LOTDK hit just right for me. The time to finish is not too lenghty and not too short. The mechanics are solid and has little to no bloat, while still allowing for personal expression with the gear that you use. But most important, the artistic direction and pacing (the vibes) are immaculate. There's an unneasiness that permeates the vast majority of the game's areas. Although the color palette is limited the themes of each tower where always obvious and distinct. Even though I expected an rpg, the more action-adventure/survival horror resource management and character advancement quickly filled those expectations nicely putting the right amount of stress on your decision making. This will be mostly felt in the beginning to middle of the game where you'll start to realize how finite health and status restoratives are, along with ammo for ranged weapons, upgrade materials and money. There's also some sly one time only decisions for getting unique things. Save that broken sword for later, later than you might think. So if you were worried about lack of interesting choices regarding your character fear not. Another thing that you'll feel in the beginning is the combat. It takes time to get into the rythm, it's not by chance that there's an option for a training room in the menu. It's all about stamina management, positioning and reactivity. I wouldn't compare it easily with Dark Souls or King's Field, although you can see the influence. I would say it sits somewhere in the middle between where the intensity is very high, to then drop sharpily as you compose yourself. If your opponent isn't dead and your stamina hits zero, it strikes the fear of god into you. So take it slow, everything in the game is telling you to take it slow. Running away is an option, but mind that you can't restore stamina while sprinting. Hope you enjoy this rotted world
