Yeah, I don't know... Not feeling this one. I thought it looked cool in video reviews, but I was doubtful from minute one, and about two hours later, I think I feel like there are other things I'd rather spend my time on than this game. It's decent, but not exceptional, and too linear and too focused on anemic and dull combat for me.
The first cool bit that you both notice when playing and that I should start this review with is that this game is not one interconnected world, but a splintered one made up of floating islands that you fly between freely in your airship, in sections that really remind me of SNES games (or Afterimage since it did something similar). That part is really cool, but it's also what makes this game not really a metroidvania, as the sections you fly to are primarily linear with a collectable or two that you need to come back for with a double jump or whatever. First, and only, ability I found was a kind of cumbersome wall jump, but I presume a double jump or similar is coming as it always does.
I don't hate this game, but there isn't much I love either. It looks fine, but at the same time, the color scheme is drab and the enemy design is quite dull. Blobby looking humanoid (or other animals) grey rock creatures was all I really saw, except a few almost equally as grey hostile plants. The music is just kind of there and the PS5 version is very oddly mixed in that I had to almost double the volume, both in the game and on my TV, to hear anything. Not a huge complaint, but it was weird.
The huge complaint is the overabundance of boring combat, as well as the linearity. This game uses those rooms that lock you in when you enter them and until you've killed everything, and it does it a lot, and on top of that, the game does attempt to have a more advanced combat system, but nothing comes together for me. From the moves to the enemy graphics and animations to the sounds, none of the combat feels like it hits or feels exciting. Plus every enemy is a major damage sponge and spamming all of your basic attacks, special attacks and magic attacks feel like they add very little and like I'm mostly powerless in combat. Not in the sense that it's hard, because it isn't as one of your built-in special attacks also has healing properties, but in the sense that there's no sense of enjoyable power. You know how Symphony of the Night has 1HP enemies in the first corridor, immediately showing that Alucard is strong? Yeah, this game doesn't do that at all and it's just dull.
It doesn't help that this seemingly is the kind of game that allows you access to the map towards the end of an area, and that it's a mapping system that doesn't show you what corner you've actually visited, it only reveals the rooms and doors. I do like that it shows exactly what the room looks like instead of a square, though.
Again, I don't hate this game, but I don't really enjoy it either. There is some quality here for someone who vibes with what this game is, but that person isn't me and I'll pass on these drab aesthetics, boring combat and linear levels and move on to something else.
The first cool bit that you both notice when playing and that I should start this review with is that this game is not one interconnected world, but a splintered one made up of floating islands that you fly between freely in your airship, in sections that really remind me of SNES games (or Afterimage since it did something similar). That part is really cool, but it's also what makes this game not really a metroidvania, as the sections you fly to are primarily linear with a collectable or two that you need to come back for with a double jump or whatever. First, and only, ability I found was a kind of cumbersome wall jump, but I presume a double jump or similar is coming as it always does.
I don't hate this game, but there isn't much I love either. It looks fine, but at the same time, the color scheme is drab and the enemy design is quite dull. Blobby looking humanoid (or other animals) grey rock creatures was all I really saw, except a few almost equally as grey hostile plants. The music is just kind of there and the PS5 version is very oddly mixed in that I had to almost double the volume, both in the game and on my TV, to hear anything. Not a huge complaint, but it was weird.
The huge complaint is the overabundance of boring combat, as well as the linearity. This game uses those rooms that lock you in when you enter them and until you've killed everything, and it does it a lot, and on top of that, the game does attempt to have a more advanced combat system, but nothing comes together for me. From the moves to the enemy graphics and animations to the sounds, none of the combat feels like it hits or feels exciting. Plus every enemy is a major damage sponge and spamming all of your basic attacks, special attacks and magic attacks feel like they add very little and like I'm mostly powerless in combat. Not in the sense that it's hard, because it isn't as one of your built-in special attacks also has healing properties, but in the sense that there's no sense of enjoyable power. You know how Symphony of the Night has 1HP enemies in the first corridor, immediately showing that Alucard is strong? Yeah, this game doesn't do that at all and it's just dull.
It doesn't help that this seemingly is the kind of game that allows you access to the map towards the end of an area, and that it's a mapping system that doesn't show you what corner you've actually visited, it only reveals the rooms and doors. I do like that it shows exactly what the room looks like instead of a square, though.
Again, I don't hate this game, but I don't really enjoy it either. There is some quality here for someone who vibes with what this game is, but that person isn't me and I'll pass on these drab aesthetics, boring combat and linear levels and move on to something else.