I bought this game on the sale, missed it the first times around. Didn’t really read that much about it beforehand and thought it would be more of an RPG. At the very beginning of the game, I still thought that...But as soon as you enter the mines it becomes clear: This game is a Metroidvania. Very,very close to Symphony of the Night and later titles in the Castlevania franchise, even down to aestetic quirks like how the map looks, how the save symbols look…and yes,it does have an equivalent to the medusa heads. And it plays well. Controls are very tight, layout seems a bit generic, challenge is fair, on the easy side(which I like). At first I thought the monster designs to be very generic, but that changes throughout the game and they get more interesting (the player sprite,sadly, does not..) The game isn’t too long, but due to a slightly random layout of the game each time you start a new game, it doesn’t seem as well designed as it could be and a lot of annoying backtracking is involved, more than usual for these kind of games. The puzzles can therefore also be a bit obtuse, but nothing to difficult and out of the ordinary. Overall, the game also isn’t too long. So far, I’d say-average Castlevania, from a time were these came out everywhere. Decent challenge, good, but not perfectly designed. What sells it for me, are music,look,and feel of the game. Garphics are nice-cool pixel art somewhere in between 16 and 32 bit 2D games, phallanx scrolling, and the locations really get interesting as the game progresses. Good atmosphere, a good bit of world building as well. And yes,the tight controls also help. All in all, on sale, I’d surely recommend it to people who like Metroidvanias, but don’t expect anything out of the ordinary. All in all, it tends to be well made, but a bit generic and annoying wth the backtracking at times. Still, it renewed my interest in the genre.
First of all: What really amazed me about this title was the atmosphere, the feelings of dread and isolation the game is able to convey through very simple means and which are consistent throughout the experience. It's a dark,rather serious point and click adventure, which gets really..dark and supernatural as it goes along. The puzzles overall are for the most part simple, sometimes challenging, though it falls a few times into the "randomly ask everyone about everything so you can advance" trap of adventure game design, but it's nothing too bad. The graphics are typical low res affairs, with weird technical mishaps (weird sprite scaling), but to me,that didn't matter because through the means of colours,mood etc,also helped by the great ambient soundtrack, brings the sorroundings really came across nicely. The voice acting is mostly pretty good as well. And the narrative... Most people really dislike the ending. I really loved it, it's dark,depressing and simply, how most horror stories of the era that games plays in work- so for me, it was a very good experience overall. There are some minor flaws,granted, and compared to my favorite of the wadjet eye cataolouge, unavowed, it is the weaker game for sure. But still recommended highly. Though probably not for everyone.
The game looks and sound pretty good. The gameplay-it's rather simple, easy point and click style, item puzzles, combined with a very streamlined, easy interface... My main problems with the game stem from the narrative and the length. It's rather short. And the plot/narrative is one dimensional,clicheed, predictable. There are a few jokes here and there, but it remains kind of dry and unfunny to me. The characters are all very bland. With an over top hard boiled,nihilistic,caricature style detective protagonist, this might have worked- but the one we get seems very empty. Which is a shame, actually. Since most of the voice acting and art is very good. In short: Gameplay: Nothing to remarkable, a bit on the easy side. Art/music/graphics/voiceacting: Pretty damn good. But narrative content, characters, world... that is the point it lacks for me, and makes me kind of disappointed. Despite looking pretty, one of the weaker modern point and clicks for me.
This is basically a simplified point and click adventure. It is very short, the puzzles are very easy. You are mostly confined to very small enviroments and only very few items in the inventory. The plot is as well simple, and short. What sold it to me were graphics, voice acting, the look.. It is recommended, but mainly for kids. Don't expect a full blown adventure title with fleshed out puzzles and an engaging plot. Play it with kids together,that could be fun.
First of all: In my opinion, this is one of, if not the, best modern indie adventure games. Let me explain why: The first thing that comes to mind is Gabriel Knight- you play a private investigator in a kind of french-quarter-settings, with voodoo and supernatural elements present. Heck, there are even those dialouge screens with close-up portraits and black backgrounds. The gameplay is entirely different though: There are no inventory object puzzles- there are very few items, and when you have to use them, they are used automatically. Instead, you work with clues and have to interrogate people. That is what most of the gameplay consists of- interrogating people, gathering information. The clue is: The structure is way more open then with traditional point and click adventure games- when you feel you have enough evidence, you can close the case... And events further in the game change a bit according to your decisions. The way the game is built, it feels way more streamlined than other games in the genre- there is no pixel hunting, no clicking around aimlessly seeing what fits with what. It has to be noted, you CAN bring yourself at some points in unwinnable situations at a few points quite easily, and no, the game does NOT tell you explicitly that it did. But it usually autosaves directly beforehand, so it did not seem like a dealbreaker to me. Exploring and interrogating feels very ballanced and natural to me. Part of the reason are the sorroundings, the ambience,art style,music,atmosphere, the steampunk setting-everything just clicked for me, the worldbuilding is excellent, as is the voiceacting...the world really seems alive. Although the game is quite narrative heavy, don't expect deep characters or character development. I can't recommend this game highly enough- it is a oldschool detective adventure, yes, but one that finds new ways to innovate.
