So my beloved friend theadhdagenda_ loves this game and really wanted me to play it. I was already planning on playing it when it eventually got a physical release and what do you know, it got one last year. While I did enjoy it overall, it does have issues that detracted from my experience .
The main issue I had with the game, and I know it's been said countless times before, but the story was just not good. I think it has potential with its concept of heaven and the whole heist thing. It had its moments here and there but in between those few instances of good it has so really awful dialogue. People weren't kidding when they said it was bad though I was expecting it to be more constant than it was. Still tho, it really is pretty bad. Like I said, the story had it's moments but even outside of the bad dialogue, I don't think the story was done well. Not just because it felt undercooked but the theme of forgiveness and it being applied to Neon Green, did not feel right at all. I don't think they were trying to be malicious and were more trying to say you shouldn't let your abuser live rent free in your head and to just cut them off completely, but to have it be forgiveness instead...does leave a bad taste in my mouth. Especially since the book of death ending, which is supposed to be the bad ending, is more satisfying than the good one lol. That's just my take though, even besides the poor story the dialogue is bad enough where you'd want to just skip it all anyways. But alas, the story is a big part of the game time so I must judge it accordingly.
I know I started this review off negatively but that's the biggest negative really because the actual game part is really fun! It's a card based shooter where your main goal is to go as fast as possible. This works very well since, for the most part, levels are really bite-sized. With it being a speed game, it also incentivizes speed-running. There's medals at you get at the end of each level, with Ace being the main one you wanna go for in the end. There's also the dev times that are pretty hard to beat but I did end up doing it once in my whole playthrough. Otherwise, I just aced every other level. Besides the speed aspect, the cards aren't just for shooting as they have a secondary use when you discard them. This is another big reason the game is so fun as you have to figure out what to discard or not in each level. First you figure out what to do in the stage and then you speed through it, rince and repeat. Sadly because there's so many levels, and I went for not only the aces but also the presents, I did get somewhat burnt out by the end. Not enough to dislike the game or anything but I definitely wasn't clamoring to do those rushes when I beat the game (which are just all the levels one after the other with one life).
Speaking of the presents, outside of the gameplay and story there's also this social-link like mechanic where you give a character a gift and you get dialogue and other stuff from them. I didn't really care about the dialogue really, besides Mikey he was cool, but they are somewhat worth it for the little side quest levels you get every so often. These don't have time medals and are slower paced than the usual levels. They could be hit or miss but were mostly fun.
The music is by Machine Girl and while I wouldn't personally listen to it outside the game, it was really solid and fit the levels. The visuals of the levels are also really nice. Mostly in the earlier stages, they have this dream-like liminal space kinda feel which I really like. Some of the later levels not as much sadly but the music still fit those ones. I'm not in love with some of the character designs for the Neons but the presentation as a whole was solid too.
All in all, while I definitely didn't love it as much as some people do due to the story ofc and getting burnt out near the end, it was a fun time overall! Definitely better than the other Ben Desposito game I played, Donut County. I recommend you pick this game up when it's cheap because it is still a lot of fun, just maybe skip the cutscenes even if they are a large part of it's runtime. Idk tho, maybe you'll get more out of them than I did lol.
The main issue I had with the game, and I know it's been said countless times before, but the story was just not good. I think it has potential with its concept of heaven and the whole heist thing. It had its moments here and there but in between those few instances of good it has so really awful dialogue. People weren't kidding when they said it was bad though I was expecting it to be more constant than it was. Still tho, it really is pretty bad. Like I said, the story had it's moments but even outside of the bad dialogue, I don't think the story was done well. Not just because it felt undercooked but the theme of forgiveness and it being applied to Neon Green, did not feel right at all. I don't think they were trying to be malicious and were more trying to say you shouldn't let your abuser live rent free in your head and to just cut them off completely, but to have it be forgiveness instead...does leave a bad taste in my mouth. Especially since the book of death ending, which is supposed to be the bad ending, is more satisfying than the good one lol. That's just my take though, even besides the poor story the dialogue is bad enough where you'd want to just skip it all anyways. But alas, the story is a big part of the game time so I must judge it accordingly.
I know I started this review off negatively but that's the biggest negative really because the actual game part is really fun! It's a card based shooter where your main goal is to go as fast as possible. This works very well since, for the most part, levels are really bite-sized. With it being a speed game, it also incentivizes speed-running. There's medals at you get at the end of each level, with Ace being the main one you wanna go for in the end. There's also the dev times that are pretty hard to beat but I did end up doing it once in my whole playthrough. Otherwise, I just aced every other level. Besides the speed aspect, the cards aren't just for shooting as they have a secondary use when you discard them. This is another big reason the game is so fun as you have to figure out what to discard or not in each level. First you figure out what to do in the stage and then you speed through it, rince and repeat. Sadly because there's so many levels, and I went for not only the aces but also the presents, I did get somewhat burnt out by the end. Not enough to dislike the game or anything but I definitely wasn't clamoring to do those rushes when I beat the game (which are just all the levels one after the other with one life).
Speaking of the presents, outside of the gameplay and story there's also this social-link like mechanic where you give a character a gift and you get dialogue and other stuff from them. I didn't really care about the dialogue really, besides Mikey he was cool, but they are somewhat worth it for the little side quest levels you get every so often. These don't have time medals and are slower paced than the usual levels. They could be hit or miss but were mostly fun.
The music is by Machine Girl and while I wouldn't personally listen to it outside the game, it was really solid and fit the levels. The visuals of the levels are also really nice. Mostly in the earlier stages, they have this dream-like liminal space kinda feel which I really like. Some of the later levels not as much sadly but the music still fit those ones. I'm not in love with some of the character designs for the Neons but the presentation as a whole was solid too.
All in all, while I definitely didn't love it as much as some people do due to the story ofc and getting burnt out near the end, it was a fun time overall! Definitely better than the other Ben Desposito game I played, Donut County. I recommend you pick this game up when it's cheap because it is still a lot of fun, just maybe skip the cutscenes even if they are a large part of it's runtime. Idk tho, maybe you'll get more out of them than I did lol.
