fantastic aesthetics and music. the gameplay veers between solid or passable to irritating on a moment to moment basis with little in between. i don't think a ton of this is any specific fault of the game itself versus it just not being my thing. (except for the grapple and teleport/dodge controls, those were rancid.)

i think i'm gonna need titles along these lines to have more modern QOL features for me to fully get into them. a fast travel system (beyond the middle area that branches off to the rest) could've went a long way. i know the revisiting old areas to find new stuff is the point but when you're in the end game and trying to just wrap up some last minute exploration or whatever it really drags. especially with the enemies all over the place.

will be keeping an eye out for the sequel. there's definitely room for it to grow on me.