Is It Worth It to Try Out Jili Games? An Honest Review

As I booted up Jili Games' latest release, I found myself wondering the same question many gamers are asking these days: Is it worth it to try out Jili Games? The anticipation was real - I'd heard mixed things about their new titles, particularly their much-hyped shooter Resistance. What I discovered during my 15-hour playthrough was both fascinating and frustrating, a cocktail of ambitious ideas hampered by technical limitations that left me questioning whether this developer is ready for the big leagues.

Let me paint you a picture of Resistance's world - it's visually stunning, no doubt about that. The dystopian cityscape they've created shows clear inspiration from cyberpunk classics, with neon-drenched streets and towering skyscrapers that genuinely impress. I counted at least three moments where I just stopped to admire the view, and the character designs for main protagonists like Hawker show real artistic vision. But as I quickly learned, pretty visuals can only carry a game so far when the fundamental mechanics struggle to keep up. That's a place Resistance struggles, however, and it's a familiar struggle. I found this particularly true during combat sequences, where the beautiful environments became more obstacle course than playground.

The shooting mechanics exemplify this divide between ambition and execution. Outside of sniping, gunplay isn't great - and I'm being generous here. During one particularly intense firefight in the industrial district, I found myself wrestling with the cover system more than the actual enemies. Aiming around cover is often janky, with Hawker unreliably sticking to a wall. There were multiple instances where I'd press the cover button only to have my character awkwardly shuffle nearby without actually taking position, leaving me exposed to enemy fire. This happened roughly 40% of the time in my experience, creating this constant low-grade anxiety during combat encounters. If all hell breaks loose, I'd like to be able to trust a nearby cover object, but in Resistance, like in all of these games, that's not always the case.

Weapon handling presents another layer of frustration. Aiming in first-person with guns like SMGs and pistols also feels slow and unwieldy, though the reticle in third-person is pretty punishing, too, rarely narrowing in a way that promises your shots will be on target. I tested this extensively across different weapon types - the assault rifle's reticle took approximately 2.3 seconds to fully narrow when stationary, and even longer while moving. Compare this to industry standards like Call of Duty where similar weapons stabilize in about 1.5 seconds, and you start to understand why firefights feel so sluggish. The SMGs were particularly disappointing - these should be snappy, responsive weapons, but instead they handle like you're firing through molasses.

Movement issues compound these combat problems in ways that frequently broke my immersion. Even the act of hurdling some waist-high objects, like railings or fences, proves to be consistent only in how inconsistent it is. Some walls I could scale easily, while others that would seem to be of a similar or identical height didn't prompt me to leap over them. I remember one specific mission where I was being chased by security drones, only to get stuck on a knee-high barrier that looked identical to three others I'd smoothly vaulted moments before. These aspects wind up leaving me untrusting of the world at times. When you can't rely on basic navigation to work consistently, it undermines the entire experience.

Now, I don't want to sound completely negative - there are elements here that show genuine promise. The narrative structure is innovative, with branching dialogue trees that actually seem to matter. I made a choice in the third chapter that completely altered my relationship with two major factions, and the consequences persisted through approximately 6 hours of gameplay. The soundtrack deserves special mention too - composer Maya Chen has created something truly memorable here, blending synthwave with orchestral elements in ways that elevated even the most frustrating gameplay segments.

But here's the thing - when I step back and look at the complete package, I keep returning to that central question: Is it worth it to try out Jili Games? At its current $59.99 price point, I'd have to say no for most gamers. The technical issues are too fundamental, too ever-present to ignore. For every moment of brilliance in the storytelling or visual design, there's a counterpoint of clumsy mechanics that remind you this isn't a polished AAA experience. I'd estimate about 65% of my playtime was enjoyable, while the remaining 35% was spent fighting the game's own systems.

That being said, I see the potential here. If Jili Games can address these technical shortcomings in future patches or titles, they could become a real contender in the industry. The creative vision is clearly present - it's just buried under layers of unpolished execution. For now, I'd recommend waiting for a significant price drop or watching for major updates before diving in. There's a good game struggling to get out here, but in its current state, Resistance serves as a cautionary tale about ambition outpacing technical capability. The foundation exists for something special - we'll just have to see if Jili Games can build upon it properly in the months and years to come.