Few games measure up to the amount of satisfaction that Neon White delivers when you manage to ace a level, whether it’s on your first try or after it’s been giving you some trouble. It is an immensely satisfying game. So much so that, several hours after finishing it, I was bummed that I didn’t have more to play. I’m not usually one for time chasing in games, but the loop of trying to get the best time possible, ace every level, and find every gift, was incredibly addicting.
That said, there were times where my frustration outweighed the fun I was having. For the most part, it only happened on a couple levels that were too long and relied too much on perfect execution. I’m fine with the rapid restarts on shorter levels when you’re only losing 15-20 seconds, but there were a few stages that were over a minute long (one was over 4 minutes), and it got a bit annoying to have to restart after just one missed jump 75% of the way into the level.
Everything everyone said about the cheesy writing was pretty spot-on. Honestly, I actually kind of enjoyed the story and world, as goofy as it was, but the moment-to-moment writing and dialogue is pretty unbearable. You have the option to skip the dialogue, but it’s also the only thing that breaks up the levels. So it’s kind of nice to have a bit of a break between acts.
Overall, Neon White is an incredibly unique, rad as heck game that brought me more satisfaction than most other games, even if parts of the game overstayed their welcome.
+ Solid gameplay feel even on console
+ Insanely satisfying to chase a faster time or get all the ace medals
+ Killer soundtrack
+ Great style
- Gameplay loop is basically the same throughout the whole game
- Moment-to-moment writing is cringey and unbearably bad
- Some levels are a bit too long which made trying for faster times frustrating
- Gift hunting got to be a pain as some of them are too well-hidden and require guides
That said, there were times where my frustration outweighed the fun I was having. For the most part, it only happened on a couple levels that were too long and relied too much on perfect execution. I’m fine with the rapid restarts on shorter levels when you’re only losing 15-20 seconds, but there were a few stages that were over a minute long (one was over 4 minutes), and it got a bit annoying to have to restart after just one missed jump 75% of the way into the level.
Everything everyone said about the cheesy writing was pretty spot-on. Honestly, I actually kind of enjoyed the story and world, as goofy as it was, but the moment-to-moment writing and dialogue is pretty unbearable. You have the option to skip the dialogue, but it’s also the only thing that breaks up the levels. So it’s kind of nice to have a bit of a break between acts.
Overall, Neon White is an incredibly unique, rad as heck game that brought me more satisfaction than most other games, even if parts of the game overstayed their welcome.
+ Solid gameplay feel even on console
+ Insanely satisfying to chase a faster time or get all the ace medals
+ Killer soundtrack
+ Great style
- Gameplay loop is basically the same throughout the whole game
- Moment-to-moment writing is cringey and unbearably bad
- Some levels are a bit too long which made trying for faster times frustrating
- Gift hunting got to be a pain as some of them are too well-hidden and require guides
Neon White is a game where everything from the level design, to the visuals, to the incredible soundtrack compliment eachother so well that they had to channel all of the bad decisions into the writing.
Literally everything but the dialogue is fucking great. I get what they were going for. Cool edgy 14 year old writing, but I don't feel that that's a valid excuse when there are plenty of examples of this style of writing done well. Kill la Kill, MGR or anything by Tatsuki Fujimoto goes for a similar vibe, but they actually manage to be funny, or have compelling characters.
It's just a shame that this game is dragged down by dialogue that makes you actively want to skip it.
Wait, the dialogue is designed this way so you speedrun cutscenes? That’s brilliant. I only just realized this whilst writing. Bravo. Certainly intentional.
Near the middle of the game I started to try and beat my friends. Go for high scores.
I then had the epiphany that I HATE my friends and I HATE getting high scores and THEY SUCK why are my friends better at games than me??
Afterwards I realised I was having a lot more fun when I wasn't going for high scores. My bad.
Luckily all of the final few levels and mechanics were absolutely stellar, and immediately hooked me back in. It’s one of the rare examples nowadays of a gameplay loop that manages to gel everything together so well, it becomes impossible not to admire it.
Literally everything but the dialogue is fucking great. I get what they were going for. Cool edgy 14 year old writing, but I don't feel that that's a valid excuse when there are plenty of examples of this style of writing done well. Kill la Kill, MGR or anything by Tatsuki Fujimoto goes for a similar vibe, but they actually manage to be funny, or have compelling characters.
It's just a shame that this game is dragged down by dialogue that makes you actively want to skip it.
Wait, the dialogue is designed this way so you speedrun cutscenes? That’s brilliant. I only just realized this whilst writing. Bravo. Certainly intentional.
Near the middle of the game I started to try and beat my friends. Go for high scores.
I then had the epiphany that I HATE my friends and I HATE getting high scores and THEY SUCK why are my friends better at games than me??
Afterwards I realised I was having a lot more fun when I wasn't going for high scores. My bad.
Luckily all of the final few levels and mechanics were absolutely stellar, and immediately hooked me back in. It’s one of the rare examples nowadays of a gameplay loop that manages to gel everything together so well, it becomes impossible not to admire it.
This review contains spoilers
100%ed the game(all ace medals + gifts + true ending)
neon white is the complete opposite of post void. to succeed in post void, you need to forfeit all thought and just do. neon white, however, is a thinking man’s game. you need to constantly be thinking two steps ahead at any given moment if you want the best times and medals. one mistake can utterly ruin an entire run, and with how fast you’re going you need to always be thinking ahead. in post void, you fail if you exit autopilot. in neon white, you fail if you enter autopilot.
the game plays like a dream, it’s honestly the most exhilarating gameplay experience i’ve had since ultrakill’s p-2(still need to p-rank it lol). especially in the book of life levels, oh my god i was staining the walls neon white. the gameplay loop is just so perfect. learning routes for better times, what cards to discard, perfecting your skills, god it’s just so fucking fun.
i would be remiss to not mention the ost. my favorite machine girl album is reporpoised phantasies, and the neon white ost is almost entirely comprised of that style of machine girl, i love the ost in this game. there is not a doubt in my mind machine girl could create an amazing song for p-3, something like tenebre rosso sangue. TRS got me through the gauntlet of p-2 and i guarantee a machine girl song for ultrakill would have the exact same effect. i love the ost here, some favorites include hellion, thousand pound butterfly and glass ocean. the only complaint i have is that it started to get old when i was going for ace medals, but that happens to me with MG a lot, and i started listening to it outside of the game before i finished it so there’s that. i don’t really think it’s a flaw.
