Nightingale

TLDR: Get it when its in the sale, its beautiful, prepare to be frustrated, worth a play.
It doesn't deserve a thumbs down, and it doesn't deserve a thumbs up, the potential it has, saved it from a thumbs down seeing as there's no middle ground.
I jumped ship on launch day after 2 hours, it took me 16 months to even want to jump back in, at the time of writing this I'm 142 hours deep.
Due to playing with peeps across various time zones It was the lure of the dedicated servers that drew me back in, mostly for one of my gaming besties who's literally on the opposite time to me by 11 hours, we manage to make gaming together work really well with dedi servers.
I jumped back into the beta testing branch as soon as they announced it was open, and I was blown away, I honestly forgot how picturesque it was, I just ran around for ages taking in the scenery, and I could not wait to jump back in with my friends.
Then reality of the multiplayer reality struck.
Whilst its nice that we could work on our builds and farming materials when we were playing solo without each having to be online, actually playing together was a nightmare.
Where one goes, you all go.
Yes I'm fully aware the whole point is to play together, but there's always going to be occasions where some people want to work on their bases, some want the combat, some want to farm mats, some just want to explore and forage, so getting pulled through portals by other players when you're vibing differently became tiresome very, very quickly, and we chose to do most things together, even the mediocre, and it still became super frustrating,
Initially we could all grab the essence from cleared buildings, even if we missed doing them, then after the first few major realms, we had an issue where if the puzzle/bastille was completed and others weren't there for it, we couldn't go back to grab the essence as we could previously without resetting the realm. Lets be realistic here, what are the odds of everyone always being on to complete stuff? Someone's always gonna miss out.
This led to some of us having a tier 2 drought despite trying to be on at the same time, and not being able to progress without mindnumbingly farming infestations for literal hours.
Still, we overlooked all that and cracked on because we were having so much fun, and the game is stunningly beautiful. Then for me at about realm 4 completion, it started feeling hollow and empty, I started getting bored, so noticed just how much was recoloured copy paste assets, the lore felt like it lost it's guts, it started feeling like we were being sent back and forth a lot as a content filler.
Building is my favourite in any survival, but even that became tiresome, there's just not enough decor, I'd even have welcomed the lazily (?) named, possibly forgotten to be renamed items in the abandoned houses called "internal junk" lol! We stopped building new bases midway through for this reason.
Minor realms; the first couple were fun because of the different biomes and colouring, but even they became tedious with the emptiness and repetitiveness. Again we stopped bothering with them unless we needed them.
The bosses are a walkover, we never really felt super challenged until end game.
Which brings me to my final issue. We were so excited to get to the city, me especially after I wanted to dip out a good 50 hours previously, I felt victorious for not quitting, and also so relieved it was all almost over, but even that was short lived.
We went from being over powered all game except for initial new realm transitions to being totally underpowered, but having no way to get the currency to get the end game weapons except for tackling the quests.
We max upgraded with essence so only had the gold items left to buy. We got through it, completed it, cutscened and then went and bought the end game gear we had no use for.
I could not wait to uninstall it and be done.
Personally I would have extended the lead up to walking out into the city with chances to earn gold so we can at least end the game with the hard earned end game weapons and clothing.
What use are end game weapons after you've beat the game? There was no reward, no dopamine hit, just relief it was finally over.
The bones are there, but boy do they need fleshing out, or maybe, even removing some content to really make an awesome game, its got legs, but they have their work cut out.

Do you like survival/crafting games as a solo player? If so, give it a try and form your own opinion! I'm having a blast so far in Offline Mode. Adding a positive review for anyone reading during the 80% off sale.

A Survival Game That Dares to Be Different
I’ve played Nightingale extensively, and it’s honestly one of the most unique survival games out there. The combat is a blast — firearms feel powerful, and hunting down the right materials to craft an overpowered gun is incredibly satisfying. I do miss the older crafting system where resources had deeper stats and colors tied to materials, which let you create truly unique weapons. Even though it’s simpler now, the guns still look fantastic and can hit like a truck with the right setup.
The item mod system is another standout. Equipping charms on clothing and gear adds variety and creativity beyond the usual boring stat boosts you see in other games. It makes experimentation fun and rewarding.
The world itself is something special. Gaslamp fantasy mixed with Fae mythology and Shakespearian language gives the game a style that’s unlike anything else in the genre. The card system that alters realms is clever and adds replayability. Realms feel alive with NPCs, creatures, and mythical beings — enough to keep exploration engaging without the chaos of overcrowded multiplayer.
Building is solid (early issues have been fixed), traversal works fine once you adapt, and enemies like the Bound are genuinely terrifying. And for those who claimed the story wasn’t finished: Nightingale City is here now, and it’s impressive.
Yes, some changes weren’t in my best interest, and hype may have set expectations too high. But that doesn’t justify the unfair review bombing. This game has been scrutinized far more harshly than it deserves. For me, Nightingale sits comfortably in my top 10 games of all time.
If you want a survival game with style, depth, and mechanics that expand beyond the usual formula, Nightingale is absolutely worth your time.

