There's a dichotomy in Anodyne 2. It's constant. In the same ways it asks us to break away from our complacency, the systems that bind and pull us to accept simple easier truths, it plays its hand through various fundamentals of the games that make it. In its commentary on trends it plays on trends, has you walk through trends, blasts away trends with trends. It forges its own path full of its own dust and blemishes. It too is trapped within its own cycle, hoping for more. Hoping to be better than it is. Hoping we can all be better than we are.
All of this is so viscerally poignant to me. It's almost nauseous to me how melancholic and constantly on your shoulder it is. It seeks to understand you as much as you're trying to understand it and there's constantly a bit of friction. It swaps between very clear explicit tones and vague musings. It wants to touch on as many facets of life and experience as it can but in some ways it almost commodifies that idea. There's a sort of 'contradiction' in it all.
I think that's better for Anodyne 2, though. The journey is hard but we'll be free, I believe that. Even if none of this makes sense to 'you', the story is crystal and upfront, we must choose the path to walk forward between some perfect communion full of Limitation vs. accepting us all for our little frictions and attempting to think more Beyond. Also just kind of genius how that's all distilled, whether some of that was intentional or not. All up to you anyhow. Go forth, Nova!
All of this is so viscerally poignant to me. It's almost nauseous to me how melancholic and constantly on your shoulder it is. It seeks to understand you as much as you're trying to understand it and there's constantly a bit of friction. It swaps between very clear explicit tones and vague musings. It wants to touch on as many facets of life and experience as it can but in some ways it almost commodifies that idea. There's a sort of 'contradiction' in it all.
I think that's better for Anodyne 2, though. The journey is hard but we'll be free, I believe that. Even if none of this makes sense to 'you', the story is crystal and upfront, we must choose the path to walk forward between some perfect communion full of Limitation vs. accepting us all for our little frictions and attempting to think more Beyond. Also just kind of genius how that's all distilled, whether some of that was intentional or not. All up to you anyhow. Go forth, Nova!
this is about as close as you can get to a spiritual experience in gaming. at the same time it’s also a fun game where you can collect some coins. analgesic just “gets it” imo
An amalgamation of micro-worlds, bound together by human connections and pain, in order to escape the homogeneous void and uniformity of the world. The system won't give you resolution, only a small comfort until your demise. A 32-bit/16-bit/8-bit adaptation of Neon Genesis Evangelion.
The smaller you go, the more concrete these worlds seem, but also more constraining. They might also hide bigger possibilities, new ways of rethinking live and community.
At times, this feels like a search for limitations, instead of actually being limited by software/hardware/manpower. That's why the little card-hunting there is didn't bother me, it went as far and wide as it wanted to.
The smaller you go, the more concrete these worlds seem, but also more constraining. They might also hide bigger possibilities, new ways of rethinking live and community.
At times, this feels like a search for limitations, instead of actually being limited by software/hardware/manpower. That's why the little card-hunting there is didn't bother me, it went as far and wide as it wanted to.
This review contains spoilers
I recently played Sephonie, a 3D Platformer by Analgesic Productions. This was partially due to my familiarity with Analgesic’s previous games, including Anodyne 2. Familiarity is underplaying it though, because around 3 years ago, I would’ve called Anodyne 2 my favorite game. In fact, wanting to write a review of this game is part of why I joined this website in the first place. As time went on, my thoughts on the game slowly degraded for multiple reasons, but I still held it in high regard. When I started playing Sephonie, I inevitably began to think about Anodyne 2, and I felt a need to replay it. I couldn’t help but wonder how my perception of the game would change three years removed.
The game remains great, and even occasionally brilliant. It follows Nova, who shrinks down and cleans dangerous nanodust from the insides of people. This cleaning saves people from corruption, and Nova moves on to help other people in need. That’s how it starts at least; The plot soon becomes an allegory for faith, structure, and purpose, where Nova gains more perspective on nanodust and the greater world. Combine this with mix of 3D exploration and top-down dungeons, sprinkle in some quirkiness, and add a dash of progressive themes, and that’s basically Anodyne 2. Now, this may seem akin to many indie games: games that mean well but execute their concepts confusedly and amateurishly. Honestly, that’s how I’d describe some other Analgesic’s games. However, this game nails what matters most. I’d be lying if I called the 3D exploration incredible, as it’s mostly carried by atmospheric, alien locations. Optional collectibles and fun character interactions don’t make up for the lack of environmental interaction and compelling puzzles or platforming. Even as an overworld for the top-down dungeons, the 3D world feels far too sparse given the breadth of the environments. The car transformation and late-game fast travel somewhat rectify this issue, but only somewhat.
The excellent top-down Zelda-esque sections do the heavy lifting here. The Zelda comparison isn’t entirely apt, as you don’t get a bunch of new items throughout the games. No, Nova mainly just uses a vacuum cleaner, sucking up items and enemies a la Kirby’s Dream Land (Side note, going from a broom in the first game to a vacuum cleaner here is funny). The game gets a lot of mileage out of this, constructing really fun puzzles and combat scenarios. The efficiency with which this game establishes and expands on concepts surprises me; It does a lot with little, and the game respects the player’s ability to figure mechanics out for themselves. The initially simple dungeons with straightforward mechanics and stories eventually give way to more wacky and varied levels, with one being a parody of classic RPGs. This high-quality design is accompanied by a narrative justification for the shift from 2D -> 3D: Nova is “Shrinking” the resolution of the game while she shrinks in size. Tons of indie games mash two genres together, but few make sense of such a combination the way Anodyne 2 does.
I have a few benign complaints about the 2D gameplay. The lack of difficulty hurts my enjoyment a bit. I’ll assume the leisure with which I finished the game is due to it being a second playthrough (And also me being good at videogames). Regardless, the plentiful checkpoints mean I never felt much of a threat, even in the rare occasions when my health did diminish. The other issue I have is more of a missed opportunity related to the titular dust. Dust gates progression, but you can’t really hold that much, and depositing it requires backtracking. Again, this is usually merely benign (Unless you go for the ‘bad’ ending, where you need to collect tons of dust), but having that dust just sit there made me think about how it could’ve been used for other gameplay purposes. The concept of channeling dust is mentioned, but the gameplay implications of this were extremely minor. An extra use for dust could’ve been really interesting, especially considering how often it sits in the player’s tank.
The story makes no effort to hide its messages of seeking purpose and meaning, but I consider it a compelling story regardless. The narrative is supported by some good character progression and decent twists. Nora initially sees the benefits of structure and believing in an inherent purpose, but later realizes finding your own purpose can also be fulfilling. In the ‘good’ ending, Nova rejects her purpose given to her by the Center, a representation of Leaders\Religion. It’s a pretty solid story overall, although I admit that most of what I enjoy comes down to specific concepts and moments. One of the highlights comes midway through the game. Palisade, a mother figure of sorts to Nova, creates a playground for Nova and dies soon after. Eventually Nova finds this playground and assumes that it’s meant to train her. The concept of having fun is alien to her; everything has an inherent meaning, even random dice rolls. This moment does a great job of characterizing Nova and representing the game’s themes
One initially inconspicuous section compels me more than any other in the game. You meet a ‘bugged’ NPC, and upon shrinking down and entering this NPC, you see the story of Nora, who exists in what seems to be the real world. In this section, the game implies that the main story is simply Nora escaping the problems of her life by playing a videogame, only exercising freedom in fantasy. This compelling extra layer looks at the escapist nature of games, and the happy ending of the game now seems to almost be a red herring.
