Review of Bitburner on Steam
A.E. Jackson Review Score: 3 / 5 Ravens
How was this review scored?
The mark of a good game (and for that matter a good story or novel), above all, is a good story. The kind of story that sticks with you long after you’ve put it down. Such is the case with Bitburner.
The programming-based incremental game stays on your mind between sessions. For days afterward your subconscious continues to work on coding objectives, to unravels new puzzles with exploits against vulnerable servers, and to uncover the truth behind jump3R’s mysterious messages.
There are multiple game systems to tinker with and attempt to master well beyond the real Javascript based hacking central to the game’s progress. Crime syndicates, corporate espionage, stock market manipulation, hacker factions, and more await the player. You’re only rewarded with glimpses of the hidden depths of the game through curious exploration.
I found this fun hacking simulation game on Steam. It is free to play and makes use of real JavaScript to perform the core mechanics of coding scripts to engage the game world. In fact, I thought I was doing pretty well coding on my own. The first few objectives were tackled with ease using the few programming skills I could muster together. Then I found a few YouTube videos which took it a bit further. Eventually, I stumbled onto a series produced by Casually Silent. A coder who explains coding concepts quite well.
I'm now following his series of videos titled ‘Bitburner - Creating a Fully Automated Game’. His GitHub link was buried a in comment thread, so I followed the link. And like Neo taking off after the White Rabbir, I was deep down the rabbit hole loading code into Bitburner and moving ahead with exponential speed. But also comprehension and a new depth of knowledge surrounding JavaScript.
The game is so much deeper than I first realized. After a little time, the player is contacted by a hacking faction called Daedalus. The curtain covering the player’s eyes is pulled back to reveal BitNodes - an advanced alien technology which has trapped humans in a virtual reality simulation! The player’s true game objective is to free humanity - not just money power and reputation achieved through hacking.
Inspired by games like Uplink, Hacknet, Else Heart.break(), and Deus Ex, Bitburner is a programming-based idle incremental RPG where you, the player, take the role of an unknown hacker in a dark, dystopian world. The game provides a variety of mechanics and systems that can be changed through scripts written in JavaScript to automate gameplay, learn skills, play minigames, solve puzzles, and more in this cyberpunk text-based incremental RPG.
While a very basic programming background is recommended, it is not required to play the game! Released December 10, 2021 by developer Hydroflame and published by Fulcrum Games, Bitburner is available on Steam.