I'd like to thank 34BigThings srl for the review key to this title.

Ever since Nintendo released the Star Fox series, which set the standard for arcade flight simulator rail shooting games (though this does have free-range flight levels too) most games after would attempt to emulate, it's no surprise that the creators of Redout: Space Assault attempted to make their spin on the genre, though it's not exactly a success in many ways.

I need to mention yes, I am aware this game has poor reviews on Steam. Yes, I am also aware it is a mobile game ported to PC, and it is supposed to be the prequel to the Redout games. I have gone into this blind, with no knowledge of the Redout games, intending to judge this on its own merits.

You play as Leon Barret, a fighter pilot for the Poseidon Security Corps, an organization trying to assist Earth in the colonizing of Mars in 2395 due to a resource crisis on Earth. Initially, your duties involve fending off pirates and rival organizations not above terrorism, but things quickly snowball, and the resulting plot establishes the world of the main Redout games.

Graphically, this game uses anime-style face portraits and a realistic, slightly CGI style for in-game models of fighter jets and enemies. The backgrounds tend to be vivid stills of outer-space environments, and while they appear slightly bland otherwise, it's usually hard to notice when the action gets intense. The explosions and fire/heat effects have a slightly cartoony look, but given the genre of this title, that fits right in. The user interface has a clean, sci-fi style to it, fitting the futuristic setting. Unlike the original Star Fox, which ran at 15 FPS, this runs at 60 FPS or higher.

Music is ambient style soundtracks that fit the outer space setting, and none of it is overly notable while at least setting the mood. Sounds are adequate for the depiction of explosions, ship noises, and other details, but nothing noteworthy. Voice acting is clear and crisp, though none of it is outstanding. Still, it is done by competent voice actors.

The game can be played via a gamepad or the keyboard. Both are fully supported and the keys can be remapped for one's ease of play. I found the defaults for both are adequate, but I would heavily advise remapping a few keys to prevent hand cramps, keyboard controls especially. There is a provided in-game tutorial to teach the basics of the controls, and they are overall responsive. My only real gripe is that the dodging of projectiles is a lot harder than it seems since, despite the Star Fox inspired barrel rolling and dodging, projectiles cannot be reflected and it's very hard to dodge effectively due to what appears to be an AI that tends to laser focus on hitting the player. The game is largely "on rails", though some levels allow for "all-range" flight, and while both modes of play have few issues, it can be hard to adjust since the game tutorial is mostly for the "railed" levels.

Stability-wise, this game has some issues. Despite being an upscaled port of a mobile game, this title has an issue where it can overly stress a graphics card due to a lack of FPS throttling (to the point of doing permanent damage if not handled ASAP), which forced me (using a laptop with a discrete Nvidia GPU) to go into my GPU settings and limit the game to 60 FPS via the Nvidia Control Panel to avoid redlining the temperature of my laptop. The engine is the Unreal Engine and otherwise scales reasonably well on systems that meet the requirements mentioned on the Steam page, though it's worth noting that while it looks nice for an upscaled mobile port, it's very demanding on anyone who has a weaker system closer to the minimum requirements.

Morally, this game has relatively few issues.

The violence is arcade-style action where you shoot down machines and enemy fighter jets. There is only an explosion with the remains disappearing afterward, no blood and gore are depicted. Language is similarly mild, with the worst being a quite tame usage of "heck" and "darn". No overly crude dialogue is in evidence, even most casual banter remains clean, professional, and civil.

Sexual content is nonexistent. All depicted characters wear sensible uniforms and there is no crude sexual commentary. This is set in a hard science-fiction universe completely grounded otherwise in realistic combat situations with no hint of supernatural or occult influences. Morally and ethically, you play as a uniformed fighter pilot part of a legally recognized body that conforms to the rules and customs of war, and you are expected to remain obedient to lawful orders from superiors.

Technically speaking, this is rather underwhelming (generally) rail shooter gameplay saddled with some severe optimization issues, cheap AI, and tends to feel bland and uninspired. Morally, it's surprisingly clean for its genre. Overall, I'd rather play the original Star Fox, which did everything this does far better in every applicable technical regard.