Unfortunately, the dialogue often undercuts what should just speak for itself. Nora starts talking about minimum wage at one point and I’m just sitting here thinking, “Ok, sure, but does this need to be here?” There’s one section of the story that’s conceptually excellent: Nova tries to help a rock guy who blindly commits to a purpose and pays the price. This sets up the idea that blindly following a purpose isn’t always a good idea, which the game later expands on. However, the dialogue hammers this idea in way too hard. Even worse, this dialogue can’t be skipped. The game literally puts up progression gates that only go down once you talk to all the people. This would be obnoxious for even the best writing. The game takes the ‘Tell don’t show’ approach far too often, and this approach often hurts otherwise impactful story beats. Excess aside, the dialogue can be hit-and-miss, regardless of if it aims for drama or comedy. Often it leans too far into self-indulgence and quirk, briefly becoming that indie game stereotype I described at the beginning. The best jokes and story beats are told visually. There’s some graffiti that reads “Environmental Storytelling” earlier on. In the aforementioned JRPG Parody, the game makes fun of the way staircases are presented in Dragon Quest games. There’s an announcer that’s a spider named ‘Announci’, a joke I only picked up on this playthrough. None of these gags are forced on the player, which means even the occasional annoying dialogue from an NPC is bearable. I suppose this strength of optional content and dialogue fits, since Anodyne 2 explores free will and finding your own purpose…
These themes of freedom and finding purpose are characterized on a gameplay level by Metacoins. Metacoins can be collected in the 3D Areas (And occasionally in 2D levels), and you can buy various items with them. However, what if you wanted to get all of them? There’s not much of a reason, but what if you just really wanted to? Well, you gotta look hard. In fact, you have to go beyond the bounds of reality. Many of these coins are hidden in walls and out of bounds. To get them, you have to glitch the game. For a game going against what you’re ‘supposed’ to do, this concept somehow balances being both logical and insane. This optional sidequest that appears halfway through the game remains the best part of the 3D gameplay. Make of that what you will. Despite my love for this game, I never ended up getting every single coin. I looked online too, but considering this game’s obscurity, I could find little. Honestly though, I love the sense of mystery in this game. Metacoins aside, there’s a lot of weird optional stuff here, much of which reveals itself in the post-game. Nowadays I try to avoid guides for games as much as possible, and I think this game’s sense of mystery may have contributed to this habit. In that spirit of mystery, I won’t spoil anything about what the post-game has to offer.
Analgesic spoiled us with the audiovisuals though. This game released around the time low-poly visuals were making a resurgence, and I do enjoy the visual style despite some issues. Some locations look great, but others are muddled and dull. Could this have been an intentional homage to the actual visuals of the time? Maybe, but if so, the game’s very selective in its faithfulness. It’s also worth noting that cutscenes, assuming they don’t play out with still images or in dialogue, lack pretty much any unique animations; Characters will stand in their idle animations and talk. Yes, this game was made by a small team, but the lack of animation distracted me nonetheless. The 2D sections generally look better on a surface level, and the visuals often nicely tie into a character’s psyche. However, 2D or 3D sections, the music always resonates with me. The audio balances style and substance beautifully; I can tell if a song is from this game, but the compositions have a great range regardless.
Replaying this game was fun. Not just because it’s a great game, but also because it makes me think about how I’ve changed. Looking back, I can’t help but wonder if part of why I identified with this game’s story so much was the fact that I struggled with what my purpose should be as well. I played this game the same month I graduated from High School. I started college months later, not necessarily because I had an idea of what I wanted to do, but because that’s what people expected me to do. For the same reason, I considered going into a medical career. Having something present that dilemma of purpose probably vindicated me. Nowadays though, I have a much better idea of what I want to do with my life. I enjoy learning about Math in College, I’m more confident in myself, and I’ve even made friends and stuff. I’m not perfect of course, but who is…
I’ve never really bought into the notion that certain experiences with art are invalid. Even if a game was made with a specific audience in mind, people outside that audience deserve a voice. Good stories should at least be entertaining or compelling for people who don’t personally relate to the main character. Anodyne 2 certainly targets an audience, but it also houses good gameplay, an interesting story, and great music. This game isn’t a 10/10 masterpiece, and I’m hesitant to rate it 9/10 either. However, even three years later I had a great time, and that’s enough for me. My numerical rating doesn’t matter much at the end of the day; I can’t imagine this review would actually convince many people to play the game. It's being posted on a fairly obscure website by an even more obscure user. It’s basically a useless review. However, I wrote it because I wanted it to exist. Does this review really need a purpose? That question resonates even more for my review from three years ago. That poorly written, dated review doesn’t really serve a purpose, but it represents who I was back then. Shouldn’t that person, flaws and all, still be allowed to exist? I think so.
The game remains great, and even occasionally brilliant. It follows Nova, who shrinks down and cleans dangerous nanodust from the insides of people. This cleaning saves people from corruption, and Nova moves on to help other people in need. That’s how it starts at least; The plot soon becomes an allegory for faith, structure, and purpose, where Nova gains more perspective on nanodust and the greater world. Combine this with mix of 3D exploration and top-down dungeons, sprinkle in some quirkiness, and add a dash of progressive themes, and that’s basically Anodyne 2. Now, this may seem akin to many indie games: games that mean well but execute their concepts confusedly and amateurishly. Honestly, that’s how I’d describe some other Analgesic’s games. However, this game nails what matters most. I’d be lying if I called the 3D exploration incredible, as it’s mostly carried by atmospheric, alien locations. Optional collectibles and fun character interactions don’t make up for the lack of environmental interaction and compelling puzzles or platforming. Even as an overworld for the top-down dungeons, the 3D world feels far too sparse given the breadth of the environments. The car transformation and late-game fast travel somewhat rectify this issue, but only somewhat.
The excellent top-down Zelda-esque sections do the heavy lifting here. The Zelda comparison isn’t entirely apt, as you don’t get a bunch of new items throughout the games. No, Nova mainly just uses a vacuum cleaner, sucking up items and enemies a la Kirby’s Dream Land (Side note, going from a broom in the first game to a vacuum cleaner here is funny). The game gets a lot of mileage out of this, constructing really fun puzzles and combat scenarios. The efficiency with which this game establishes and expands on concepts surprises me; It does a lot with little, and the game respects the player’s ability to figure mechanics out for themselves. The initially simple dungeons with straightforward mechanics and stories eventually give way to more wacky and varied levels, with one being a parody of classic RPGs. This high-quality design is accompanied by a narrative justification for the shift from 2D -> 3D: Nova is “Shrinking” the resolution of the game while she shrinks in size. Tons of indie games mash two genres together, but few make sense of such a combination the way Anodyne 2 does.
