i mean, this is definitely a Vibes-Based Game. the production values on this thing are absolutely unbelievable - it's not just about how detailed the graphics are, but how the textures work in tandem with the color palette work in tandem with the instrumental choices in the score. it's really rich, sumptuous stuff, and it goes a long way towards selling this game world as a place.

i feel like this game carves out the gradation between "side-scrolling zelda" and "metroidvania," because while those terms tend to be used interchangeably, they actually connote different things - a metroidvania will have a singular coherent space, where a zelda (in the ocarina/lttp mold) has distinct areas connected together. owlboy is more of the latter than the former, so while it looks like metroid it feels like link to the past. i think this is actually a very cool idea, and i like that the game explores a lot of different tones in its dungeon crawling. the side-on view makes dungeon layouts feel a lot more obscure, so you really get the sense of these spaces as mysterious and dangerous, and the game's focus on player disempowerment via the partner system and its setpieces combines with that very convincingly. it ties back into the story, too, and i think the overall writing and design coherence here is really strong...

...except when it comes to the actual, played experience. it just doesn't feel that great to control. it's not horrible - and lord knows that metroidvanias (which i know i just said this game isn't, but it is related, and these terms are imprecise and genre isn't real anyway) tend to suffer from overburdened control schemes. but it definitely feels compromised. shooting with geddy, for instance, feels like a twin-stick shooter; that's fine. move with the left stick or d-pad, aim with the right stick, fire with the right trigger. the issue is that holding the right trigger fires more slowly than pressing it repeatedly, while both otus and the bullets geddy fires also move very slowly. so it encourages you to press the trigger repeatedly in order to keep up with fast moving enemies, while nudging the stick with your thumb, and it started to physically hurt my hands during intense fights.

there's a lot of stuff like this in the game, just little areas where it's clear that there wasn't quite enough polish or time spent on how it feels to play. the focus here was clearly on thematic consistency, written and environmental storytelling, and production values. that's fine. i wouldn't say this is a classic, but i think it's pretty solid.

Owlboy is a visually stunning, beautifully crafted pixel art showcase with a wonderful soundtrack and a cute cast of fun characters that lure you into a false sense of security until you try to actually play the damn thing and learn that your little mute owl friend has glass bones and paper skin and his main weapon is a peashooter that takes multiple hits to kill even the lowliest cave bat.

Owlboy is beautiful, you can tell that a lot of time went into crafting this beautiful world and all of its wacky inhabitants, and I like the idea of an avian character having to carry people around to do their fighting for them, but it wasn't exactly...well, fun.

This is a very tedious game. As you play it, you start think "Oh I'm sure the game's gonna get better..." as the stealth missions and various maze-like dungeons beat you down in an ever-increasing volley that wears on your patience. Soon, you'll ask yourself "Am I having fun?" when you know the answer is "No", and that's usually before you realize that this game wants you to treasure hunt for over 2000 finite coins across a playing field that has zero warp or map options available.

But at least the art is really nice. It's a shame about the whole "gameplay" part.

UPDATE - Okay this is the first game I've played on my PS5 that actually hardlocked my system. I had to manually shut down my PS5, have my USB drive repaired, and use a back up save because the Owlboy save file got corrupted in the process. Because I...walked through a doorway wrong? I guess?
Fuck you too, Owlboy.

every time a visually stunning indie game with a long-ass dev cycle has shitty combat and tons of flaws in general, an angel loses its wings.

this one took me years to finally get through, and for good reason. there's a lot here that just... doesn't feel fun. combat is pretty bad - even though owlboy's mechanics are fairly unique and fun to get acclimated to. you don't do enough damage, swapping between characters is clunky, sometimes aiming with the controller doesn't feel right, and every hit slams you against a wall and stops you from doing anything for several seconds. i think i got through every boss by face-tanking half the hits and just hoping i didn't die before it did.

there's also no map at all - which for a game like this is really bad. while the game itself is decently linear, you're put off from looking for any collectibles or secrets after you're done with that area out of fear of getting lost or just never finding something.

my least favorite part, however, were the stealth sections. personally, stealth sections are my least favorite gimmick in any game - they're slow, boring, and the stakes often don't matter so i just end up making a mad dash whenever i can. owlboy is filled with TONS of these - and each one is worse than the last. pirates will see you behind cover, the safe areas are few and far between, and don't even get me started on the bugs. NONE of these are executed well at all.

i kinda hate to tear into this game so much, because tbh it IS really beautiful - and despite all these downsides i don't hate it. it's got some of the best spritework of any game i've played, the music and worldbuilding are spectacular, and while i didn't get the best ending i loved the story regardless. the character designs are great too - your main cast is a ton of fun, and the NPCs and enemies have great designs as well. there's a ton to like in this game, but there's also a ton to dislike. give this one a try if you don't mind getting slammed against a wall every few seconds i guess.

Lato artistico è molto bello, dalla pixel art al character design, dalla qualità delle animazioni a diverse tracce nella OST. Purtroppo, tutto il resto è un po' banalotto e il game loop ha finito col rompermi le balle senza mai vedere una concreta evoluzione: la novità chiave è quella che permette di teletrasportare su di sé uno dei propri companion, ma questo a conti fatti diventa solo un modo per alternare nell'immediato la propria modalità di attacco. I puzzle, poi, non sfruttano affatto questa meccanica e risultano essere un po' troppo triviali anche a causa di ciò. Peccato

I'm refraining from giving a star ranking as I think that'd be unfair. I personally didn't like the game at all. I heard a lot of positive things about it, but it wasn't until after I got it and played it that I realized that people were likening the play to Zelda, a series I famously dislike. I still gave it a chance, but I really found myself not enjoying it and eventually had to put it down.
I don't want to rule out the possibility that I'll never pick it back up, but it seems unlikely I think.