every time a visually stunning indie game with a long-ass dev cycle has shitty combat and tons of flaws in general, an angel loses its wings.

this one took me years to finally get through, and for good reason. there's a lot here that just... doesn't feel fun. combat is pretty bad - even though owlboy's mechanics are fairly unique and fun to get acclimated to. you don't do enough damage, swapping between characters is clunky, sometimes aiming with the controller doesn't feel right, and every hit slams you against a wall and stops you from doing anything for several seconds. i think i got through every boss by face-tanking half the hits and just hoping i didn't die before it did.

there's also no map at all - which for a game like this is really bad. while the game itself is decently linear, you're put off from looking for any collectibles or secrets after you're done with that area out of fear of getting lost or just never finding something.

my least favorite part, however, were the stealth sections. personally, stealth sections are my least favorite gimmick in any game - they're slow, boring, and the stakes often don't matter so i just end up making a mad dash whenever i can. owlboy is filled with TONS of these - and each one is worse than the last. pirates will see you behind cover, the safe areas are few and far between, and don't even get me started on the bugs. NONE of these are executed well at all.

i kinda hate to tear into this game so much, because tbh it IS really beautiful - and despite all these downsides i don't hate it. it's got some of the best spritework of any game i've played, the music and worldbuilding are spectacular, and while i didn't get the best ending i loved the story regardless. the character designs are great too - your main cast is a ton of fun, and the NPCs and enemies have great designs as well. there's a ton to like in this game, but there's also a ton to dislike. give this one a try if you don't mind getting slammed against a wall every few seconds i guess.

Owlboy is a visually stunning, beautifully crafted pixel art showcase with a wonderful soundtrack and a cute cast of fun characters that lure you into a false sense of security until you try to actually play the damn thing and learn that your little mute owl friend has glass bones and paper skin and his main weapon is a peashooter that takes multiple hits to kill even the lowliest cave bat.

Owlboy is beautiful, yes, and I like the idea of an avian character having to carry people around to do their fighting for them, but it wasn't exactly...well, fun. This is a very tedious game. As you play it, you start think "Oh I'm sure the game's gonna get better..." as the stealth missions and various maze-like dungeons beat you down in an ever-increasing volley that wears on your patience. Soon, you'll ask yourself "Am I having fun?" when you know the answer is "No", and that's usually before you realize that this game wants you to treasure hunt for over 2000 finite coins across a playing field that has zero warp or map options available.

But at least the art is really nice. It's a shame about the whole "gameplay" part.

UPDATE - Okay this is the first game I've played on my PS5 that actually hardlocked my system. I had to manually shut down my PS5, have my USB drive repaired, and use a back up save because the Owlboy save file got corrupted in the process. Because I...walked through a doorway wrong? I guess?
Fuck you too, Owlboy.