I'm only about 20 hours in, but some of these negative reviews seem a little...unfair. So, I wanted to leave some thoughts for prospective players:
1.) The game is gorgeous. Coming off of a fresh play of Lies of P, the whole gaspunk style is ♥♥♥♥♥♥ awesome. You FEEL like you've stepped into this magical faery world. Sunkissed vistas, waterfalls, fantastical wildlife, statues from lost civilizations. I have about 1,000 hours in Ark. That game is pretty too, but when you're sprinting through the jungle you're really either just looking for materials or going from A to B. In Nightingale, i find myself turning my brain off and just enjoying the experience of being in this fantasy world.
2.) This isn't a another early access survival game with different assets. Don't get me wrong, there's obviously mechanics in the game that need a lot of work (looking at you AI companions). But it's a super unique title in the genre, in my opinion. You're not a shipwrecked survivor or digging through your downed airplane for supplies, you're whisked away, between dimensions by a faery, and become a 'Realmwalker'; capable of basically traveling across dimensions. It's sick. There are quest lines for every new zone you unlock, challenges, ♥♥♥♥ all over the maps to do, with a fairly generous variety in flora and fauna. Though admittedly, there is some recoloring of assets.
Game systems, i don't know, I have a lot of experience in this genre, so I found everything super intuitive. I was never really lost as far as progression. In regards to the comment about resource gathering, you can literally automate all of it with the companions, I'm 20 hours in and really don't want for any material XD
3.) The crafting is enjoyable and unique; I think the assets are cool, and there's a ton of variety in the resources; everything you collect has certain stat bonuses, so when you're crafting, it allows you to min-max your stamina or your health, or regen, etc. And that's for the gear. The food is the same way. The magic system is super unique in that you're playing cards rather than just slinging fireballs. I could go on, incoherently, for days. Just trust that you'll probably be pleasantly surprised by the all of it.
4.) Combat does NOT feel repetitive lol. I don't know, maybe that other dude is just a way better gamer than I, but I turned the difficulty up and I find most fights to be challenging enough that I can't just turn my brain off. There's parries, blocks, stam management, two handers and one handers, guns and bows, stealth bonuses, etc. It's not Elden Ring, but it's not two dimensional brain slop either.
Suffice it to say, I think the game is rad, and well worth the money spent. The AI needs a ton of work, feels very bare bones at the moment. And there aren't a ton of housing assets that I've seen deployed in the world; you find a lot of beautiful houses just kind of empty in those little hamlets. But otherwise, it's been an incredible experience so far and I'm hopeful this project goes the distance!

Honestly, game deserved way more recognition. It’s a top-tier visually, has deep crafting, compelling setting, and a story that’s actually good, which is rare for genre. Early Access was rough, but at this point game is polished and balanced.

Can't recommend enough, especially for solo players.

