Análises recentes de (YouTube)Dragnix

Target Audience: FPS fans with a knack for in-universe designs (with flaws)

Summary:

The case of Slayers X is an interesting one. When it comes to the corridor shooter genre, it's a good but not remarkable entry in it. Sure, it's fun to play and frag all the enemies, and finding secrets and trying weird ♥♥♥♥ is also something that you can enjoy for a bunch of hours. Exploring maps and finding secrets or new little activities to do keeps you engaged, and 90s kids will especially appreciate the music and all the little easter eggs present. But in the modern day landscape of the boomer shooter genre, Slayers X has a hard time standing out. It just doesn't have the draw of the higher tier ones (Dusk, Fashion Police Squad, etc), as it just doesn't have that one thing it really excels at to distinguish it.

And yet, when it ties into the world of Hypnospace Outlaw, and taken in context there, it's exactly what it needs to be. It is the time of game that is literally designed to be made by a 13 year old kid as a project he made using an in-game FPS. It shows with some of the over the top story and gross out humor, but it also starts to explain some of what could be considered flaws: like the ridculous frustration spike towards the end of the game, or the focus on explosions for the finale. In that context, almost every decision here makes sense, even if for a general audience it may be a “worse” game at times because of it.

Understanding that connection will give the most out of Hypnospace Outlaw in the big picture, and if you can do that, you will appreciate every detail and have a blast of a time. It's still worth playing even if you don't, but for many it won't be a “rush out and get” title. It's also on Xbox Game Pass as well, so it's the perfect place to try it if you have questions.



Video Review: https://youtu.be/xrTPUaicsqw

Lists:
Positives:

• Perfectly fits into a world as it takes on the design of a game “created by an edgy 13 year old kid”.
  
• Movement/Gunplay feels great, and takes you back into the era of boomer shooters.
  
• Like the Glass Shotgun and the idea of using ammo of what you destroy of windows.
  
• Secret hunters and off the beat path finders will enjoy the little touches here and there. Rewards exploration.
  
• Good difficulty without being too harsh with the enemy numbers for the most part.
  
• Sound design really does well in most of the weapon sounds and in-world noises.

Negatives:

• Without the game design caveat, doesn't stand out vastly against the array of boomer shooters out there.
  
• Some parts of the game get frustrating, especially the penultimate level with its platforming, almost designed to make you tear your hair out. While it's part of the design, it's also something that I can't say that I really enjoyed in the end.
  
• Draw distance and lightning at times could use a bit of a touch up.
  
• Wanted one or two more weapons that were more over the top/unique.

If you want more reviews/information regarding games I've reviewed, visit my curator. Dragnix Curator

Target Audience: Experienced Strategy Players

Summary:

Ash of Gods: The Way will be one of those games that I'm predicting will be very polarizing thanks to the way it is designed. Don't get me wrong, there's no question that there's a strong core strategy element at the heart of the game, with a reasonable balance in the card-based battling that can lead to some wonderful moments of triumph. For veterans of the genre, you'll appreciate the challenge of both the in match strategy element of dealing with your opponents and your draws, but the deck building and preparation means more then ever in this variation of the genre.

The game is beautiful in its UI design with simplicity yet an elegance, and the character portraits do a great job in characterization, yet look interesting to look at throughout the game. The story is not anything to write home about, but is good. The choices you make actually affecting the story, even with simple side plots, can be effective, and I did appreciate the game actually acknowledging failures when they happened from the story side of things.

But a lot like war, Ash of Gods: The Way can be unforgiving at some crucial moments that may turn a player away in frustration. The ever changing rules, even during the battle, means that you're never really getting into a groove of understanding certain key elements at times, and that can lead to some harsh re-lessons at key points. It doesn't help when the game surprises you with a rule change DURING a fight, which a majority of the time causes you to replay to deal with the knowledge at hand. While there are difficult settings, I don't think new players to the genre are going to have a good time with the game.

But overall, I enjoyed the game, and would recommend for strategy players who want something a tiny bit different, but challenging from a mental capacity. It's still worth playing for others, but some may want to wait for a sale in the bigger picture.