the art direction of this game is also amazing, the demon designs are all whimsical and unique, each stage has a unique (and beautiful) environment/backdrop from lower heaven to the hanging gardens to the ??? of thousand pound butterfly. the ost once again helps each stage stand out.
onto the gifts. i was initially skeptical of the gifts you need to get for true ending. i remember tattletail being some big thing back in the day, at least in fnaf youtube spaces. it was cool to realize esposito made that game and turned it into an easter egg lol. outside of getting a bit burnt out on finding them by the end they were really nice. (though the same can be said for the ace medals, i think both are a side effect of 30+ hours of a single game in a week) the “side quests” which were really just awesome bonus levels with a gimmick were great, i loved them. violet > yellow > red for their quality. and the dialogue you receive as another reward always seemed to get a chuckle out of me, at the very least. i seriously don’t get people who hate this dialogue, if you embrace the cheese these characters are endearing.
now for the story/dialouge. everyone says it sucks and yeah its kinda cringe but in an endearing way. its very anime inspired and i have no doubt people would call this dialogue good if it were recorded in japanese. anime dialogue just doesnt sound that good in english. but i mean you got steve blum voicing the protagonist and everyone else is doing a great job as well, so it levels out to endearing rather than cringe. it's not that bad, honestly. the story and world is also genuinely good, too. i like the themes and direction they took with it, there's not often an anime game where god is portrayed as good lol, so that was refreshing. and the twist with the believers being fake angels/deities was also completely unexpected. the believers whole shtick being that they wanted luxury in heaven and were so upset when all they got was eternal peace THAT THEY OVERTHREW GOD. thats a damn good twist, id say. might be unintentional, but it certainly felt like they were critiquing a certain sect of christians. you know the ones
the only complaint i really have is the burnout/fatigue i got late game.
out of the few 2022 games i’ve played, this is definitely goty. i can only see it being surpassed by elden, xbc3, or live a live. though i’ve been known to be blown away by things i have no expectations for, so who knows what could surpass neon white.
this game’s a gem, it’s dialogue and story get hated on way too often, and the gameplay is an exhilarating test of skill. i enjoyed almost every second of it. if not for cs1 or spiderman, this would be the best game i played this year.
ill try the eternights demo next and if i like it then thats whats next if not uhhh gaming break me thinks
neon white is the complete opposite of post void. to succeed in post void, you need to forfeit all thought and just do. neon white, however, is a thinking man’s game. you need to constantly be thinking two steps ahead at any given moment if you want the best times and medals. one mistake can utterly ruin an entire run, and with how fast you’re going you need to always be thinking ahead. in post void, you fail if you exit autopilot. in neon white, you fail if you enter autopilot.
the game plays like a dream, it’s honestly the most exhilarating gameplay experience i’ve had since ultrakill’s p-2(still need to p-rank it lol). especially in the book of life levels, oh my god i was staining the walls neon white. the gameplay loop is just so perfect. learning routes for better times, what cards to discard, perfecting your skills, god it’s just so fucking fun.
i would be remiss to not mention the ost. my favorite machine girl album is reporpoised phantasies, and the neon white ost is almost entirely comprised of that style of machine girl, i love the ost in this game. there is not a doubt in my mind machine girl could create an amazing song for p-3, something like tenebre rosso sangue. TRS got me through the gauntlet of p-2 and i guarantee a machine girl song for ultrakill would have the exact same effect. i love the ost here, some favorites include hellion, thousand pound butterfly and glass ocean. the only complaint i have is that it started to get old when i was going for ace medals, but that happens to me with MG a lot, and i started listening to it outside of the game before i finished it so there’s that. i don’t really think it’s a flaw.
the art direction of this game is also amazing, the demon designs are all whimsical and unique, each stage has a unique (and beautiful) environment/backdrop from lower heaven to the hanging gardens to the ??? of thousand pound butterfly. the ost once again helps each stage stand out.
onto the gifts. i was initially skeptical of the gifts you need to get for true ending. i remember tattletail being some big thing back in the day, at least in fnaf youtube spaces. it was cool to realize esposito made that game and turned it into an easter egg lol. outside of getting a bit burnt out on finding them by the end they were really nice. (though the same can be said for the ace medals, i think both are a side effect of 30+ hours of a single game in a week) the “side quests” which were really just awesome bonus levels with a gimmick were great, i loved them. violet > yellow > red for their quality. and the dialogue you receive as another reward always seemed to get a chuckle out of me, at the very least. i seriously don’t get people who hate this dialogue, if you embrace the cheese these characters are endearing.
now for the story/dialouge. everyone says it sucks and yeah its kinda cringe but in an endearing way. its very anime inspired and i have no doubt people would call this dialogue good if it were recorded in japanese. anime dialogue just doesnt sound that good in english. but i mean you got steve blum voicing the protagonist and everyone else is doing a great job as well, so it levels out to endearing rather than cringe. it's not that bad, honestly. the story and world is also genuinely good, too. i like the themes and direction they took with it, there's not often an anime game where god is portrayed as good lol, so that was refreshing. and the twist with the believers being fake angels/deities was also completely unexpected. the believers whole shtick being that they wanted luxury in heaven and were so upset when all they got was eternal peace THAT THEY OVERTHREW GOD. thats a damn good twist, id say. might be unintentional, but it certainly felt like they were critiquing a certain sect of christians. you know the ones
the only complaint i really have is the burnout/fatigue i got late game.
out of the few 2022 games i’ve played, this is definitely goty. i can only see it being surpassed by elden, xbc3, or live a live. though i’ve been known to be blown away by things i have no expectations for, so who knows what could surpass neon white.
this game’s a gem, it’s dialogue and story get hated on way too often, and the gameplay is an exhilarating test of skill. i enjoyed almost every second of it. if not for cs1 or spiderman, this would be the best game i played this year.
ill try the eternights demo next and if i like it then thats whats next if not uhhh gaming break me thinks
I haven't played a game that truly made me feel like I was good at games in a long time, which is a testament to how sharply Neon White's gameplay is designed. Executing perfectly on a level feels amazing and is totally achievable thanks to smart level design, tight controls, and how easy repetition is in Neon White. Being able to smack one button and instantly restart the level with no downtime was such a boon and takes all of the bite out of failure, instead pushing me to aim for quicker and quicker level times. The biggest downside, as I'm sure is the consensus, is this game's writing. I didn't hate the overarching plot or the characters, but the dialogue is often grating and immature. The backstory is particularly juvenile--I found myself mostly tuning it out. Aside from this, the game is sharp and focused so it didn't greatly detract, but it's an area where the game could have been better.
