Gunfire Games set out to do something unusual with Remnant: From the Ashes in 2019: take the challenging, death-heavy structure of souls-like games and build it around guns instead of swords, then add co-op and procedural generation. The combination sounded ambitious on paper, and the execution landed well enough to build a dedicated community. The game sold millions of copies and earned a sequel, which says something about how well the formula clicked.
Steam reviews sit at Very Positive overall, with around 86% approval from over twenty-four thousand reviews. The community consistently highlights the co-op experience as the game’s strongest pillar, while solo players and those frustrated by certain boss encounters represent the bulk of the criticism.
Shooting Through Souls-Like Structure
The co-op design is where Remnant establishes its identity. Playing with up to two other players transforms encounters from survival challenges into coordinated tactical exercises. Covering angles, managing aggro, and reviving fallen teammates creates a rhythm that pure souls-like games don’t offer. The game was clearly designed with multiplayer in mind, and the encounters sing when a full squad is communicating.
Procedural world generation keeps the campaign from growing stale across multiple playthroughs. Dungeons, enemy configurations, and even boss encounters shift between sessions, which means comparing notes with friends about wildly different experiences becomes part of the appeal. Two players can progress through the same campaign and face entirely different challenges, and that unpredictability adds a social layer on top of the gameplay.
The shooting mechanics feel solid. Weapons have weight and impact, and the arsenal spans enough archetypes that different builds feel meaningfully distinct. Shotguns, rifles, and more exotic options each encourage different playstyles, and the mod system that attaches special abilities to weapons adds a layer of build customization that gives long-term play direction.
World design offers genuine variety across its dimensional settings. Post-apocalyptic Earth, alien swamps, desert ruins, and other environments each bring their own enemy types and visual identity. The commitment to distinct biomes keeps exploration interesting and prevents the procedural elements from feeling repetitive.
Bosses That Don’t Always Fight Fair
Boss encounters represent the most divisive element. Some fights feel well-designed and rewarding, testing pattern recognition and build efficiency. Others feel punishing in ways that don’t teach you anything useful, with add-spawns and arena hazards that create chaos rather than challenge. The gap between the best and worst boss encounters is wide, and the procedural system means you can’t predict which you’ll face.
Solo play is functional but clearly secondary. Encounters balanced for multiplayer can feel overwhelming alone, and the AI companion system doesn’t compensate for the tactical flexibility that human players bring. The game is playable solo, and some players prefer it, but the design clearly favors groups.
The story and world-building occupy a strange middle ground. The lore is present but easy to ignore, and the narrative doesn’t provide strong motivation beyond the gameplay loop. Players looking for a compelling reason to push forward beyond the desire for better loot and harder fights won’t find it here. The world is interesting enough to explore, but the story connecting the pieces is thin.
Progression can feel limited in spots. The weapon and armor upgrade system is straightforward, and while build variety exists, the depth doesn’t match dedicated RPGs. Players who want extensive character customization may find the options narrower than expected.
Guns and Determination
Remnant: From the Ashes found its audience by filling a gap nobody realized was empty. Souls-like difficulty plus guns plus co-op plus procedural generation sounds like a feature list that shouldn’t cohere, but Gunfire Games made it work. The individual pieces aren’t best-in-class, but the combination offers something no other game does in quite the same way.
Should You Play Remnant: From the Ashes?
Anyone looking for a challenging co-op experience that offers something different from the standard horde-shooter formula. If you have friends interested in tackling difficult content together and you enjoy build-focused RPG elements, Remnant delivers a unique combination. The procedural generation makes repeat playthroughs worthwhile.
Skip it if you plan to play exclusively solo, as the design leans heavily toward multiplayer balance. Also reconsider if inconsistent boss quality is a deal-breaker for you, because some encounters will test your patience more than your skill.
The Verdict on Remnant: From the Ashes
Remnant: From the Ashes carves out its own space by merging souls-like combat with third-person shooting and procedural world generation. The co-op experience is where it shines brightest, with up to three players working through challenging encounters that reward coordination over raw skill. Solo play works but feels noticeably thinner, and some boss encounters lean more on frustration than fair challenge. The procedurally generated worlds keep replay value high even after the initial campaign wraps.