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Game
Game2014
Descent 3
Developer Outrage Entertainment
Descent 3 is a first-person shooter video game developed by Outrage Entertainment and published by Interplay Entertainment. It was originally released for Microsoft Windows in North America on June 17, 1999. Descent 3 is the third game in the Descent video game series and a sequel to Descent II. The game takes place in a science fiction setting of the Solar System where the player is cast as Material Defender, a… From Wikipedia (CC BY-SA 4.0)
89 reactions from 3 sources (Steam reviews, Bluesky, Mastodon) · newest Sep 30, 2026 · last updated Oct 8, 2026 · How this works
Audience score
67
Fresh
49 positive · 24 negative
95% range 56–77%
| Source | + | − | = |
|---|---|---|---|
| Steam reviews | 49 | 24 | 0 |
| Bluesky * | 3 | 0 | 11 |
| Mastodon * | 0 | 0 | 2 |
* shown, not counted in the score (label accuracy below our 85% bar or not yet audited).
Steam's own rating
Mixed
54 of 78 reviews positive (all languages, per Valve)
What people are saying
Summary pending — the reactions are listed below.
At a glance
Descent 3 is a 2014 action video game, from Outrage Entertainment.
- 88 people have posted about this game on Steam reviews, Bluesky, Mastodon
- posts span Apr 15, 2014 to Sep 30, 2026
- 67% of 73 Steam reviewers recommend it (their own thumbs)
- Steam reviewers had played a median of 3 h when they wrote
Assembled from TMDB, Wikidata and Steam fields and our own counts, nothing written by a model. Method
RottenBot@rottenbot · automated account
Descent 3 sits at 67% positive across 73 opinionated reactions from 3 sources. Fresh or rotten — where do you land?
Critics, per Wikipedia
Descent 3 received positive reviews from video game critics. The most praised aspects were its graphics, artificial intelligence of enemies, and outdoor environments. Erik Wolpaw of GameSpot felt that the game "improves in almost every conceivable way on its predecessors and reestablishes the series as the premier example of the play style it single-handedly pioneered", while Next Generation praised both its originality and faithfulness to its predecessors. IGN lauded the game's new engine, noting that the transition between indoor and outdoor environments is seamless. GameRevolution remarked that the addition of outdoor environments allows "greater use of the maneuvering capabilities, adds…
From the “Reception” section of Wikipedia, CC BY-SA 4.0. Critic context only — not part of the audience score.
Reactions
60 of 89 · most liked firstDescent 3 is an old favorite of mine. I learned to mouse-aim in this game before I had played any FPSes with a mouse. Playing it again, those robots are still hard to hit. Oh and the Steam version does come with Descent 3: Mercenary expansion pack. For those unfamiliar with the game, when you start a new game, select "Descent 3: Retribution" for the original single-player campeign. (Note: The first time it automatically runs you through training) The game plays pretty well on modern…
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →Had to get this since I put so many hours into Descent 2 multiplayer back in the day. It still has the good ol descent feeling to it, but if you want to play multiplayer you can only play with people on your steam friend's list.
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →I am thuroughly impressed with this steam version of D3. I was playing my original installation just yesterday, and I did some testing with the steam version today, and I can say that this version is miraculously more stable than the original installation. Everything feels 100% the way it should be in game as well. I am also pleased that this comes with the Mercenary expansion, and is properly updated to Version 1.4. And finally, I did some testing with the multiplayer. I am acknowledging…
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →I'm definitely liking this game so far. I bought and played the heck out of Descent 2, Descent: Freespace, and likewise games back in the day on my Windows 98. Sadly, I only had a demo for this game and never got to enjoy it to its full potential, until now. This game requires some tweaking with the controls and settings when you first get it, as any older game released on Steam usually does. However, I did not have to install any patches to get it functioning properly, which was nice. (I…
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →"All that's left is to go home, get my money, and sleep for the next two years..." 400Mhz AMD K6-II, 128MB ram, Aureal 3D, and a Voodoo 3 3000 pci card... The best game ever made. I played this far more than any other game that has since come out. On 56k we had 300ms ping and were proud of it! Had to guess their location before they got there. If only I could go back in time when servers were full and the game was new. Seems to run ok. This game has always continued to run well on Nvidia cards…
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →This game is a piece of crap. The lowest setting on the mouse sensitivity is still way way to sensitive and you are twissting and turning all over the place and can't aim at all. I used to own this game when it was a stand alone game and I loved it. Now that Steam offered it I thought it would be great but it is not. The policy on Steam says "They do not offer refunds" which means that even if you can't get it to work, you are ♥♥♥♥ out of luck and are stuck with a ♥♥♥♥♥♥, impossible to play…
negative · reviewer's own thumbsView post →This is a really fun and enjoyable game, however, on Linux there is a serious bug which causes corrupted save files. I cannot beat the game because of this bug. Cannot recommend this in it's current state, hope to see a fix soon.
