Underspace

Ok, I know my playtime is short in this but Ive also messed with the demo a few times previously and the same problem from back then is still very much apparent and is edging me towards reluctantly refunding - the audio. This is a weird one, I cant thumbs down for an issue not all people will perceive as bad as I do but I'm also not sure if ill keep the game as I don't know if I can actually cope with it. Before I get into that let me say some good stuff. I'm an old Freelancer fanboy and spent way too many hours in the campaign and on the old Jolt multiplayer servers back in the day, this game manages to keep the vibe of the original while adding some more stuff to the mix. I personally didnt think I'd be into the Eldritch elements but what I did see was truly impressive and nails the visual atmosphere so damn well with horror elements that just ooze class. It had me on the edge of the seat the first time I went into the storm! The planetside first person sections are a welcome sight for any old FL head too, its such an experience to walk around! The visuals genuinely get me chubbed up so far. UI is very similar to FL, even the hotkeys for things match FL which was nice, muscle memory kicks in straight away. Some issues here or there with the UI but nothing worth much mention. Controls seem a bit sluggish compared to the OG FL and the mode where you have to click on screen first to turn seems to only engage the turning when the mouse is near the edges of the screen which is a weird change from the OG control scheme. I really want to play more of this and see everything it has to offer but from the minute I started playing I'm repeatedly smashed in the head by the audio. I'm going to state something here which is going to sound harsh (no pun intended) - the audio in this game is among the WORST I've heard in recent times. I'm struggling to think of anything else and I'm not saying that to be mean. Anyway, rather than just make that statement I'll go into detail: The balance is all over the place - the music doesnt sit well in the mix (part of this could be the music choices, a simpler scifi ambient style would literally sit better in a busy audio mix than pirates of the caribean in space stuff), the individual SFX have wildly different volumes and everything just doesnt sound like it's in the game space at all. It all sounds completely disconnected from the experience. Its an absolute experience killer for me. The SFX are dry, uninspired and some are outright questionable choices especially considering the strange volume issues compounding the issue. The ship engine either sounds ear splittingly loud or is whispering quiet depending on flight mode - there is a weird audio pan on the engine sound when you move your ship side to side and it just sounds odd. The mission chime is both obnoxiously loud in the mix and almost designed to annoy a player - a super tinny high pitched transient blended into a chime sound. The explosions in the intro have no weight, the gun sounds seem totally meh and the hit sounds seem even meh-er. This is all present in the first few minutes of the game, and I find it impossible to ignore. The start sequence of the user playing the game after the intro is like a checklist of how to show off your bad audio design - loud elevator sounds with no background musical ambience, super loud low end drones while on landing pads (non looping, enjoy that sample ending and repeating over and over again if you stand there longer than a short while), followed by a HUGE difference in volume level when you go to the office (almost silent besides the sounds of the trains passing outside) and then while in the silent office that obnoxious mission chime kicks in giving your ears a jumpscare mixed with nails on a chalkboard. Then you embark and get slammed with a hodgepodge mix of audio once you leave the planet rings...at which point i assume most players just turn the speakers volume right down - if they hadnt already from the mission chime lol. I mean this from a good place - please for the love of Gaben do an extra audio pass! I understand that its essentially a solo dev's passion project and as a Freelancer fan I almost, almost LOVE this game, damn, I WANT to love this game. But if it takes someone with better ears to help out then I would really suggest you get someone involved to help. It would make a huge difference to the players experience - at bare minimum they should not have to ride the volume to play a game without getting ear-raped.