First of all, let me say that this is a great game- it’s fun and perfectly crafted. Great graphics, sound, controls, balanced and fair levels, interesting and varied enemies, etc. That said, playing Blasphemous is as engaging as reading a literary classic. It’s fascinating how this treatise of philosophy doubles as a visual poem set to a backdrop of music of the highest caliber, designed to perfectly capture the scene and help further the immersion. Every aspect of this game has been thought out; every item has a memorable story, every location is captivating, even the characters stats have some philosophical meaning. And the collective experience adds to a sum far greater than any of these parts. The land is called Custodia, as in custody; this is essentially purgatory. All its residents carry the full weight of their past. And the hero undergoes a terrifying journey of penance with the goal of seeking a release from sin and eventually redemption. There is no actual evil mastermind, evil is internal and manifests as punishment. This game uses the hero's journey narrative as an archetype in itself; perfectly justified with the full weight of Andalusian culture behind it. The violence comes from its inquisition heritage, where the punishment that The Penitent One unleashes on his foes is part of their collective penitence. The voice acting is absolutely breath taking especially in Spanish. It’s done with impeccable taste and perfectly suited for the occasion by extremely talented voice actors. Blasphemous animations also have the most gorgeous pixel art that I’ve ever seen. They somehow emulate the feel of Gothic crystal-work warped by the passing of centuries. Unfortunately the colossal effort must have been unsustainable and we have more conventional (yet still tasteful) animation later. In short, I can’t recommend this game enough if any of these aspects interests you, and probably even if they don’t.
In depth it sits next to Blasphemous when listened to its original Spanish version. The reason being a lot of context is lost and warped in translation. In this case, it seems the more graphic nature of the game has made many reviewers also have a warped and incomplete grasp of the depth of this subject. This game explores goverment programs that have surfaced such as MKUltra, the human condition, and many other aspects. While it is humorous and at times uses silliness to provide this rich tapestry, it is by no means shallow. And now talking about the more superficial aspects, this game was created in 1996 but started in 1994, its core engine was built before windows 95. As such it's nothing short of a miracle it can have this much interactivity given the incredible visuals it has. That said, the combat mechanics are not fully fleshed out though I consider it a very interesting prototype that could certainly be expanded upon by sufficiently creative and motivated designers (perhaps this has already happened but I don't know of any classics in wide circulation employing it, so even if this is the case there's a lot of room for exploration on this formula). The game has an extremely dark humor because it touches very deep and often very dark subjects. The simplicity of some of its characters is part of its humor and not a flaw. Approach it with an open mind, and consider this to be the equivalent of a profound but experimental David Lynch type work. I am happy to say this game did something I absolutely love, it left me thinking after having completed it. Frankly, this should be far more common.
This game is a curious little thing. First off... THE BAD The game has a lot of issues, it's like an unpolished beta: * Most ideas are there, but some story lines have yet to be developed. * The inventory system still needs to be refined and tested. * Dialog options have yet to be implemented. * Many cutscenes have a placeholder with a strange sound effect. * Some puzzles are broken: The "search" browser thing is really disfunctional, as there are sometimes infsufficient clues not to mention a certain licence plate puzzle. * And most importantly, there are many game breaking bugs. Some are easy to deal with, but some require a save file from the web. Additionally, I'll add that the characters were not the kind of person I look up to. I found them rather grating, and frankly was not really rooting for them. The only good guy is rather dumb and keeps getting talked down by everyone and overwhelmed by every obstacle. Now the good * The game has great voice acting (othing stellar, but it works quite well). * The music is good. * The setting is original and has a lot of character. * There's a lot of research put into the narrative. Overall I found the story arc, while predictable, to be quite satisfying. It's an interesting comentary on the issues that affect us today. This is really what I think is their strongest point, that the vision behind this game was very solid even though the execution was more than a bit lacking. This was developed by a good gaming company that was about to go under and was impacted by all sorts of administrative issues (budget and layoffs). This project was ultimately cut short of the gem it could have been otherwise. If you can see past these issues it's a fine piece of work, but consider it will crash often, so you'll need to save frequently, and honestly just play along with a walkthrough. Reserve your puzzle solving wits for something else.
Extraordinary graphics, extraordinary sound, an has a few surprises thown un the mix. Now about the story, that depends on your relationship with mr Lovecraft, but as far as bringing it into a game, I think they did a great job. I'm sure with a story like this, other developers would have something very different to say just as every reader fills in the details with their own imagination. In short, give it a spin and have a good time.
