Fort Solis

Barely a game, and it even takes control of you at certain points. Failing certain checks funnily also seem to have no effect at all. It's as linear as it gets. No mental effort required at all.
It looks nice. Very nice, actually. Performance-wise, though, it's not too optimized.
Nevertheless, I'd recommend it for people who, like me, enjoy story rich games. If you want something more than that, leave it alone.
I finished it in a little less than 5 hours.
3 crocodiles out of 7.

I have a feeling that most of the negative reviews here stem from misguided expectations about this game. Upon learning that it is a space horror, some players probably expected it to be a Dead Space-type game with plenty of scary moments and action.
This is not an action game - nor even a puzzle game. It is an interactive experience, a genre more commonly known as a “walking simulator.” I feel this is the most important thing to stress when discussing this game.
That said, this doesn’t mean it’s a bad game - au contraire. It’s just important to understand what you’re getting into so you can set your expectations accordingly. In my opinion, if you are a fan of space exploration, Mars, and abandoned place-type mysteries, you’ll enjoy this short experience. However, don’t buy the game at full price - wait for a solid discount.
Gameplay Mechanics
As I’ve said, this game is very light on gameplay mechanics; they exist primarily to remind you from time to time that this is, in fact, a game. You’ll walk around, open doors, and interact with objects in the environment so that characters can comment on them.
Occasionally, you’ll find batteries and keycards that allow you to open doors or enter codes somewhere, but these are extremely straightforward - certainly not something you’d call a puzzle. There are also a few quick-time events, but they’re more annoying than exciting, and it seems that only the very last one has any impact on the story.
Controls, Camera, and UI
I’ve grouped these aspects into one category because they all contribute to the overall user experience when playing this game. I absolutely love that the game is very light on the HUD: most of the time, there are no HUD elements during gameplay, which greatly enhances immersion. It’s just you, the hostile dust storms of Mars, and the eerie, desolate Fort Solis base.
I also love the game’s diegetic UI. All information is stored on a bracelet-like personal tablet or comm device worn by the characters. When you access the map, messages, vlogs, or audio logs, your character physically raises their hand, and you view them as if looking through their eyes. This approach adds to the immersion and strengthens the visual storytelling.
The game’s third-person camera is generally fine, but at times, it can feel strange and laggy.
Combined with the somewhat awkward movement, this occasionally makes me feel slightly dizzy. On the other hand, I absolutely love the camera work in scripted action scenes. As with most games of this type, your character can’t run, jump, or duck, which can be frustrating when even the smallest obstacles force you to take a detour instead of simply stepping over them.
Graphics and Visuals
Fort Solis boasts exceptional graphics, featuring high-quality textures and stunning particle effects - especially the dust storms outside. The real star, however, is ray tracing, which is absolutely phenomenal. The lighting effects set the mood perfectly, from the stormy Martian dusk outside to the dimly lit interiors of Fort Solis, where reflections play beautifully off various surfaces.
In terms of visual variety, there isn’t much, as the game is confined to a single outpost on Mars. However, within that limited space, the developers have ensured that each section feels authentic and lived-in, with numerous small and large details that enhance the realism of the environment.
Writing: Setting & Story
As you’re probably aware, the game is set on Mars at the tail end of this century, when humanity has established bases for exploration and resource extraction. While I doubt we’ll have such advanced facilities on Mars within this timeframe, the setting remains grounded in reality, with nothing standing out as particularly unrealistic.
The game begins with an urgent distress message from Fort Solis to our protagonists - engineers working nearby - during storm season, when operations are limited to maintenance and most field workers have returned to the central base. You head there to investigate, and from that moment, the mystery unfolds.
The setting is compelling, and the developers have nailed the atmosphere. If you enjoy these kinds of mysteries, you’ll absolutely love it. As you progress through Fort Solis and unlock new areas, you’ll uncover the station’s recent history through environmental storytelling and numerous audio recordings, vlogs, emails, and messages from its senior officers. Slowly, piece by piece, you’ll start to put the story together.
It can be hard to follow the story, but the good thing is that everything you find will be stored on your personal device, and you can review all the information whenever you want in order to learn more and connect the dots.
Writing: Characters
In my opinion, the characters are well-written, and their motivations and actions seem reasonable and strong, given the context of the story, their roles in Fort Solis, and the game’s setting. While we learn about most of them only through the aforementioned vlogs, audio recordings, and emails, the game gives us enough information to learn not only about their job but also about their private life, making them feel more like personas and not just plot elements, which enhances the story and makes the events that have taken place here more impactful and grounded.
Sound Design & Voice Acting
For this game, the studio has assembled a team of A-list voice actors, and I can confidently say they’ve delivered top-notch performances. The delivery, intonations, dramatic pauses, and comedic lines are executed professionally and convincingly.
The sound design is equally impeccable, perfectly capturing the atmosphere of an abandoned Mars base, where every sound adds to the creepiness and sense of being watched. The same applies to the sounds of the outside environment, which make you feel trapped in the middle of a chaotic Mars dust storm.
Performance and Optimisation
Given the intense use of ray tracing and high-quality textures, the game generally runs well and is well-optimized. However, there are occasional sudden frame drops and stutters, usually when the game loads new areas or elements. While this isn't ideal, it’s not a frequent issue.
What’s more concerning is a strange noise/shimmering effect on many textures, which can be quite immersion-breaking. It resembles water reflections, but there’s no water present. This flaw detracts from what would otherwise be great visuals, and once you notice it, it’s hard to ignore.

