Encased: A Sci-Fi Post-Apocalyptic RPG

Encased sets its stage in an alternate 1970s where a vast, inexplicable artifact called the Dome has swallowed a stretch of desert, and the corporations and factions racing to understand it give the game's opening act a genuine sense of mystery most post-apocalyptic RPGs never bother building. For a first act, it's about as strong a Fallout-inspired opening as the genre has produced in years. What happens after that opening is the entire story of this game's reception.

An opening act that earns real comparisons to the classics

Reviewers consistently rank Encased's first several hours among the best CRPG writing of the decade — an original setting, faction choices that carry genuine consequences, and a mystery worth being curious about rather than a wasteland to simply survive. The isometric art style is genuinely beautiful throughout, and the skill and perk systems supporting distinct playstyles sit comfortably in the tradition the game is clearly drawing from.

A drop-off that's remarkably consistent across years of reviews

What follows that opening is where this review has to be direct, because the complaint is unusually consistent rather than a matter of individual taste. Reviews spanning from the game's Early Access period through years after its full 2021 release describe the same arc independently: a genuinely excellent first act, followed by a sharp decline once it ends — content thinning out, pacing that drags, and mechanical friction that was easier to overlook during the strong opening becoming much harder to ignore afterward. More than one reviewer explicitly frames this as a recommendation for the first act alone rather than the whole game, and it's a specific enough pattern, repeated by enough independent voices over enough time, that it reads as a real structural issue rather than a subjective late-game slump.

Mechanical friction that compounds the pacing problem

A separate, related thread concerns the moment-to-moment combat systems. Action-point and fatigue mechanics are described by several reviewers as tedious across a full playthrough — one bluntly labels the experience a "fatigue simulator" — and persistent bugs are still reported well past the game's official release, even by players who otherwise enjoyed substantial portions of it. None of this undoes the genuine strength of the writing and setting; it does mean the systems supporting that writing don't hold up as well as the ideas behind them.

Final verdict

Encased is a genuinely original, well-written CRPG for its first act, and that opening alone is worth experiencing for fans of the genre. It settles at 6 rather than higher because the drop-off afterward is one of the most consistently documented complaints in its entire review history, corroborated across years of independent voices rather than a handful of impatient players. Go in for the setting and the opening hours, keep your expectations realistic about what follows, and consider a deep sale if the later-game pacing complaints matter to your decision.

Price and review data checked 5 August 2026.

If you'd rather your RPG's pacing stayed consistent across an entire persistent world rather than front-loading its best ideas, Wanderer takes a steadier, ongoing approach instead.