Endling - Extinction is Forever is a hardcore, emotional survival game developed by Herobeat Studios and published by HandyGames. Endling puts players in the shoes of a mother fox, similar to the mechanics of the Shelter series, with the primary focus put on keeping her litter of kits alive in a harsh and unrelenting environment. The game offers a bleak look into a world consumed by pollution, and the effects it has on people, wildlife, and nature as a whole.
Players start their journey as the last remaining mother fox preparing to give birth. After a harrowing escape from a destructive fire, she finds herself in the safety of a small den, where her four kits are born. The primary narrative follows the player's attempts to locate one of the babies after they are stolen out of the den, taking them deep into the increasingly dangerous locations on the game's map. Players must hunt food to feed the remaining kits, teach them important survival skills, and avoid being attacked by the remaining people and predators lurking in the darkness of each night.
Endling - Extinction is Forever takes a unique camera approach compared to many other survival-style games. The hybrid-side scroller limit's the player's field of view, requiring them to pay attention to the audio queues and the small warning icons that appear when something dangerous is ahead. Players are limited to exploring specific paths set down throughout the maps, with obstacles like animal traps and pitfalls requiring creative problem solving to get around. Additionally, players must rely heavily on their fox's sense of smell. By holding down the left bumper on the Nintendo Switch Joy-Con, it is possible to see and follow different sents, including various types of prey and the scent of the missing kit.
Hunting will take up the majority of each night in Endling, with players focused on collecting berries, hunting small animals, and digging through the garbage. On rare and lucky occasions, it is possible to find special locations on the map that a kit can squeeze into, allowing them to assist in collecting food once the skill is unlocked. While designed to mimic the struggle the mother fox faces in the broken world, this hunting mechanic can become a grueling grind after a handful of in-game days elapse. Players will often find that food sources in each area dry up quickly and prey animals may not always be worth hunting, as the amount of energy they restore to the cubs doesn't quite balance with the amount of energy used when walking. This can quickly become frustrating and repetitive when trying to explore new areas.
The map in Endling is surprisingly large and diverse. Players will have the ability to travel through struggling forests as well as broken-down warehouses and garbage dumps, with the current season affecting the atmosphere of each location. However, navigating these areas can be a real challenge thanks to the lack of an on-screen map. Players will often find themselves using the "-" button on the face of their Switch to open the full map, as it is easy to get turned around on the winding paths that snake through each area. Additionally, badger hole shortcuts can spit a player out in an area they may not be familiar with, creating issues with getting turned around. The addition of an on-screen navigation map bubble would be particularly helpful and help make a more immersive exploration experience.
Endling - Extinction is Forever also struggles with a few optimization issues that can create frustration for players. The most notable is the loading screen wait times when leaving dens and starting new in-game days. These loading screen times can take several minutes, occasionally hanging for extended durations. Additionally, it is possible for the game to become stuck when players pick up food, making it impossible to set the food down to feed their kits. This requires a reset of the day through the start menu, which can be extremely frustrating for those who are reaching the end of their night. The game can also become stuck and not offer survival prompts when players need to escape from plastic bags or attack aggressive humans, requiring the same soft reset to continue playing.
While the survival elements of Endling - Extinction is Forever would benefit from balancing and glitch patches, the gut-wrenching story is more than enough to keep players moving forward. The game offers a shocking glimpse into the long-term effects of pollution, and how it specifically impacts innocent wildlife. Players invested in climate change, wildlife conservation, or emotionally intense narratives will likely enjoy Endling and find its overarching story gripping despite the bleak atmosphere. However, the title may not be a good pick for casual gamers or those who enjoy survival narratives that are fantasy-driven, as it specifically focuses on displaying the real-world effects of habitat destruction and pollution. Despite this, Endling, Extinction is Forever is a deeply emotional and thought-evoking journey that will leave an impression on anyone who chooses to play it.
Endling - Extinction is Forever releases on the Nintendo Switch, Xbox, PlayStation, and PC via steam on July 19, 2022. Screen Rant was provided with a Nintendo Switch code for the purpose of this review.
Endling - Extinction is Forever
- Released
- July 19, 2022
