This is what a good Metroidvania should be if it's not the next blockbuster hit: short and fun, without a lot of unnecessary backtracking or sidequests. About 10 hours of play, and I enjoyed myself. Thanks, devs!
Short version: The game is great if you like randomness and challenge and don't mind using keyboard input. This game is not so great if you don't have a full keyboard and numpad. First, let me say that I absolutely LOVE SanctuaryRPG, and it's Black release is just wonderful. The project started out free (as in beer) and has since moved to a paid (Black) version. The actual navigation of the game is basically non-existent. You have locations that you can choose to enter, but there is no "map" to speak of. The combat is interesting enough, but the real fun is in all of the randomness and volume of options. Everything is a die-roll in the background. Enter a location, die-roll determines the event / baddie. Kill a baddie, die-roll determines the loot. Perform crafting, die-roll determines the actual item. And on, and on, and on. And all along the way, you're presented with options that change your experience. Agree with this pamphlet you just found? Your alignment just changed slightly. Solved this puzzle? Here's a sidequest that might kills you. Killed a boss? Here's a subtle customization option. I've been playing SRPG for about 3 months now (free then Black), and I've only used one class. There's a HUGE amount of gameplay variation available. The graphics are actually very well thought out, and there is tongue-in-cheek commentary to be found in the ASCII art. You won't get a chill from seeing moonlight glinting off the water as the breeze blows through shoots of grass, but the graphical approach works well to pull off a consistent aesthetic and feel. Now here's the caveat: you really should play with a full keyboard plus numpad. The experience is clearly tailored for a left hand on A-S-D-F and a right hand on the numpad. With this setup, the game plays smooth and the design works. If you play with a laptop, though, the fun diminishes somewhat, and if you try a touchscreen keyboard, the fun disappears.
Tower of Guns is a favorite of mine. The gameplay feels so much like Quake II when I'm running around dodging and firing. The levels are somewhat randomized, and there are secrets all over the place. I, like many other people I know, used to play Quake and Doom over and over again on quick little binges, but the games did get old after a while. Bumping up the difficulty only does so much when the game is exactly the same each time. ToG gives me this same, "sit down for 20 minutes" experience while keeping the challenge high. Each play through, you pick your weapon and a perk to tweak your run. In general, the pace of ToG is as frantic as you want it to be. You can try to slow down and look for secrets and such, or you can blast through and try to get under the par time for the level. Some things to be aware of: There is no saving. You have to play to a death or win in one sitting. Also, you have only one gun, unless you happen to pick up an extra gun during your run. This means you're not worrying about ammo or weapon switching. This is a pure run, jump, and fire sort of game. And I love it.
I write this to balance the only current review: The price for this game is the same as other online vendors, and I for one buy games on GOG for the bonus materials and lack of DRM. Steam's and others' system DRM sometimes get in the way of mods. Whenever two purchase options are the same price or near, I choose the DRM-free option.
Overview: I don't have too much trouble listing my top 10 favorite games over the past 20 years, because there aren't very many games that have been truly different. Psychonauts is something special. Tim Schafer put together a great, creative story, and Double Fine designed some solid gameplay mechanics. The game has aged well, but I highly recommend using gamepad. First and foremost, the story: Psychonauts has a LOT of cutscenes that are carefully planned with wit and timing to progress both the main plot and many little side-arcs for the many NPCs. I really enjoy this, but long cutscenes aren't for everyone. Make sure you're in the mood to watch. The humor trends towards parody with a touch of 8th grade. The environment is a summer camp, and all the standard players are present: the bully, the cheerleaders, the nervous kid, the Russian transfer student... The story starts out pleasant and funny and turns a little more dark and twisted as the end approaches. This is typical of Tim Shafer, and I'm glad to see a video game that allows the artist's work to show through. Gameplay: Standard platforming fare, mostly. You can jump, glide, punch, climb, and do miscellaneous actions around the camp. The psychic powers, however, are where the fun is at. Very little of the game requires precision, and you mainly have to use your head. The psychic powers you choose to use will change situations drastically. This is great for me, because I don't always feels like being cautious or crazy. It's nice to have a variety of options at my fingertips. Aging Effects [as of 2011] ------------------------ Visuals: I played through Psychonauts a couple of months ago (2011) on my T61p laptop hooked up to my 32" Bravia TV. The visual design of Psychonauts is cartoon and colorful and hasn't aged at all in my opinion. This is an advantage of 3D vector-graphics combined with visual designs that don't try too hard to look realistic. System Performance: Pyschonauts only has occasionally momentary hangs on my system, which is normal. The hangs on my system tend to occur when too many things are happening at the same time, and I'm rotating the camera wildly. Otherwise, Pyschonauts runs remarkably smoothly. Load times are quick, and the gameplay is silky. Controls: The keyboard and mouse controls are pretty rough. I highly recommend a gamepad for your own sanity. I do not personally recommend an Xbox 360 controller for this game, although one would work. The primary reason is that Psychonauts, along with many other games, does not do anything with the analog triggers. A gamepad with more digital buttons will make your playthrough much more enjoyable. I personally use a PS3 DualShock controller with MotionInJoy drivers to change the triggers into digital buttons.