Since the day I found out about this game, there's been an ongoing review bombing that's unfair to the dev team and the game itself; so I'll give you an actually fair summary of what to expect when playing through Nightingale.
First things first, this game is a survival crafting game where you're casted out into the Fae Realms, alternative dimensions where you can feel the magic sparkling in the air. You will be able to create your very own houses wherever you please with a blueprint based construction system (akin to Valheim but without the weather degradation and gravity destruction), craft powerful tools, magic spells and weapons such as halberds, firearms, or even crossbows that shoot magic marbles.
Now here's where the fun part of the game begins, because items that you craft will have special perks depending on the materials that you used to craft said item; so for example: using a "gold ingot" gives the item a 10% magic damage increase, but a "lacunus ingot" will give it a 4-12% melee damage increase depending on its rarity. This also changes the texture your finished product has, and if for whatever reason you don't like the material's appearance (einaidia metal is a very deep purple), there's a transmog system that allows you to customize the appearance of everything while retaining whatever build you've managed to cook up.
Moving on with more original systems, Nightingale also offers some really innovative gameplay in the shape of magical cards that change the environment of the realm you're in, both bringing benefits and drawbacks to everyone inside. For example, you can make it so that it's always raining, boosting your magical power but constantly getting you wet unless you have an umbrella. On top of this, there's a very intricate story being told as you play, and you even have the possibility to open up portals to realms that are procedurally generated (for all my fellas who love procedural generation).
I personally recommend you buy the game, even out of discount, since in my opinion it's super worth the price. The review bombs are definitely annoying since most of these issues are either false or extremely misinformed; but there's also the entire rabbit hole of Epic Games which is more... complex. You see, a good bunch of people bought the game before it became a weekly free game on the Epic Store, mainly the chinese market since Tencent has been Inflexion's parent company since 2022, and when the game went free for a limited time on the Epic Games launcher it pissed off a good portion of the previous buyers; I'd be inclined to say 90% if not more of the mandarin negative reviews point this out. Problem is, this has also gone all the way to the western market as well... How do I know? Well, before I decided to purchase the game I asked about it on the official Discord server, and in a few minutes I received a DM from some guy telling me not to buy it and just wait until it goes free on Epic again. I personally wouldn't have minded having paid for this game for it to go free later since I'd be willing to pay even more just to support the devs, but I guess it's not so difficult to understand why some people got annoyed; just definitely not enough to justify a review bombing for a game that's so incredibly good yet criminally underrated.
Anyway, onto the summarized review:
---{ Graphics }---
☐ You forget what reality is
☑ Beautiful
☐ Good and with charm :)
☐ Decent
☐ Bad
☐ Hard to look at
---{ Art Direction }---
☑ Belongs to a museum
☐ Very unique
☐ Good
☐ Average
☐ Bland
☐ Uninspired
---{ Audio / Music }---
☑ Eargasm
☐ Very good
☐ Good
☐ Decent
☐ Bad
☐ Hard to listen to
---{ Gameplay }---
☑ Varied and in-depth
☐ Very good
☐ Good
☐ Decent
☐ Bad
☐ Barebones
---{ Multiplayer }---
☐ MMO
☑ Up to 6 players
☐ Up to 4 players
☐ Up to 2 players
☐ Split-screen
☐ Singleplayer
---{ Grind }---
☐ Nothing to grind for
☐ It isn't necessary to keep playing
☐ A little grind never hurt anyone
☐ Average grind level
☐ Too much grind
☑ You'll need a second life for grinding
---{ Story }---
☐ Life-changing
☑ Deep / Intriguing
☐ Good
☐ Average
☐ No Story
☑ Secret lore
---{ Dev Support }---
☑ Promising with a great team behind it
☐ The devs are working hard on it
☐ There's a good amount of work put into it
☐ It's being worked on, but not often
☐ Barely any work from the team
☐ 100% rugpull
---{ Price }---
☐ It's free!
☑ Worth the price
☐ If it's on sale
☐ If you really can't wait...
☐ Not recommended
☐ Housing is more affordable
---{ Game Time }---
☑ Very long
☐ Long
☐ Average
☐ Short
☐ Very short
---{ Replayability }---
☑ You could trade it for real life
☐ You can spend quite some time playing
☐ It will last you some time
☐ There's some things to do at the end
☐ There's not much more to it after you beat it
☐ There's nothing after you beat it
---{ PC Requirements }---
☐ Potato
☐ Outdated rig
☑ Decent
☐ Fast
☐ Rich boi
☐ Quantum computer
---{ Bugs }---
☐ Never heard of
☐ A few funny bugs
☑ Minor bugs
☐ Can get annoying
☐ You will noclip into the backrooms
☐ You will noclip out of the backrooms and into the frontrooms
---{ Difficulty }---
☐ Ultraviolence
☑ Difficult
☐ Easy to learn - Hard to master
☐ Balanced
☐ Easy
☐ Extremely easy
---{ Audience }---
☐ Kids
☑ Teens
☑ Adults
---{ Personal Score }---
☑ 10
☐ 9
☐ 8
☐ 7
☐ 6
☐ 5
☐ 4
☐ 3
☐ 2
☐ 1
☐ Doesn't even qualify

In my opinion, a vast improvement on what it was at launch. They overhauled it completely, it seems, and now the crafting aspect of the game is quite fun. There is a story you're working through as you're working on upgrading your gear. I, personally, enjoy the grind of working toward the next round of upgrades and equipment.
In terms of building...there is still room for improvement there. It's a bit clunky getting the building elements where you want them, but not unworkable.
More choices in customizing the appearance of your buildings and gear would be nice, but I went from playing the game for about a week at launch an then ignoring it, to playing it nonstop for (according to Steam) 362 hours.