This game is a very interesting, creative, and witty Metroidvania/Survival Horror game, which really leans into the threat which non-linear gameplay can pose. No endless health restoration at save points, health restoring items far from guaranteed, and a punishing Dark Souls-esque need to memorise enemy attack animations or risk incredibly insidious status effects like drain and poison, even in the very early game, have caused me to spend more time juggling my weapons and items and really thinking about attack speeds and hitbox limitations than any other Metroidvania I have played. The dialogue is full of surprisingly understated comedy, with a fourth-wall breaking protagonist who seems as aware of the contrivance of the whole situation as the player is, but carries on anyway because that is what you do, and there are some interesting pieces of post-apocalyptic sci fi peppered throughout the primarily horror-anime aesthetic - the CRT televisions which act as save points 'like computers we have in my world but thicker' are nods towards the game's own self-consciousness as a Metroidvania title, clearly echoing the origins of the genre in 1986. Its pixel art is about as far from the abstract simplicity of the original Castlevania as it is possible to be, however, whilst remaining pixel art, beautiful ray casting and constant idle animation on the unnamed protagonist and all of the NPCs make the world appear extremely vibrant and lush. The decision to make the protagonist so large in the frame really allows the player to appreciate the subtlety of the model's movement, as well as making it, despite it's horror credentials, less oppressive than other titles in the genre like Hollow Knight or Blasphemous, in which the relative smallness of the avatar causes the screen to be filled with either empty darkness or a background which dwarfs the protagonist. I like saying nice things, so I'm not mentioning all the creepy nudity, it cost the game 2 stars, which is a shame.
