Owlboy

Owlboy is, at first glance, another one of those pixel graphic platformer/metroidvania that seem to be a dime a dozen on GoG. We control a mute kid thrown into a mission to save the world, chase our enemies around the world, find minibosses.. the usual. It'd be hard to stand out with such an offer, but this game took almost a decade on development and it shows. The pixel art is really nice and it quickly becomes charming watching our protagonist, Otus, making happy or sad faces, the music is excellent and the mechanics that involve a lot of flying (the world is supposed to be these floating island things but we just go up and up and up) work perfectly, with only minor gripes on things like mouse aim (why is keeping the mouse within the window not a default option, I don't know) and sometimes color/surface choices that can make navigation confusing in some parts. But when it comes to the rest of the game design wise, it's amazing: The levels are challenging and squeeze full use of everything you can do and need to learn to complete the game, to the point virtually the entire run feels like a cohesive experience, like you are not doing the same over and over. The mechanics behind your "weapons" (summonning/carrying around your travel partners) are extremely well done, the forgiving checkpoints line up well with the atmosphere the game conveys (although not with the entire save the world thing) and even if the story doesn't connect perfectly, the characters bring enough heart in it to maintain your interest, at least during most of it. It might not be a memorable all timer, but I feel it came surprisingly close. -1 because of those little flaws and dissonances, mostly story wise and trying to make compatible a peaceful and nice atmosphere with world ending shenanigans.

If I could give 3.5 stars I would, but the system doesn't allow that, so I'll be generous and round up to 4. The pixel art is beautiful, the soundtrack is excellent, and the characters have heart. The game has a lot going for it, but it has quite its share of flaws as well. For one, the game crashes occasionally. You usually don't lose much progress, but it's still a significant issue. Also the game doesn't seem to recognize recent models of controller, and unlike some other old games with that issue I was not able to find any fix or workaround for this (It's not as simple as just dropping in a newer version of "gamecontrollerdb.txt" like a lot of SDL games) Playing in 2025, you will likely have to just use keyboard and mouse. The controls are a bit awkward. At first I actually enjoyed this, as it felt like a creative way to manifest Otus' initial characterization as being kind of clumsy into the gameplay. It felt like real gameplay and story integration, and the difficulty it created helped to cement Otus as an underdog to root for. However, it lost its charm by the end. The mechanic of having to carry people around to fight for you, only got MORE awkward as the game went on and additional partners were recruited, and by the end it was just plain unpleasant to juggle. As for the plot, it started strong, but suffered from pacing issues throughout and ended up feeling like there could have been more than there was. At the end I was left feeling like this game had a lot of unfulfilled potential. Maybe some of that is intentional, as ----- SPOILER ALERT ------ The game is written somewhat as a shaggy dog story, in the sense that the outcome would have been essentially the same if the protagonist hadn't gotten involved. But it's still unsatisfying anyway --- END SPOILER The good still outweighs the bad, but I won't gush about this being the greatest thing ever.

I own this game on the Switch, and didn't use GoG for it. As far as I know, there's no difference between the versions. I don't like spoilers, so I will try to not mess with you by giving any of those. The TL;DR : This game is worth it. If you want a good Metroidvania experience, this is a game you want. A list of other Metroidvanias that I think are great, so you can compare: Axiom Verge A Robot Named Fight Vision Soft Reset Iconoclasts The Messenger Super Metroid (+ the other 16-bit Metroids)

Great pixel art, good gameplay and nice music. What else do you want from a platformer?

Owlboy is a lush, gorgeous free-flight platformer. Seriously, the presentation is phenomenal. The amount of polish from a graphical, audio, and story perspective rivals full studios' work. Coming from a team this small, the game is an absolute joy to behold. Unfortunately, the gameplay isn't quite as amazing as the presentation. The free flight is a lot of fun, but it never feels like you unearth anything of major import; generally exploration off the beaten path just nets you more Buccanary coins. In addition, the dual-stick combat never feels like it really clicks. It's a little slow and non-threatening, making it a bit uninteresting compared to the rest of the package. In short, the game is comprised of a very real, believable world; the core gameplay itself, though, rarely rises above "adequate". If you're looking for content voyeurism, this is a fantastic game to behold, just don't expect to be wowed by the minute-to-minute play. Really, the comparison I like to trot out is to Solatorobo: Red the Hunter on Nintendo DS. That game also sported excellent presentation and a fantastically realized world, but squanders it on gameplay that is too shallow to carry it through. Owlboy isn't quite so egregious, but I really, really hope that we get another game in this world with some gameplay improvements, because a sequel with some more interesting gameplay would be fantastic. Elsewhere, I rated this a 7.5, and I don't want to round down, so 4/5 stars it is. It may click for you more than it did for me. Kudos to the dev team for sticking to their guns and getting this out; it provides a good foundation for hopefully good things to come.