Samson
Developer Liquid Swords
Samson: A Tyndalston Story is an action-adventure video game developed and published by Liquid Swords. The game was released for Windows in April 2026 and received mixed reviews from critics. Versions for PlayStation 5 and Xbox Series X/S were released in September 2026. From Wikipedia (CC BY-SA 4.0)
462 reactions from 4 sources (Steam reviews, Bluesky, Mastodon, Lemmy) · newest Nov 5, 2026 · last updated Nov 5, 2026 · How this works
Audience score
188 positive · 140 negative
95% range 52–63%
| Source | + | − | = |
|---|---|---|---|
| Steam reviews | 188 | 140 | 0 |
| Bluesky * | 20 | 8 | 97 |
| Mastodon * | 1 | 0 | 6 |
| Lemmy * | 0 | 0 | 2 |
* shown, not counted in the score (label accuracy below our 85% bar or not yet audited).
What players are saying
Counted from the reviewers’ own thumbs up/down on the 290 English Steam reviews we collected, not by the AI. Valve’s all-language rating: Mixed (1,981 of 3,568 positive).
Players are divided on Samson, with many praising its atmosphere and potential while criticizing its bugs and unpolished mechanics. [1][2][3] Some reviewers find the combat and driving enjoyable, while others describe them as janky and frustrating. [4][5][6] Several players note the game feels unfinished but see promise if the developers continue to patch it. [7][8][9]
- [5]
TL:DR; This is a game of small scope that tries to focus on melee combat and driving, sidelining pretty much everyting else. Melee combat and driving are the worst parts of this game. The animation breaks and input delay are insane. The game has sprinting melee attacks: you are guaranteed to miss every one of those, as the game requires you to be standing still to register that you are, in fact, fighting. The game …
- [3]
Samson had the potential of being a pretty good noir action-adventure, but it’s currently a broken, repetitive grind. The good: - The overall vibe of the game, it really feels like a cool mix of original Mafia games with GTA IV and Max Payne - Pretty satisfying hand combat, feels nice and heavy - The driving model is a mixed bag, but I quite like it The bad: - TONS of bugs and glitches, sometimes even completely …
- [1]
For a game with such little marketing and a name that strange it's surprisingly alright. No nonsense, straight to the point PS3 style driver/beat-em-up. You get a big debt to pay out by a small amount each day. The days are separated to three time segments with two action points each. You spend your action points to pick missions (deliveries, getaways, beatdowns etc.); some missions cost action points to retry if …
- [17]
It's bad game, okay? With very little content, repeatable gameplay loop, forgettable music, pathetic storytelling and mediocre fighting system. Yet, there is nothing like it on a market right now and I needed something down to earth without SF and magic. So just to encourage creators I will leave positive review.
- [2]
I enjoyed it quite a bit but I also think it's very underbaked and broken. It's a game with a ton of potential, and the city of Tyndalston is one of the best realized game worlds I've ever seen, but the gameplay and mission structure needs a TON of work. Hopefully it gets it, cause it could be something really really special.
Summarised from 34 of the 390 public posts collected about this game; every point cites the posts behind it ([n] opens the post) and the split is counted from the posts’ own ratings. Updated Oct 12, 2026. How summaries are made
Samson sits at 57% positive across 328 opinionated reactions from 4 sources. Fresh or rotten — where do you land?
Critics, per Wikipedia
Samson received "mixed or average" reviews from critics, according to review aggregator Metacritic. Fellow review aggregator OpenCritic assessed that the game received weak approval, being recommended by 32% of critics. IGN rated the game 4/10, criticizing the repetitive gameplay, calling the combat unresponsive, outlining the poor technical state and comparing the game to similarly poorly received MindsEye, though praise was directed at the gritty aesthetic. Similar remarks were expressed by Gamereactor UK, who also rated the game 4/10 and stated that Samson "feels like a collection of good ideas that never quite come together. You can see what the developers have tried to do, but it seems…
From the “Reception” section of Wikipedia, CC BY-SA 4.0. Critic context only — not part of the audience score.