I have a few benign complaints about the 2D gameplay. The lack of difficulty hurts my enjoyment a bit. I’ll assume the leisure with which I finished the game is due to it being a second playthrough (And also me being good at videogames). Regardless, the plentiful checkpoints mean I never felt much of a threat, even in the rare occasions when my health did diminish. The other issue I have is more of a missed opportunity related to the titular dust. Dust gates progression, but you can’t really hold that much, and depositing it requires backtracking. Again, this is usually merely benign (Unless you go for the ‘bad’ ending, where you need to collect tons of dust), but having that dust just sit there made me think about how it could’ve been used for other gameplay purposes. The concept of channeling dust is mentioned, but the gameplay implications of this were extremely minor. An extra use for dust could’ve been really interesting, especially considering how often it sits in the player’s tank.
The story makes no effort to hide its messages of seeking purpose and meaning, but I consider it a compelling story regardless. The narrative is supported by some good character progression and decent twists. Nora initially sees the benefits of structure and believing in an inherent purpose, but later realizes finding your own purpose can also be fulfilling. In the ‘good’ ending, Nova rejects her purpose given to her by the Center, a representation of Leaders\Religion. It’s a pretty solid story overall, although I admit that most of what I enjoy comes down to specific concepts and moments. One of the highlights comes midway through the game. Palisade, a mother figure of sorts to Nova, creates a playground for Nova and dies soon after. Eventually Nova finds this playground and assumes that it’s meant to train her. The concept of having fun is alien to her; everything has an inherent meaning, even random dice rolls. This moment does a great job of characterizing Nova and representing the game’s themes
One initially inconspicuous section compels me more than any other in the game. You meet a ‘bugged’ NPC, and upon shrinking down and entering this NPC, you see the story of Nora, who exists in what seems to be the real world. In this section, the game implies that the main story is simply Nora escaping the problems of her life by playing a videogame, only exercising freedom in fantasy. This compelling extra layer looks at the escapist nature of games, and the happy ending of the game now seems to almost be a red herring.
Unfortunately, the dialogue often undercuts what should just speak for itself. Nora starts talking about minimum wage at one point and I’m just sitting here thinking, “Ok, sure, but does this need to be here?” There’s one section of the story that’s conceptually excellent: Nova tries to help a rock guy who blindly commits to a purpose and pays the price. This sets up the idea that blindly following a purpose isn’t always a good idea, which the game later expands on. However, the dialogue hammers this idea in way too hard. Even worse, this dialogue can’t be skipped. The game literally puts up progression gates that only go down once you talk to all the people. This would be obnoxious for even the best writing. The game takes the ‘Tell don’t show’ approach far too often, and this approach often hurts otherwise impactful story beats. Excess aside, the dialogue can be hit-and-miss, regardless of if it aims for drama or comedy. Often it leans too far into self-indulgence and quirk, briefly becoming that indie game stereotype I described at the beginning. The best jokes and story beats are told visually. There’s some graffiti that reads “Environmental Storytelling” earlier on. In the aforementioned JRPG Parody, the game makes fun of the way staircases are presented in Dragon Quest games. There’s an announcer that’s a spider named ‘Announci’, a joke I only picked up on this playthrough. None of these gags are forced on the player, which means even the occasional annoying dialogue from an NPC is bearable. I suppose this strength of optional content and dialogue fits, since Anodyne 2 explores free will and finding your own purpose…
These themes of freedom and finding purpose are characterized on a gameplay level by Metacoins. Metacoins can be collected in the 3D Areas (And occasionally in 2D levels), and you can buy various items with them. However, what if you wanted to get all of them? There’s not much of a reason, but what if you just really wanted to? Well, you gotta look hard. In fact, you have to go beyond the bounds of reality. Many of these coins are hidden in walls and out of bounds. To get them, you have to glitch the game. For a game going against what you’re ‘supposed’ to do, this concept somehow balances being both logical and insane. This optional sidequest that appears halfway through the game remains the best part of the 3D gameplay. Make of that what you will. Despite my love for this game, I never ended up getting every single coin. I looked online too, but considering this game’s obscurity, I could find little. Honestly though, I love the sense of mystery in this game. Metacoins aside, there’s a lot of weird optional stuff here, much of which reveals itself in the post-game. Nowadays I try to avoid guides for games as much as possible, and I think this game’s sense of mystery may have contributed to this habit. In that spirit of mystery, I won’t spoil anything about what the post-game has to offer.
Analgesic spoiled us with the audiovisuals though. This game released around the time low-poly visuals were making a resurgence, and I do enjoy the visual style despite some issues. Some locations look great, but others are muddled and dull. Could this have been an intentional homage to the actual visuals of the time? Maybe, but if so, the game’s very selective in its faithfulness. It’s also worth noting that cutscenes, assuming they don’t play out with still images or in dialogue, lack pretty much any unique animations; Characters will stand in their idle animations and talk. Yes, this game was made by a small team, but the lack of animation distracted me nonetheless. The 2D sections generally look better on a surface level, and the visuals often nicely tie into a character’s psyche. However, 2D or 3D sections, the music always resonates with me. The audio balances style and substance beautifully; I can tell if a song is from this game, but the compositions have a great range regardless.
Replaying this game was fun. Not just because it’s a great game, but also because it makes me think about how I’ve changed. Looking back, I can’t help but wonder if part of why I identified with this game’s story so much was the fact that I struggled with what my purpose should be as well. I played this game the same month I graduated from High School. I started college months later, not necessarily because I had an idea of what I wanted to do, but because that’s what people expected me to do. For the same reason, I considered going into a medical career. Having something present that dilemma of purpose probably vindicated me. Nowadays though, I have a much better idea of what I want to do with my life. I enjoy learning about Math in College, I’m more confident in myself, and I’ve even made friends and stuff. I’m not perfect of course, but who is…
I’ve never really bought into the notion that certain experiences with art are invalid. Even if a game was made with a specific audience in mind, people outside that audience deserve a voice. Good stories should at least be entertaining or compelling for people who don’t personally relate to the main character. Anodyne 2 certainly targets an audience, but it also houses good gameplay, an interesting story, and great music. This game isn’t a 10/10 masterpiece, and I’m hesitant to rate it 9/10 either. However, even three years later I had a great time, and that’s enough for me. My numerical rating doesn’t matter much at the end of the day; I can’t imagine this review would actually convince many people to play the game. It's being posted on a fairly obscure website by an even more obscure user. It’s basically a useless review. However, I wrote it because I wanted it to exist. Does this review really need a purpose? That question resonates even more for my review from three years ago. That poorly written, dated review doesn’t really serve a purpose, but it represents who I was back then. Shouldn’t that person, flaws and all, still be allowed to exist? I think so.