"you can never be a true gamer if you only ever play on easy mode" is a real line of dialogue in the game
A phenomenal indie game. Highly enjoyed the gameplay and the level design. The characters and story were also pretty good, which surprised me. They aren't groundbreaking but I liked them. Violet was simultaneously unhinged yet adorable, Red was charming, and Yellow..was yellow lol.
Got all gifts and the true ending
Got all gifts and the true ending
GLASS OCEAN ON REPLAY TILL THE DAY I DIE
VIRTUAL PARADISE ON REPLAY TILL THE DAY I DIE
VAINGLORIOUS CHORUS ON REPLAY TILL THE DAY I DIE
SIN TO WIN! ON REPLAY TILL THE DAY I DIE
PENDULUM ON REPLAY TILL THE DAY I DIE
CLOUD NINE ON REPLAY TILL THE DAY I DIE
HELLION ON REPLAY TILL THE DAY I DIE
FIGHT OR FLIGHT ON REPLAY TILL THE DAY I DIE
HOUSE OF CARDS ON REPLAY TILL THE DAY I DIE
THE WORLD TO COME ON REPLAY TILL THE DAY I DIE
RIGGED GAME ON REPLAY TILL THE DAY I DIE
ANGEL'S PEAK ON REPLAY TILL THE DAY I DIE
SOLITARY GRACE ON REPLAY TILL THE DAY I DIE
THE WICKED HEART ON REPLAY TILL THE DAY I DIE
FALSE WITNESS ON REPLAY TILL THE DAY I DIE
THOUSAND POUND BUTTERFLY ON REPLAY TILL THE DAY I DIE
HAND OF GOD ON REPLAY TILL THE DAY I DIE
MISSION COMPLETE (NOT BAD FOR A DEAD GUY) ON REPLAY TILL THE DAY I DIE
SERMON ON REPLAY TILL THE DAY I DIE
PEACE OF MIND ON REPLAY TILL THE DAY I DIE
HEAVEN CENTRAL AUTHORITY (MIKEY'S THEME) ON REPLAY TILL THE DAY I DIE
HEAVENLY DELIGHT ON REPLAY TILL THE DAY I DIE
COMPLETELY CLUELESS ON REPLAY TILL THE DAY I DIE
LIGHT IN THE FOG (RED'S THEME) ON REPLAY TILL THE DAY I DIE
NEON BAR ON REPLAY TILL THE DAY I DIE
SQUIRT OF LEMON (RAZ'S THEME) ON REPLAY TILL THE DAY I DIE
SUNCOAST SUITE ON REPLAY TILL THE DAY I DIE
FIST BUMP (YELLOW'S THEME) ON REPLAY TILL THE DAY I DIE
RUDE INTERLUDE ON REPLAY TILL THE DAY I DIE
PEARLY GATE PROMENADE ON REPLAY TILL THE DAY I DIE
DISPATCH ON REPLAY TILL THE DAY I DIE
BLOODY SNEAKERS (VIOLET'S THEME) ON REPLAY TILL THE DAY I DIE
MILLENNIUM ESCALATOR ON REPLAY TILL THE DAY I DIE
OUT OF BOUNDS ON REPLAY TILL THE DAY I DIE
RINGER OF BELLS ON REPLAY TILL THE DAY I DIE
DARK TWIST ON REPLAY TILL THE DAY I DIE
MECHANICAL HALO (GREEN'S THEME) ON REPLAY TILL THE DAY I DIE
COIN FLIP ON REPLAY TILL THE DAY I DIE
STAINED GLASS ON REPLAY TILL THE DAY I DIE
APPLES & HONEY ON REPLAY TILL THE DAY I DIE
RUMORS ON REPLAY TILL THE DAY I DIE
HOLY GROUND ON REPLAY TILL THE DAY I DIE
SEVERED ON REPLAY TILL THE DAY I DIE
BE NOT AFRAID ON REPLAY TILL THE DAY I DIE
BURDEN ON REPLAY TILL THE DAY I DIE
MERCY ON REPLAY TILL THE DAY I DIE
WTF ON REPLAY TILL THE DAY I DIE
CONFESSION ON REPLAY TILL THE DAY I DIE
LIGHT IN THE FOG PART 2 ON REPLAY TILL THE DAY I DIE
MILLENNIUM STAIRCASE ON REPLAY TILL THE DAY I DIE
FADE TO WHITE ON REPLAY TILL THE DAY I DIE
VIRTUAL PARADISE ON REPLAY TILL THE DAY I DIE
VAINGLORIOUS CHORUS ON REPLAY TILL THE DAY I DIE
SIN TO WIN! ON REPLAY TILL THE DAY I DIE
PENDULUM ON REPLAY TILL THE DAY I DIE
CLOUD NINE ON REPLAY TILL THE DAY I DIE
HELLION ON REPLAY TILL THE DAY I DIE
FIGHT OR FLIGHT ON REPLAY TILL THE DAY I DIE
HOUSE OF CARDS ON REPLAY TILL THE DAY I DIE
THE WORLD TO COME ON REPLAY TILL THE DAY I DIE
RIGGED GAME ON REPLAY TILL THE DAY I DIE
ANGEL'S PEAK ON REPLAY TILL THE DAY I DIE
SOLITARY GRACE ON REPLAY TILL THE DAY I DIE
THE WICKED HEART ON REPLAY TILL THE DAY I DIE
FALSE WITNESS ON REPLAY TILL THE DAY I DIE
THOUSAND POUND BUTTERFLY ON REPLAY TILL THE DAY I DIE
HAND OF GOD ON REPLAY TILL THE DAY I DIE
MISSION COMPLETE (NOT BAD FOR A DEAD GUY) ON REPLAY TILL THE DAY I DIE
SERMON ON REPLAY TILL THE DAY I DIE
PEACE OF MIND ON REPLAY TILL THE DAY I DIE
HEAVEN CENTRAL AUTHORITY (MIKEY'S THEME) ON REPLAY TILL THE DAY I DIE
HEAVENLY DELIGHT ON REPLAY TILL THE DAY I DIE
COMPLETELY CLUELESS ON REPLAY TILL THE DAY I DIE
LIGHT IN THE FOG (RED'S THEME) ON REPLAY TILL THE DAY I DIE
NEON BAR ON REPLAY TILL THE DAY I DIE
SQUIRT OF LEMON (RAZ'S THEME) ON REPLAY TILL THE DAY I DIE
SUNCOAST SUITE ON REPLAY TILL THE DAY I DIE
FIST BUMP (YELLOW'S THEME) ON REPLAY TILL THE DAY I DIE
RUDE INTERLUDE ON REPLAY TILL THE DAY I DIE
PEARLY GATE PROMENADE ON REPLAY TILL THE DAY I DIE
DISPATCH ON REPLAY TILL THE DAY I DIE
BLOODY SNEAKERS (VIOLET'S THEME) ON REPLAY TILL THE DAY I DIE
MILLENNIUM ESCALATOR ON REPLAY TILL THE DAY I DIE
OUT OF BOUNDS ON REPLAY TILL THE DAY I DIE
RINGER OF BELLS ON REPLAY TILL THE DAY I DIE
DARK TWIST ON REPLAY TILL THE DAY I DIE
MECHANICAL HALO (GREEN'S THEME) ON REPLAY TILL THE DAY I DIE
COIN FLIP ON REPLAY TILL THE DAY I DIE
STAINED GLASS ON REPLAY TILL THE DAY I DIE
APPLES & HONEY ON REPLAY TILL THE DAY I DIE
RUMORS ON REPLAY TILL THE DAY I DIE
HOLY GROUND ON REPLAY TILL THE DAY I DIE
SEVERED ON REPLAY TILL THE DAY I DIE
BE NOT AFRAID ON REPLAY TILL THE DAY I DIE