Review Video: https://youtu.be/rOwMizpgVOo

Lists:
Positives:

• Core card game element keeps things simple but still has complexity for reasonable strategy: and can feel like some of the best chess matches you've played.
  
• The ever changing rules from fight to fight emphasizes deck building and using your knowledge about the upcoming fight effectively: and does that well.
  
• Balance of cards designed make even what seems the weakest cards usable: the team went with less is more in the big picture, and It works.
  
• UI is smartly designed, giving all the information you need without being overly flashy or complicated in it.
  
• Strong character designs that give you the gist of the character in just a glance, but also give you a level of detail you'll appreciate.
  
• Story is good, but the choices you make actually seemingly having an effect in gameplay and story does really sell the choices in the long run.
  
• Do like a good amount of characters, with Raylo and Quianna coming to mind.

Negatives:

• Rule changes in battle, even when you see them coming, will most likely frustrate as many of them aren't easily dealt with until you know they are coming: causing you to retry.
  
• Not the best game for newbies in the genre, while there are some tools to help, you'll never get settled to feel comfortable with things, you're already changing the rules in the next fight.
  
• Main voice performance from Finn wore on me significantly: could be just me, but his voice started to feel like nails on a chalkboard.
  
• Animations will start to feel repetitive over time in the combat area with little to no variation in them.

Target Audience: Dark Souls Fans

Summary:

I know what you're thinking based on that Target Audience: “lol another bad comparison to Dark Souls because the game is probably difficult.” Well yes, the game is difficult, but the Dark Souls and Bloodborne comparisons go a lot deeper then a lot of comparisons that get thrown around now a days, and Hunt the Night mostly succeeds in what it set out to do, despite some hiccups along the way.

The slower yet methodical combat that focuses on getting in and out is great, with a dodge that seems overpowered at first, until your realize that the level design has cleverly constrained you in a lot of cases. Each melee weapon has a good strength that makes it flexible to take down all type of good enemy variety, but specialized enough to really succeed in certain situations. The game has moments that really shine, like epic boss fights where you get through by the skin of your teeth; or sub-stories that pull on heartstrings and really reward those who pay attention. The atmosphere is dark and gritty without taking you out of it for the action, and really pushes you to see what's around the corner.

Granted, the main plot is done alright and is what you've seen before, but a lack of punch in the main story especially with the connection of the main character does make the story slightly suffer. A lot of my complaints end up being small things that add up over time: like a lack of invincibility frames upon entering a room/spawning that could mean you're taking damage before you are even able to react. The game is also a game that for sure isn't for those new to the genre: it's a dark souls game without really any friendly elements for newer players, and some players will get really frustrated with certain sections lengths without save points or lack of tools to navigate in traditional senses.

The thing is, the combat and strong set piece elements with some of the side stories are worth the price of admission here, as the game was enjoyable throughout my hours even when the game was frustrating me. Definitely worth a buy for any dark souls fan, or anyone who likes deliberate combat.


Video Review: https://youtu.be/JzTQPeiuDAM

Lists:
Positives:

• Strong slow but methodical combat system that rewards precision and punishes recklessness in the right ways.
  
• Several side stories intrigue you about the world and really capture the essence of Lovecraft/Dark Fantasy.
  
• Good mixture of main weapons and guns that reward mastering them while allowing for specialized combat when you need to pull the right weapon out for a challenge.
  
• Quality of ranges of weapons and strengths really feel playtested in terms of back and forth.
  
• Presentation is functional yet still great to look at: never getting in the way of combat/gameplay, but still being lovely to look at.
  
• Atmosphere is dark and sets the mood right, getting you with a scare or two while still maintaining a menacing tone.

Negatives:

• The gameplay has annoyances with things like lack of invincibility upon entering a room/spawn that can lead to hair pulling moments. They add up over time.
  
• Game's main story stumbles at times doesn't hit as strongly as the sub-stories especially with its connection to Vesper.
  
• Landmarks/Map Design can make it hard to navigate and can get lost in layered paths.