Reactions
60 of 462 · most liked firstFor a game with such little marketing and a name that strange it's surprisingly alright. No nonsense, straight to the point PS3 style driver/beat-em-up. You get a big debt to pay out by a small amount each day. The days are separated to three time segments with two action points each. You spend your action points to pick missions (deliveries, getaways, beatdowns etc.); some missions cost action points to retry if you lose. The combat's alright, with two punches, block, evade and a "rage"…
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →TL:DR; This is a game of small scope that tries to focus on melee combat and driving, sidelining pretty much everyting else. Melee combat and driving are the worst parts of this game. The animation breaks and input delay are insane. The game has sprinting melee attacks: you are guaranteed to miss every one of those, as the game requires you to be standing still to register that you are, in fact, fighting. The game has multiple vehicle missions where you need to ram enemy cars. 50% of…
negative · reviewer's own thumbsView post →Serebii Update: The next Pokémon Masters EX event has been announced Adds Larry & Flamigo, Clive & Amoonguss and Samson Oak & Alolan Exeggutor into the game. Runs from June 11th 2025 Details @ www.serebii.net/index2.shtml
neutral · AI labelView post →note the legals: LRG's using Japan's arbitration system for orphaned games to reissue Little Samson—if you can demonstrate that you've made a genuine effort to contact/identify a potential rights owner to no avail, you can legally commercialise an old game by paying royalties to the JP govt, which…
neutral · AI labelView post →I have been waiting on Samson since it's reveal way back in December 2025. It honestly looked amazing from what we got shown. An open-world action-adventure game with hand-to-hand combat. A game that has consequences and an unforgiving urban environment that pushes back... it sounded so damn good. To top that off, Samson was developed by the co-founder of Avalanche Studios and the Just Cause games, so I decided to grab the game because the developers sounded so passionate about this project…
negative · reviewer's own thumbsView post →Most Helpful (All Time) review right now is a Not Recommended with 372 ppl finding it helpful is so wrong for a game that is literally GTA6 before GTA6. I went in blind (no trailers, no dev diary etc) and I just completed my first full playthrough mission (ran out of APs for the day) and all I can say is the only people who are Not Recommending Samson are your usual casuals that are destroying the gaming industry. The same people that will fork out 70 bucks for soulless games…
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →Samson had the potential of being a pretty good noir action-adventure, but it’s currently a broken, repetitive grind. The good: - The overall vibe of the game, it really feels like a cool mix of original Mafia games with GTA IV and Max Payne - Pretty satisfying hand combat, feels nice and heavy - The driving model is a mixed bag, but I quite like it The bad: - TONS of bugs and glitches, sometimes even completely game-breaking. I couldn't proceed with the story further than mission 2 so I just…
negative · reviewer's own thumbsView post →Don't expect a GTA game when purchasing this, but for $25 it's well worth it. The driving is solid and while there isn't any gunplay, it works fine as a beat-em-up.
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →The game is built on a really cool concept, but it's straight garbage. Even if patches fix the janky animations, teleporting NPCs, and terrible input delay when driving, the core systems themselves are still incredibly barebones and boring. It's obvious that it was on the brink of being canceled entirely before they decided to just put out what they had to recoup some of the costs. I'm glad they did put it out though, it fills a void left from the PS2-era, gritty crime games like Driver, True…
negative · reviewer's own thumbsView post →Genuinely, what the ♥♥♥♥ ? I'm so sad that I have to write this but let me get this straight. You got rid of firearms to focus on hand-combat and driving, so you pretty much had ONE job. You know what ? I could pass the fact that the driving doesn't feel good because it's actually one of the hardest thing to do in videogames in my opinion, but why is the fight system so freaking poor ? It's sloppy and feels so light, truly terrifying. I'm not even gonna mention the bugs, ♥♥♥♥ ton of bugs…
negative · reviewer's own thumbsView post →David Samson basically gives up the game on getting public financing for sports stadiums and it's maybe the C plot in this episode?
