Overall: Would recommend with some caveats; looking forward to where it goes
Main Thoughts:
- Excellent combat mechanics, shallow RPG elements; puzzles are fun but not overly difficult
- Mostly bug free (in my experience)
- Decent story hook, but very early
- 2nd main area feels very incomplete still
- Some frustrating bosses and combat encounters; hit boxes/hit detection feels a bit off at times; platforming a bit finnicky at times, but nothing terrible
- Asking price a bit steep for currently available content
First playthrough time (ver. 0.2.0): ~14.5hrs
*(I really took my time though; probably closer to 8-10 hrs at avg pace)
Long Review:
Just finished the currently available content. Overall, I really enjoyed the game, and it is fairly polished for an early access title (literally only had a single crash that I could not replicate). That said, the game is not perfect, and the parts that aren't polished/great started to frustrate and sour my experience in the latter half of the content in version 0.2.0.
For context, I have not played this studio's previous games. First few hours to half of the content available currently, I found incredible. Very much easy to get the hang of, a bit of a challenge to perfect. And the game did a fairly decent job of introducing mechanics (once you've taken control of the main character).Honestly, this game was hitting a gaming itch I have been trying to scratch for a very long time. The action/hack'n'slash combat with an interesting enough story hook in pixel graphics? And there is a reasonable parry/block mechanic, interesting bosses, and rpg elements with different weapon and elemental types? Sign me the hell up! There are definitely flaws though.
The game generally does a good job on tutorializing most things. But then it just outright forgets some important combat nuances, like some enemies you need to knock out of attacks or you're gonna take damage. Others are super tanky, which becomes problematic when dealing with some of the busier combat encounters (and they can get CHAOTIC). Hit boxes/detection is good for the most part, but there were more than a few times where the hit and visual/AOE ring did not line up well. Enemy scaling is a bit hit or miss. Most bosses can reasonably be first tried. But when you start mixing in more chaotic elements and attack spam, shoebox arenas, and some occasionally questionable hits, it can quickly turn frustrating.
Weapon perks trees only unlock additional moves and mod slots. This may be a plus or minus, depending on your preferences (for me, I didn't mind it). Notably, the last weapon you get in this version feels incredibly unfinished and isn't really utilized in puzzles (yet). The core tree is far less interesting, with its perks all boiling down to basic stat increases (+6 strength, +6 armor, +15% stamina, etc.) with nothing really "build defining" or evolving how you play. And with the enemy scaling, they don't feel like they do anything. Unsure if this will change in the future. I hope so. As is, combat is definitely more reliant on "skill" than big number go up. Take that as you will.
The story is very much in the first part of the first act. The premise is interesting enough, but it is hard to judge this early. Time will tell how well it delivers. The 2nd region is clearly unfinished and feels like only a quarter of the content is there. Story also abruptly halts, and not after a major beat or anything. To be expected in EA, but still just an odd place to stop. Really feels like the update should have baked in the oven longer before release.
Also, the ability to manually mark a map to note treasure or POIs to come back to would be appreciated. There is an item that says it will do that automark treasure, but it doesn't appear to work yet.
Despite all that criticism, I really do like the game. Most of what I mentioned above are just minor gripes and areas I think can and will be improved upon. The art direction and gameplay are fantastic. The combat (mostly) flows well, and the current puzzle mechanics have some serious potential. I hope in the future they add optional content that really leans into that side. Asking price is a bit much for what is there. But, if the devs deliver on the game they are promising (and they do have at least one game proving they can), then I think it will be well worth the wait.
