The early critical picture is promising but cautious. PC Gamer praised the atmosphere, scale, story ideas, broom flight, and Aaron's cat-based exploration, while criticizing repetitive opening combat, overly easy possession solutions, sparse-feeling spaces, bugs, and whether the current build justifies its price.
What reviewers liked
PC Gamer highlighted the impressive Amsterdam map, interesting story, smart exploration ideas, and the memorable experience of flying above seventeenth-century streets. Its launch article found controlling Aaron as a black cat intuitive and enjoyed slipping into restricted buildings, scouting points of interest, using charms to distract guards, and possessing targets.
Where the build felt unfinished
The same coverage described early combat as limited to dodging and repeated broom strikes, with little challenge in the opening boss. It also reported a boss transformation bug, a world that could feel large but underfilled, and infiltration that sometimes became trivial when Aaron possessed someone and walked Noa through a building.
Systems with longer-term potential
A hands-off section of the preview showed roguelite-style choices: after defeating Originals or finding opportunities while searching houses, the player can choose one of three abilities. Those temporary abilities reset on death within a section. Examples shown to the writer included a vine shield, a crow attack, and a tank-like transformation.
Verdict for a buyer today
Buy only if participating in an unfinished, changing project sounds appealing and the current investigation premise matters more to you than polish. Wait if you need stable performance, varied early combat, or a finished campaign. This is a roundup of attributed impressions, not our own hands-on score, and later patches can change the balance.
References
- 1666: Amsterdam on SteamSteam
- Early Access impressionsPC Gamer
- Why 1666: Amsterdam launched unfinishedGamesRadar+
- 1666: Amsterdam Early Access previewPC Gamer