neutral · AI labelView post →What in the world were the devs thinking releasing this game in it's current state? The main selling points (combat and driving) are atrocious and frustrating to deal with. My experience so far has me feeling so let down and disappointed. I've been waiting years for a game like this only for it to be half assed hot garbage. Mad Max, which came out over a decade ago, is levels above this game in terms of combat and vehicle handling. How did they manage to mess up this badly? The only way they…
negative · reviewer's own thumbsView post →Samson: Short Review So I will keep this very short in order to save you guys some time reading through a novel of reasons why to either buy or not buy this game... I had some hopes but here we go... The Good: > Good concept overall > Decent voice acting > Collecting money to pay off debt while adding the element of losing money on death is also cool > Driving is fun at times and absolutely garbage on other occasions The Bad: > Bad animations > Graphical issues > Poor game mechanics > Combat…
negative · reviewer's own thumbsView post →(WIP) Just Regent Samson playing his favorite game with the Olympians "Hide and Stomp" |Dc
neutral · AI labelView post →>opens games >”oh hey, defaulted to Quality preset” >50fps >tune settings >50fps >set settings even lower >50fps >set to minimum >50fps >crank DLSS to Ultra Performance >50fps >restart game >40fps Thanks! Game’s fun but needs a ton of optimization!
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →Tried the new update, but sadly the combat is still very incoherent. The blocking doesn't work how you expect it to, the punches - same issue. Something is very not right with this fighting system. Sometimes the targeting system will "grab" an enemy and your character will quickly almost teleport to his position, and sometimes the hits don't land at all. This is supposed to be a fighting game, but the fighting feels unreliable. As of now I can't recommend, I hope the devs will fix these issues.…
negative · reviewer's own thumbsView post →The combat is 9/10, but the optimization is a 4/10. Samson has amazing bones and the dynamic mechanics are a blast, but it's currently crying out for patches. Once the devs fix the graphical issues and stability, this will be an easy recommendation. Wait for an update before jumping in. EDIT: For the "post your specs" crowd: I’m running an RTX 3060 12GB and a Ryzen 5 5600X. This is a solid mid-range setup that handles modern titles just fine, so the performance drops and stuttering in Samson…
negative · reviewer's own thumbsView post →The game is kinda fun when you get past the glitches and jank. I unfortunately encountered a game breaking bug where Carter called me to meet at the Double Tap for what I think was the final mission and just didn't spawn. I tried uninstalling, verifying, etc., no dice. Don't feel like playing all the way through the entire game again just to finish it. Can't recommend. UPDATE: Tried reloading a couple more times, eventually got the spawn to trigger. I really enjoy the atmosphere and think the…
negative · reviewer's own thumbsView post →Middle of The Road I've had the chance to follow this game's development for a while and I'm happy the developers released this at the price point they did, instead of the usual high rise we've grown accustomed to. Overall, my first impressions are that I wish Steam had a mixed recommendation as there's some good and some bad with Samson. I like the open world, and I'm not expecting a 50+ hour journey for what I paid, it's clear that this game is a tight knit 10-20 hour experience and that's…
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →Half an hour in - and I can already tell the atmosphere and driving feel really awesome. The gameplay loop itself is quite simple, which makes the game very satisfying. I was pleasantly surprised by the performance - no stutters on my setup, even though it’s built on the notoriously demanding UE5. For $25, it’s definitely a steal. Sure, there are some bugs and a lack of explanation for certain mechanics, but I’m pretty confident the devs will work hard to polish the experience.
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →idea: a Venture Bros game where you play as Brock Samson, and its basically the same overall setup as Yakuza. Big serious "world is in danger" main plotline full of intrigue and drama, but tons of subquests where you're forced into absurdly silly scenarios
neutral · AI labelView post →This game seems to struggle to please the streamers. After all, it's the 90's, cold, logical and without delusions. Liquid Swords, the old bosses of Mad Max, guide the studio with a 'zero-nonsense' approach that is not appealing to everybody. Generation X is the bridge that connects analog and digital, the last people who can see through all the noise. This game isn't filled with frills. It's straightforward, brutal, and won't compromise for the softies out there. I find the graphics amazing,…
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →ok first its $24.99 not $40, not $60 not $70 no. $24.99 i went to their page this is the only game listed. give them a break. i feel like a kid again. gives me GTA/max payne vibes. we pay $70 for games half as fun. its not unplayable and patches will drop. if your interested. for the price. give it a go
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →The is game has so many bugs and the combat is very very bad it's shocking that this game released in 2026 this would make more sense if it's 2010 maybe. I waited for few months to replay it again to give it a proper review and I thought that it would be fixed but nothing fixed. just not worth the time nor the money.