I archive the history of the Orb. Games are my specialty.
Have you ever felt like you're playing the same game, over and over again, year after year? That, despite the newness, you're playing the same thing?
It's so easy to be consumed by this cycle, only to find years of your life gone. Staring at your reflection, scrambling to justify your past. Is it possible for all of the hours to mean nothing?
I was once that way...but through the field of game history, I found personal growth. Detecting trends and following artistic movements...it's beautiful.
Have you ever felt like you're playing the same game, over and over again, year after year? That, despite the newness, you're playing the same thing?
It's so easy to be consumed by this cycle, only to find years of your life gone. Staring at your reflection, scrambling to justify your past. Is it possible for all of the hours to mean nothing?
I was once that way...but through the field of game history, I found personal growth. Detecting trends and following artistic movements...it's beautiful.
Anodyne 2 é um jogo que me fez pensar como poucos no ato da criação. Não porque em seus temas centrais toca no ato de moldar algo ou alguém, de preparar-se e/ou preparar alguém para encarar um mundo nada ideal, de triunfar diante de todos os buracos e decepções que possam ter no caminho; não porque tangencia esse tema com mensagens sobre solidão, de sentir-se incompleto, de compaixão, comunidade. Anodyne 2 tenta, desesperadamente, parece, falar de tudo: um potpourri de anedotas, contos, poesias; também uma aula sobre como escrever flavor text e gerar ambientação. Anodyne me fez pensar no ato da criação porque, ao reconhecer suas limitações como um jogo de baixo orçamento, feito por apenas uma dupla, o jogo prefere mostrar seu lado vulnerável e humano, prefere se conectar ao seu jogador através da honestidade, da conversa, do partilhar - as quebras de quarta parede não são piadinhas idiotas aqui, e sim lembretes de que foram duas pessoas, cheias de vontade de colocar em tela e em controle o que elas sentem - que fizeram esse jogo. As fronteiras invisíveis expandem, ao invés de limitar; a baixa contagem de polígonos¹ revela, ao invés de esconder. Ao mostrar-se vulnerável, a equipe de Anodyne faz de suas limitações realísticas uma janela cristalina para o cerne da obra.
O jogo reitera em seu passado, o aproveitamento das mecânicas de Anodyne e seu mundo sendo transplantados dentro da camada mais interna da cebola, mergulho dentro de mergulho mecânico e narrativo escondendo surpresas deliciosas; não necessariamente homenagem, e sim reaproveitamento que denuncia a nobreza do processo de manufatura, nunca linear: Anodyne 2 tem Anodyne dentro de si, e não teria como ser diferente - o simbólico se torna o literal. Anodyne 2 também tem em si Even the Ocean, e muitos outros projetos de Melos e Marina; talvez também tenha Sephonie, em seu estágio embrionário, escondido em algum lugar aqui.
1. Nunca leia isso como uma crítica, o jogo é lindo.
O jogo reitera em seu passado, o aproveitamento das mecânicas de Anodyne e seu mundo sendo transplantados dentro da camada mais interna da cebola, mergulho dentro de mergulho mecânico e narrativo escondendo surpresas deliciosas; não necessariamente homenagem, e sim reaproveitamento que denuncia a nobreza do processo de manufatura, nunca linear: Anodyne 2 tem Anodyne dentro de si, e não teria como ser diferente - o simbólico se torna o literal. Anodyne 2 também tem em si Even the Ocean, e muitos outros projetos de Melos e Marina; talvez também tenha Sephonie, em seu estágio embrionário, escondido em algum lugar aqui.
1. Nunca leia isso como uma crítica, o jogo é lindo.
just the coziest, most beautiful game, filled with themes and humanity and love
This review contains spoilers
High highs and low lows. The 3D art is bland, possibly because I have no nostalgia for the PS1 look and certainly because I have no love for the muddy desaturated color palette. On the other hand, the 2D art is as strong as it was in Anodyne 1, and indeed is made stronger by the benefit of multiple worlds each with a distinctive and appealing look.
The plot is achingly predictable--the god-analogue is revealed to be a cold ideologue who's strangling free will? Quelle surprise! But the smaller-scale character interactions are fun and the writing is mostly quite solid with a few great moments and fewer terrible ones.
I think the most frustrating thing about this is that its mechanical ambition extends beyond the capacity of its control scheme. Movement in both 3D and 2D sections of the game is clunky in a way that's surely an intentional riff on the consoles the game evokes, but conflicts painfully with the challenging maneuvers it occasionally demands. It's a question of suiting the design of the tasks you set before the player to the context in which the player acts.
The plot is achingly predictable--the god-analogue is revealed to be a cold ideologue who's strangling free will? Quelle surprise! But the smaller-scale character interactions are fun and the writing is mostly quite solid with a few great moments and fewer terrible ones.
I think the most frustrating thing about this is that its mechanical ambition extends beyond the capacity of its control scheme. Movement in both 3D and 2D sections of the game is clunky in a way that's surely an intentional riff on the consoles the game evokes, but conflicts painfully with the challenging maneuvers it occasionally demands. It's a question of suiting the design of the tasks you set before the player to the context in which the player acts.
very nearly flawless. one of the finest games i've ever played. not a single character or moment that isn't totally memorable. as you progress you'll think the game's played its last trick on you and then within 5 minutes you're blindsided by something totally new. also some of the best presentation in any game i've played, as well as a really beautiful, existential and powerful story that i would imagine hits hard for anyone who grew up with a lot of religious guilt
A dream-y odyssey of a game that I won't forget anytime soon. I've become very familiar with Analgesic Productions the past while, with Sephonie being a great little introduction to their style, Even The Ocean winning me over even more and then Anodyne 2 solidifying their presence as one of the best and original indie developers going today. You genuinely will not find other game experiences out there like what they have to offer.
There's so much here to love for the nostalgic gamer from another era, with the hazy 3D adventure platformer exploration along with 2D top down dungeon-style levels with puzzles and enemies. The liminal psychedelic world that feels like you dreamed up a video game you never played from the 90's is a sad, lonely landscape, eerie-ly deserted and devoid of most life, except for the odd bizarre being you'll come across. Most of the areas feel unique and distinguishable as you navigate the various sections, with certain landmarks keeping you aware of where you are.
Just wandering/driving around these areas gives you that strange feeling that has become so well known online nowadays - social media is full of videos and posts of liminal spaces; empty malls, toy stores, nighttime parking lots, closed businesses, places from our childhood that are warm and fuzzy in our brains, but feel cold and alien now. Warbly fuzzy synth music is playing over the videos, almost like it's playing from a distant speaker. It's a feeling we all have thinking of our childhoods, but these videos have that huge whiff of "weaponized nostalgia"; oh look how perfect life used to be as a kid. Don't you hate having bills to pay and adult responsibilities? Don't you wish you could still go to Blockbuster and rent PS1 games and have a sleepover and get Pizza Hut?
