Sights & Sounds
- Although the promotional art seems to be having a bit of an identity crisis (I've seen marketing material sporting 3 different styles), the in-game art is at least consistent. The majority of what you'll see is the game world's intriguing pixel art
- Smaller sprites like Lila and most of the enemies lack detail owing to their diminutive stature, but larger characters and bosses are richly detailed and often wildly creative
- The world itself looks like a more sparsely populated Hieronymus Bosch painting. Everything you encounter features an absurdist, almost psychedelic design. All the while, environments are strikingly colored in a semi-opppsing magenta/teal purple/orange palette, making the world look bathed in either sunrise or sunset depending on your location
- The music is passable; much of it is pretty but forgettable except for the boss tracks, which are universally good (check out The Pianist's theme, for example). Most of the tunes are comprised of synthesizer samples, but some identifiable instruments (piano, violin, percussion) are used often to great effect.
Story & Vibes
- Although the general thrust of a story exists in Lila'a Sky Ark, the details are esoteric and the allusions and references ultimately lead nowhere. Even though I always knew (approximately) where I was supposed to go usually knew what to do when I got there, I never felt like I understood why. I can see that the world is under attack by monsters who want to steal its creativity, but why? Lila is the only human-looking entity, but why? And what the hell is the point of the Gaint Cat Slug?
- Part of my ignorance is my own doing. Didn't research the game enough before diving in. Apparently, Lila's Sky Ark is meant to be the prequel to Monolith of Mind's first game, Resolutiion, so I suppose I'll have to play that to perhaps retroactively clear up some confusion
- Given my own misstep, I won't judge the game's narrative too harshly, but I still think it's valid to criticize the fact that the absence of a self-contained narrative works against it's ability to stand on its own strengths. It often feels like you're trapped in a lore-rich environment with no foothold to latch onto to begin even guessing what's going on
Playability & Replayability
- But is it any fun to play? Well, yes and no. Movement feels good, so things like traversal and dodging should feel snappy and natural to anyone that's played a game evoking Hyper Light Drifter. However, instead of using impressive-looking melee attacks and skills, you... uh... throw boxes
- That's right. All combat in LSA (ha, I get it) centers around gathering environmental items, cramming them in your backpack, and hurling them at enemies' heads. Initially, this feels woefully awkward, but after a few hours of experience, it'll only feel mostly awkward
- Some of the throwables you'll encounter have special AoE effects and/or higher damage, so be sure to retain these for difficult enemies or boss fights as most standard enemies can be undone simply using the boxes and pots you find
- You may even locate or purchase recipes for some of the powerful ammo pickups, which can be crafted by a gigantic Slow Loris in exchange for the game's currency
- Exploration is at least interesting. As imaginative as the art design is, you truly never know what lies on the next screen. I think this was the highlight of LSA for me. Everything felt constantly new and weird, which really motivated me to scour every nook and cranny for collectibles (mostly glasses for your giant robot cyclops father). It's unfortunate that the gameplay and story were so mediocre
- I don't know if I'll ever revisit LSA, unless I play Resolutiion someday and love it. I fear that it may also be a visually appealing but ultimately mediocre experience, though
- If you get stuck, the devs have published a beautiful guide in the Steam walkthrough section for this game
Overall Impressions & Performance
- Lila's Sky Ark is not a bad game; it just doesn't live up to the intrigue of its world by not giving you any chance of understanding it beyond wild conjecture. If the narrative would just click into place, I could likely see past the awkward combat mechanics and have a fuller appreciation of the game. Without it, though, I'm just a bit lost among the pretty colors
- Ran well without bugs on the Steam Deck
Final Verdict
- 4.5/10. Strong art direction and interesting exploration can only take a game so far. What's the point of building an imaginative world full of lore if you refuse to share any of that lore with the player?
----------
Looking for a new game to play on Steam? Don't feel like spending any money? Good news! I'm giving away a whole bunch of games on Backloggd, and all it'll cost you is a review.