BURDEN ON REPLAY TILL THE DAY I DIE
MERCY ON REPLAY TILL THE DAY I DIE
WTF ON REPLAY TILL THE DAY I DIE
CONFESSION ON REPLAY TILL THE DAY I DIE
LIGHT IN THE FOG PART 2 ON REPLAY TILL THE DAY I DIE
MILLENNIUM STAIRCASE ON REPLAY TILL THE DAY I DIE
FADE TO WHITE ON REPLAY TILL THE DAY I DIE
This is probably one of the silliest and most fun games of all time to any insane people out there do not pick it up because you will end up in a history of speed runs video
so much fun. amazing movement mechanics, sick level design, and the cringiest (not derogatory) story I have ever seen.
Neon White is a mid-2000's Funimation dubbed anime that got lost in the woods to its 3am Toonami airing, and was found 20 years later as an FPS with speedrunning and card-based mechanics in-hand.
A speedrunner's paradise intended to be replayed over and over for the most optimal movements, Neon White is an impeccably designed puzzle-platformer-shooter thing that never stops throwing the most fun gameplay ideas at you. Some of these levels legit blew my mind! The complaints about bad writing are so overblown to the point it's all I heard about the game till now, and I missed out on one of the best of last year. While yes the story is wildly different quality to the actual core gameplay, it should absolutely not put you off when it can be entirely skipped and isn't important at all. Love the character designs at least
I don't really have a lot to say about this game. It's very tightly designed with kickass levels that are surprisingly fun to dick around in even if you're not chasing better times. I think the writing, while nothing amazing, is a lot more charming than people give it credit for. And on top of that, the music is alright. It's fitting for the game and really good, but I've seen the sentiment thrown around that it's not music you'd choose to listen to anywhere else, and I'd have to agree with that assessment.
Fantastic, exhilarating gameplay. Some of the most satisfying adrenaline rush fun I’ve had playing a video game.
Story and characters are insufferable and are unfortunately an integral part of the Neon White experience. This is one of the only games I’ve ever played where the writing is so obnoxiously bad that it's impossible for me to ignore it in service of quality gameplay. Remembering the dialogue in this game legitimately puts me in a pissy mood as ridiculous and embarrassing as that sounds. I’d be giving this a much higher score if it weren’t for the writing.
Story and characters are insufferable and are unfortunately an integral part of the Neon White experience. This is one of the only games I’ve ever played where the writing is so obnoxiously bad that it's impossible for me to ignore it in service of quality gameplay. Remembering the dialogue in this game legitimately puts me in a pissy mood as ridiculous and embarrassing as that sounds. I’d be giving this a much higher score if it weren’t for the writing.
Still need to beat but cool concept for a game. Speedrun puzzle shooter? But also an anime visual novel with an industrial techno soundtrack?
The perfect videogame.
I can't think of a single flaw with this game, maybe just a nitpick regarding the lack of voice acting for optional dialogue, but I'm not illiterate and all of the main story is fully voice-acted. Also, before someone comes in here and says the dialogue is bad, pull your head out of your ass it's not that serious.
You're gonna tell me that a game with some of the hardest lines in fiction such as "You're the Sasuke to my Naruto" and take this seriously as straight dog-ass writing. You're really going to tell me straight to my face that this masterclass in (purposefully) cringe 2000's writing that makes Citizen Kane, the hack fraud, roll in his grave, BAD!? Listen up bucko, you clearly aren't as highbrow and intellectually adept as I am. I'm able to appreciate the subtlety and nuances of lines such as "...it's like how you can never be a true gamer if you only ever play on easy mode". Sit back down, so called "gamers".
Neon White is a videogame-ass videogame. I feel nothing but raw joy playing this game. It is so fun to blast through these levels and further refine your times. You don't even have to be good at games to feel like a total badass. Your lifeless corpse could be having death spasms on the keyboard and still pop off. That's not to say that the game is braindead and lacking depth, quite the contrary. You just don't need to be some sort of Gamer God Supreme to get something out of the gameplay on display. The skill floor is low enough that almost anyone can have a good time, and the skill ceiling is so high that it's a blast to keep running levels over and over again.
