The Surge (video game)

The Surge is a science fiction action role-playing video game developed by Deck13 Interactive and published by Focus Home Interactive for Microsoft Windows, PlayStation 4, and Xbox One. It is considered a spiritual successor to Deck13 Interactive's earlier action role-playing game Lords of the Fallen, with which it shares many gameplay features. Deck13 Interactive described the game as inspired by Rise of the Robots and the Souls series.

Gameplay
The Surge is designed in the challenging role-playing game style of the Souls series of games. The gameplay involves players using an exoskeleton to battle enemies. The exoskeleton can be customized through the game using "modular upgrades", according to the developer. The combat allows players to target different body parts of enemies, as well as utilize finishing moves often ending in dismemberment in bullet time fashion.

Plot
The game takes place in a dystopian future where humans have exhausted the world's resources, leading to strained social service and environmental diseases. According to the developers, the game paints a grim portrait of the future where the evolution of technology in relation to society and the environment has led to a decadent era for humanity.

Development
Development of The Surge began in August 2015. The first concept art and pre-alpha gameplay footage was publicly shown in March 2016, in advance to German site PC Games Hardware. The game is powered by the FLEDGE engine, developed from scratch by Deck13 Interactive for PlayStation 4 and Xbox One, and features integration of Nvidia GameWorks.

Reception
The Surge received moderately positive reviews, according to review aggregator Metacritic.

Sequel
It was announced on February 8, 2018 that a sequel was in early development for a 2019 release.