Posted on: June 18, 2020
LittleCritter
Games: Reviews: 89
Essentially a PS2 game
With all the pros and cons. Frankly if I hadn't been able to save scum, I would not have finished Styx. The game's merciless, if you get spotted you're already dead. The combat is difficult, basically a clanky timing puzzle. But you're not supposed to be fighting enemies anyway. You're supposed to be sneaky. And this is where Styx shines the most, when it let's you be creative in overcoming obstacles. There's nothing more satisfying than neatly stashing a pile of bodies behind a chest, systematically luring one guard after another into a dark corner to take them out. I had a blast whenever I managed to successfully do stuff like that. However, Styx is not without its flaws. - It recycles every level at least twice. - Platforming is unreliable and will often result in your accidental death. - Some levels forcefully limit your options. Like don't kill or alert anyone, taking away the most enjoyable aspects of the game. - Those f*cking beetles. - The glitches. Ho boy, the glitches. You get stuck in walls, NPCs get stuck in walls, walls get stuck in walls. Can't deny it's a riot to cheese the bad AI though. - Plot is nonsensical, even if you played the predecessor (Of Orcs and Men) and know what the twist is going to be. - One of the worst final “boss fights” I've seen in a while. There was not a single boss in the entire game, and then suddenly in the last second the games realizes this, panics and throws an action sequence into a stealth game that I only managed to overcome thanks to my stockpile of invisibility and the power of save scumming. Guys, there's no law that demands a boss at the end of every game. Ghost of a Tale did the same nonsense, don't make me rage quit at the final moment and sour the overall experience of an otherwise fun game. In the end, I grew very fond of Styx. It feels like a janky, under-polished labor of love, not unlike the first Witcher game.
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