Back to the lifeless corpse, Neon White can cure death. If adrenaline made sound, it would be the soundtrack to Neon White. This shit slaps, FULL STOP. Start blasting this in the cemetery and see the dead rise and bust it down to the bops gracing their rotten ear holes. Just straight up one of the best soundtracks in a game, *mwah chef's kiss. And the vibes are impeccable, this game oozes in the sixth gen charm. As I said, videogame-ass videogame.
Just play this masterpiece, it is just so damn fun
I can't think of a single flaw with this game, maybe just a nitpick regarding the lack of voice acting for optional dialogue, but I'm not illiterate and all of the main story is fully voice-acted. Also, before someone comes in here and says the dialogue is bad, pull your head out of your ass it's not that serious.
You're gonna tell me that a game with some of the hardest lines in fiction such as "You're the Sasuke to my Naruto" and take this seriously as straight dog-ass writing. You're really going to tell me straight to my face that this masterclass in (purposefully) cringe 2000's writing that makes Citizen Kane, the hack fraud, roll in his grave, BAD!? Listen up bucko, you clearly aren't as highbrow and intellectually adept as I am. I'm able to appreciate the subtlety and nuances of lines such as "...it's like how you can never be a true gamer if you only ever play on easy mode". Sit back down, so called "gamers".
Neon White is a videogame-ass videogame. I feel nothing but raw joy playing this game. It is so fun to blast through these levels and further refine your times. You don't even have to be good at games to feel like a total badass. Your lifeless corpse could be having death spasms on the keyboard and still pop off. That's not to say that the game is braindead and lacking depth, quite the contrary. You just don't need to be some sort of Gamer God Supreme to get something out of the gameplay on display. The skill floor is low enough that almost anyone can have a good time, and the skill ceiling is so high that it's a blast to keep running levels over and over again.
Back to the lifeless corpse, Neon White can cure death. If adrenaline made sound, it would be the soundtrack to Neon White. This shit slaps, FULL STOP. Start blasting this in the cemetery and see the dead rise and bust it down to the bops gracing their rotten ear holes. Just straight up one of the best soundtracks in a game, *mwah chef's kiss. And the vibes are impeccable, this game oozes in the sixth gen charm. As I said, videogame-ass videogame.
Just play this masterpiece, it is just so damn fun
Things I liked:
- The gameplay. Smooth and linear and quick to pick up. Card abilities and weapons are super fun and varied, especially the REDACTED card at the end. Good stuff
- The story - it's not bad! Puts some meat on the game's bones, and the voice acting is good, contrary to popular belief
- The treasure hunts. Having to run a level a little slower and solve a platforming-related puzzle, all optional but in service of acquiring the game's good ending, is a nice departure from the main game, a different flavor to cleanse the palate and rest the thumbs a bit
Things I didn't like:
- The gameplay. It's sort of... slow, sluggish, shallow, at times? When you're not actively using a card ability, it doesn't feel great -- like eating your dang vegetables when you want to be stuffing your face with sweet sugary cake the entire time. Also, the levels are entirely linear -- would've been nice to get a few open concepts with numerous viable paths thrown in there
- The story - it's not great! A bit thin for how much time it demands of you (though everything is skippable so it's not a huge deal)
- The treasure hunts. jesus fucking christ some of these gifts were annoying to get. Holy god
Get it? Get how I both like and don't like almost every facet of the game? Pretty clever, I thought.
- The gameplay. Smooth and linear and quick to pick up. Card abilities and weapons are super fun and varied, especially the REDACTED card at the end. Good stuff
- The story - it's not bad! Puts some meat on the game's bones, and the voice acting is good, contrary to popular belief
- The treasure hunts. Having to run a level a little slower and solve a platforming-related puzzle, all optional but in service of acquiring the game's good ending, is a nice departure from the main game, a different flavor to cleanse the palate and rest the thumbs a bit
Things I didn't like:
- The gameplay. It's sort of... slow, sluggish, shallow, at times? When you're not actively using a card ability, it doesn't feel great -- like eating your dang vegetables when you want to be stuffing your face with sweet sugary cake the entire time. Also, the levels are entirely linear -- would've been nice to get a few open concepts with numerous viable paths thrown in there
- The story - it's not great! A bit thin for how much time it demands of you (though everything is skippable so it's not a huge deal)
- The treasure hunts. jesus fucking christ some of these gifts were annoying to get. Holy god
Get it? Get how I both like and don't like almost every facet of the game? Pretty clever, I thought.
Reasonably fun 3D platforming romp with some pretty memorable peaks, but feels like it stumbles at trying to be a good time trialler. As someone who has played exactly one time trial game in my life I am here to unload my infinite wisdom and genre knowledge to tell you exactly what the problems are with this game
- Ace medals seem weirdly easy, a ton of levels I scored the ace first try and was kind of just confused when I saw it. But it's definitely not me skill-gapping the game (as much as I'd love to say it is) because there were still a fair few levels I didn't ace, and others I sat and chipped away at for a while. I've heard there are author medals but since the game never even hinted at their existence, I think they effectively won't exist for a majority of players (i.e people who don't immerse themselves in neon white fandom or don't grind the game enough to accidentally get one). A lot of the game's meat gets lost when I don't feel like I have a reason to replay a majority of the levels.
- A lot of levels seemed really linear, with very limited or no room for improvement outside of just improving your line (in the context of what the game actually expects of you, which is scoring aces - I'm sure the actual speedrunning crowd managed to tear this whole game wide open). These levels only really offer movement micro-optimisation, which can still be fun, but feels a bit lacking when the game's movement options are clearly more built to emphasise larger shortcuts and skips.
- Seemingly no reason to actually go fast? Getting medals makes your "neon rank" (i forgot what it's called already sorry) improve and I don't really know what that does or if it matters for anything. After I beat the final level I had a dialogue choice where one option was locked and idk if that was because I didn't ace every level or because I didn't participate in the dating sim part of the game (yeah) but it didn't exactly encourage me to clean up the rest of the aces to find out. TrackMania games lock progression behind scoring well enough within each set of levels, which I think is a good way to do it - it's leneint at the start so it might take a while until you're forced to grind out times, but it *will* hit you eventually.
- For a game that's ostensibly about speed, you sure do love slowing me down to try to make me read your story. You do get to fast-forward through it (instead of just skipping), but it still takes a while to get through because surprisingly there's a pretty hefty lot of dialogue in this game.
