Hyper Light Drifter is a precision combat, vibe-heavy exploration adventure. The visuals are gorgeous, featuring detailed pixel art splash screens and an evocative, utterly unique setting. A lot of gameplay elements are also communicated through visual design, with mixed success. It's bizarre that so much important information is cryptically inferred without words, but the phrase "your gun is now fully charged" flash on the screen occasionally.

Combat is fast but methodical. Without i-frames or the chain dash, dodging feels stiff and frustrating. The bosses are actually more fun than trash mobs, because the combat requires you to read individual enemy attacks and that's a lot easier to do when the enemy takes up most of the screen. Difficulty is pretty uneven, with sequential challenges rocketing up and plummeting down rapidly.

Checkpoints are often too far apart considering that the entire room state goes back to square one when you die. The game wants you to explore and push at the edges of the map, but you take damage if you try to dodge into an inaccessible area. These issues all add up to a game which feels smugly disrespectful of my time. It is beautiful and the levels are thoughtfully designed - I might still try the sequel, because this feels like a prototype with a lot of potential.