![]() ![]() I might have come across a bit reserved about this game in slack but the thing is I really want to like it. I did encounter one boss that flat out wrecked me in the first few seconds, but I'm hoping the other bosses will be less difficult, or maybe I'll just have to get more ability upgrades to improve my weapons and/or mobility. I did get a new item after beating the one boss though, so I'm assuming there will be more gear. I've only beat one boss so far because mostly I've been exploring an area as much as I can, and then going to another area instead of trying to beat the boss. Also I keep forgetting that I have a gun. The small enemies each have their own predictable animation patterns that they lock into, so a liberal use of the "dash" ability is key to surviving most encounters. The gameplay can be quite difficult, but like a Souls game, when I take a moment to think, and stop mashing buttons, things generally go much better. I'm really digging how much the environments allude to the background story of the game. There's also a bit of a Evangelion and Final Fantasy VI feel to it too. The feel of the world feels very much like Miyazaki films like Nausicaa and Laputa with the ancient machines overgrown with vegetation. Just the visual design, animation, and music alone make it a sumptuous game to play. I played 2-3 hours of this so far and I'm loving it so far. The overworld map is crystal clear, but the dungeon maps? No idea how I would get from point A to point B relying on it. So far my only gripe with this game is I can't really make any sense out of the dungeon level maps. I can't comment on the boss battles since I haven't gotten to a boss yet, but if the same thoughtfulness has been used for the general combat design I don't think I'm going to share John Walker's complaints. The payoff though is that when you do clear a room it feels really good. Taking too long to kill enemies generally gets you killed. The gun has limited ammo that you replenish by hitting enemies with your sword (video games!) When you enter a room full of enemies what will often happen is more enemies start spawning in, so your job is to figure out the most efficient way to string together these moves together before you get overwhelmed. You have three moves starting out: a sword swipe, a dash/blink move, and a gun you can fire. Its difficult because it demands precision in combat. the relative sparseness of respawn points. the consequence of death is that it wrecks your economic progressions, and c. unfamiliarity with a hostile environment, b. The Souls games are difficult because of a. The difficulty is where a lot of people seem to be making Dark Souls comparisons, and while the game is difficult, it is difficult in a different way from a Souls game. In the RPS impressions John Walker complained that the game was too hard, specifically the boss fights. Instead you go back to the central town hub, and there are merchants that allow you to upgrade your various starting abilities using whatever the game's financial instrument is that you collect. There don't seem to be new items you pick up in the game. The way the game leaves the story to the player's imagination and curiosity is really refreshing. When you encounter characters that you can talk to, no words appear, instead you see a slide of pictures telling a story. This game is very much showing, not telling, in some cases quite literally. The other similarity the game has to Dark Souls is the approach to story telling. It feels a lot more sophisticated than that. The rooms are a lot less puzzle-y, and (so far) there isn't some item you acquire that unlocks the rest of the dungeon for you. There is lock and key stuff, but it works differently from a Zelda game. The dungeons are heavily layered where you keep exploring and revealing further depths. The level design feels very Souls-y to me. This is where the Dark Souls comparison comes in. However the dungeon structure strikes me as distinctly un-Zelda like. The game most closely resembles Zelda because of the map. ![]() Those are understandable comparisons, but also kinda way off base with the caveat that I'm only about 3 hours into the game, and haven't done one of the big boss fights. I've seen a lot of comparisons to Zelda and Dark Souls. This is definitely a place you want to explore. ![]() The high tech post-apocalyptic/fantasy vibe is really doing it for me. The obvious thing to say about it is the pixel art and low key synth soundtrack are incredible. ![]() So I played this last night, and I think it is pretty incredible. ![]()
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