I want to make it clear that I don't dislike this game at all, and I think especially near the tail end of the game it had some really fun levels to blow through (if they made a standalone game just with book of life I would eat that shit up in a heartbeat, those levels had the most unreal sense of flow maybe more than any platformer I've played). I just think it's a little lacking in what should be its biggest strength.
- Ace medals seem weirdly easy, a ton of levels I scored the ace first try and was kind of just confused when I saw it. But it's definitely not me skill-gapping the game (as much as I'd love to say it is) because there were still a fair few levels I didn't ace, and others I sat and chipped away at for a while. I've heard there are author medals but since the game never even hinted at their existence, I think they effectively won't exist for a majority of players (i.e people who don't immerse themselves in neon white fandom or don't grind the game enough to accidentally get one). A lot of the game's meat gets lost when I don't feel like I have a reason to replay a majority of the levels.
- A lot of levels seemed really linear, with very limited or no room for improvement outside of just improving your line (in the context of what the game actually expects of you, which is scoring aces - I'm sure the actual speedrunning crowd managed to tear this whole game wide open). These levels only really offer movement micro-optimisation, which can still be fun, but feels a bit lacking when the game's movement options are clearly more built to emphasise larger shortcuts and skips.
- Seemingly no reason to actually go fast? Getting medals makes your "neon rank" (i forgot what it's called already sorry) improve and I don't really know what that does or if it matters for anything. After I beat the final level I had a dialogue choice where one option was locked and idk if that was because I didn't ace every level or because I didn't participate in the dating sim part of the game (yeah) but it didn't exactly encourage me to clean up the rest of the aces to find out. TrackMania games lock progression behind scoring well enough within each set of levels, which I think is a good way to do it - it's leneint at the start so it might take a while until you're forced to grind out times, but it *will* hit you eventually.
- For a game that's ostensibly about speed, you sure do love slowing me down to try to make me read your story. You do get to fast-forward through it (instead of just skipping), but it still takes a while to get through because surprisingly there's a pretty hefty lot of dialogue in this game.
I want to make it clear that I don't dislike this game at all, and I think especially near the tail end of the game it had some really fun levels to blow through (if they made a standalone game just with book of life I would eat that shit up in a heartbeat, those levels had the most unreal sense of flow maybe more than any platformer I've played). I just think it's a little lacking in what should be its biggest strength.
the writing is good actually
É MUITO bom nas primeiras horas, depois fica um pouco repetitivo, a história não é boa nem os diálogos, mas a gameplay e a trilha sonora seguram o jogo.
! For the sake of clarity, I am not factoring in the story of Neon White into my review, because if I did it would ultimately reduce my rating to 2 stars maximum. The story is an appalling waste of voice acting and everyone's time. A guy who loses his memory and nobody wants to tell him even though they all know him? The 5 most unlikeable anime-esque characters? Weirdly sexual and borderline offensive dialogue? No thanks, I am leaving this out of my review. It is a stain on a masterpiece of a videogame that I could luckily skip through. !
Neon White is what the game SUPERHOT should have been: a satisfying, consistent and most of all quick 3D platformer that gets progressively more complicated and fun. I absolutely loved playing this game, especially the final 3 episodes.
The game's visuals are perfect for a genre like this. They provide clear indication of your targets and what attacks enemies perform. So clear in fact, that you are mostly able to fly through the levels without having seen them first. The game leaves traces for you to follow, you just have to figure out what buttons to press in which order, and where to aim. If you have quick reflexes, you can even mend a lot of the mistakes you make by taking a slight detour, saving you a death on the counter.
The extra challenges the game provides are also quite unique and fun. Each set has a theme to adhere to, for example only being able to use certain abilities, or having to perform different actions with abilities you're already used to. It is a neat way of showing off new moves and adding them to your arsenal.
The rush modes were also surprisingly fun, mostly because of how quickly you can access levels back to back: no menus and incredibly quick load times. You can actually finish all 96 story levels within 70 minutes if you're quick, making the rush modes less of a drag and an interesting challenge.
My only dislike (not counting the horrible story) for this game is the music. It's not bad, but way too angsty and electronic for my taste. It made me feel more stressed out than I needed to be for this.
I recommend Neon White to anyone, really. Sure, the skill ceiling is quite high, but it is accessible to players with different gaming experiences and is immensely fun.
Neon White is what the game SUPERHOT should have been: a satisfying, consistent and most of all quick 3D platformer that gets progressively more complicated and fun. I absolutely loved playing this game, especially the final 3 episodes.
The game's visuals are perfect for a genre like this. They provide clear indication of your targets and what attacks enemies perform. So clear in fact, that you are mostly able to fly through the levels without having seen them first. The game leaves traces for you to follow, you just have to figure out what buttons to press in which order, and where to aim. If you have quick reflexes, you can even mend a lot of the mistakes you make by taking a slight detour, saving you a death on the counter.
The extra challenges the game provides are also quite unique and fun. Each set has a theme to adhere to, for example only being able to use certain abilities, or having to perform different actions with abilities you're already used to. It is a neat way of showing off new moves and adding them to your arsenal.
The rush modes were also surprisingly fun, mostly because of how quickly you can access levels back to back: no menus and incredibly quick load times. You can actually finish all 96 story levels within 70 minutes if you're quick, making the rush modes less of a drag and an interesting challenge.
My only dislike (not counting the horrible story) for this game is the music. It's not bad, but way too angsty and electronic for my taste. It made me feel more stressed out than I needed to be for this.
I recommend Neon White to anyone, really. Sure, the skill ceiling is quite high, but it is accessible to players with different gaming experiences and is immensely fun.
absolute fucking banger of a game, the only gripes I have are one or two levels in the endgame and some of violet's sidequests
When I initially played this game I kind of turned my brain off and chugged through it and cringing at the buzzwords used and wrote it off as nothing more than a fun distraction for a few hours
However this time when I pushed myself to get every single dev time on every level this is when I had to lock in and really appreciate how well designed the levels are for the player. There was constantly new skips I was finding and when I would watch speedruns of certain levels I particularly enjoyed my jaw would drop, its finetuned to feel amazing to flow through and I went so ham in every level I started to feel my hand cramp up it was addicting. The change from joycons to dualsense def helped me enjoy it more shooters to me feel awful on both joycon and pro controller imo.