negative · reviewer's own thumbsView post →It's ♥♥♥♥♥♥♥ Descent 3. Seriously. One of my favorite childhood games, and it still holds up today. Here's hoping we get some FreeSpace 1 and 2 on here!
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →What a disappointment. I had so much hope after 1 let me relive my nostalgia to a satisfying conclusion and 2 ended on a tough cliffhanger after a rough experience. But after about a hundred mostly-unsuccessful attempts to start this, I'm not sure what else to do. About half the people from online help forums say they can't get this game working, no matter what they do. The other half say the game works fine, no problems, just as long as you do five things ... and those five things are…
negative · reviewer's own thumbsView post →This was an excellent game back during its day, but this port is in shambles. The Linux/MacOS bug that corrupts your save file is still there, and on switching to Proton, I got even more flagrant errors which dropped me to the desktop before I even reached the main menu. This is a beefy machine which I also use for video editing, so unless an RTX 30 on a 4.0 GHz Ryzen 7 with 32 GB of high-speed RAM sounds light to you, it definitely isn't a hardware thing. If you buy, then buy informed.
negative · reviewer's own thumbsView post →Very fun, classic game. A 6 axis FPS that runs quite well on modern systems but getting friends to play with can be a pain.
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →What to do now? Support Descent: Underground
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →greatest game of all time
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →Ben a serious gamer since...ohhh, about 1985 and when I say this game is CRAP, I mean THIS GAME IS CRAP!!! I've had, played and LOVED both Descent & Descent II, and if you think it's gonna be anything like those, you will be SADLY disappointed. I just WASTED my money...THANK GAWD I didn't pay full price or I would be REALLY P'd off!!!! On a sidenote - Steam's game selections has been getting crappier and crappier as of late...thinking seriously about cancelling my Steam account and going…
negative · reviewer's own thumbsView post →Big thanks to Ryan C. Gordon for the new Linux port :-) Seems to be working very nicely so far, I will need to revisit some the old levels here.
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →If you run Linux, don't buy this game! On starting, the game displays a message: This is a beta test of Descent 3. There are likely bugs. Please report them at: https://bugzilla.icculus.org/ The store page said nothing about this being a beta ... hmmmmm There certainly is a [url=https://bugzilla.icculus.org/show_bug.cgi?id=6543]bug and it's known (since April 2020) and serious - if you play a level for more than a few minutes, your save games get corrupted and crash the game when…
negative · reviewer's own thumbsView post →Third and last title of Descent series. After release of the second one Parallax Software broke into Outrage Entertainment and Volition Inc. The former made the last chapter of Descent series and the latter created not less interesting Freespace series. Despite quite a big development in contrast to the second title, the third one was not accepted by all fans. The main reason is leaving simple shooter behind and changing it with narrative and complicated locations with alternating vast spaces…
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →While I do have fond memories of this game, it has not aged well. There are issues with the graphics implementation of both OpenGL and Direct3D, with only a Glide wrapper offering good, non-glitchy visuals (on is included in this version). That said, many graphical niceties aren't present if you don't have a Pentium 3 or better also includes AMD CPUs. Many audio APIs that D3 can use have been deprecated and/or removed from later versions of Windows, making the only good audio choice be…
negative · reviewer's own thumbsView post →Unplayable on modern computers. Tried fix after fix after fix. A couple of times was able to actually get it started through to the main menu. Then encountered further issues: mouse would not move, froze on menu. Endless (unsuccessful) troubleshooting. Finally gave up.
negative · reviewer's own thumbsView post →Come back. Descent 3 is good now!!! This game has taken a heavy hit to its reputation since its poor compatibility with modern systems . HOWEVER the source code for this has recently been released, so we finally got a proper source port for this gem. With PiccuEngine, Descent 3 runs like a charm on modern systems. Support for resolutions up to 4k, no more mouse issues, customizable FOV and an overall mighty fine smoothness. Getting Piccu to work is super easy. Just drag and drop a couple of…
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →I'm so surprised that this game got a new Linux version.