What Analgesic Productions do with their games that feels like an anomaly in these times is somehow give you that same feeling with their worlds. Yeah sure, they use graphics and art direction and music that resembles that foregone time. But they create their own original worlds with it all, while also making subtle references to the real world and emotions and struggles. Anxiety, self-worth, isolation, it's all here in spades. There's a moment here in Anodyne 2 with a specific character interaction that takes the game and places you into a completely different place that had me completely turned around - I had no idea what was happening and I did not expect it. As the sequence went on and it began exploring real world emotions and feelings, it got... strange. Things felt.. not right. And then it went to a dark and scary place that I was quickly adamant to get through so I could (hopefully) return to the other world I got to know. Even if that world didn't even feel like where I belonged.
I have said this about every Analgesic game I've reviewed so far but the music in their games is always just amazing. Melos Han-Tani knocks it out of the park with memorable song after memorable song, each one distinct enough and perfectly encapsulating the area that its featured in, music that you welcome every time you return to the region. It pulls you into the world like a warm ghostly embrace; it's a soundtrack to fall asleep to, wake up to, feel comforted by and yet also feel tense and uncertain. There's also just some great bops... the guy can write a good bop!
The writing in their games (usually primarily) by Marina Kittaka is a lot... there is a ton of dialogue in their titles, but I'm constantly impressed and taken aback by the sincerity, the train-of-thought observations (and often sometimes real thoughts or opinions a lot of us have had before that feel too personal or weird to share) that they can give to a weird ass looking creature person thing that slightly resembles what a child may endearingly design in a 3D animation program, and who just stands in one spot of the world chilling. Especially with how this game handles its main story/objective; doing an Inception-style dive into these characters' inner self and exploring the little world inside, to rid them of Dust, which is what is infecting the denizens of this world. There is a lot to read in their games (they don't feature voice acting, which is totally fine), and I'm constantly surprised by the writing style and how much thought and care was put into it. Some passages really got to me.
If you're still reading (hi!) and haven't played this and are wondering if it's for you, I want to compare this to one of my favorite games, The Legend of Zelda: Majora's Mask, which is a comparison I made after completing the game:
You wander around a world (Termina) divided up into regions (north/south/east/west) with a central town type hub (Clown Town) in the middle. There's a looming apocalyptic threat (the moon). You're going around talking to NPC's and helping them with problems (Bombers Notebook), which usually results in a dungeon-type level with puzzles and sometimes a boss battle, and doing so you collect a card (mask..?) and dust, both resources you need to then go back to the central hub and deposit (rupees in the bank) before you begin each new "cycle" (there's no days in Anodyne 2 like in Majora's Mask, but you need to deposit the dust or else you cap off at a certain amount and won't get any new dust until it's deposited). Both feel light-hearted and whimsical at times but have those oppressive and sad moments... their worlds are connected, but disconnected by a threat of darkness. If I really wanted to I could probably make some more far-reaching connections but I'll leave it at that. Both are still very different games but when I suddenly made those comparions, I felt like I could see why this game clicked with me so much. On top of it just being a fantastic indie title.
Analgesic should be on so many peoples radars, I really really adore their work and I find them very influential as someone who writes fiction and would love to take a stab writing a video game some day.
There's so much here to love for the nostalgic gamer from another era, with the hazy 3D adventure platformer exploration along with 2D top down dungeon-style levels with puzzles and enemies. The liminal psychedelic world that feels like you dreamed up a video game you never played from the 90's is a sad, lonely landscape, eerie-ly deserted and devoid of most life, except for the odd bizarre being you'll come across. Most of the areas feel unique and distinguishable as you navigate the various sections, with certain landmarks keeping you aware of where you are.
Just wandering/driving around these areas gives you that strange feeling that has become so well known online nowadays - social media is full of videos and posts of liminal spaces; empty malls, toy stores, nighttime parking lots, closed businesses, places from our childhood that are warm and fuzzy in our brains, but feel cold and alien now. Warbly fuzzy synth music is playing over the videos, almost like it's playing from a distant speaker. It's a feeling we all have thinking of our childhoods, but these videos have that huge whiff of "weaponized nostalgia"; oh look how perfect life used to be as a kid. Don't you hate having bills to pay and adult responsibilities? Don't you wish you could still go to Blockbuster and rent PS1 games and have a sleepover and get Pizza Hut?
What Analgesic Productions do with their games that feels like an anomaly in these times is somehow give you that same feeling with their worlds. Yeah sure, they use graphics and art direction and music that resembles that foregone time. But they create their own original worlds with it all, while also making subtle references to the real world and emotions and struggles. Anxiety, self-worth, isolation, it's all here in spades. There's a moment here in Anodyne 2 with a specific character interaction that takes the game and places you into a completely different place that had me completely turned around - I had no idea what was happening and I did not expect it. As the sequence went on and it began exploring real world emotions and feelings, it got... strange. Things felt.. not right. And then it went to a dark and scary place that I was quickly adamant to get through so I could (hopefully) return to the other world I got to know. Even if that world didn't even feel like where I belonged.
I have said this about every Analgesic game I've reviewed so far but the music in their games is always just amazing. Melos Han-Tani knocks it out of the park with memorable song after memorable song, each one distinct enough and perfectly encapsulating the area that its featured in, music that you welcome every time you return to the region. It pulls you into the world like a warm ghostly embrace; it's a soundtrack to fall asleep to, wake up to, feel comforted by and yet also feel tense and uncertain. There's also just some great bops... the guy can write a good bop!
The writing in their games (usually primarily) by Marina Kittaka is a lot... there is a ton of dialogue in their titles, but I'm constantly impressed and taken aback by the sincerity, the train-of-thought observations (and often sometimes real thoughts or opinions a lot of us have had before that feel too personal or weird to share) that they can give to a weird ass looking creature person thing that slightly resembles what a child may endearingly design in a 3D animation program, and who just stands in one spot of the world chilling. Especially with how this game handles its main story/objective; doing an Inception-style dive into these characters' inner self and exploring the little world inside, to rid them of Dust, which is what is infecting the denizens of this world. There is a lot to read in their games (they don't feature voice acting, which is totally fine), and I'm constantly surprised by the writing style and how much thought and care was put into it. Some passages really got to me.