Last I played a game set on Mars I Was fighting demons with a shotgun.
If you like story-driven space games and aren't concerned about slow pacing (due solely to the walking speed), and you're okay with it being a 4 to 6 hour only game, then go for it. I enjoyed it and it had a thought provoking story that I feel is deeper than what's on the surface. If we were in 2015 this game would've suffered the same fate as The Order 1886 but I'm glad we've left that kind of blind judgment behind in 2025 as a more mature community. The atmosphere is there, the story is intriguing but the gameplay consists of a lot of walking, reading, watching videos, examining items and quick time events.
I literally missed like 90% of the QTE and didn't suffer any consequences. It's a chill, slow burn of a game. Don't expect ANY vicersal interactive combat. It's like watching a movie. I think i enjoyed it now that I'm getting older. See this game, as FireWatch but on Mars, in Third Person... and at the end, it’s UP TO YOU ... to piece this story together.
Unfortunately many people play without understanding what game they are playing! It's like going to watch a romantic movie thinking it's an action movie instead! And then judge it as if it were an action movie! And obviously a romantic movie can only receive negative ratings from those who judge it as if it were an action movie! What is Fort Solis? It's not an action game for sure! Forget it! Are you looking for action, combats, shootings, easy fun, usual challenges and achievements, jump scares, hard puzzles, etc? Forget it! It's not the game for you!
So, what is Fort Solis? It's a psychological sci-fi thriller based on thick deep atmosphere, great acting, good dialogues, very good story, compelling interactive narrative, impressive mo-cap animations, wise direction and one of the best graphics ever in videogames. This game oozes atmosphere, even though there isn't combat, people saying "ItS a BoRInG WaLKiNg SiMuLaTOr" can f*ck off. Watch a David Lynch movie or even Event Horizon, sh*t, even a great game like Alien: Isolation doesn't have that much combat. Horror doesn't equal "combat" or "blasting sh*t into oblivion".
Fort Solis is the most horrifying type of horror. Isolation, confusion, doubt and paranoia. Another good example would be Soma. This is a game you have to taste slowly as a vintage red wine, not fast as a lager beer. I'm sad to say though that most people don't understand "existential horror" or "slow burn horror". Michael Myers, Kruger and the Thing isn't something we always need to scare us. Watch the movie "Banshee Chapter" if you need convincing. The fear of the unknown, or in Fort Solis' case, the fear of what would drive people to that level of insanity is the ultimate fear. Because it's palpable. Freddy, Michael, Art (from Terrifier) etc... are only in our dreams.
Some people pretend that a person wearing a bulky, heavy and rigid space suit on a low-gravity alien planet and a helmet equipped with an oxygen respirator should run and act like in an action film set on planet Earth! They make me laugh! They remind me of those players who expected the blind little girl to move quickly in the game Beyond Eyes! Is that the average intelligence of gamers? OMG! I'm still laughing! You can patch the walking speed on PC if it annoys you that much anyhow. Fortunately Fort Solis is a realistic and serious experience with great care for such details. I really really enjoyed the direction of the whole experience, very serious, mature, realistic, plausible, with the right pace suitable for a psychological thriller set in space that pays a lot of attention to the characters rather than stupid action scenes at all costs or easy jumps scares or puzzles and challenges that are dissonant with the narrative.
Sure, the devs could have made exploration a bit more focused, but what they have provided gives the mundane aspect of someone discovering what tf is going on. Could it have been more focused? Sure. But I'm mostly pleased with what was presented to me. The game is not bad. Its more of an interactive movie and if its not for you then its fine, but calling it bad because it did not hit your spot is kinda not fair. I enjoyed it and it seems most other people did too. I agree though, that the price is definitely too high for like 3-4 hours of gaming so definitely wait for a sale.
8/10

A short walking sim set in a creepy Mars base in the future. There's an alluring atmosphere and some dialogues are nice to listen, there is no danger whatsoever for the player (a bit more for the characters) and surprisingly QTE's have close to zero impact. You can be fighting, miss them and the fights ends in the same identical way. This is not exactly motivating in putting effort in them. They story is pretty generic and the ending, well, not exactly worth of an Oscar, but the game itself looks quite good and for it's length it can be a nice escapade from this planet. Don't expect too much though.

The game's story and atmosphere are beautiful, and the silence makes you feel like you're really in space. However, the gameplay is almost non-existent and the game's pace is slow.

◦ Fort Solis is a great short game. The suspense builds as the story unfolds beutifully.
(Felt like SOMA storytelling met Resident Evil 2 Lab level without zombies atmosphere...)

◦ Was it fun to 100%?
Yes. I was missing 1 poster and 5 collectibles when I finished the story without a guide. Had to restart the game to drink the beer and finish the collection.

◦ Completion Time: 7h

This game is a mixed bag for me. The highlights would be the story (short but sweet), atmosphere (who doesn't like exploring narrow claustrophobia-inducing spaces on Mars) and graphics (simply stunning). On the other hand, the gameplay is atrocious, it basically consists of walking around (can't even sprint) and doing quick time events (some of which don't seem to matter).
Definitely not worth spending the full price for this thing, or those 15 euros it goes for right now. However, if you can find it somewhere else cheaper it's not that bad, especially for people who like this genre.