Shrewd_Shrew
2024
I didn't mind its brief length when each level was densely packed with fun movement optimization and collectables. Super unique movement, but it comes back to bite you while trying to fight bosses.
2015
Smashing. Obnoxious music, I recommend listening to Tim Follin's Pictionary OST instead. It's the only roguelike I've ever enjoyed (or played).
2014
This game helped me commit suicide.
2018
I'm glad everyone else likes it. I have discovered that shmups are not for me.
Timeless artstyle!
2018
I don't care for RPGs, so this compact, whimsical adventure with extremely tight storytelling was a real treat.
It has the least depth of mechanics in the series and once the novelty of "everyone is here" wears off, most of the characters feel very homogenous, but it's still Smash.
2017
Incredible music. I've been won over to the silly butt rock.
2021
The rugged crevasses of alien skin and brilliant sheen of lush backgrounds and foregrounds are an incredible feat, especially on the Switch. There were only a few moments of slowdown, and it was even pretty in handheld mode. There were too few bosses, and only a few of them had varied attack patterns. The renowned music of Metroid is sadly reduced to pitifully lackluster boss themes and uninteresting area backing tracks. Since this was my first Metroid game, I can't be sure if Dread's cramped design is a staple of the series or a choice for the modern game journalist.
2019
I have replayed this game five times because I can't get enough of that gorgeously crunchy, DS-reminiscent artstyle. The adaptive music transitions really well between actions like flying and boating, and each song is relaxing yet engaging. The dialogue is adorable, and you'll be left wanting more!
The main allure of Dandara is the gravity switching, and it was only used decently well in level design and obstructions. The direction in which you launch is guided and automated with no option to disable the line. It removed some agency of movement in my experience, but I can see how it would help newer players adjust to the esoteric mechanic. The boss fights are a good spectacle and are the best part of the pixel artstyle. The story seemed deliberately obfuscating, and frustratingly, it didn't get any clearer after 10 hours. It's at a great price for the content, I got it on sale for 3 bucks.
2021
The solutions are always lying in plain sight, but provide a good amount of challenge in thinking outside of traditional 2D limitations. The score is beepin' and boopin', making nice use of a single theme. There're hidden, more difficult levels, but they don't pad the game out for longer than two hours. Get on sale!
2019
Funny game. The classical music underscoring the goose's shenanigans is wonderfully chaotic. Very simple, very short.
2016
There are a few sequences that are absolutely mesmerizing, and reminded me of Fantasia 2000's Pines of Rome segment. However, the immersion that Abzu tries to attain is shattered by the Switch's poor frame rate and graphical quality. There really isn't any story or other gameplay worth mentioning, so I recommend getting it on a sale with a system more powerful than an iPad, because it's very brief.
The first 20 or so hours of the game will trick you into thinking the whole game is full of surprises, when it's actually quite barren. There are very few ideas in the music, but they repeat so often that their dull, terse melodies become too irritable to be ambient.