It looks great at first glance, but then starts to fall apart. While each new area is interesting to discover at first, the amount of back tracking makes it become tedious quickly. There are some clever, logical puzzles, but just as many illogical trial-and-error tasks. There are only a few songs that are very short and they play over and over and over. It is like being part of some sadistic lab experiment. The narrator even states that he's made everything as long-winded and annoying as humanly possible. An example task: you need to make a potion to use. Once you find the recipe for the potion, you have to write down how many parts of each potion you need. But then you have to make the sub-potions by mixing the right parts of berries, powders, and other potions. And since everything is in a weird language, you have to find and use a chart to decipher which each plant, berry, and potion actually is. I'm sure this is a wet dream for a person with OCD. It isn't so much about being intelligent or clever as it is doing mundane tasks over and over and over, walking back and forth to gather all the parts you need. It is really a terribly designed game. I don't understand all the high ratings. 2 stars for decent graphics and a few smart puzzles. But ultimately it feels like a job with little or no reward.
This is an absolutely amazing game (perhaps a walking simulator with some exploration, a few puzzles, and a little bit of sword fighting). It is not really a fighting game. The fighting mechanics are basic and never really change, although the visuals of the fights do, and like the rest of the game, the visuals are one of the most important things. This is a character and story-driven cinematic experience with some light gameplay elements thrown in. There is no platforming, but the puzzles and exploration remind me of Rime. The sword fighting is a bit like the old Prince of Persia games. The only thing I didn't like about the whole game was the atrocious end credit song. It needed better lyrics, a much better sing, or maybe no vocals at all. It really detracted from an otherwise amazing game. It is fairly short, 6 or 8 hours, but well worth the price. The graphics, animation, acting and sound design (besides the last song) are superb. I really hope the story continues.
