Tron: Catalyst Reviews

I apologize for the delay. It took me a while to get the review for Tron: Catalyst done because the game was simply failing to engross me. Whenever I booted it up on the ROG Ally, I’d get bored immediately after. And that’s terrible, as I was really looking forward to playing a more action-oriented take on Tron, considering how the previous outing, Tron: Identity (which Catalyst is a sequel to), was actually a visual novel of sorts. Now, before I continue, let me preface that this is not ...

A disappointingly drab Tron tie-in that wastes some interesting ideas on dull and repetitive combat and an unequally unengaging story.

Tron: Catalyst isn’t a terrible game, but it is definitely in the wrong genre. Its engaging setting and excellent time-travel mechanics carried me far beyond the point where I got bored of the shallow combat system and frustrating vehicle sections. Despite the visuals and story feeling very Tron, it doesn’t capture the same feel of the movies. Honestly, if you can’t make a light cycle fun to ride, you have no place making a Tron game.

On the whole, Tron: Catalyst feels like a successor of sorts to the classic AA games from the Xbox 360 generation. It's a simple and fun action-adventure game that doesn't have any bloat, but it has a handful of notable problems that hold it back from greatness. Tron: Catalyst is being sold for just $25, and honestly, it’s worth the asking price. It can keep players entertained for a day or two, even if they're a newcomer to the Tron franchise.

Tron: Catalyst is an intriguing isometric action-adventure game that throws you into the iconic Grid in an all-new way. The unique mechanics and satisfying combat make up for the occasional slow section, while the tight runtime keeps the somewhat repetitive nature from ever becoming an issue. If you love Tron, this is a great way to spend some hours.

TRON: Catalyst is a solid top-down action-adventure for TRON fans to experience more of the digital world. Despite its back-and-forth nature with the looping feature, it has simple controls, fun abilities, fast combat, and a detailed story to uncover, and of course, it has that precious Light Cycle.

I’m a massive fan of TRON, but more specifically, I’m a massive fan of TRON: Legacy. The 2010 sci-fi sequel has been cemented in my subconscious since the day it came out. The world it built has always been so captivating to me, with sleek metal obelisks and neon colorized highlights dancing around in my dreams most nights. It’s all complemented by gripping audio design, from the roar of the light cycles to the zap of a bouncing identity disc and the iconic Daft Punk curated score. Every opportunity I get to revisit that world is a thrill, so I’ve been chomping at the bit to get my hands on the latest spinoff of my favorite sci-fi property – TRON: Catalyst.

A mega-TRON game, am I right?

A smart and inventive RPG-lite, and a worthy entry in the TRON canon.

TRON: Catalyst perfectly captures the franchise's world setting and introduces new and interesting characters. It's a good game for those who want to revisit the grid without worrying too much about the combat, but the loop system is, without a doubt, the highlight of this game.

I have some expectations when I look at something in Disney’s Tron universe. I expect blue and red light accents on the characters, a good electronica soundtrack, light cycles, disc throwing, and copious amounts of de-rezzing of characters as they struggle with the questions of individuality, choice, and purpose. Tron: Catalyst is a new game that goes after all these checkboxes, but it does so in such a way that made it hard for me to be enthused. It wasn’t a particularly broken or frustrating experience, but Tron: Catalyst also didn’t leave me with big feelings, even if its biggest gimmick tries its darndest to make things interesting.

TRON is an odd multimedia series – starting with the Disney film TRON in 1982, it has been intermittently in and out of the cultural zeitgeist since, with TRON: Legacy being released in 2010 and this game being followed up by only the third film in its 43-year history, TRON: Ares. Amidst that, there has been a range of theme park attractions, an animated series in 2012 and a short film, but also, perhaps unsurprisingly given the series’ subject matter, there has been a long history of vid...

The media hype train is starting to ramp up for the upcoming third Tron movie. Bithell Games has been tasked with developing a new game set within the same universe. TRON: Catalyst has just released, and it has a lot more interactivity than Bithell Games’ last entry, TRON: Identity. We’ve spent some time locked into the Arq Grid, and have our TRON: Catalyst review ready right now.

Tron: Catalyst competently gets the job done as an action game, but it's rarely more than just good.

TRON: Catalyst leverages the mythos of its long-running setting for an intriguing premise, one hampered by middling combat and objectives.

TRON: Catalyst is a fun, futuristic game full of disc battles, Light Cycles, neon, and time loops. It’s a title to try out for yourself!

While I think TRON: Catalyst leaves a little to be desired, it's still an excellent action adventure and brings the TRON world to life in a way few games have.

Tron: Catalyst successfully captures the spirit of the franchise. Its striking aesthetics and pulsing electronic score immerse you in the iconic digital world. The game’s strength lies in its commitment to storytelling, with clever narrative techniques driving the plot. While the combat is serviceable, it lacks the depth found in many of its genre peers. Still, these elements come together to deliver a narrative-driven experience that remains true to Tron’s identity, even if the gameplay doesn’t always live up to the ambition of its story.

Despite a solid set-up and the joys of disc-throwing and lightcycle action, Tron: Catalyst ends up being more style than substance, failing to truly build on predecessor Tron: Identity. It's fun while it lasts, and is visually gorgeous, but an overly repetitive structure drags things out with a story that ultimately falls flat.

Tron: Catalyst is the latest title by Bithell Games, the studio created by Mike Bithell of Thomas was Alone fame. While the developer had previously entered the world of Disney’s Tron with a text adventure experience that mixed a visual novel format and puzzles, this time they have created a 3D action adventure game.

TRON: Catalyst gets off to a good start, promising varied gameplay and a neat time-loop mechanic. The trouble is, it soon devolves in a dull affair with way too much repetitive combat, and the time-loop mechanic is mostly wasted.

Tron: Catalyst has an interesting story and world that fans will love, but the combat and exploration come up short of being worthy of the Users.

Although I was initially intrigued, I found my eyes glazing over whenever a new dialogue scene started up. Often, I find myself rushing through combat to get to dialogue scenes in better story-rich games, especially ones that allow me to participate in the conversation. Here, I found myself speed reading to get back to the action. This is partially because I felt simultaneously overwhelmed and uninterested in lore dumps about the Arq Grid, and partially because it didn't feel like my dialogue choices had any major impact on the course of the game.

Tron: Catalyst did a great job of making me feel I was part of the Tron Universe, but it did a poor job of keeping me engaged. The characters, music, and voice work were great, but the combat became repetitive in the first hour, and the exploration didn't offer anything engaging to look forward to. For Tron fans, Catalyst is a no-brainer. For everyone else, it won't make you love or hate Tron more or less than you do now.

Bithell Games returns to the world of TRON with TRON: Catalyst. Following in the footsteps of visual novel TRON: Identity, Catalyst is something of a different beast. Much more ambitious in scope across the board, this is an action-adventure brawler that incorporates light RPG elements.

After a slow start, TRON: Catalyst fires on all cylinders in the second half of its narrative, with a great original story backed by a spectacular time loop take on the Metroidvania genre. While the quest objectives and combat can become wearisome, riding around on a Light Cycle is still as cool as it’s always looked, and the alluring neon of the grid is captivating. Albeit with caveats, Catalyst is worth chippin’ into.