. I'm liking it so far. It's definitely well made. I like the atmosphere.

The first game in Steam Greenlight The game that inspired Alien Isolation but got stuck in development The game that would've killed any competition 14 years ago 14 years baby, I was there all along, believing! update: the game itself is fine, set aside loading screens. Could've sure used a big interconnected no-loading map. Liked Alien Isolation? That's pretty much it but with an extra layer of cool factor being the interactions with the world and C.A.T., an electromagnetic gun/remote/datapad all-in-one thingamabob. There are hide-under-the-table segments and tough stalking enemies that got old a long time ago after Penumbra, Amnesia and of course A:I but remember, this game was supposed to come out all the way back in 2013. Thanks for all the comments concerning low playtime, to clear that up: I've been soaking every tiniest piece of info since the initial announcement and knew exactly what I'm getting into. tldr: the game has exceeded my expectations. I've expected an A:I type of "sneak around and press buttons" game and got that PLUS immaculate visuals, controls and especially audio.

Nothing makes sense in this game the only way to progress is to search a full walktrough on internet... no tutorials, no hints nothing and the stuff you need to do on it self also completely doesnt make sense. Yes, that is a instead refund for me.

Game is running a downscaled version of your resolution, with full resolution it's 70-80 fps on a 4080 and a 7800x3D! For a corridor gameplay just wtf! No DLSS, no HDR... TAA make the game a blurry mess and FXAA is the only option. Mechanics are not intuitive, you don't know what to do. You can't rebind some of the key. Fov is really low around 65... It's really in a poor state after 13 years.

Routine is a first person perspective horror Sci-Fi adventure game that takes place inside a lunar base on the moon. In this game you explore futuristic 1980's stylized environments, use a special gun-type device to solve puzzles, and evade various enemies using stealth tactics. The game takes approximately 7 hours to 100% complete without a guide. The game's time is heavily dependent on how fast you solve the game's very intricate puzzles. + First off, the game is extraordinarily immersive. The game's graphics are photorealistic at times. The graphical filter choices that the developers chose to use during the game are tuned absolutley perfect. The lighting in this game is absolutely fantastic. All the environments throughout the game are designed with the utmost meticulous detail. Everything about the game has a very polished feel to it. + All of the sounds in the game are just as meticulously designed and immersive. From the the creaks and groans of the lunar station, to the creatures walking around the station, everything sounded amazing on headphones. Excellent audio engineering and audio placement. Some very fun retro synth Banger! dance music to be found also walking around certain areas of the game. The voice acting is well done. + The puzzles in the game are highly original, well made, and thought out. The main gun device you use throughout the game is also highly original and fun to use. + The stealth sections in the game are tuned very well to be just enough not to be too intrusive or annoying to the player, but also give the player enough fright to be scared. + A few jump scares almost gave me a heart attack. +/- A few of the puzzles will stump most players. If you're not thinking clearly or tired, you may wander around the same 5 rooms for an hour or more trying to figure out what to do, give up, and reach for a guide. However I highly recommend not using a guide. Try to let everything sink in, think clearly, and soak up the atmosphere. Usually the answer is some sort of common sense. Figuring out the puzzles yourself is highly rewarding. - The story in the game is very cliche. - The "Tape logs" found in the game are not interesting to listen to, most do not add any interesting lore. - The final quarter of the game fizzles out, instead of creating any sort of interesting specacle. - Some of the enemies are not interesting to look at. I think they could have had a bit more visual flair. This game was announced in 2012, I remember following this game in my early 30s. I am now 42. The game took Thirteen (13) years to release! Really looking forward to "Routine 2" when I am 55 years old. I'll mark it on my calender. Overall: 9/10

I’ve been waiting for this game for years… honestly, I thought it would arrive right after flying cars and world peace. But somehow, miraculously, it’s finally here! And it actually looks great so far! I just hope they add an option to turn off the visual noise my eyes weren’t ready for this snowstorm of pixels.” Update: I just finish puzzle simulator... It’s a beautiful game… but it’s honestly incredibly boring 6/10

Gameplay: Good Story: Very Good Music: Excellent Graphics: Very Good Here I will leave the cat, friends who pass by can pet it and give it a thumbs up 　　　 　　／＞　　フ 　　　 　　| 　　 l 　 　　 　／` ミ＿xノ 　　 　 /　　　 　 | 　　　 /　 ヽ　　 ﾉ 　 　 │　　|　|　| 　／￣|　　 |　|　| 　| (￣ヽ＿ヽ)__)