What do you get when you mix Barney, Blues Clues, a Broadway Musical, Dr Zeuss derivatives, a Macromedia Flash version of Zelda and you try and make Conkers Bad Fur Day... Puzzles are simple, but time consuming Music ranges from tepid to uninsired to dissonant to kinder garden variety. Characters seem less inspired than most generic RPGMaker stock And the story ... Is just as good as the voice acting and dialog (they're terrible) The only huge plus is the background art, which is beautiful (but sadly, towards the end of the game there's a lot of gray and it's mostly lost) The game had huge potential but it just doesn't workout. I'm sure it took a lot of effort, but I'm also sure I would not recommend it. The stiff and buggy controls don't add to gameplay experience. But I think it's the god awful humor that takes the cake here: "Why is 1/5 always angry? Because it's two tenth" ... If you think that's funny, you'll love rest of it. I don't like bashing things, I've only done that once here before for other reasons... But in this case I rather say this than have someone else think oh ... nice surrealistic piece of art, I'm sure it was a misunderstanding ... nope, I think you'll have more fun balancing your checkbook or having a field day at the dentists. If you really are curious, have a go at Ataris ET and then come back here... You've been warned
As good as the game and it's first DLC are, sadly things fell flat on this one. The characters are not memorable, the story never really goes anywhere, and frankly it just wansn't that fun. Feels not only rushed but unispired. That said, I would actually still recommend it because the base game to me is very strong but if you're not thrilled with it, this may not do much for you. Events in this DLC have no bearing on the story line, it's like a very lame after party but in great company, your call keep partying or head home. And no, not even the great charisma of our skull cracking dwarf is enough to carry this one over the finish line. Meh, up to you
This is how a DLC should be made, the scetting is varied and the attention to detail is absolutely top notch. The only downside to this incredible expansion was not optimized at all... Sometimes the game will punish your CPU severely (had to lower resolution to keep the fans under control) but other than that (again a couple of patches away from eing an absolute masterpiece) it's excellent. One thing I forgot to write about the game, the NPCs have no interaction and sometimes things float for no reason... Nothing changed in this DLC but this doesn't affect the gameplay at all so who cares BTW The story is just as good as the main game which is excellent. This is a shorter adventure though which makes sense since this is a DLC and not a sequel. Really wonderful story and all... Remember let the dwarf do the talking and now go have some fun cracking a few more skulls!!!!
If you're looking for an RPG... look elsehwere. But, if you like a fun couch coop expereince? Then look no further. This is so much fun, tons of action, just whatever you do, let the dwarf do the talking. Seriouly, this is an excellent game, the humor is top notch and the story moves things along. The only thing though, is there are some bugs and optimizations they could have handled easily with a couple of patches. This is sadly very short of being a masterpiece of the genre. In short, think of this as an action game with a few character customizxations and an RPG skin and you're good to go. Now stop reading and start cracking skulls!!!
Level design, sound effects, sound track, character design, ambiance, story... I'd thank all of these people but it seems there is a gifted person out there who actually did a team's effort on his own making a memorable or perhaps classic game that frankly I believe every platform lover should experience. My one slight gripe with this game and is really not that much of an issue was ethical... I won't spoil the details but Jack is no Fortesque ... Deserves a standing ovation for each of those roles fulfilled... It could only be more jaw dropping if this was done on assembly or COBOL seriously, there are some talented people out there. Oh ... Get the soundtrack I will after writing this!
This is really the perfect setup. Incredible art, jaw-dropping effects, convincing narrative and voice acting, intelligent puzzles, friendly UI ... So, then, why am I giving it 2 stars? About halfway through the game, things start changing. First, you become a comic book action - thing - wandering through repetitive tunnel structures, and then it goes downhill. The story starts turning cheesy, the clues alternate between directions and misdirections, more than riddles they are either very direct or just ambiguous meaning it turns into pixel hunting. I don't want to spoil too much, but when it touches history all of the great world-building completely falls apart. It's not dumb fun in a campy sort of way, more like dreary and unimaginative. The great voice acting completely falls as well and that is when pixel hunting ramps up. Walking becomes buggy, the story makes little attempt at making any sense of this. In short, it becomes a chore, and when I'm working I ask for pay, rather than purchasing. It's regretful because the setup could be for one of the greatest games ever created and it seems to others that is the case. If you know a little bit of history you may find the hamfisted approach not worth the absolute lack of beta testing that section implies. Honestly, I didn't finish it, I moved on to better things such as Planescape Torment. It's up to you, it's your time and your money. Maybe if you temper your expectations you'll enjoy I sadly was very pampered with the incredible setup so that felt like a shower in battery acid. Not painful at first but it was burning before I dropped this (PS wear gloves, battery acid has a delayed discomfort) PS Bought this at Waldo's 1 dollar mart, and I can't think of a more fitting place for it. It's a shame really, it had so much potential.