As for the story id argue that its definitely solid when I first played it was pretty easy to make fun of of course with the shitty buzzwords and pretty generic cookie cutter archetypes but honestly its fun and does its job especially when you know what happens and can pick apart parallels it can get pretty cool, cheesy but enjoyable for the most part.
My big problems this time stem from violet switching on the fly from the worst bait character to actually ok when they pit her with green and her jealousy towards white and my other reason being selling this group of characters as a family but red and yellow share one single dialogue of interaction hard to sell to me but still cool designs and i liked most of them. Glad I gave this one another shot cause now all the heaven/hell rushes are calling to me 🙏 and another note machine girl is like THE perfect choice for the ost of this game
Also Ilyes and Kai if you’re reading this I beat both of your times on every level ;)
However this time when I pushed myself to get every single dev time on every level this is when I had to lock in and really appreciate how well designed the levels are for the player. There was constantly new skips I was finding and when I would watch speedruns of certain levels I particularly enjoyed my jaw would drop, its finetuned to feel amazing to flow through and I went so ham in every level I started to feel my hand cramp up it was addicting. The change from joycons to dualsense def helped me enjoy it more shooters to me feel awful on both joycon and pro controller imo.
As for the story id argue that its definitely solid when I first played it was pretty easy to make fun of of course with the shitty buzzwords and pretty generic cookie cutter archetypes but honestly its fun and does its job especially when you know what happens and can pick apart parallels it can get pretty cool, cheesy but enjoyable for the most part.
My big problems this time stem from violet switching on the fly from the worst bait character to actually ok when they pit her with green and her jealousy towards white and my other reason being selling this group of characters as a family but red and yellow share one single dialogue of interaction hard to sell to me but still cool designs and i liked most of them. Glad I gave this one another shot cause now all the heaven/hell rushes are calling to me 🙏 and another note machine girl is like THE perfect choice for the ost of this game
Also Ilyes and Kai if you’re reading this I beat both of your times on every level ;)
one of my favorite games ever. high speed movement and precision based gameplay that rewards you for doing it faster and faster. insanely addicting. criminal that i havent found myself time to finish this game yet.
I’ll keep coming back to this for years to come. Mechanically it’s one of the most tightly designed, fluid games which encourages speedrunning whilst still being friendly to the casual player. It goes balls to the wall in how it asks you to tackle and experiment with its gimmicks and mechanics/physics, despite their simplicity. It’s fast paced and your decisions come on the fly, but it’s never in the sensory overloading way. The game is smooth, quick to let you reset and perfect your run and walk back your mistakes. It’s made with the same understanding of its playerbase and demographics that Celeste was, so despite the intensity or perceived difficulty, it never grates. The amount of tech you can pull off by the end is as impressive as it is fun. While I’ve seen the story be ripped into online, I’d like to say that’s some of the point. The developers wanted it to be cringe in the way it was what you’d think was cool in middle school, and I think that it sticks the landing due to a full blown commitment to camp. Not that it’s what you play the game for, there’s a skip button loudly placed in the top left of your screen. But I think it’s a case where you can embrace the cringe or easily ignore it. Most overblown critique. It’s not like people pretending Fire Emblem Engage’s story was actually good, when it lost the entire campiness midway through.
Ooohh this game controls good.
It's definetly built around speedrunning, so the levels are short but full of value and potential for replayability. I'm not sure what I could compare it to. Kind of like a 3D celeste in a way.
The story is a pretty interesting take on religion, yet it's still lighthearted.
Machine girl is a bop, the artstyle is great!
It's definetly built around speedrunning, so the levels are short but full of value and potential for replayability. I'm not sure what I could compare it to. Kind of like a 3D celeste in a way.
The story is a pretty interesting take on religion, yet it's still lighthearted.
Machine girl is a bop, the artstyle is great!
how it feels to be one of the few people who like the story and characters. Imagine being so lame that you let Steve Blum saying "you can never be a true gamer if you only ever play on easy mode" turn you off.
Also Machine Girl soundtrack.
Also Machine Girl soundtrack.
This is some of the most satisfying gameplay I've ever played in quite some time. It’s fast-paced, fluid and keeps you on your toes with all the different ways you can traverse. Like, it makes me want to 100% the game. After I finished it, I immediately went back to try out more challenges.
What helps with this is that the levels are short enough that it doesn’t take too long to try again. And they all use the distinct weapons and their sub-abilities for both vertical and horizontal level designs, while also including both shortcuts and exploration to utilize the two different challenges.
One is normal time trials, which the main story centers around completing, and the other is finding the hidden gifts in the levels so you can interact with the other characters, which is done in a more exploratory style. They both are fun to try and complete and add replay value without feeling like the game recycles its content for the sake of longevity.
But I kinda wish the social sim part, which is what the gifts are for, was better. I really enjoy the sidequests, as expected, but the dialogue you can get from the other characters doesn’t feel enough to flesh them out.
And that’s another thing. The story is not good. There’s a few tropes played too straight for my liking and the dialogue, and the whole theme of forgiveness is sloppily executed and makes for an ending that's unsatisfying at best.
Oh, and the music is top-notch.
What helps with this is that the levels are short enough that it doesn’t take too long to try again. And they all use the distinct weapons and their sub-abilities for both vertical and horizontal level designs, while also including both shortcuts and exploration to utilize the two different challenges.
One is normal time trials, which the main story centers around completing, and the other is finding the hidden gifts in the levels so you can interact with the other characters, which is done in a more exploratory style. They both are fun to try and complete and add replay value without feeling like the game recycles its content for the sake of longevity.
But I kinda wish the social sim part, which is what the gifts are for, was better. I really enjoy the sidequests, as expected, but the dialogue you can get from the other characters doesn’t feel enough to flesh them out.
And that’s another thing. The story is not good. There’s a few tropes played too straight for my liking and the dialogue, and the whole theme of forgiveness is sloppily executed and makes for an ending that's unsatisfying at best.
Oh, and the music is top-notch.
the thing not even the haters will tell you about this game is that the movement and level design are just as bad as the writing
Really really excellent core gameplay loop but just completely dogshit writing.