If you want more reviews/information regarding games I've reviewed, visit my curator. Dragnix Curator

Target Audience: Those wanting a good decision making element with a little action

Summary:

It would be very easy for people to go “oh it's just Dome Keeper but a different direction”, and to be frank, does that really matter? The question is if the game is fun on its own, worth the cost, and whether it's right for you. I myself haven't played Dome Keeper (I just picked it up though), but what I've played so far here is a good roguelite game that makes you feel the progress and improvements from to run, balancing the management of the different paths you can go down each run while getting better overall. It's a game with repetition: but that's the point: improve and perfect, and adapt to the new items you may have come across or the weapon that you have found. Each run got better for me in the first few hours, and for the price of admission, it's hard to argue against the 5 dollars.

Granted, it's a question how long that can hold up, but with a good amount of upgrades both permanent and run-based, that seems to be at least a bit. The presentation is good, the movement of the spider-mech and the pulled back camera angle to get a perspective of the world you haven't seen does establish a lot in getting immersed into the world.

Really, a lot of my early complaints has to do with a lack of movement options on the spider mech, but that's immediately solved by the upgrades.

Look, there's a solid game I see here for a cheap price. I can't not recommend it.


Stream Footage: https://youtu.be/8ndit2EWj0k

Lists:
Positives:

• Solid gameplay loop that seemingly got the progression right from run to run.
  
• Enough options to change up in the early going to have familiar gameplay but force you to adjust a little bit.
  
• Combat with the limited speed/angle/etc does well to create tension and force you to adapt.
  
• Presentation sets the stage of the world well and love things like the movement animation on the spider.
  
• Like some of the things you come across in terms of the world to add to this mysterious wall.

Negatives:

• There's a concern about overall repetition, and while I think it's somewhat warranted, but it's not a killer.
  
• Really, want to see some “crazy” upgrades, but might not have run into them yet.
  
• Wish the story part was played not at the game start but after you hit the start of a save file.

If you want more reviews/information regarding games I've reviewed, visit my curator. Dragnix Curator

Target Audience: Players who are hard to frustrate and want a 80s theme in board game mechanics

Summary:

Rough Justice 84 has the theming and has the strategy elements that really work well for the first 10-15 hours. There's a good mixture of luck, skill, and strategy that make your decisions worth while, all in a theme that captures the 80s aesthetic. The music sets the mood rather nicely, and the mixture of mini-games are smartly implemented for the most part. The story starts off strong in a detective and mystery sense, and I was going to be ready to sing the praises of the game from the rooftops with its strong start. The character portraits are great and I do like the tributes to 80s pop culutre icons like Ellen Ripley and Bill from Bill and Ted. I could do without the Big Chungus referernce, because well, that sorta took me out of the role playing aspect of the game.

Then, the game falls off a cliff. The game runs out of tricks to keep things interesting: and it starts to really drag. You're doing the same things over and over again, where you're not being challenged, and the strategy element goes out the window with sheer numbers games. For example, there's a bank in the game, and I have no idea why, I don't know any situation where I was hurting for cash. It doesn't help that the story goes for tropes that are familiar, but don't feel right for the era exactly. There's one particular reveal that left a sour taste in my mouth: just because it felt out of right field and like it could have been done a lot better with a change in the group implementing it.

The thing is, it's hard to know how exactly the mid-late game would drag out for you because of the numerous bugs I ran across. Missions not being selectable, quests being missing, agents literally leaving after I hired them. But the biggest one was progressions ones. I'm not talking decisions like not using an auto-save feature (but why isn't in there), but having a character level up, leave, hire them again, and that progress on that agent being gone. That killed the flow of the game immensely and had me questioning everything, and that's something you really start to notice when you've been playing for the hours I had.

Look, right now, it's hard for me to recommend outside dedicated strategy/board game players who want a chunk of a game to bite into. It could get a lot better with the right patches (some of them have happened), but it's kind of game I'd wait for a sale on.


Video Review: https://youtu.be/epbf3zZKKxA

Lists:
Positives:

• First 10-15 hours does a fantastic job of balancing luck and skill with strategy elements and makes your decisions matter.
  
• A good selection of mini-games to test specific skill-sets (memory, rule adhearing, etc).
  
• Role play aspect is nice, could see this really excelling at a tabletop session if it were adapted to IRL board game.
  
• Clever elements that allow multiple skill levels to succeed with figuring out patterns.
  
• Good Theming across the board from characters to presentation to music.