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →I know it says I don't have very many hours, but Steam reads the launcher as playing the game not the game itself, as of writing this, I probably have around 8 hours in game. Now remember, I write as someone steeped in nostalgia, since I literally grew up playing this game, so take my review with a grain of salt. This game is pretty clunky, and is difficult to get running on modern machines, but if you can get it running to where it works okay, this game is super fun. Even after all these…
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →I bought this game because of nostalgia. It runs surprisingly well, once you spend some time configuring it. I'm one of the few lucky people able to run it without issues or glitches. Weapons variety is good, but graphically-wise, it didn't age well at all and it doesn't support widescreen. Steam integration is not supported either. Your playtime only increases when the launcher is open. Once you press Play, you don't appear in-game anymore. Still, I do enjoy playing it. I would appreciate a…
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →Descent 3 is an excellent first person shooter that I haven't played in years. When I saw it on steam I was very glad they got this version to work and it is still one of my favorites next to the first one. Despite the hard controls, this game is worthy of buying if you have played the first two or like a real controlling challenge. If you can master this, the rest of the first person shooters will look like a cakewalk control wise. One word of advice. Don't use the mouse, and better start…
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →Get to know me: Game Edition!! First Game: Descent 3 🚀 Last Game: Clair Obscur 🎨 Favorite Game: Hollow Knight + Silksong 🪡 / Sekiro 🥷 / Elden Ring 💍 Worst Game: Borderlands 3 🔫🤡 Most Played: Destiny 2 🌌 / FFXIV 💎 / World of Warcraft ⚔️ Most Surprising: Satisfactory 🏭 / Celeste 🧗♀️ Next Game: Ontos 😱
neutral · AI labelView post →An excellent game which in my opinion did not get the attention it deserved. This game is one of the best games of it's time, published in 1999. Style is first person shooter against enemy robots with a story-line to follow.
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →Great game. for anyone have an error at the begining and then it crashes, in order for this game to work you must put it in you main hard drive
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →Descent 3 Source Code Released – GameFromScratch.com gamefromscratch.com/descent-3-so... #GameDev
neutral · AI labelView post →Easily the worst in the series. For completionists only. The controls aren't as fluid, the openness makes everything quite tedious (don't forget to get the log at the beginning of lvl 10 otherwise you have to go all the way back through the entire level just to pick it up and then go all the way back to the end of the level just to put it in a place and then win the level - 15 minutes of your life gone forever), whilst the high-manoeuvrability of the bots is quite frustrating. The animation…
negative · reviewer's own thumbsView post →Love this game! I played it almost 2 decades ago when it was new, and started again recently when I saw they released a Linux version out of the blue. Runs great, and the gameplay still holds up to be quite fun. :D
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →The latest update for Linux means that the game works very well, though a few tweaks are required for general gameplay (as others have observed). I had to disable the joystick option as it seemed to cause some strange keyboard drift when activated. The mouse sensitivity was way too low as well, so I adjusted that to 2.0. Finally, the game supports my 16:10 screen just fine so no command-line settings required. Highly recommended for old-school gamers!
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →Mouse and Keyboard does not function together in descent 1 and 2 . Can’t change back And descent 3 link to DIRECTX is old. programm won't start
negative · reviewer's own thumbsView post →Very buggy game. Wouldn't even start up. Steam provided a refund. Thank you!
negative · reviewer's own thumbsView post →The PlayStation never saw another Descent game, it's true. Descent 3 and the FreeSpace games were PC-only.
neutral · AI labelView post →What was probably the most unexpected and welcomed addition into the Desccent universe, oh my, this game has it all and the engine they used worked perfect as far as I am concerned. This feels like a major step in the evolution of the game and the mechanics show it. This game is very fun for anyone who played the first 2 and as I said it was just amazing. If you don't own this already, you need to.
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →Wow, I guess people are this lazy and can't find and run a simple source port. Let's be clear about what you're getting here; the contents of the retail CD-ROM from 1995. Nothing more. It opens in DOSBox. There is a free source port available for both Descent 1 and 2 called "DXX REbirth." It makes Descent 1 and 2 100% customizable on modern PCs and you only have to copy the game files from the Steam folder to the download folder. For $5, this is reasonable. My favorite studio on Steam;…
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →I can't reccomend this game. While I enjoyed (and still enjoy) Descent 1 and 2, Descent 3 feels and looks worse than 1 and 2. If you do get this game, I would reccomend getting it through GOG or some other site other than steam, and only at a heavy discount.
negative · reviewer's own thumbsView post →Fun game. A little tougher than the previous games. Despite what the system requirements say, this game requires a "more than decent" (no pun intended) Rig to play this game. I can make a lot of nitpicking about the overly sensitive aiming, but for what it is, Descent 3 is a cool game.
