Review: Arknights: Endfield (PS5) – Automation Turns Busywork into Bliss

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The PS5 already has plenty of live service games that rely on in-app purchases, so we weren’t expecting much from Arknights: Endfield. It felt like another unnecessary addition to the market.

We like the rugged look, but we realized we didn’t have the time for another repetitive daily task.

We’ve been so impressed with GRYPHLINE’s work that it’s quickly become part of our everyday routine. Whether it stays that way will depend on continued support, but we confidently recommend this version right now.

Let’s address the main drawback right away: the story, which revolves around a forgetful character irritatingly called the Endministrator, is needlessly complicated with lots of names and excessive backstory – a common problem with games like these.

The game has some appealing details that highlight how your choices affect the environment, but mostly, it’s designed for the anime characters to admire and support you.

As a fan, it’s clear my favorite character is tied to a huge, unfolding mystery! The show’s title hints at it, and I get the feeling we’ll be getting little pieces of the puzzle revealed over several seasons, leading up to some big finale they’re calling ‘End of Service.’ It’s going to be a long, exciting ride!

The game’s cutscenes look fantastic, but the overall story isn’t strong enough for us to recommend it right now. That said, we enjoyed the more intimate moments between characters and some of the conversations were well-written.

This game brilliantly blends the freedom of open-world exploration with the depth of management strategy – a combination I find particularly captivating.

Endfield shares core gameplay elements with popular open-world action RPGs like Genshin Impact and Wuthering Waves, but it adds a unique layer of automation inspired by games such as Satisfactory.

Imagine you’re exploring a game world filled with plants you can gather. But taking the time to collect those plants slows you down, doesn’t it?

Here’s how to solve the problem: create a system that starts with one plant, harvests its seeds, grows those seeds into new plants, and then stores them. Once you start this process, you’ll find it creates a continuous cycle, resulting in an unlimited supply of plants in your storage.

What if you turned those plants into medicine, using a bottling machine to create a small production line? You could then sell the medicine to a nearby camp that needs regular first aid supplies.

Do you get where we’re going with this?

You’ve built a successful business that’s bringing in money, which is great. But have you thought about what to do with it? Perhaps investing in the stock market, where the value of different assets changes constantly? Alright, that’s a possibility.

This game is incredibly satisfying because it offers so many different enjoyable elements. It’s hard to say what’s most addictive – building increasingly elaborate structures or watching your team of anime characters deal massive damage.

Okay, so this game is pretty complex, I won’t lie. But honestly, the way they teach you everything through these awesome, puzzle-like tutorials makes it way easier to pick up than I expected. It’s surprisingly manageable, even with all the different stuff going on.

If you’d rather not worry about the detailed building process, you can find pre-made, optimized designs created by other players online.

It’s concerning that we’ve discussed the game this long without talking about simply exploring the open world – the part most similar to Genshin Impact, if that helps explain it.

The game looks and plays wonderfully on PS5, with smooth performance and beautiful, crisp graphics. We especially appreciate that your characters actively move around the battlefield with you, just like in a traditional JRPG, instead of simply vanishing when you aren’t directly controlling them.

Battles are satisfying and impactful, even though the basic attack pattern is straightforward – characters generally perform a series of attacks ending with a powerful finishing move. You can also use special skills by filling a meter at the bottom of the screen, letting you call on your teammates for help. Plus, coordinating attacks with your squad at the right moments creates cool combinations and teamwork.

For instance, the Endministrator activates a powerful combo move when a teammate uses their skill. This means carefully choosing which characters to team up can significantly increase your damage, adding a new layer of strategy to building a strong team.

To collect the characters you want, you’ll have to use the gacha system, and Endfield’s pulls can feel costly – even though the game is currently giving out a good amount of the in-game currency needed to make those pulls.

The sheer number of different currencies in this game is frustrating, as you even need to convert premium resources just to get new characters.

We can at least acknowledge a couple of good things: character banners will be available for a reasonable amount of time, giving you more chances to collect the characters you’re hoping for.

Both games offer special, powerful weapons that you can earn simply by playing. You get a currency each time you try to unlock new characters, and you can use that to get these signature weapons – it doesn’t cost any real money. This system is a positive aspect of both Genshin Impact and Wuthering Waves.

Each character feels unique and lively, brought to life by impressive animation. A small detail we particularly enjoy is how the Last Rite, a bit of a klutz, comically throws her weapons off-screen when you view her different poses.

If you haven’t enjoyed similar games in the past, this one probably won’t change your opinion.

Even with new automated features, your main objective remains the same: consistently improve your team by overcoming challenges and gathering resources over time.

However, the game’s core mechanics, combined with an incredibly intuitive control system – even on a standard DualSense controller – are truly impressive and worth highlighting.

Honestly, one of the best feelings is logging back into this game knowing my factories were still working while I was away. It’s like a little reward every time! And even though there are a ton of games on PS5 already, it’s seriously hard to stop playing this one because of that feeling. It just keeps you hooked.

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2026-02-02 22:08