Negatives:

• Bugs. Bugs. Bugs. Bugs that halted progress and dragged out the game in bad ways.
  
• After 10-15 hour mark, game drags into the same old thing without anything new, and it starts to wear on your quickly.
  
• In that aspect though, the game feels both rushed in the story at the end, but also really weirdly balanced for how to complete it (I don't think I even got a character halfway to the max level).
  
• Particular reveal at mid story took the wind out of the story especially for the theming of the era.
  
• Some voices REALLY don't match the model in question (Bill from Bill and Ted in particular).

If you want more reviews/information regarding games I've reviewed, visit my curator. Dragnix Curator

Target Audience: Those with a lot of Frustration Tolerance and want something a little different in Action

Summary:

Gripper is one of those games that feel like it's on a very shaky foundation. Don't get me wrong, when the tunnel like sections and open arena combat are working the way you want them to, it can be fun and a challenge. But the shaky foundation doesn't like a lot of variation in gameplay: and almost expect you to go one way and one way only. The thing is, if you do go outside the bounds of what the game wants you to do, even for a moment: then all hell breaks loose.

Like, I'm not talking about not listening to the game's very oddly written story or the instructions given to you. I'm talking about going left versus right against a hazard in the tunnel sections: and running into a hazard that has appeared so quickly in front of you, you have no chance to dodge it. Or a boss fight where the bosses leading shots are so accurate that you are wondering if the game is literally predicting every movement with the limited turning radius at times. These things start to add up quickly: as it starts to feed into a frustration that you will not only be able to shake, but will continue until you just say “nope, no more for tonight”.

But what's worse for me is the overcoming of that frustration doesn't even feel rewarded. It doesn't feel like you've grown despite the fact that you've learned how to get further in each section: it's just that you have information now and can dodge/deal with things even before they happen. You're just glad that the enemy boss is not throwing the same line after dealing with it for 10 minutes of them just mentally exhausting you over and over again.

Look, under the surface here there could have been a game that did well to bring bike combat and the tunnel racing to the forefront: but all I have found is a game that felt like it was tested by the people who programmed it: and not anyone outside the knowledge group. Which means that it's very much knowledge is power: and well, have fun trying to get it.

Stream Footage: https://youtu.be/keEMYoNHPg8

Lists:
Positives:

• A nice idea with the combination of tunnel riding gameplay with combat arena biking.
  
• Some concepts about the themes are nicely used, even if a little bit too in your face about it.
  
• Rewards those who are resilient.
  
• Some cool designs with the Guardians.

Negatives:

• Frustration. Both sections do not really reward skills but knowledge of what's to come: which leads to a lot of times where you get a hit and you're like “OH COME ON”.
  
• Game has too many times where it drops a hazard/issue in front of you and you do not have the time to react, even if you're the fastest hands and mind in the west.
  
• Very unforgiving for players with lower skill floors/ceilings. No checkpoints, and not a lot of ways to fix things if you go down bad paths.
  
• Feels like the game was designed to be 2-3 times longer then it is, and things were cut left and right.
  
• Controls on movement are consistent, but still feel like it's constraining in the wrong ways.
  
• Writing is confusing at times and feels like half of the plot was cut out. Missing lead-up for information makes it feel like the player is skipping forward and backward randomly.

If you want more reviews/information regarding games I've reviewed, visit my curator. Dragnix Curator

Target Audience: Players who want a contained yet strong experience

Summary:

Look, I get it. Games for many are hard to drop a bunch of money on for some players out there if you don't get a lot of hours out of it. It's a valid criteria, but I always have to point out that quality of those hours are important. We've seen games that have stretched out their content so far that the slightest of pressure will cause it to snap. Well, 9 Years of Shadow is the opposite of that, and quite frankly, was fantastic for the time that I've played so far.

Obviously, you're probably here for the visuals and presentation, which are absolutely gorgeous. The game shows a variety of environmental designs along with fun characters that let's you appreciate the small details on each of them, without getting lost in the big picture of functional gameplay. I love the weaving of elements into each character and how you can tell who they are just by looking at them. In addition, the game emphasizes key moments well with beautifully constructed screens: like those that you get when getting a new armor. The music may be a slight step down compared to the overall visuals, but that's like saying the great fries are a step down from the big juicy burger next to it: it does more to complement the visuals more then anything.