negative · reviewer's own thumbsView post →It's just not good. The game feels heavily unfinished and extremely repetitive. The map is the size of a basketball court. The missions are the same things recycled over and over and over. The dialogue is very cringe and predictable. The driving is abysmal. Evading the police is just a chore because the game scans and plants cars in your routes that wouldn't be there without magical power. The combat can be cheesed simply by hitting the evade button over and over making it impossible for NPC to…
negative · reviewer's own thumbsView post →this is my very first steam review. Samson is one of the worst games ive ever played. and not because of the story or the world building. the controls and the physics in this game are utterly atrocious. I LOST so much hair from cortasol levels of maddening pain that this game has given me. I award you no points, and may God have mercy on your soul.
negative · reviewer's own thumbsView post →Samson, I'd love to give it a thumbs up and my recommendation, but I can't. The game devs really botched the whole experience with the time issue. Samson is a small open-world game based around driving and running small gigs for the local mobsters. Kinda like a mix of GTA 2 and Driver games, straight from the late '90s, made with the modern Unreal engine. The protagonist is a tough guy who has seen and done his share of nasty things, and now has to do even more, to pay his debts and save his…
negative · reviewer's own thumbsView post →I am PRETTY excited about Little Samson being reprinted via LRG. A stupid expensive but legit good game! A rare combo. Anyway, please see the recent "White Whales" episode of Retronauts for the definitive answer to the question "how convincingly can Jeremy lie through his teeth about NDA'd info"
positive · AI labelView post →If like me your from the 90's and spent countless hours on the Driver game series then get this purchased. The graphics sublime, the physics heavy but still have a real feeling to them and the story well you'll have to buy it and find out. 8.5/10 all day long with a few bugs and things missing but so much potential.
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →The game has some potential, but right now it feels very rough. Combat and driving are both clunky, the game looks too blurry, and movement feels buggy, especially when running since the character stops awkwardly at times. The AI is also extremely easy to beat, which makes the gameplay less satisfying. Overall, it could become a good game with another 6–8 months of development, but in its current state it feels unfinished.
negative · reviewer's own thumbsView post →Pop'n Land - Sega Mega CD ad (1993) This canceled game from Takeru (the team behind Little Samson) was a side-scrolling action platformer with RPG elements. It featured a customization system allowing for 4,096 unique character combinations.
neutral · AI labelView post →Needs a bit more time in the oven, but the devs are already being open honest and reactive to the feedback. I look forward to seeing their adjustments
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →It's bad game, okay? With very little content, repeatable gameplay loop, forgettable music, pathetic storytelling and mediocre fighting system. Yet, there is nothing like it on a market right now and I needed something down to earth without SF and magic. So just to encourage creators I will leave positive review.
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →Again, a game that doesn’t fit into a simple yes and no situation. It needs a scoring or middle ground. There is quite a bit to say the least but ultimately I got bored quickly sadly. Forcing time of day quests, horrible driving and mediocre combat all just isn’t worth it for me. Graphics: The graphics really are impressive overall; it’s a great‑looking game from a visual standpoint. The only odd part is the lack of detail in the mud and terrain when driving, which feels out of place. Aside…
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →For the first time ever, the Ballon d'Or ceremony will feature 4 awards for the women's game. 🏅 Ballon d'Or (best player) 👶 Kopa Trophy (best young player) 🧤 Yashin Trophy (best goalkeeper) ⚽ Gerd Muller (top scorer) 📸: Thomas Samson
neutral · AI labelView post →---{ Graphics }--- ☐ You forget what reality is ☐ Beautiful ☑ Good ☐ Decent ☐ Bad ☐ Don‘t look too long at it ☐ MS-DOS ---{ Gameplay }--- ☐ Very good ☑ Good ☐ It's just gameplay ☐ Mehh ☐ Watch paint dry instead ☐ Just don't ---{ Audio }--- ☐ Eargasm ☐ Very good ☑ Good ☐ Not too bad ☐ Bad ☐ I'm now deaf ---{ Audience }--- ☐ Kids ☑ Teens ☑ Adults ☐ Grandma ---{ PC Requirements }--- ☐ Check if you can run paint ☐ Potato ☐ Decent ☑ Fast ☐ Rich boi ☐ Ask NASA if they have a spare computer ---{…
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →Hey guys, I talked to @samsonfolk.bsky.social about IND taking a 2-1 lead in the Finals! - "nailing" the details w/ Siakam at the nail - Tyrese playing out of pitches - Mathurin's Mathurin game! - TJM's game-management - defensive tweaks against SGA Samson in Indy: youtu.be/4X5QcdA8JwA
neutral · AI labelView post →I really want to play and like the game, but i just can't the combat is so bad im sorry but i just can't. I have waited for the updates and didn't lost hope, but after the updates i still can't enjoy it.
