Enlisted - Review: Solid Gameplay, but Incredibly Slow Progression

Satisfaction: 3/5

Enlisted is an interesting take on the shooter genre as instead of controlling a single soldier, you control an entire squad. While the AI companions aren’t the smartest, they add a unique layer to combat, making engagements more dynamic as you’re fighting both players and their squads. Other than this element, Enlisted feels a lot like a Battlefield game. The gameplay is pretty close, other than the movement speed being slower, you could probably convince someone this a free-to-play Battlefield game.

That said, the game does have its shortcomings. Progression is painfully slow, even by free-to-play standards. This issue is compounded by the fact that progression is separate for each faction, forcing players to either focus on one or endure an even slower grind across multiple factions. Another frustration I have is that there isn’t a way to pick the game mode you want to play, without going into the custom browser. Selecting Squad will put queue you into a pool of different game modes. This is rather annoying as not all the game modes are great, it’s made even worse since all of these modes are objective based and many players will not play the objective.

Tech: 4/5

Enlisted runs on the in-house Dagor Engine from Gaijin Games, and it’s a technical success in many areas. The game looks great and performs even better, offering support for modern features like DLSS 3.0, FSR, and XeSS. Optimization is excellent, and the game even runs well on the SteamDeck at low settings.

The only technical drawback is shader compilation stutter. While it’s not as severe as in some other games, it’s noticeable during your first few matches and will return an update or driver change. Once the shaders are compiled, performance smooths out significantly, just making this issue a minor annoyance.

Atmosphere: 4/5

Enlisted does a great job in creating an immersive atmosphere. The maps and environments are well-designed, bringing historical battlefields to life with great attention to detail. The audio design and soundtrack are just as impressive, tying everything together into an immersive experience.

However, a few minor issues hold the atmosphere back. Water graphics on some maps, particularly in the Pacific theater, look subpar, which is disappointing given how frequently players interact with these environments. Additionally, the audio settings could use more granularity. Effects like gunshots and explosions are tied to the same slider, so balancing audio can be tricky. For example, explosions might be too loud, but turning them down risks making gunshots too quiet.

Replayability: 4/5

While Enlisted isn’t as fast-paced as arcade shooters like Call of Duty, it’s still very easy to pick up and play. Matches typically last around 20 minutes, making it accessible for short play sessions. The game offers a ton of content to work toward, though the slow progression system can make grinding feel like a slog.

Final Score: 3.6/5

Pros:

• Enjoyable gameplay
• Good graphics and excellent optimization
• Well made maps based on the areas of real battles

Cons:

• Slow progression
• Shader compilation stutter
• Inability to select preferred game modes

Where to download?

• Steam