A mixed bag, Directive 8020 shows flashes of brilliance alongside notable shortcomings.
64
Verdict
59%
Steam
82
IGDB
Verdict score based on confidence-adjusted Steam reviews?
Unique gameplay concept
Limited professional critic coverage
Directive 8020 is an upcoming interactive drama and survival horror video game developed and published by Supermassive Games. It is the fifth game in The Dark Pictures Anthology. The game features a multilinear plot in which decisions can significantly alter the trajectory of the story and change the relationships between the five playable protagonists; some lead to their permanent deaths. The game introduces a feature called Turning Points, which allows players to rewind to a pivotal moment or decision. In Directive 8020, a colony ship called Cassiopeia crash lands on Tau Ceti f, a planet that is 12 light-years from Earth where the crew must try to survive a shapeshifting alien threat. Lashana Lynch, who plays astronaut and co-pilot of the Cassiopeia, Brianna Young, is being marketed as the game's leading actress. Directive 8020 is scheduled to be released for PlayStation 5, Windows, and Xbox Series X/S on 12 May 2026.
Runs well on modern hardware.
Updated 6h ago
Not Worth the Asking Price. Would Consider buying if it was at 50% off or more, especially if you already like the Dark Pictures Anthology. Story is around a 4–5/10, the mechanics are probably the weakest in the series, facial animations are jarring, and some choices/deaths feel underdeveloped. IKYK It does get better around Act 4, and the running sections were actually fun, but sadly there were barely any of them.
Posting this in light of the recent layoffs at Supermassive Games. This game deserves more attention and sales. Directive 8020 is a good game. If you enjoy the kind of narrative-heavy low-gameplay games that Supermassive Games makes, there's a good chance you will enjoy this for a certain price. If you like exploring the narrative trees, this is the absolute best "Dark Pictures" to date for that. They make it super easy to jump around and do a "what-if scenario". The voice acting is pretty bad, but I enjoyed the variety of personalities and overall thought the story was one of the strongest from Supermassive. It's not perfect, but I'm not going to dunk on Directive 8020 for having room for improvement. A lot of love is poured into the Dark Pictures games. They're not for everyone, but they might be for you.
This is game that feels like everyone that was working on it was being forced to work on it and was not enthusiastic about having to do so, the acting feels very forced and unenthusiastic, there is no real choice in the game, outcome always feels the same, the stealth part was interesting but also at times a bit silly, like person you are hiding from clearly sees you but no reaction, other times it feels like no way they saw you but they do anyway. I usually really like these kind of games and I wont say this is the worst game ever or anything, the art and 3D modeling is fantastic, very well done, but it feels like the typical Space tragedy humans make the worst possible decisions trope story with very little depth. This is definitely the worst of the Supermassive games to date. It is hard to recommend, but if you can get it at a low discount you might not completely hate it either but me personally I didn't even feel like finishing it I uninstalled it about 40% into it.
Reviews sourced from Steam. All reviews belong to their respective authors.
Data sourced from RAWG, Steam, IGDB, CheapShark, Wikipedia, HLTB, and GX Corner. Sources: rawg, steam, cheapshark, igdb, wikipedia.
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