From its title, Steel Seed, to its premise, aesthetics and gameplay loop, Storm in a Teacup’s latest action-adventure effort could be the most video game-like game of 2025. In other words, Steel Seed feels like a game from another time—namely, the seventh generation of home consoles, which might sound like a slight against the game. Still, sometimes all you really need in life is a good romp through a neon-soaked robot hellscape, playing as one of the last surviving remnants of humanity.
For those who may not have heard of the game, Steel Seed follows the exploits of Zoe and her robot companion, Koby, as they delve (or often slide) deep into the depths of a vast post-apocalyptic world ruled by rogue robots. Steel Seed features a mix of action-oriented combat, stealth sequences peppered between high-octane parkour and cinematic set pieces reminiscent of games like Uncharted and Assassin’s Creed.
Starting with the positive, Steel Seed feels like a well-polished effort, featuring tight controls, some interesting puzzle mechanics, and just enough enemy variety and gameplay variance to keep the adventure from feeling too repetitive (although still not great—but more on that later).
In terms of the less-than-ideal aspects of Steel Seed, the game tends to suffer from an overly sterile atmosphere and a generic-feeling story that can limit the overall experience, particularly from a narrative perspective.
“At times, Steel Seed feels akin to a fake videogame you see in other media, such as on television or a movie.”
Now, I understand that part of the sterile feel Steel Seed employs is likely deliberate, aiming to convey a sense of a world devoid of humans or natural beauty; however, the title still comes off feeling bland. From its masked, RGB-covered heroine to its Star Wars-derivative floating robot companion, combined with a lack of enemies that show any personality (outside of some cool designs), at times Steel Seed feels akin to a fake video game you might see in other media, such as on television or in a movie.
Gameplay, too, can feel overly familiar or derivative—from your run-of-the-mill set of upgrades catering to attacks, stealth, companion augments and costumes, to sitting through the same takedown animations that quickly stop being cool and simply feel repetitive. These elements don’t do Steel Seed any favours. An over-reliance on enemy-filled rooms and repetitive stealth sequences also gets in the way of the experience.
“The amount of puzzle sequences is also well thought out and doesn’t get in the way of the pacing, making them feel welcome and never too challenging for the player to get stuck on.”
My favourite aspect of Steel Seed, however, would be its action set pieces and parkour levels, which feel fast and frenetic while also offering some degree of skill in timing jumps and avoiding instant death—particularly during some cool sniper sequences that shift the camera to a 2.5D perspective.
Koby, your trusted robot companion, also introduces some interesting gameplay mechanics that change up the otherwise routine action-adventure romp. Well-implemented puzzles require the player to fly Koby independently of Zoe in order to trigger remote switches—sometimes in quick succession—to give Zoe adequate time to advance.
The number of puzzle sequences is also well thought out and doesn’t interfere with the pacing, making them feel welcome and never too challenging for the player to get stuck on. On that note, however, Steel Seed does suffer from a few instances where the player’s next step is unclear. Despite the linear nature of the game, levels often feature a sense of verticality, but they also suffer from environments that look indistinct from one another, making it easy to get lost.
At the end of the day, Steel Seed is a competent game that doesn’t have any glaring flaws, but ultimately suffers from a sense of blandness and familiarity with its contemporaries. Thankfully, some solid parkour sequences and interesting puzzle mechanics and generic but well-realized graphics keep things fun enough to warrant action-adventure junkies to check out the game.
Ultimately, if you’re someone who enjoys the action-adventure genre and doesn’t mind playing games where the focus is more on gameplay than setting, world-building or narrative, Steel Seed is a perfectly fine game that takes advantage of modern technologies to provide a contemporary action-adventure experience in an otherwise familiar package.
