I also am a fan of Castle in the Darkness, and I'm very glad to see Matt Kap's latest game here on GoG. Unfortunately, I just can't quite bring myself to recommend it.
The platforming is... good, I guess? It feels a little slow, and a little floaty for my tastes, but it's certainly functional. It certainly didn't detract from the experience, but nor did it particularly excite me.
Where the game really shines is in its myriad of secrets - each level contains (at least) one secret crown, which can be found only by completing some kind of secret objective. It might be to do with a hidden breakable wall, or defeating certain enemies, or using a power-up bought from the (also hidden) shop, or simply following a clue in the level's title (or possibly other conditions; I haven't finished the game).
I also enjoyed the random encounters after each level. these are cute little comedy vignettes, often with no particular impact on your game, though sometimes coins or lives could be gained or lost. I didn't really enjoy them for the rewards (or not!), but just because they were all uniformly entertaining, often both funny and well-animated. Including them as breaks between levels was an inspired choice.
Wait! Did you say "lives"?
And here we come to my first issue with the game. You begin with 200 hearts, which I presume are the 200 deaths you're allowed before you get a game over screen. I didn't particularly feel like churning through them to see what actually happens when you lose them all, nor did the game particularly feel like telling me. I'm guessing that you'll need to start over, but I'm not sure.
Finite lives are discouraging enough on their own, but the real issue is how that clash and ultimately negate one of the game's great strengths: the secrets. Because the way to achieve each secret objective is, well, secret, I found myself wanting to explore levels, trying dangerous, even silly things to find crowns I missed. But, doing so would cost me hearts, sometimes many at a time. The choice between having fun now and (hopefully) seeing the later levels is not a choice I enjoy having to make.
The other place Lovish falls down, for me, is the music. The intention is clear: to make simple, memorable music loops in the classic 8bit style. However, the music loops are short, lean heavily on the higher registers, and mostly just annoyed me. The particular tracks would often be shared over consecutive levels, so if dying multiple times was on the table, then it would mean listening to the same grating music loop over and over again. Next time I play, it will go on mute.
I don't want to sound too down on this game. At its core, it's (mostly) competent with some flashes of brilliance. If you're into unforgiving platformers, it is certainly worth a try. However, certain elements just did not click for me. If you want a nostalgic pixel platformer that I recommend unreservedly, check out Bzzzt on GoG.
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