Is it fun? Yes, for a while. Is it shallow? Yes. I grew up in germany in the 90ies- so I have fond memories of strategic building games, a genre which is kind of dead nowadays. This game kind of fills this niche. But not completely. At first, things seem all fine and well: Some resource chains, military options, good pace, all seems easy enough, not too complex, but it works. You build, keep your citizens happy, fight off vikings and dragons every few years. A short gameplay loop which may last a few hours. Problem is: That is all there is to it. There is no campaign, no story mode, no real trading with other cities, other cultures, no difference in what you do. Both the building system as well as the combat system seem way too shallow for my taste. The combat system is maybe the worst aspect: There are two defensive weapons you can build, 2 different units, and....that's it. No real strategies can be employed here because there is just basically nothing there to work with. This game would profit greatly from different tower and unit types and more agressive and varied enemies. Visuals and sounds are fine enough. I personally really like the abstract,blocky look of the game. Maybe that's the best part of it. In conclusion: For a really cheap price, if you like this stuff, I would still say-yeah,it is serviceable. But I am frustrated by it. Because there could be something great here. Imagine the building aspect, combined with a tower-defense like game with varied enemy types and lots of different towers and units to build. Seems like something that could be awesome. The way it stands,this remains are short,shallow experience that gets old very quickly. Seems almost more like a demo than a full game...
Looks fantastic, sounds fantastic. But the rest didn't impress me at all. The story remains kinda shallow. The length is very short, and it's more of a visual novel to me than a game, the gameplay segments remain short and shallow. The story touches several topics without doing anything meaningfull with them. The gameplay mechanic would be awesome on top a traditional point and click, but as the sole gameplay element, it left something to be desired. But it really looks and sounds cool... All in all, if this would be marketed as a cyberpunk visual novel at a lower price, I'd be happy. As it stands, I feel somehow disappointed.
This title has so much that I love about modern indie games and get many things right. At its core, it is a very simple, funny, narrative driven puzzle plattformer with very little combat and more problem solving, the overall difficulty is low, though. It can be easily beaten in a few hours. All tis may not sound too tempting. What makes it shine though is its unique aesthetics and humor.. It looks very simple, and very colorfull and unique- high res meets simple graphic designs, it all looks like right out of a children's book. This, combined with wacky and equally simple music already gives a upbeat,funny feel. Then, there is the humor. Lots of it. And that is, what to me, sells it:look+sound+humor. Plus, you never really know what to expect next... The gameplay itself is simple and easy, there are a few more difficult areas like most of the boss fights, but over all, this game is not about challenge. It is about a crazy,quirky,weird ride and a very special world. If this sounds good to you- go for it, and be aware that it may not last very long, but while it lasts you are very likely to have a good time.
This is a very fun little diversion. Yes, also on computers;) Do not expect to get lost for hours on end in it. It is more of a small,little times waster. But it has interesting, unique mechanics, lots of twists and turns and a great sense of humor, so you will want to go back to it every now and then.
I loved the previous browser games based within the same universe and was really looking forward to this one. Many good aspects from those you'll find here as well: Excellent writing,deep lore, just the words make this world in your mind alive. The visuals and sound design make it even more alive and better.... BUT sadly, many negative design quirks have carried over from the browser games as well. You have to grind a lot to get anywhere, and the world basically remains the same each playthrough. I wouldn't call it a rougelike, it's more of a grind-heavy narrative-driven rpg. The thing is, you have to explore the map every playthrough, and with permadeath, you WILL play certain parts time and time again. That being said, I wouldn't call the game a failure or a waste.It has good stuff in it, you just have to wade through endless black waters to get there. So basically, it depends a lot on what you are looking for if this game is for you. It is certainly not for everyone. But I'm sure fans of Fallen London will find a lot to like! One more thing, the regular price seems way too high for me personally, and even on sale it seems kinda pricey for what it is...