Why that game received so many positive reviews is beyond me. I thought it was very awful and boring, but maybe I'm just not the right person for it. Simply move from one elevator to the next and locate one code in order to locate another. The savepoint/task system is extremely frustrating, and I often had no idea what to do. I noticed in many instructional videos that other people were experiencing similar issues. Enemies were pretty boring too, and the game was not scary in any way; the only cool parts in the game were the moonwalking and the elevator scene, but that's it, sadly. I think they could have done way more in 14 years...

i skimmed the tutorial projector text and spend an hour running around the first room shooting various objects and pressing connect to every device looking thing for an hour and looked up what i missed and the only other dude who did the same thing got torn apart in the steam forums, they called him the dumbest man alive and i saw a little bit of myself in him then

It's games like this where i wish there was a mixed option, which is especially disappointing considering just how long some people have waited for this. On a technical level the game is fantastic, its audio and visuals are both 10/10 with the sound of the enemies alone succeeding in unnerving me, and while other games have used the same 70s/80s retrofuture art style ROUTINE uses since it was first announced, it still nails it in a way that still feels unique. There's some good scares in here that are really helped by just how good a job this tiny development team did in those two aspects, and I can't really say anything bad about it, it also helps it ran great on my mid-ranged machine, which while not surprising considering the game takes place in almost exclusively in cramped corridors, Unreal Engine 5 is infamous for performance issues even on rigs that cost thousands of dollars. Mechanically is another story and where the positives become harder to find, you have only one item throughout the entire game, the C.A.T., which serves as both a way to solve puzzles and also stuns enemies for a significant period of time, and while you would think ammo for would be a precious commodity, with each battery giving you 3 shots, in reality they are absolutely everywhere (probably because it's also needed to progress puzzles), imagine if in Alien Isolation just about every single room gave you a full tank of fuel for your flamethrower, that's about how often ROUTINE throws batteries at you, the only limiting factor is that you can't pick up batteries to use later and instead must replace your current one, but considering they are absolutely everywhere that's not really something you really feel most the time, and once you realize this it unfortunately kills a lot of the tension. So maybe ROUTINE's story helps elevate it? Well the most I can say is that it's there, and it does have some things that are interesting, but it's good concepts and bad execution, since it never really explores them in the first place, the story is told almost exclusively through logs, emails, and the environment, and they do have interesting groundwork, but then the game ends, in a pretty haphazard, confusing, and pretty unsatisfying way that makes you wonder what the hell just happened and not in a good way. Overall despite loving the art style and having a lot of good horror baseline elements, the extremely shallow mechanical depth combined with a lackluster at best story makes this difficult to recommend, and when you also consider it also being a very short game without really anything in the way of replay value, it becomes even more difficult. To conclude things it's honestly a shock this came out at all with it having been revealed in the ancient year of 2012, and many games that languish in development for even close to that long are almost always utter disasters if they finally release, so maybe it being a game I could recommend on a sale is an accomplishment in itself.

Game looks fun. Shame you can't remap movement keys. In 2025. Well done devs.

Got stuck at the door after you pick up the gun. It asks to connect C.A.T. wirelessly, but the game does not tell you how. It frustrates me and I don't find this game to be fun.

I did a routine in my underwear.

You can't pause the game. WTF, you can't pause the game. A menu pops up like the game is indeed paused but the game doesn't pause. WTF? Who would do this? It's a great game too! Very creepy, very beautiful, but you can't pause the f**king thing! Early on, especially if you play with a controller, you'll have a robot coming after you and be like, oh right, I need up the controller sensitivity so I have a chance against these things. So you pause the game to fix that, except the game doesn't pause, and while you're fiddling around with the controller settings, a giant robot murders you! WTF? Hope you don't ever have to pee, because..... YOU CAN'T PAUSE THE GAME. Well no problem you may say, I'll just save the game, quit it, then go pee. No you won't! Can only save at very limited locations. Great game too. It's just, you can't pause. Who on earth thought that was a good idea for the target audience of human beings that need to pause a game every once in a while?

It was going fine and then I got stuck because I can't figure out a key code. I use the Ultraview module but the smudges are in between numbers and there's no way to figure out what was actually selected.

Watched the first trailer for this game when I was in middle school. I'm 25 now. Good things come to those who wait.