If you're still reading (hi!) and haven't played this and are wondering if it's for you, I want to compare this to one of my favorite games, The Legend of Zelda: Majora's Mask, which is a comparison I made after completing the game:
You wander around a world (Termina) divided up into regions (north/south/east/west) with a central town type hub (Clown Town) in the middle. There's a looming apocalyptic threat (the moon). You're going around talking to NPC's and helping them with problems (Bombers Notebook), which usually results in a dungeon-type level with puzzles and sometimes a boss battle, and doing so you collect a card (mask..?) and dust, both resources you need to then go back to the central hub and deposit (rupees in the bank) before you begin each new "cycle" (there's no days in Anodyne 2 like in Majora's Mask, but you need to deposit the dust or else you cap off at a certain amount and won't get any new dust until it's deposited). Both feel light-hearted and whimsical at times but have those oppressive and sad moments... their worlds are connected, but disconnected by a threat of darkness. If I really wanted to I could probably make some more far-reaching connections but I'll leave it at that. Both are still very different games but when I suddenly made those comparions, I felt like I could see why this game clicked with me so much. On top of it just being a fantastic indie title.
Analgesic should be on so many peoples radars, I really really adore their work and I find them very influential as someone who writes fiction and would love to take a stab writing a video game some day.
Peak fiction right here. Anodyne 2 feels like the natural next step in indie, story based role playing games that came from the era of RPGMaker games in the early 2000s.
The story is beautiful and one of the few games that has ever made me cry. Playing this game felt the same as reading a beautiful piece of abstract fiction with a hint of religious influence in it.
If you have an afternoon and like 15 bucks, please play it.
The story is beautiful and one of the few games that has ever made me cry. Playing this game felt the same as reading a beautiful piece of abstract fiction with a hint of religious influence in it.
If you have an afternoon and like 15 bucks, please play it.
Brilliant conceptually, but unfortunately it falls a little short gameplay wise. It's absolutely genius to have an open-ended 3D hub world for linear 2D levels, but these 3D areas end up feeling pretty boring due to how non-interactive they are- it'd go a long way if the spark ability had any uses outside of just entering levels. The 2D levels aren't perfect either. They start off really strong with some great, textbook examples of introducing and expanding on new mechanics in a short timespan, but they quickly start over-relying on Very Special sections that completely veer off from the established gameplay. Of course, it's a comedy game, so sections like these are expected, even welcome, but frankly there's not enough of the "normal" game to justify how many "weird" sections there are. Non-sequiturs that deviate harshly from the norm are only meaningful when it doesn't feel like most of the game is non-sequiturs- I think I played two levels in a row where all I had to do to win was talk to several NPCs.
It's a game that has a lot to say story wise, and the story is generally well integrated with the gameplay, aside from when it matters the most. There's one sequence about halfway through that sticks out in this regard- it's a crucial and genuinely pretty powerful story beat that gets told almost entirely through a really length sequence of text boxes. In this way the story's pretty representative of the game as a whole: a fantastic vision that wasn't able to end up becoming a fantastic final product.
It's a game that has a lot to say story wise, and the story is generally well integrated with the gameplay, aside from when it matters the most. There's one sequence about halfway through that sticks out in this regard- it's a crucial and genuinely pretty powerful story beat that gets told almost entirely through a really length sequence of text boxes. In this way the story's pretty representative of the game as a whole: a fantastic vision that wasn't able to end up becoming a fantastic final product.
The best out of all the Analgesic games. The 2D visuals retain the 16-bit quirkiness of the first Anodyne, and the 3D environments bring a nice PS1 feeling of loneliness and simplicity.
The story is a bit predictable, but the character interactions are what make it. The second half of the game is really strong, with the secret ending tying things up nicely and leaving you wanting for more.
My only critique is that, like the PS1 games it was inspired by, some of the environments feel kinda barren. This is somewhat fixed by metacoins on the second half (they even show up out of bounds!) but it's still not enough of an incentive in my opinion. Some spots just scream secret collectible, makes you wonder if something was cut out late in development.
I didn't really care for the Anodyne 1 references in the post game, but that's probably because I don't like the first Anodyne all that much to begin with. Maybe someone who enjoyed it more than me will find them at least neat.
The story is a bit predictable, but the character interactions are what make it. The second half of the game is really strong, with the secret ending tying things up nicely and leaving you wanting for more.
My only critique is that, like the PS1 games it was inspired by, some of the environments feel kinda barren. This is somewhat fixed by metacoins on the second half (they even show up out of bounds!) but it's still not enough of an incentive in my opinion. Some spots just scream secret collectible, makes you wonder if something was cut out late in development.
I didn't really care for the Anodyne 1 references in the post game, but that's probably because I don't like the first Anodyne all that much to begin with. Maybe someone who enjoyed it more than me will find them at least neat.
This review contains spoilers
Anodyne 2 combines true escapism with themes grounded in our own world. Its use of nostalgic mechanics, art and music are hard to ignore. I found myself recognizing concepts everywhere, though I'd never played the game before.
During my experience, I constantly found myself surprised. These surprises were always pleasant, never the kind of easy story-changing twist that can lessen everything else.
I would recommend this game to anyone who played and loved Playstation or PS2-era games, or those who want to play something totally non-modern.
During my experience, I constantly found myself surprised. These surprises were always pleasant, never the kind of easy story-changing twist that can lessen everything else.
I would recommend this game to anyone who played and loved Playstation or PS2-era games, or those who want to play something totally non-modern.
You know that feeling you get in a game when you're not sure if you're going the right way? Like when you've managed to climb up some cliff and you're not quite out of bounds but you suspect this wasn't the intended path? That slight unease and mundane mystery is most of what I felt while playing this.
It's a unique experience, mashing together memories of early 3D collectathons with the intentionally vague, sometimes off-putting aesthetics of arthouse media. It's not an exciting game, but if you've got a bit of patience, it'll tickle your brain and stir some feelings.
It's a unique experience, mashing together memories of early 3D collectathons with the intentionally vague, sometimes off-putting aesthetics of arthouse media. It's not an exciting game, but if you've got a bit of patience, it'll tickle your brain and stir some feelings.
"And now, isn't it time to form yourself once again? Isn't it time to take that power of adaptation, and redirect it towards what you truly believe? [...] You can always become something new."
maybe you can resist the temptation of being free, but maybe you will end up in a loop of self-hatred, with the sparkle of questioning in your head, never, fully, becoming its own light. pretty ironic how nova really has to become unidimensional in order to see the full picture. it's all about navigating in your most, pure, intimate self and concluding that you shall fight the "destiny" put upon you, because the only one that know your real purpose is yourself.
maybe you can resist the temptation of being free, but maybe you will end up in a loop of self-hatred, with the sparkle of questioning in your head, never, fully, becoming its own light. pretty ironic how nova really has to become unidimensional in order to see the full picture. it's all about navigating in your most, pure, intimate self and concluding that you shall fight the "destiny" put upon you, because the only one that know your real purpose is yourself.
It’s not like the ideas Anodyne 2 lives off are totally unique, but the way they are built so wholeheartedly, so creatively will make the entire time you play this game a pure joy. It doesn’t matter if it’s PS1 aesthetics open world or the 16 bit top-down snes era vibes, exploring the world is simple but addicting. It’s such a welcome change to play something so cozy and wholesome, listening to a wonderful soundtrack. I can’t recommend the game enough, If a weird little rather experimental indie sounds like it’s something for you.
