DaRmaZat Metal Eden, developed by Reikon Games and published by Deep Silver, wastes no time dropping you into its relentless pace. You play as Aska, a Hyper Unit android dispatched on a suicide mission tied to the enigmatic Eden Project.
Moebius, the orbital city at the heart of the conflict, was once humanity’s great hope. Now it stands as a brutalist labyrinth of concrete towers, neon lights, and automated death squads. Overseen by the mysterious Engineers, its halls protect the secrets of the Eden Project while also hinting at its collapse. It’s up to you, as Aska, to battle through Moebius’ machine legions and venture into Vulcan, the underground mining colony, to retrieve the lost human core.
Metal Eden‘s narrative isn’t particularly deep—expect more fragments than revelations—but it’s propped up by sharp presentation. Nexus, the AI guiding Aska, peppers the journey with philosophical ramblings, dark humor, and the occasional wink at real-world devOps culture (kanban boards, agile development metaphors—it’s all there). Some impressive cutscenes sell the scope, and though the story doesn’t push far beyond setup, the world-building is atmospheric enough to keep you invested till the end.
Full-Throttle Toward The Core
Armed with impossible agility, a deadly core system, and a voice in your ear whispering both lore and cryptic jokes, your task is immediately clear: tear through the machine legions of Moebius and extract the core, also known as the stolen consciousness of humanity, before it vanishes forever.
Metal Eden‘s premise is classic sci-fi pulp—orbital cities gone rogue, experimental projects turned to horror—but the execution leans heavily on immediacy. Within minutes you’re scanning targets, wall-running across metallic ruins, and ripping energy cores straight from enemies to hurl back at their allies. It’s fluid, stylish, and designed to keep your pulse hammering.
Flow State Combat, Parkour Precision
Clearly, Metal Eden thrives on momentum. Its combat is a mix of slick parkour gunplay and close-quarters melee designed to stagger enemies. Each fight flows seamlessly into the next thanks to wall-runs, grapples, ziplines and jetpack dashes that make every arena—no matter how small—feel like a playground. Later on, transforming into ball-form adds lightning strikes and missile barrages, giving combat an explosive twist and some much-needed variety.
While the systems suggest depth—including core upgrades and weapon mods via dust currency—in practice, progression plays out in a fairly linear way. You’ll unlock your tools at predetermined moments, leaving little room for experimentation. And while the mecha drones, ISC soldiers, and occasional mini-bosses put up a fight, repetition sets in quickly.
Difficulty spikes keep the tension alive, but the balance isn’t perfect since it’s easy to become overpowered by the time the credits roll. Firefights can also swing from exhilarating to frustrating depending on whether the AI holds together. I ran into moments where enemies froze mid-fight, breaking immersion and draining the challenge. Equally strange: not every combat encounter locks you in, meaning it’s sometimes possible to just sprint past fights entirely. For a short campaign, that feels like a missed opportunity.
A Mesmerizing, Hypnotic Bullet Trance
If combat repetition is the Metal Eden’s weakness, its audiovisuals are the saving grace. Its environments shimmer with reflective floors, drifting mist, and bursts of particle effects that create a constant sense of motion. It’s got shades of Severed Steel’s trance-infused vibe, always urging you forward, never letting the screen feel static.
The soundtrack is equally effective: ominous beats and pulsating rhythms that ebb between atmospheric tension and full-on adrenaline rush. Together with the sound design—echoing gunfire, metallic shrieks, the hum of gravity hooks—it sells the illusion of a cybernetic daze collapsing around you.
Performance, at least on capable rigs, is silky smooth, delivering very high framerates. The UI, however, borders on cluttered. With Nexus’s chattering, action prompts, Aska’s cooldown timer, and the health bar and armor bar, the screen can get overwhelming. It’s not game-breaking, but it occasionally pulls you out of that otherwise intoxicating flow state.
Final Thoughts
Metal Eden is a short, sharp hit of sci-fi action—an FPS that leans hard into parkour combat, audiovisual style, and relentless pacing. Its narrative is thin, its enemy roster repeats itself too quickly, and the AI can wobble. But when the flow clicks, it delivers a thrill few shooters manage. It doesn’t overstay its welcome, clocking in at around four to five hours, and for all its flaws, the cohesion between sound, visuals, and kinetic combat makes the ride worth taking.
Additional Information
Release Date: Sep 2, 2025
Reviewed On: PC. Download code provided by the publisher and PR agency.
Developer: Reikon Games
Publisher: Deep Silver
Website: Metal Eden
Relevant links: Metal Eden on Steam