Waited 13 years for a game I beat in less than 10 hours. Still worth it for those of us waiting for Alien Isolation 2. I compare it to Still Wakes the Deep. A short, really good horror exploration walking sim.

Really cool looking, love the atmosphere and soundscape. Gameplay though? Not so much. Lots of "puzzles" or things you have to do to progress but there is no direction at all, and what little direaction you do get is not very clear. Shoot a thing on the walll in the upper left near the door? Really? There was no indication anywhere what my device would effect, or that shooting at anything on walls or panels would do anything. Even the "tutorial" for the CAT device did not explain this at all or even hint at it, so how would I have ever thought of that other than randomly trying stuff out of frustration? This is less a "puzzle" and more of random trial and error, this just isnt really funn gameplay. Constantly asks you to find "codes" for doors or "look at your ID lanyard" but the lanyard I got in the start isnt accessible because theres no inventory....another impassable door I guess? Lame, we already did this "puzzle" earlier. I guess I have to back track again and find some random sticky note again with the code on it. Woowee so much fun. Games like Still Wakes the Deep do this style of corridor horror much, much better than Routine. I just cant recommend something like this, it just isnt very fun having to constantly trial and error shooting at random walls or panels ect in hopes you do the exact right things the game wants you to do since it gives absolutely zero direction, or constantly back track to other areas because I guess I went to the wrong area first without realizing it. Im sure there are people out there who will enjoy this, but it isnt me, I feel like the game spends too much time wasting my time than delivering fun or engaging moments or any truly well thought out puzzles or gameplay elements, which is really unfortunate since the audio and visuals, the style and atmosphere are a solid 10/10. In short: Good looking game with very cool visuals, but very shallow gameplay.

From start to finish, Routine is tightly designed and extremely good looking. I absolutely adore the retro-sci-fi aesthetic, and they captured it perfectly in tandem with the amazing audio design. I don't really know how long it's been since there's been a game that's really immersed me into its perspective. The diegetic UI, the movement, the environmental design, the design of various terminals, and the way you operate your CAT tool create the closest thing to the player character being an extension of my own self. That being said, the reason for the negative rating is mostly due to the running time of this game. The game took around 4 hours to beat, and I don't feel as though that does the premise or mechanics justice enough. There's just simply a whole lot more that could've been done with what is here, and the ending just leaves me wanting. I am aware that this game has a small development team of three people and experienced development hell for a decade(?), but the final product feels like only a quarter of a fully-fledged game. From the third chapter onwards, it definitely felt rushed. I didn't find the "horror" gameplay itself to be too engaging. The visual and audio design of the threats (of which there are, unfortunately, only two) are truly stellar, but they lose their shock factor when you realize they're basically a non-issue given how easy it is to counter, outrun, or hide from them. The game also has a tendency to give you wayyy too many batteries for your CAT tool, which is used for various functions of your CAT tool, including immobilizing these threats for a short time. Given this game's lack of on-screen objective indicators, I think the developers overdesigned their environments. Any exploration into any dark rooms quickly lead into a dead ends with no rewards, and the tasks you have to complete are sign posted everywhere on signs, notes, and terminals. I just didn't feel compelled to explore these really nice environments. The puzzles themselves are presented nicely though, even if they're a little too easy. I really do still think this game is worth experiencing, but I wouldn't ever recommend it at full price because of how unfortunately short it is with not a whole lot of replay value.