It was very tempting to make this a spoilered review, to provide examples, to talk about specifics.
In the end I decided it wasn't worth it. Suffice it to say that Anodyne 2 is a rare beast: a game made by people who know how to make a game and choose not to. It is cavalier in its disregard, but not in the slapdash, unbound way that amateur and outsider attempts often are. It is smartly constructed, satirical without being too on the nose, quietly amusing, bitter, incisive. The game itself is one of discovery, both in play and theme. To talk about the specific ways is to rob someone else of the chance to find out how, and why.
In the end I decided it wasn't worth it. Suffice it to say that Anodyne 2 is a rare beast: a game made by people who know how to make a game and choose not to. It is cavalier in its disregard, but not in the slapdash, unbound way that amateur and outsider attempts often are. It is smartly constructed, satirical without being too on the nose, quietly amusing, bitter, incisive. The game itself is one of discovery, both in play and theme. To talk about the specific ways is to rob someone else of the chance to find out how, and why.
the way people talk about BOTW/TOTK in terms of the sense of adventure is how i felt about this game.
a massive improvement over the first go, possibly among the biggest jumps in quality from one entry to the next in gaming at large for me?
puts its own spin on the already great presentation from the first game (aesthetics, music, the full package) while offering less frustrating gameplay whether it was the movement or combat.
some of the best world design that i can think of from the past decade or so. characters, locations, or otherwise. it was all so wonderful.
a massive improvement over the first go, possibly among the biggest jumps in quality from one entry to the next in gaming at large for me?
puts its own spin on the already great presentation from the first game (aesthetics, music, the full package) while offering less frustrating gameplay whether it was the movement or combat.
some of the best world design that i can think of from the past decade or so. characters, locations, or otherwise. it was all so wonderful.
A runny yolk becomes inseparable from the egg. Your mother wishes you'd answer her texts.
We can be more than we are made to be.
A strong contender for why r/traaa girls should not write games. Also, Xenoblade 3 for adoption.
(Outdated review, will make a new one eventually)
I have played many games, and as such, it took me a while to find a game that I could say was truly my favorite of all time. However, after deciding to give the sequel of Anodyne (a game I was lukewarm on due to some underdeveloped gameplay despite having incredible audio and atmosphere) a chance, I found it.
Anodyne 2: Return to Dust is a culmination of everything Analgesic Productions learned in the years after making Anodyne, and it shows. This is a game that draws you in from the title screen alone, and keeps surprising you until the very end. The crux of the game is, of course, the gameplay, and it's outstanding for the most part. There is much more going on than Anodyne 1, yet it still feels simple at its core in terms of controls. You play as a Nanocleaner, who shrinks inside people to remove toxic dust from them. The gameplay is split into two sections: The overworld, which is adventure-oriented with PS1 styled graphics, which you use to find people who need to a Nanocleaning. The Nanocleaning is done in a top-down Zelda style with 16-bit visuals. The dust removed is used to open up new areas along with cards collected from various sources (As a side note, I love how when you shrink, the resolution of the game shrinks from 32-bit to 16-bit styles). The overworld is pretty fun to explore. There's no battles, and you'll mostly just be looking for collectibles. It does have a problem which I'll get to, but the Nano sections really shine. Each level introduces new mechanics that are excessively creative, and many levels do things you would never expect. I don't want to spoil any of it, but it will make you rethink how you play games. I haven't played a game with such a variation of levels that are both interesting and well designed.
There's also the story, which is pretty good, but is elevated by the atmosphere and some subversions. You work for a deity called 'The Center', which supposedly created all life, and the dust you clean sullies the sanctity of life, but this sanctity is seemingly extremely strict. The story is essentially about meaning in life and nihilism, and does some interesting things with your preconcieved notions of videogame stories (Although not on the level of Undertale or the like). As I said, the atmosphere and direction really elevate this aspect, and there was a particularly disturbing moment halfway through. There's also the contained stories of all the people you jump inside to nanoclean. Some are basic, but some are very interesting and are reflected in the levels themselves. The game also has a very meta sense of humor, and can be pretty funny. Another interesting aspect of this game is that it has lore. While you can play this without having played the first, there is a post-game section tied to the first game, and it hints to a possible origin of the world the second game takes place in, New Theland. The next paragraph will be a spoiler, because there's some interesting things I want to talk about.
As I said, the story is about finding meaning and freedom in the world, but halfway through the game, something very interesting happens. You meet a seemingly glitched character named Desert-NPC, and when you try to dive into him, you're sucked in. You then go to this more realistic-looking world where you play as Nora, a normal person working a 9-5 job who is tired of the monotony. It's suggested Anodyne 2 may be a game Nora is playing. Eventually, she is chased by a giant Griffon creature, and the only way to get away is to start playing Anodyne 2 again. Some may see this as nonsense, but I think it's a hyperbolic symbol of escapism, as if to say Nora is avoiding her problems by playing games, and she is rejecting nihilism by thinking that she has purpose in this game world. That's an element of videogames that isn't touched on a lot, so I thought it was a great extra message.
Of course, any great game needs to give reason to keep playing and replaying, and Anodyne 2 has an extensive and interesting post-game, although it may be the one aspect the first Anodyne trumps it in. You have to collect meta coins that are hidden in the overworld, and here's the kicker: Many of the (seemingly) 585 are hidden out of bounds and in level geometry. It's a very cool side quest, and the rewards are great, but it has one big problem: Did you notice that "seemingly"? Well, I actually don't know how many there are in the game. There's an NPC that says I have ALMOST every metacoin, so I guess I'm missing some. There's a metacoin tracker, but it doesn't work in the nanolevels, and there are a select few hidden in some nanolevels. If they would patch the metacoin tracker working in nanolevels, that would be great, because this is the biggest problem with the game. However, there is seemingly no award for collecting them all, and the developers are known to troll, so it's possible I do have them all, especially since I can't find anyone online with more than 585.
The audio and visuals are pretty great too. I already mentioned the meaning behind the visual changes when shrinking, but both styles can be beautiful in their own right. The Pastel Horizon and Outer Sands East stick out especially, and I like how the overworld integrated modern lighting into its retro style. The audio contributes a lot to that atmosphere, and most of the tracks are ambient ones, but there's still a decent amount of variety here.
Overall, Anodyne 2: Return to Dust is a game that hits pretty much every mark. It's a once in a lifetime experience that you need to play, and my favorite game of all time.
I have played many games, and as such, it took me a while to find a game that I could say was truly my favorite of all time. However, after deciding to give the sequel of Anodyne (a game I was lukewarm on due to some underdeveloped gameplay despite having incredible audio and atmosphere) a chance, I found it.