The gameplay is up my alley to: a focus on basic positioning and simple attack/defense strategies in metroidvanias. The element system does enough to change encounter, and the movement options that are introduced (especially the water siren form) really feel fantastic and just wants to make you move around. There's ok enemy variety but great boss encounters, and the game hits the level of pushing you into situations that will get you tense, but not to the point of frustration. Exploration is easy yet can get you confused at times, but you'll want to keep exploring this world as much as possible.

Look, the biggest knock against this game right now is the length based on other reviews, but the impression it leaves from a gameplay perspective does a lot to justify it's cost. If that's important to you, then keep an eye out for it in the future at least, but for others, this is a great example of a polished indie game that you'll be thinking for days to come, and just want to see what the world has to unveil next.


Stream Footage: https://youtu.be/CGaVJnFMt6w

Lists:
Positives:

• Some of the strongest art direction and visual flair that I've seen to date: very powerful yet functional in designs from all aspects (character, level, hell even UI).
  
• Seriously, the UI in particular is a prime example of how to make it functional WITHOUT making it boring.
  
• Environmental and level design has good variety and emphasizes combat and movement options in good ways.
  
• Hug Mechanic feels just right in rewarding smart gameplay decisions, but still leaving room to get into trouble.
  
• Boss battles are great skill checks that have tension yet still make you feel like any attempt could easily be the one.

Negatives:

• If length is important to you, this will be a negative in terms of overall hours to completition.
  
• Honestly, a lot of what I could bring up are super, super nitpicks. The game's too solid all around.
  
• Would love to see some options in accessibility/other areas (I do wonder how colorblind players would deal with the element system).

If you want more reviews/information regarding games I've reviewed, visit my curator. Dragnix Curator

Target Audience: Those really, really, really liking the idea of the dating aspect of the game.

Summary:

In all my time of reviewing games on Steam, there are not of a lot of instances where I get legitimately angry at a game. Sure, I have moments of frustration and disappointment, but game development is not an easy task, and so many things can go wrong in a very small period of time. There are games that are much worse then Romancelvania, but in most cases, you can see it right away. And there are games with a lot worse potential then Romancelvania. But the combination of the interesting concept with a technical execution that at one point made me physically ill, along with some of the most baffling decisions on a gameplay perspective that I have ever seen: makes it so that I have not only to indicate to not buy this game: but question how things went so wrong on the development side.

Let me try to start with the positive. The concept of playing as Dracula looking for love again has potential, and you can see it in here and times. Some of the few characters I came across have some depth to them, and does make me want to see what the game's story had for them. The humor, while overall missing for me, did have moments that got a legit chuckle out of me, and the character designs do have some interesting elements and thought put into them.

Now that I got that out of the way, I have to question to the developers why the actual Metroidvania element of this game wasn't scrapped, because my god it doesn't work. First of all: of all the things that I don't expect to be a problem in a metroidvania/platforming type game: the camera. The camera is way too fast in most instances, causing a swing that makes it hard to follow even the simplest of movements. It really emphasizes some of the most baffling animations and attacks that look like it's skipping frames at several points. The fact that the ability to “peek” when looking down happens so quickly when playing with a analog stick controller caused screen shake that physically made me ill at times with the violent nature of it. A simple eye test would have said “wait, something's wrong here”, and I'm not exactly sure how it was allowed to release in this state.

Then let's move to the exploration and the combat. The weird mixture of 2D and 3D elements feel like two completely different teams were working on the game, and combine poorly in what isn't exactly a looker of a game to begin with. There are times where I felt like the cohesion of the environments and enemies made absolutely no sense: sure, skeletons in the castlevania theme make sense, but the walking tongue that feels completely seperate art wise from them just leads to confusion and wondering if the game picked up assets and didn't modify them for the game's overall theming. It doesn't help that menu navigation feels clunky on looking at even simple information in the menu (hint, it shouldn't be a problem to exit the menu from different sub screens), and the lack of a map is a baffling design decision especially when you consider the game's namesake. There's no real in environment tools in most cases to figure out what you have seen before. And while the idea of a bat holding a spotlight on you is a cool idea in theory: in practice leads to moments where I'm making leaps of faith because I literally can't see where I'm going.

