Aphelion has the look and sound of an ambitious cinematic sci-fi adventure, with a visually striking planet, strong performances, and an excellent soundtrack. Unfortunately, its frustrating climbing, repetitive stealth sections, heavy corridor design, technical bugs, and underwhelming story turn that promise into a slow and often tedious journey.
Aphelion2026
Aphelion
2026 DON'T NOD65Worthwhile
Playtime
ShortIt typically takes about 8 hours to finish the game.
Playable on
- GeForce NOW
Included with
- Xbox Game PassStandard, Ultimate
Available on
- −40%$17.99
- $34.99
- $34.99
Game modes
Details
Overview
Stranded on a frozen planet, astronaut Ariane must brave rugged landscapes and shifting realities to rescue her wounded partner, Thomas. This action-packed sci-fi adventure blends exploration, traversal, and tense stealth gameplay.
Screenshots
Reception
Press65
Players58
WorthwhileMediocre- Metacritic64from 32 reviews
- OpenCritic66from 36 reviews
A beautifully staged sci-fi survival story weighed down by repetitive, sometimes awkward gameplay.
Aphelion is a solid experience that delivers on its promise, with its world and excellent performance backing it up. This one's a memorable title if you're looking for a great story, but might disappoint you if you want a challenge.
A near future third person sci-fi adventure whose believable characters, expressive animation, and glorious icy backdrops are undermined by a linear story with too little variety in its interactions.
Aphelion is a deeply frustrating mix of both brilliant and baffling design: part gorgeous, best-in-class narrative adventure. One boasting cinematic presentation backed by superb lead performances, further enhanced by the year's most compelling, science-grounded sci‑fi story. But also, part dreary third-person action-adventure, undercutting the pace...