I waited 12 years for this?? First off: the game is gorgeous, had me clenching my jaw almost all the way through, and featured some really cool mechanics and puzzles I haven't seen in other games. The design of the world is second to none, and the diegetic nature of the controls, navigation, and puzzles had me immersed from the very start. I haven't had to take notes to finish a game in a long time, but for ROUTINE, it was a necessity. Movement felt great, like I was really in a clunky spacesuit, the CAT is very cool, and felt like it could be a real, tactile piece of hardware. The enemies are intimidating, terrifying, and smart without feeling unfair. Almost everything about this game is close to perfection as far as I'm concerned. Before I get to my central complaint about this game, I do want to talk about a few minor issues I have. Chief among these is the way the transitions between areas almost always feature a fade-to-black loading screen that really pulls you out of what is otherwise a highly immersive game. Game development is hard, but this feels like something that ought to be standard practice these days, particularly since the areas in which these loading screens occur are already perfect spaces in which to wait for the next area to load. Elevators, trams, airlocks, and ladders exist in-game and it doesn't feel right that they weren't used to maintain the immersion. My second minor gripe is our inability to use the CAT when crouched. Whether this is a gameplay choice, or just an oversight, there were at least a dozen times I found myself wishing I could look through the screen, especially in the second act. Last, I wish there were more puzzles. The code puzzle in the Arbor was difficult, and forced me to think outside the box and really focus on my surroundings, but beyond that one, the rest of the game felt lacking. All that said, the ending felt lazy, phoned-in, and incomplete. Without spoiling anything, when I reached the finale, it felt like the beginning of the third act. Coupled with the fact the ending is largely a cutscene interrupted with mere seconds of moving through the final area, and the text shown on screen in the closing moments, I was utterly convinced I was about to be dropped into another few hours of gameplay and exploration, but instead I was met with the credits. To say I was disappointed is a massive understatement. This is especially frustrating considering the way the lead-up to the end of the first act almost tricked me into thinking the game was over after only one or two hours. So, here I found myself, at the actual conclusion of the game, expecting, and desperate for more. I had this game wishlisted from the moment it popped up on Steam Greenlight, and for the longest time I assumed it was just vaporware and would never be released, so seeing the game available this Thursday was a welcome shock. I desperately hope Lunar Software continues making games, because I feel there's a contender for a spot in my personal top five games in here somewhere, but it just didn't stick the landing. A little more polish, a stronger story, and a more natural-feeling ending. That's all I'm asking for.

Before I begin, I must preface this by saying I was with this game every step of the way. From the first trailers involving trudging through dark tunnels with a low-tech CRT pistol, to the blogs mentioning full-body immersion and even the radical idea of permadeath. I never expected such an ambitious game to ever come out, but to see it reach the finish line is an amazing achievement in itself. Starting with the positives, the game looks bloody amazing and runs just as great. It's not even that large, clocking in at around 9.9gb. This is an UE5 game as well, making the small size of the game even more impressive. The audio design is stellar too, from your analog multi tool having lots of satisfying clicks and snaps of each button and slider, to the heavy thumping of both your footsteps and other entities reverberating through the environment. I don't need to say much about the visual design really, it speaks for itself, beautifully tangible and fully realised in the art department. Sadly, by the time the end credits rolled, I just felt very sad. The no doubt laborious development of the game had clearly caused some ideas to get lost along the way, but I felt as if they have sliced away too much, leading to a very lacklustre experience. The full body immersion amounted to little more than being able to see your body and lean around corners, you cannot even pick up physics objects or really use your arms, most environment manipulation later on doesn't even utilise your arms for turning valves or flipping switches. While that doesn't really seem that important, to me it felt at odds with the clearly well-contemplated visual design. Then the enemies came in. Visually and audibly once again, they looked and sounded fantastic. However when it comes time to either evade or confront them they were just a total pushover. From those earlier trailers of turning a corner and watching through a crackling display as an android wades through darkness to get at you I was expecting a lot more pressure. Quite bluntly though they are a total non-issue. You're rarely ever hurting for supplies to deal with them, and their field of vision is so narrow that you can pretty much zoom right around them as if you were Solid Snake. This could be rectified with some difficulty options to make them more alert, but as of writing there are no such features. Next, the levels themselves were surprisingly small and linear. I was expecting something more akin to Alien Isolation or System Shock where you have this interconnected space that you gradually learn as you move through the world. Unfortunately, each area felt less like I was moving through a functional station and more like I was passing by an IKEA showroom where you're only seeing fragments of a space and aren't expected to stick around or return.By the time the game was over, I had no sense of what the moonbase even was or how I got there. It just happened, then I left. Story-wise, I appreciated what they were going for. The game starts with a setup of some sort of malfunctioning AI and an unknown disaster. I won't spoil it, but after a certain point the game takes a hard turn into something completely different and stays in this headspace for the remainder of the game. There were several hints of something more horrific than murder bots in log entries and such, but the transition in terms of gameplay and setting from one idea to the next was incredibly jarring and lacked any real context. The murder bots and the previous characters aren't even mentioned again, making it further feel like I was now playing as either someone else entirely or the previous sections just didn't matter. Overall, I am glad Routine has finally seen the light of day and I'm sure there are those who will enjoy it more than I did. However, I wish that it didn't take this long for a game like this to simply not be my cup of tea. I expected a lot more, but maybe that comes with any project in development hell