negative · reviewer's own thumbsView post →I enjoyed it quite a bit but I also think it's very underbaked and broken. It's a game with a ton of potential, and the city of Tyndalston is one of the best realized game worlds I've ever seen, but the gameplay and mission structure needs a TON of work. Hopefully it gets it, cause it could be something really really special.
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →Hey guys, I talked to @samsonfolk.bsky.social about the hottest team in the East - Pacers-Cavs deep dive!! - Nembhard's all-nba defense - Jarace's best game yet! - chess match between aggressive nail help & corner-to-dunker cuts - much more clip: "Caitlin and Samson in Paris" youtu.be/3nip3la74oA
neutral · AI labelView post →Samson is the kind of game that’s surprisingly hard to talk about — though not nearly as hard to play. The game suffers from a wide range of issues. Some of them might be fixable over time, but others feel deeply rooted in its core design — the kind of problems patches simply can’t solve. The most glaring flaw lies in its sense of purpose and storytelling. The narrative is presented in the most basic, surface-level way, lacking any real depth or emotional weight. It fails to create a meaningful…
negative · reviewer's own thumbsView post →100% hair physics ✅ 0% gameplay ❌ Bully: middle age 😕 It feels like this game needed (and deserved) two more years of development.
negative · reviewer's own thumbsView post →I wanna like this game so bad lol. Such a cool concept, But quite literally every single mechanic in this game feels half baked.
negative · reviewer's own thumbsView post →I really wanted to like this game. I gave it multiple chances and overlooked all the little issues because the core concept is genuinely good and fun—but unfortunately, the sum of all the problems ruins everything. Driving is somewhat enjoyable once you get used to the fairly realistic controls, but combat is far too simple and regularly glitches around… it’s just not exciting! Main issues Missions repeat far too often (sometimes 1:1!). You do the exact same thing, in the exact same place,…
negative · reviewer's own thumbsView post →This probably surprises no one, but I am Extremely into what Samson is laying down Makes the modern urban open-world game on a small budget, and ships something while clearly constructing the toolset to do it Even More in the future. Remarkably effective AND efficient. Feels like a modern PS3 game!
positive · AI labelView post →> Riley M. Barnes >Assistant Secretary, Bureau of Democracy, Human Rights, and Labor >October 10, 2025 - Present >Samuel D. Samson >Deputy Assistant Secretary, Bureau of Democracy, Human Rights, and Labor >May 3, 2026 - Present Two recent Trump appointed shitheels. Sounds perfectly reasonable to block them even outside an election period.
neutral · AI labelView post →Groundhog Day the game? I can't recommend this in its current state. I’ve finished the story (or what there was of it) in about 9.5 hours. Definitely a $40nzd game though, so don't expect too much if you decide to play it. However it is enjoyable somewhat, but needs further polish from the devs, and it will be a much better buy. The Good The map design is actually solid. It’s got that gritty, 1990s New York vibe and the environment looks great, but that’s basically where it ends. It…
negative · reviewer's own thumbsView post →I wanted to like this game but alas.. in its current state its very much "What could have been" to me What it wants to be is Max Payne/True Crime/Sleeping Dogs/Driver, at times, I see the vision, I see the shades, I see what COULD be. When the combat works it feels cool, but too often theres hitbox issues that mess up the feel of the game But what it actually is is very buggy, very janky and overall unfinished feeling. Feels like they ran out of money and had to get it out the door. The…
negative · reviewer's own thumbsView post →They played their C game without Samson or Ahmad missing a million open 3s and still beat the #8 team in the country. Extremely impressive. The growth defensively has changed the season.
neutral · AI labelView post →After the recent patches, I have started to enjoy this game a lot more! Hopefully more updates and content along the way!