Then, we move to the combat, which has no impact whatsoever and feels like an early game developer project that is more of a prototype more then anything else. Look, I don't want to be mean despite my frustration here: I get it, this may have not been the forte of the developer. I want them to grow. But when animations and hits feel like I'm hitting air: that I'm not getting the feedback that I need to know if things are going right, and the combat feeling so lifeless and stiff that I wonder if I need to pull a Pinocchio to get some fun out of it: something went terribly wrong. I hate how even killing a simple series of enemies felt like a chore. The one boss I came across felt like it was slapped together with little rhyme and reason, and once again I have to question to the developers: it's clear this is on another distant level compared to the story: and I get that you had the game kickstarted so you had obligations to fill. But at some point, you had to realize how clunky and bad the game felt, and needed to make a decision to save the core concept of your game.

It's not like the story and presentation would have been a world beater eater. There are decisions that really make me question the sanity off the developer: the horns on certain confirmation elements that digs into my skull like the Cereberal Bore makes me wonder if the game was trying to present itself as an ironic joke, but it's more then that. The writing still can be very groan worthy and makes me ask a lot more questions then I get answers at times, and not giving more back story about Drac and his lost love makes me question how truly heart broken he is when he literally in the next moment is trying to smooth talk his way through things without a care in the world. The game needed a lot more build up of his character and his struggles to really connect with him: for us to care about him, before anything along the lines of dating came up. I do question if one of the early choices in the game were designed to literally make us hate him, but I may be bias in the dude-bro attitude presented there.

Look, I stream and play a lot of indie games. I have rules about what I cover and what I look for in that coverage. One of those rules is that no matter what I cover, I do not refund the game. I made content, I paid for the game, but it would be against my code to then turn around and refund it. This game literally made me test that my will on that point. I felt so disappointed, so misled in terms of the game's concept and execution that I literally had to stop my stream, go and get a chocolate shake to deal with the disappointment and anger I felt.

I'm sorry, there's a game that can be salvaged under the surface in the Visual Novel type dating element here: but what's presented is one of the most frustrating and soul crushing experiences that I've had on Steam in a long while.

Stream Footage: https://youtu.be/rzQUty6hfZw

Lists:
Positives:

• Some interesting dating options that have depth behind the base of the character.
  
• A few jokes land here and there.
  
• A good voice acting performance here and there.
  
• The potential

Negatives:

• A camera that somehow is able to cause me to physically get ill, and highlights some of the poor animation and attack work.
  
• Combat is not only clunky, it has no real weight to it and feels like I'm fighting with a wet pool noodle while trying to take on a man on meth.
  
• Certain moves feel like they are out of control and feels dangerous to use them with even basic attacks. There's a weird inconsistency with them too, especially with the skills that seem to double over at times in terms of inputs?
  
• Combat is also feels button mashy in the worst ways at times, and feels incredibly imbalanced even when I end up dying. It feels like a chore, which especially early on in a game doesn't set the mood in a good way.
  
• No map and a lack of good lighting in navigation makes me feel like I'm Velma from Scooby Doo (the good version) whose glasses have been knocked off and I'm just stumbling around in the dark.
  
• The attempt at humor at times really detracts from the game and feels like the spaghetti method (aka fire as many jokes off and hope a few sticks) was the real focus at times.
  
• A lack of synergy of presentation elements leads to a world that I can't immerse myself in and makes me wonder how it even came to be.
  
• Performance issues and stuttering at times on a reasonable machine.

Target Audience: Hardcore Card Roguelike .

Summary:

There are games that are designed for veterans of a game's genre, and Card Crawl Adventure is one of them. There's in-depth mechanics here with a lot of synergy to play off of, but will take time to learn and will frustrate new players very easily: especially with how you can easily miss information that the game hasn't taught you. Sure, some of the learning can be fun as you really experiment with how to play, but there are times where you are just wondering what the game wants from you. Granted, the different characters have reasonable differences beyond the surface and I do like the elemental portion of the game, but even after 10-15 hours of gameplay I still have a lot of questions that I really should have answers by now (what keeps a card on the field in particular).

