Mable & the wood could have been something great, the idea behind it is solid and the fantasy landscape, at least in theory, could have worked.
Unfortunately, the gameplay, some part of design and overall execution of the story doesn't give justice to the idea behind it.
A shame, it could have been great.
Still, for all Metroidvania lovers out there, looking for something fresh, this could be for you.
Just wait for a discount.
In this game you are a little girl with a sword who can briefly shapeshift. At first you can shapeshift into a fairy, which allows you to fly. When you shift you drop your sword and when you shift back you can recall it, hitting enemies, switches, pots, etc. in between. The second form is a spider, which allows you to poke enemies and vines, climb and swing. It's pretty neat, if a bit iffy. I sorta enjoyed it until i got a bit further and didn't really know where they wanted me to go. I died to a horizontal monolith and didn't feel like going on. Oh well.
I got this game for free in one of the giveaways of GOG, and after reading most of the reviews here i decided to finish the game to see why were there so many negative ones.
While i rate this game higher than the other reviews here (3.5/5), i have to say that their criticism is completely valid, and while i enjoyed and had a fun time with the game i can't fully recommend it without warning that the negative aspects are real and should be considered when buying the game, i suggest you watch some of the video reviews and gameplay that exists of this game before deciding.
Playing this game gave me solid fun, and at the end i was both pleasantly and unpleasantly surprised. Pleasantly because of the different transformations and how fun it was to use most of them to move; because of the quantity and variety of content available; because of the graphics, art style and music which were charming. Unpleasantly because at the end of the day it has a significant amount of shortcomings which make this game feel both still in development and amateurish in design.
There can be some errors in the hit detection of the floor and walls, specially with some specific transformations and in specific circumstances, i have been teleported in some occasions, and in general sometimes it can feel like its not adequate enough for the kind of challenge that the player is put up to. The biggest issue however is the design itself of the game, level design, game mechanics and the progression. I feel the punishment for getting hit an enemy is too great in terms of the currency, just a few seconds and you can lose it all, there are very few invincibility frames and sometimes its hard to hit your enemies, there was a general disorientation as to where to go after the first boss, most players don't pass the first hour of the game.
I liked this game, the achievements show the ambition and effort put in by the team that made this game, but it needs more polish for me to play more times.
This game packs lots of creative ideas--any one of which might be worthy a game concept--into a lovely sprite-filled package. The problem, as I am personally aware, is that the breadth of the game is too great for the developer.
Polish and exposition are lacking. Controls aren't tight, and gameplay mechanics are frustrating when they aren't charming.
Charm is something this game has. I love how bold the game designer is. How the ideas and storytelling dare to do what they are doing, even if they fall flat. Branching paths, interesting twists, and truly expansive level design (though not skillfully executed) are just a few features on a long list. I only wish they could have delivered it in a few more years, when they had time to flesh them out.
Try this for the concepts, but don't expect to try it for long.