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →If u wanna relive Driver 1 experience with better graphics this is for you.. The game is just amazing, yes it has some flaws but the good outweighs the bad and the Devs are working tirelessly to provide even better experience to their community.. give it a try u won't regret it
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →UE5 slop - game that looks great but its gameplay and technical state is a bad joke. Melee fight looks comical - all animations cancel when you block punches, hitboxes are broken - sometimes your punches go through enemies without dealing damage. Gameplay loop is super boring - you spam the same type of activities each day just in different places in the city, after 30 minutes of playing you've seen it all. This game had some potential but i feel like devs don't know what they were doing.…
negative · reviewer's own thumbsView post →Absolutely woeful state to release in. Not worth the asking price. The game as an absolute bugfest with atrocious mission design. Instances of jobs failing if you happen to move outside of an invisible wall which immediately causes the mission to end with no warning costing you precious action points and spoiling your run, causing the debt system to hamper you, while some other missions let you freely exit the the area you're told to stay in to mop up enemies that spawn out of nowhere. Theres…
negative · reviewer's own thumbsView post →Developers are listening to the community, and it's getting a lot better. DO NOT compare it to GTA or Driver. It's its own entity witch is based around a street brawler with racing/getaway driving thrown in like an action movie. Story is mid nowadays, but something from the 90's. Something unique and giving credit where it's due.
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →This is a game made if you combined burnout , sleeping dogs , the nobody movie series , and every wanna be tough guy movie ... but the worst aspects of everything about them. The gameplay is uninspired with the game forcing this 6 action point per day loop on you for no reason at all other than to make you play side quest missions all day long to avoid you from playing the clearly lacking main story. The characters feel so 1 dimensional like they were written by a teenager who watched his…
negative · reviewer's own thumbsView post →I really love this game has a lot of potential to be even better if the developers keep going with improvement updates like they have been so far. It's a fun game of driving and fighting with storyline in between the main overall objective. The graphics are good with good details. Would be nice to have some more random interactions on foot to gain more money up. Overall a solid game with really good foundation to build off of.
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →This week's Crewcast is full of new games like PRAGMATA, REPLACED, Samson, and Subversive Memories - PLUS we sit down with Outerloop Games' @ekanaut.bsky.social to discuss their latest game Dosa Divas. youtu.be/fQWQarFR2D8
neutral · AI labelView post →First game from this new studio. I have to say they did a great job and I understand the negative things ( clunky, buggy ) people have been saving but... you can tell the game is made with love. Such a cool atmospheric gritty game with alot of attention for detail. I love the time job system in this game. It's different then whatever I've played. At release the game was really really buggy and performance was bad the devs have been fixing the game and also adding stuff. This game is growing…
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →RECOMMENDED with some caveats: 🌆 Wonderful Rust-Belt Grunge atmosphere 🗣️ Great voice-acting 🔍 Fun to explore ✊ Lots of punch ups Reasons to NOT BUY: 🔫 No gunplay at all ⛓️💥 Lack of polish: minor bugs, weird transitions, stuff clearly missing ☹️ Story starts off strong and then loses its way ⚖️ Main game-play loop isn't challenging, even on harder difficulties This game feels like it was made just for me. 😃 New-Hollywood noir in the Nineties Rust Belt? Sign me up! I'm glad this was a…
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →SAMSON | Reviews 8 - The Outerhaven 7 - GamingBolt 7 - The Nerd Stash 6.5 - AltChar 6 - Destructoid 6 - Prima Games 6 - SteamDeckHQ 6 - Console Creatures 5.5 - WCCFTech 5 - IGN Germany 4 - CGM 4 - DayOne 4 - GameReactor UK 3 - Game Rant MC: 54 OC: 60
neutral · AI labelView post →
Posts are quoted from public profiles with links to the original. Want yours removed? Contact us.