Anodyne 2: Return to Dust is a culmination of everything Analgesic Productions learned in the years after making Anodyne, and it shows. This is a game that draws you in from the title screen alone, and keeps surprising you until the very end. The crux of the game is, of course, the gameplay, and it's outstanding for the most part. There is much more going on than Anodyne 1, yet it still feels simple at its core in terms of controls. You play as a Nanocleaner, who shrinks inside people to remove toxic dust from them. The gameplay is split into two sections: The overworld, which is adventure-oriented with PS1 styled graphics, which you use to find people who need to a Nanocleaning. The Nanocleaning is done in a top-down Zelda style with 16-bit visuals. The dust removed is used to open up new areas along with cards collected from various sources (As a side note, I love how when you shrink, the resolution of the game shrinks from 32-bit to 16-bit styles). The overworld is pretty fun to explore. There's no battles, and you'll mostly just be looking for collectibles. It does have a problem which I'll get to, but the Nano sections really shine. Each level introduces new mechanics that are excessively creative, and many levels do things you would never expect. I don't want to spoil any of it, but it will make you rethink how you play games. I haven't played a game with such a variation of levels that are both interesting and well designed.
There's also the story, which is pretty good, but is elevated by the atmosphere and some subversions. You work for a deity called 'The Center', which supposedly created all life, and the dust you clean sullies the sanctity of life, but this sanctity is seemingly extremely strict. The story is essentially about meaning in life and nihilism, and does some interesting things with your preconcieved notions of videogame stories (Although not on the level of Undertale or the like). As I said, the atmosphere and direction really elevate this aspect, and there was a particularly disturbing moment halfway through. There's also the contained stories of all the people you jump inside to nanoclean. Some are basic, but some are very interesting and are reflected in the levels themselves. The game also has a very meta sense of humor, and can be pretty funny. Another interesting aspect of this game is that it has lore. While you can play this without having played the first, there is a post-game section tied to the first game, and it hints to a possible origin of the world the second game takes place in, New Theland. The next paragraph will be a spoiler, because there's some interesting things I want to talk about.
As I said, the story is about finding meaning and freedom in the world, but halfway through the game, something very interesting happens. You meet a seemingly glitched character named Desert-NPC, and when you try to dive into him, you're sucked in. You then go to this more realistic-looking world where you play as Nora, a normal person working a 9-5 job who is tired of the monotony. It's suggested Anodyne 2 may be a game Nora is playing. Eventually, she is chased by a giant Griffon creature, and the only way to get away is to start playing Anodyne 2 again. Some may see this as nonsense, but I think it's a hyperbolic symbol of escapism, as if to say Nora is avoiding her problems by playing games, and she is rejecting nihilism by thinking that she has purpose in this game world. That's an element of videogames that isn't touched on a lot, so I thought it was a great extra message.
Of course, any great game needs to give reason to keep playing and replaying, and Anodyne 2 has an extensive and interesting post-game, although it may be the one aspect the first Anodyne trumps it in. You have to collect meta coins that are hidden in the overworld, and here's the kicker: Many of the (seemingly) 585 are hidden out of bounds and in level geometry. It's a very cool side quest, and the rewards are great, but it has one big problem: Did you notice that "seemingly"? Well, I actually don't know how many there are in the game. There's an NPC that says I have ALMOST every metacoin, so I guess I'm missing some. There's a metacoin tracker, but it doesn't work in the nanolevels, and there are a select few hidden in some nanolevels. If they would patch the metacoin tracker working in nanolevels, that would be great, because this is the biggest problem with the game. However, there is seemingly no award for collecting them all, and the developers are known to troll, so it's possible I do have them all, especially since I can't find anyone online with more than 585.
The audio and visuals are pretty great too. I already mentioned the meaning behind the visual changes when shrinking, but both styles can be beautiful in their own right. The Pastel Horizon and Outer Sands East stick out especially, and I like how the overworld integrated modern lighting into its retro style. The audio contributes a lot to that atmosphere, and most of the tracks are ambient ones, but there's still a decent amount of variety here.
Overall, Anodyne 2: Return to Dust is a game that hits pretty much every mark. It's a once in a lifetime experience that you need to play, and my favorite game of all time.
I got the lesbian ending!
Me and my Existential Dread got nice and cozy together playing this. This is one of the most profound, personal and philsophical games I have ever played. The writing is fantastic, intimate and riddled with incredible words. Shed tears at a few points. Shocked by how little recognition this gets. Gameplay isn't perfect, but for the story folk, STRONG recommend.
it's not as good on a replay as it was the first time through... there are a lot of choices that feel interesting on a first play (the size of the 3d overworlds, the sorta-rhythm-game segments, the obvious lampshaded padding in the second half, the metacommentary) but wear off later on.
BUT! this is probably the most gamey analgesic game (at least until angeline era gets released) and i think it benefits from that. by gamey i mean that it feels super in love with and engaged with the nonsense language of video games; where even the ocean and sephonie really stretch for real world thematic resonance, and the original anodyne is sort of unformed and messy, this one feels like it has a complete and coherent point of view within itself, because of the way its different gameplay styles and aesthetics are stitched together. and that lets it access all kinds of emotional complexities and weird little grace notes. (desertnpc/no such scene is the obvious one, but i was struck this time by a missable npc in pastel horizon who you basically steal life force from. and the overall warmth and sweetness of the new theeland area.)
it's a super imperfect game. but those imperfections also give it a very human quality, and i don't think i would change anything about it.
BUT! this is probably the most gamey analgesic game (at least until angeline era gets released) and i think it benefits from that. by gamey i mean that it feels super in love with and engaged with the nonsense language of video games; where even the ocean and sephonie really stretch for real world thematic resonance, and the original anodyne is sort of unformed and messy, this one feels like it has a complete and coherent point of view within itself, because of the way its different gameplay styles and aesthetics are stitched together. and that lets it access all kinds of emotional complexities and weird little grace notes. (desertnpc/no such scene is the obvious one, but i was struck this time by a missable npc in pastel horizon who you basically steal life force from. and the overall warmth and sweetness of the new theeland area.)
it's a super imperfect game. but those imperfections also give it a very human quality, and i don't think i would change anything about it.
so hey! i left even the ocean very positive but wondering if analgesic were leaving behind their strengths in personal writing to wrangle with writing about Systems that i was a little cooler on but! they just synthesised them and it's fantastic
making the freaky little Worlds of anodyne into islands in a bigger 3D world is such a great choice, and lets the team tell an enchanting story about personhood, power and community. i love this game!
making the freaky little Worlds of anodyne into islands in a bigger 3D world is such a great choice, and lets the team tell an enchanting story about personhood, power and community. i love this game!
A gift. Like a Dreamcast game from a time that doesn't exist. Bold and warm and earnest.
I definitely need more time to fully gather my thoughts on this but this will probably end up being one of my favorite games ever.
It’s an overwhelmingly personal and inspiring experience from front to back, and it makes me happy to be alive and in a world where art like this can be made.
It’s an overwhelmingly personal and inspiring experience from front to back, and it makes me happy to be alive and in a world where art like this can be made.
This game is going to be remembered as an underrated classic in 10 years and there's going to be 100 video essays about it (looking forward to it)