This game has no difficulties. You cannot die. There is just one enemy that can't hurt you (or better: it can't hurt you in the usual ways someone hurts you in games). But this is not a problem. For pro gamers there are a lot of suitable games out there. This is something different. This is a journey (yeah... it reminds a lot Journey), from the abysses of one's soul. You have to rebuilt your inner temple in a symbolic travel, regain trust an colours to your world. And that's all. If you're searching for challenge, this is not your game. If you're searching for a moving deep experience, this is one of the best.
Yeah, this game is frustrating. Yeah, you will die a lot of times. Yeah, you will curse every boss you'll find. Yeah, you will lost yourself in a labirintic underground world. Yeah, you will have to walk a lot, and suddenly you will killed by a trap and you have to walk a lot again to arrive at the same point and probably die again. And even after all this, you will love it anyway. Because everything is fantastic here. Cute characters wandering in a dark world, full of secrets never explained but that you have to discover bit by bit from small hints of lore. The combat mechanics are fantastic; you can build your hero from a large choice of powers and find your ideal setting. Imagine to translate darksoul's difficult and lore mechanics on a metroidvania platform/action. Maybe not for all players, but still a wonderful experience. A masterpiece, without doubt. (I have to admit: since I have no much time to dedicate to games, and since for 2 optional bosses - not the last - frustration won over me, I used some cheats. Yeah, yeah, unfair. But I loved this game so much that I didn't want to lose any crumble of it)
After 5 hours of playing I can say that this is a good game. Not great, just good. Splendid atmosphere, settings and graphic. Cute disneyish protagonist (like a white biped Toothless). The story... meh... in the first minutes it seems the devs dedicated a lot of efforts to create a moving story that can touch your heart and then, well, in the next 4 hours there is nothing. It simply get forgotten, and the brief moments of dialogues are completely forgettable. Reading some reviews it seems that I've not stumbled yet in the pikes of difficulty. For now: yes, there are many parts of trial and error, but I'm finding this moments not too much frustrating in comparison of similar games like Hollow Knights or even Rayman Legends. I think it's a part of all the good modern platform. Huge pro: the possibility to save more or less wherever you are. So the trial and error issues are lighter than they would be if saves were in given places. Some clunky controls: ie - is not clear why our little white biped toothless sometimes makes normal jumps from a wall to another and sometimes makes these idiotic 5yo like jumps. Until here, no big issues with combat. Even too easy. 4 stars on trust. For the perfect metroidvania platform/action game of all times go for Hollow Knight.
After all these years Blood Omen is still gorgeous. When I first played it I was like 7 or 9 and I didn't understand a thing about the game mechanics and the plot. Now I appreciate the story (here it's still kinda unpolished... raw... we have to play the other games of the saga to understand how beautiful it is), and all the possibility we have to kill (or evade) in gruesome ways all the types of enemies. The only complaint: Repel is really really really OP (especially with chaos armor). So, if you want to enjoy the variety of items and spells, I would suggest to limit the use of Repel and try some other tactics instead. A bad feeling: the 2D graphics allows to enjoy the game a lot, even after all these years have passed; now that I'm going to engage with the other titles, I fear that the 3D graphics aged worse. But plot and narration themselves deserve all the hours that I will spend on them.
I enjoyed every moment, every kill, every curse shouted when the guards' viewcone became red. Step by step, every mission can be concluded with patience and perseverance. That's a good point for a game: to play well you don't need to acquire techniques but only learn to wait.
I began to play with great expectations... I loved Dungeon Keeper, and the idea of something similar amazed me. But... it's all too sudden. You don't have time (nor tips, nor help, nor anything) to understand how the game works, Food's rotting. Ok, I need a smoker or a fridge... but how can I build them? Don't know. Not a hint. Ok, I'll restart game with only skeletons. Food's always low. Now I need metal. The only metal stones in map are near some evil tree. Ok, I need to research something before I can cut them and reach the metal. How to research it? Don't know. Not a hint. There's no way to see a construction tree or to understand what to do with what. That's exhausting and frustrating. Probably one should read an online walkthrough to understand well the game dynamics, but online walkthroughs exist for when someone's stuck, not for the base mechanics of a game. And that's for me a huuuge con.
I loved the art, the backgrounds and the cute stuff of the world. It teleport you in a funny and relaxing land drawn by fantasy. But, for a 4 hours game, it's boring. The mechanics are pretty much the same all along the game, enigmas and foes are ridiculous. Story predictable, bosses - personification of fears, FEARS - not disturbing at all. They... well... they sing all the time. That doesn't give any motivation. It's like the developers didn't know if create a game for for adults (see the story and the references to mind's chemistry and physics) or for childs (see everything else). And the bird. I hate the bird. Shut her up.