But for players who are willing to put up with the frustration over time, there's a lot to like about this smaller priced game that could have huge return of hours and hours of content. Sure, there's some repetition, but the focus on the 3x3 grid and the connections means that it's card combinations that really bring out the best in the game. In addition, while the presentation does have some missing elements I wish would be there, the drawing and style is nice to look at, and it does seem polished.

The thing is, if you have questions about if the game is for you, the best thing you can do is go to a mobile device, and play the character who is free there and try it out. If you like it, you can then purchase more there or just by the entire game here.


Video Review: https://youtu.be/WBGkota-FgE

Lists:
Positives:

• Mechanics and gameplay are complicated, but have good strategy elements and is enjoyable in using in creative scenarios.
  
• Different characters play differently enough to draw more content and fun out of the game while being similar enough to be able to pick up.
  
• Game's UI is clear and does well in giving information while still having some flair in small animations.
  
• Game does have a polish to it with small animations/tool tips that can help a lot.
  
• Rewards players for paying attention and be creative in how they look at things.
  Negatives:
  
  • So many mechanics can cause confusion, and the game's tutorial could do a lot more to teach the player.
    
  • Can be hard to sort out where things went wrong. Very much a snowball effect game, which will be a negative to some. Luck can be decesive.
    
  • Wanted more from the character models/reactions to the gameplay presentation.
  
  If you want more reviews/information regarding games I've reviewed, visit my curator. Dragnix Curator

Target Audience: Castlevania fans of the GBA/DS games, but really most everyone.

Summary:

There's something satisfying about a game that reminds you of some of your childhood favorites while still being its own thing, and Elderand did that for me. It's combat heavily reminded me of the GBA/DS Castlevania games, and the simplicity yet complexity of that combat succeeds here in making a challenging yet fun game. Sure, the Lovecraftian story may be familiar to many and the genre does have a lot of it: but I was still intrigued by the treachery and world created here, seemingly allowing for some choice in story progression and influence without being obvious.

But you're here for the gameplay, and it's simple yet effective. Great enemy variety and difficult boss battles kept me entertained throughout the game. In addition, the weapons having real weight and usefulness in certain situations helped to define my character and his fight style, without being overly gimmicky or forcing one particular “best” way. Exploring this world with it's detail in environments and typical yet fantastic creature design was a joy, and in the end it's a game that really understands the K.I.S.S. Principle (keep it simple, stupid). Granted, there's a few design decisions that do make me scratch my head, like putting the fast travel option as a trinket to find on a path that you could miss for a bit of the game, but it doesn't overshadow the core combat loop and Metroidvania experience.

Many times, I say that a game needs a unique selling point to really stand out in the modern day landscape to really be a must buy in my rating system, but there are exceptions, and Elderand is one of those exceptions. It gets the core combat loop and exploration right with very few faults, that it'll be nostalgic yet new at the same time. If you love Metroidvania's, this is a must have. But even if you don't, it's still worth a strong look as it could be the introduction into the genre that could hook you.

Is it on the top tier of Metroidvania's? No, it's one step under it, but being Tier 2 is still worth your time and hard earned money.


Review Video: https://youtu.be/zP2FEHr5FWk

Lists:
Positives:

• Combat's ebb and flow is fantastic and understands that the K.I.S.S principle can be effective in making a satisfying loop.
  
• Exploration is encouraged yet doesn't feel too tedious in the end.
  
• Restraint used at the right times to not allow over reliance on certain mechanics: feels like the core loop was refined well yet still accessible to new players to the genre.
  
• Beautiful use of color and of creature/enemy design that brings life to the world in all the environments.
  
• Music synergizes well with what the game wants you to feel (mystery, action, etc) and are of high quality.
  
• Crunchy sound design emphasizes hits and strikes that make you feel immersed in combat.
  
• Lovecraftian elements integrated well without being overly cliché.
  
  Negatives:
  
  • The decision to make the fast travel a trinket that you don't necessarily have to find until half way through the game is questionable in the big picture.
    
  • Very rarely there's a combat scenario that's frustrating to the point where you just sorta dash past it. Very rare.
    
  • At times, the story can be hard to follow just from the way that it's worded, but that may be my ADD talking.
  
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