----------
This game didn't make the list, but here are some games from 2022 that I really liked
- Although the promotional art seems to be having a bit of an identity crisis (I've seen marketing material sporting 3 different styles), the in-game art is at least consistent. The majority of what you'll see is the game world's intriguing pixel art
- Smaller sprites like Lila and most of the enemies lack detail owing to their diminutive stature, but larger characters and bosses are richly detailed and often wildly creative
- The world itself looks like a more sparsely populated Hieronymus Bosch painting. Everything you encounter features an absurdist, almost psychedelic design. All the while, environments are strikingly colored in a semi-opppsing magenta/teal purple/orange palette, making the world look bathed in either sunrise or sunset depending on your location
- The music is passable; much of it is pretty but forgettable except for the boss tracks, which are universally good (check out The Pianist's theme, for example). Most of the tunes are comprised of synthesizer samples, but some identifiable instruments (piano, violin, percussion) are used often to great effect.
Story & Vibes
- Although the general thrust of a story exists in Lila'a Sky Ark, the details are esoteric and the allusions and references ultimately lead nowhere. Even though I always knew (approximately) where I was supposed to go usually knew what to do when I got there, I never felt like I understood why. I can see that the world is under attack by monsters who want to steal its creativity, but why? Lila is the only human-looking entity, but why? And what the hell is the point of the Gaint Cat Slug?
- Part of my ignorance is my own doing. Didn't research the game enough before diving in. Apparently, Lila's Sky Ark is meant to be the prequel to Monolith of Mind's first game, Resolutiion, so I suppose I'll have to play that to perhaps retroactively clear up some confusion
- Given my own misstep, I won't judge the game's narrative too harshly, but I still think it's valid to criticize the fact that the absence of a self-contained narrative works against it's ability to stand on its own strengths. It often feels like you're trapped in a lore-rich environment with no foothold to latch onto to begin even guessing what's going on
Playability & Replayability
- But is it any fun to play? Well, yes and no. Movement feels good, so things like traversal and dodging should feel snappy and natural to anyone that's played a game evoking Hyper Light Drifter. However, instead of using impressive-looking melee attacks and skills, you... uh... throw boxes
- That's right. All combat in LSA (ha, I get it) centers around gathering environmental items, cramming them in your backpack, and hurling them at enemies' heads. Initially, this feels woefully awkward, but after a few hours of experience, it'll only feel mostly awkward
- Some of the throwables you'll encounter have special AoE effects and/or higher damage, so be sure to retain these for difficult enemies or boss fights as most standard enemies can be undone simply using the boxes and pots you find
- You may even locate or purchase recipes for some of the powerful ammo pickups, which can be crafted by a gigantic Slow Loris in exchange for the game's currency
- Exploration is at least interesting. As imaginative as the art design is, you truly never know what lies on the next screen. I think this was the highlight of LSA for me. Everything felt constantly new and weird, which really motivated me to scour every nook and cranny for collectibles (mostly glasses for your giant robot cyclops father). It's unfortunate that the gameplay and story were so mediocre
- I don't know if I'll ever revisit LSA, unless I play Resolutiion someday and love it. I fear that it may also be a visually appealing but ultimately mediocre experience, though
- If you get stuck, the devs have published a beautiful guide in the Steam walkthrough section for this game
Overall Impressions & Performance
- Lila's Sky Ark is not a bad game; it just doesn't live up to the intrigue of its world by not giving you any chance of understanding it beyond wild conjecture. If the narrative would just click into place, I could likely see past the awkward combat mechanics and have a fuller appreciation of the game. Without it, though, I'm just a bit lost among the pretty colors
- Ran well without bugs on the Steam Deck
Final Verdict
- 4.5/10. Strong art direction and interesting exploration can only take a game so far. What's the point of building an imaginative world full of lore if you refuse to share any of that lore with the player?
----------
Looking for a new game to play on Steam? Don't feel like spending any money? Good news! I'm giving away a whole bunch of games on Backloggd, and all it'll cost you is a review.
----------
This game didn't make the list, but here are some games from 2022 that I really liked