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →Some dated graphics and inconsistencies with modern hardware. But my nostalgia does have me revisiting this interesting and alien entry to the series. The general sense of momentum and weight of the vehicles are nice. The assortment of weapons a blast to fire. Though the bots can really get on your nerves on the mid-high difficulties, especially if you play without a mouse for more refined aiming. The soundtrack features a series of unique arrangements by Jerry Berlongieri that have fed…
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →You should play this game in 2025 for the AI on enemies and simple yet exciting level design!
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →Was hoping to play on Mac OS, but unfortunately looks like its got the same corrupted save file issue that the Linux port has. Game runs perfectly, but if you try to load up any of your saves, the game instantly crashes and it is therefor impossible to continue progress in the campaign. Luckily I have windows available to me and it seems to be running fairly smoothly on there, but I would say for Linux and Mac OS, the game is unplayable and Steam needs to remove these ports until they are…
negative · reviewer's own thumbsView post →+ The final chapter to the Descent trilogy saga was greatly needed for a story that was a little more than half-complete, and, executed using the right scripting, Descent 3 helps explain the entire situation about PTMC robots, why they were corrupt, and who was behind all of the attacks throughout the saga. (Forget the animation of the cutscenes that is rather dated and thus somewhat cringeworthy, although it may also make the cutscenes fun to watch.) + The graphics even for a Windows 98 game…
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →My dad had Descent 3 and made a copy of it so we could play LAN multiplayer with him, absurdly cool game
positive · AI labelView post →Back with more retro robot blastin action while using 2 flight sticks in Descent 3! It's been such a fun way to play this game. :) Starting sorta soon twitch.tv/tondagossa
positive · AI labelView post →Descent 3 *is* the greatest game of all time 👀👀👀👀👀👀👀👀👀
positive · AI labelView post →Blind Descent 3/5, demo store.steampowered.com/app/1209970/... Check alt text for extended demo notes.
neutral · AI labelView post →In today's random game Saturday I bring you Descent 1 & 2 The Definitive Collection. 3 discs featuring the 2 games along with some expansion content. The inside label has a threat of releasing Descent 3 in Winter 98.
neutral · AI labelView post →Mr. Twa sir. Would you ever do a retro game like Descent 3 ( on steam) See what a "Space Shooter" was for 1998. :P Probably have to run in compatibility mode for windows 7 or earlier and play around with mouse sensitivity a lot.
neutral · AI labelView post →Be sure to look into the source code updates for all three Descent games. Descent 1 and 2 have been open source for many years and there are a few options. Descent 3 only beame open source recently, but people are working hard to update the game.
neutral · AI labelView post →If you are the Descent fan, Descent 3 is OK.
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →Thank you. #Descent3 #PCGame now #OpenSource signed #90sKids & me. https://www.pcgamesn.com/descent-3/open-source-code
neutral · AI labelView post →The game itself is fine, however, this is a beta test and we are supposed to email any bugs we encounter etc. Each time you try to load a game to continue your progress, it kicks you out. You can start a new game and play all day if you want, but you are unable to load your saved progress at all. Months with no responses from anyone on the topic.
negative · reviewer's own thumbsView post →can not get it to run piece of ♥♥♥♥
negative · reviewer's own thumbsView post →The 6DoF gold standard!
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →This game is in no way properly optimised for current generation PC's. Don't get it if you aren't prepared to mod it to kingdom come until it's compatible.
negative · reviewer's own thumbsView post →Release date in 2014? This feels like a game from 1994. It auto detected my i7 as a pentium 3 and can't do 1920x1080. If you want descent, buy descent 2, not this.
negative · reviewer's own thumbsView post →I still cant figure out how to play this on steam.....
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →the first true mirror I remember in a game was in Descent 3
neutral · AI labelView post →Its like the great game Descent 3. But for keeps.
neutral · AI labelView post →OH Your Gods. ( Bender Dot Jpeg) Can you please do Descent 3 on that!? ( Retro game on Steam)
neutral · AI labelView post →
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