Icarus is a stunning game with a magnificent landscape filled with beautiful flora, fauna, and creatures both familiar and unfamiliar. Icarus is NOT forgiving. I played the beta starting on weekend 2 and maybe that is an advantage as I see a lot of reviews complaining of how hard it is to unlock the tech tree and level and so on and so forth. This will be my 4th restart to level 0 character with ~150 hrs from beta and i'm already up to 11 with no deaths. You have to understand the game and have patience. This isn't something you can just rush into and think, I'll be fine, I'll just use my fists to beat the crap out of anything that comes at me. No, not how it works. There are consequences to rash behaviors in the game just like there would be IRL.

The start is rocky. You go down with nothing except the knowledge of how to build a stone pickaxe, an axe, and a stack of wood/rock. You labor to level and learn new things just like settlers had to do IRL when discovering "new" places. While laboring, you have to survive. Dig into a rock for shelter during storms if you haven't unlocked wood building at level 5 and don't wanna waste points on thatch buildings. Craft a bow and some stone arrows with your first or second level to unlock and kill to eat and level at the same time.

Take the first mission to LEARN the land. Learn the game when you have no rush to complete a serious mission. I played the beta and there are still new surprises to be found, but I'm still gonna go to level 15 before I complete the first mission and move on to a real mission. I'm enjoying the game without the rush to complete a mission in 3 days instead of the normal 20+ days. It is so nice to actually be able to fully ENJOY Icarus now and not wait for another 2 weeks after Sunday is over.

There are issues with every game at launch. Icarus has come leaps and bounds beyond that second weekend and I look forward to what more they have planned. However, I have played similar survival games that have been out for sooo long that still have bugs and issues, *cough* CONAN *cough*. Games come with bugs so grab your can of raid and let's just play the game. Devs will fix all the reports and this game has a lot of promise, but not for people who are used to rushing in and not giving it their all.

In summary, this game is survival, mission based survival. From the bit I have played during beta, each new mission requires you to start over in regards to shelter, but your knowledge will carry over so long as you do not lose your character during the previous mission. With completed missions, you get rewards that can be used to learn new skills and purcjahse items prior to your next drop so the next drop is a lot smoother and faster. It gives you a goal to keep playing and getting rewarded. Now, This game is best played with friends, especially if you want to hurry along and level faster and do more with less risk. Yet, solo IS POSSIBLE, but you have to play smart.

In summary, take your time if you are new to it during the first mission. Get a feel for the lay of the land and the mechanics behind the game. Enjoy the beauty and wonder of this world but respect it. Then, once you know what you are doing and have a few levels with the knowledge you need to move forward, go to the next mission. Run into bugs, report them and give the devs a chance to fix them. No game is perfect at launch; it's the players that make it perfect and help flesh it out.

Icarus is a stunning game with a magnificent landscape filled with beautiful flora, fauna, and creatures both familiar and unfamiliar. Icarus is NOT forgiving. I played the beta starting on weekend 2 and maybe that is an advantage as I see a lot of reviews complaining of how hard it is to unlock the tech tree and level and so on and so forth. This will be my 4th restart to level 0 character with ~150 hrs from beta and i'm already up to 11 with no deaths. You have to understand the game and have patience. This isn't something you can just rush into and think, I'll be fine, I'll just use my fists to beat the crap out of anything that comes at me. No, not how it works. There are consequences to rash behaviors in the game just like there would be IRL. The start is rocky. You go down with nothing except the knowledge of how to build a stone pickaxe, an axe, and a stack of wood/rock. You labor to level and learn new things just like settlers had to do IRL when discovering "new" places. While laboring, you have to survive. Dig into a rock for shelter during storms if you haven't unlocked wood building at level 5 and don't wanna waste points on thatch buildings. Craft a bow and some stone arrows with your first or second level to unlock and kill to eat and level at the same time. Take the first mission to LEARN the land. Learn the game when you have no rush to complete a serious mission. I played the beta and there are still new surprises to be found, but I'm still gonna go to level 15 before I complete the first mission and move on to a real mission. I'm enjoying the game without the rush to complete a mission in 3 days instead of the normal 20+ days. It is so nice to actually be able to fully ENJOY Icarus now and not wait for another 2 weeks after Sunday is over. There are issues with every game at launch. Icarus has come leaps and bounds beyond that second weekend and I look forward to what more they have planned. However, I have played similar survival games that have been out for sooo long that still have bugs and issues, *cough* CONAN *cough*. Games come with bugs so grab your can of raid and let's just play the game. Devs will fix all the reports and this game has a lot of promise, but not for people who are used to rushing in and not giving it their all. In summary, this game is survival, mission based survival. From the bit I have played during beta, each new mission requires you to start over in regards to shelter, but your knowledge will carry over so long as you do not lose your character during the previous mission. With completed missions, you get rewards that can be used to learn new skills and purcjahse items prior to your next drop so the next drop is a lot smoother and faster. It gives you a goal to keep playing and getting rewarded. Now, This game is best played with friends, especially if you want to hurry along and level faster and do more with less risk. Yet, solo IS POSSIBLE, but you have to play smart. In summary, take your time if you are new to it during the first mission. Get a feel for the lay of the land and the mechanics behind the game. Enjoy the beauty and wonder of this world but respect it. Then, once you know what you are doing and have a few levels with the knowledge you need to move forward, go to the next mission. Run into bugs, report them and give the devs a chance to fix them. No game is perfect at launch; it's the players that make it perfect and help flesh it out.