The Invincible | Xbox Review

I’m a huge fan of science fiction, and have read most of the classics of the genre. I have a confession to make, though: I’ve never read Stanisław Lem’s seminal work The Invincible. After playing Starward Industries’ video game adaptation, I definitely want to rectify this missing gap in my hard sci-fi reading log. This is a gem of a game, and the narrative had me hooked from beginning to end.

Space Oddity

You’re placed in the spacesuit of a woman named Yasna, who has crash-landed on a planet called Regis III. She wakes up confused and alone, and doesn’t remember how she even made it onto the planet. Yasna is an astrobiologist and was ordered to stay on her team’s spaceship while the others researched this unknown terrain. Why is she not on the ship? Where are her crewmates? That is your primary mission to uncover throughout the roughly 6.5 hour narrative.

I was heavily invested in Yasna’s journey, and the pacing of the story is fantastic. The twists and turns that were weaved in had me constantly glued to my screen, eagerly awaiting/dreading to find out what was about to happen. The writing was consistently strong and should delight fans of the genre. I genuinely cared for Yasna and held out hope that she would discover why she was on Regis III and would make her way off the planet. There are also multiple endings, and I wanted Yasna to have the best chance possible of survival.

Counting Stars

The Invincible is very much a “walking simulator”. There isn’t any combat (except for one occasion), and there is no threat of Yasna dying while uncovering the story. You simply walk around the desolate planet, occasionally climb rocky outcroppings, interact with certain objects, and communicate with your captain, Novik. Hearing Novik contact you through your comms is always welcome. He always calls Yasna as soon as things start to feel a bit lonely for her. Of course, you have several different dialogue choices to select from, so you can be either friendly or downright rude to him if you fancy that. I didn’t want to burn any bridges and was hoping to achieve the best ending possible, so of course I was Mrs. Nice Lady while playing.

You already know if you’re a fan of this style of game, and this will be unlikely to convert you if you’re not crazy about the genre. Yasna walks very slowly, and while she can sprint, it’s only in extremely short bursts. The Invincible asks for your patience, and you’re richly rewarded for it if you choose to dive into its narrative.

Cosmic Girl

This is undeniably a gorgeous game. I adored the retro aesthetics of the gear and spaceships, and it’s a sheer delight when a pop of color appears amongst the dusty atmosphere. Another cool feature that is implemented adds even more to the beauty of The Invincible. Whenever you make a crucial story choice, a comic strip is added to a journal accessed via the pause screen/main menu. Seeing these decisions illustrated in this art style is an absolute joy and had me pausing my game just to read and appreciate these panels.

The voice acting is also superb. Daisy May (Steep, The Last Kingdom) shines as Yasna, while Jason Baughan (Evil West, Fable: The Journey) brings a soothing attitude to the game as Novik. Not everything is golden, though. I did encounter some audio issues during my playthrough. Dialogue would sometimes randomly cut out, and later in the game when you gain access to a vehicle, an awful noise sometimes occurs while driving. There is no reason for this sound to happen, and it was grating to my ears. Luckily, it only cropped up a few times. The sound issues are honestly the only downsides I experienced with The Invincible.

The Final Verdict

The Invincible is an incredible sci-fi game with a phenomenal narrative. It hooks you from start to finish, and it fully immerses you in the world of Regis III. Aside from some audio issues, this is a must-play if you love this genre of game. The addition of multiple endings and different actions occurring because of your choices adds a decent amount of replayability. It will be a while before I forget my time spent with The Invincible, and now I’m itching to pick up the source material to see how closely the narratives match up.

To hear me talk more about The Invincible, be sure to listen to the January 6, 2024 episode of The Gaming Outsider podcast.

This review is based on an Xbox copy of The Invincible provided by Evolve PR for coverage purposes. It is also available on PlayStation 5 and PC via Steam, Epic Games Store, and GOG.