Eu realmente queria ter gostado do jogo, pois o visual é fantástico e comprei logo no lançamento há muito tempo. No entanto, após tentar jogá-lo pela quinta vez hoje, decidi desistir definitivamente.
Os controles são estranhos, a câmera é confusa, o lock nos inimigos é péssimo e muda automaticamente. A interface do usuário não é intuitiva; não consigo encontrar um local que mostre os status de forma decente. O mapa é extremamente confuso, morri várias vezes ao ir para lugares errados, algo completamente injusto. Nem consegui finalizar a primeira área.
Mas o pior de tudo é como o combate é lento e não parece recompensador. Não há parry, apenas a solidificação, e ela não traz nenhuma sensação de recompensa. A stamina é ridiculamente pequena. Os inimigos são lentos, mas conseguem te cercar facilmente, e parece que não há nada que você possa fazer. Não há nenhuma identidade no combate, e às vezes não faz diferença se você ataca rápido ou pesado, pois você acaba sendo apunhalado pelas costas enquanto enfrenta outros cinco inimigos na sua frente.
Os controles são estranhos, a câmera é confusa, o lock nos inimigos é péssimo e muda automaticamente. A interface do usuário não é intuitiva; não consigo encontrar um local que mostre os status de forma decente. O mapa é extremamente confuso, morri várias vezes ao ir para lugares errados, algo completamente injusto. Nem consegui finalizar a primeira área.
Mas o pior de tudo é como o combate é lento e não parece recompensador. Não há parry, apenas a solidificação, e ela não traz nenhuma sensação de recompensa. A stamina é ridiculamente pequena. Os inimigos são lentos, mas conseguem te cercar facilmente, e parece que não há nada que você possa fazer. Não há nenhuma identidade no combate, e às vezes não faz diferença se você ataca rápido ou pesado, pois você acaba sendo apunhalado pelas costas enquanto enfrenta outros cinco inimigos na sua frente.
Getting pretty tired of these indie souls games that have no identity outside of being a really bad dark souls with no bells or whistles attached except arbitrarily changing one mechanic to make it even worse. This game might feel worse than Lords of the Fallen, which really just means it's one of the worst feeling games I've ever played. Also in all the time I played the game I never once heard an actual song play and I know this game has music I see that soundtrack but until further notice I don't think it's real actually. Basically we should outlaw indie developers that want to make souls games I refuse to believe any of these are good
This isn't even a souls-like, this is a Code Vein-like
I’m not sure what stage of Soulslike influence the current design sphere is in right now, what with Elden Ring’s entirely saturating the market with basically everything the genre’s playebase could want, be that the combat, storytelling, world design, player expressibility, or some combination therein. It’s possible that with FromSoft’s most recent outing that Soulslikes will go the way of Doom Clones and take what iteration the last decade of the type has gone through over the last decade and completely turn it on its head - what would the Deus Ex or Portal of Dark Souls even look like? However, that’s 2023; for a while, it seemed like the goal was less for games to take initial inspiration from FromSoft’s soft series and more to produce facsimiles of that style of game as quickly as possible with the serial numbers filed off. The obvious examples are the fast follows, Lords of the Fallen or The Surge, Nioh perhaps as a more successful variation or Salt and Sanctuary as one of the first “Darks but ____” games , but there were small enough changes made to many of this type that, while necessary to qualify their status as ‘clones’, they were worth relating back to Soulsborne games as something which was in a mutual conversation with Miyazaki’s ethos and not merely mimicking its expression.
Mortal Shell is certainly one of those games, and also certainly for the worse. It breaks off from the Souls conventions in many ways, but those ways are almost exclusively to the detriment of its systemic interactions and balance, leaving a mishmash of things which have the silhouette of Dark Souls (or really, more Demon’s Souls) without any of the refined features. If anything is unique in this game, it is a uniquity of extremity made from a childish lack of acknowledgment concerning blossomed restraint, utterly convinced that things are mature when they are simply more than they had been: Dark Souls was opaque, Mortal Shell is without form; Dark Souls was slow and methodical, Mortal Shell is leaden and finicky; Dark Souls was fantastical, Mortal Shell is maniacal. It is devoid of not simply new ideas, but of ideas at all, creating a mess of a game which promotes no excitement at progressing through any of its design axes - where Dark Souls had eureka moments of combat, building, exploration, storytelling, Mortal Shell is pages on pages of deluded beats admiring themselves for the semantic freedom, refusing to acknowledge that a sign which can mean anything means nothing, and if it is surrounded by shit, it is crowned the signatory of waste.
I realise that I was overly general in my summation, so here are just a few concrete examples of things which nip a player’s heels to bone over the course of a playthrough:
- Enemy attacks proc in regard to player proximity alone and calculate hits from that proximity, which I imagine was designed to increase use case for the hardening so that players might ostensibly have a longer period of reaction, but this proc does not consider terrain. What this means is if there is a slope between an enemy and the player, the enemy will begin an animation at the top of a slope, have the distant foreshortened because the decreased exponential distance between enemy and player, and warp to the player to compensate what the game thinks is the animation completing sooner due to proximity. Nearly every big enemy in the game has this behaviour. In every area, I would be about a 5 second run from a big bad type enemy who has begun an attack only to have them begin a sword swing that started at the maximal difference and ended .3 seconds later through my torso.
- The area design across every portion of the game world is 1) entirely a single primary colour with a minor highlight (and highlight here is roughly analogous to the way moles highlight skin), so differentiation and personality drawn from the disparate areas is nil, and 2) the architecture, both in terms of the plausibility of intelligent habitation in the world design and the traversable space afforded to the player in the level design, is laughable, literally worst in class, something that would be weakly made in Halo’s Forge mode. The game is without a map (because Dark Souls didn’t have a map, duh), and I cannot stress enough how frustrating navigating the game is when compared to, as it so desperately wants to be, Dark Souls’ masterclass in influencing navigation. The majority of the game will, even if you look at fan made maps, be spent running around in circles in a monotonously green forest fighting idiotically arranged enemy encampments, because bad level design begets bad encounter design, and the game will not reward that investment with either a systemic mastery of space nor a narrative understanding of the space’s purpose.
- Narratively speaking, of course, the game has mostly gaps which are meant to be filled; Souls never tells the story straight, so why would its imitators. The number I’ve seen thrown around for how much of the narrative is explicitly within the text of the Souls series, which here specifically does not include Bloodborne or Sekiro, is about 70%. That means that while the game can progress mostly with a majority understanding of the events imparted, major inferences must be made to complete the cycle in a player’s appraisal. Mortal Shell can’t really be described as 70% or 40% or any percent because the narrative is less a cohesive progression of events or thematic happenings and instead a boss rush with dialogue. The goals are insipid, the mummery of the PC is pointless when compared to Mortal Shell’s influences, and the flavour of the cast is unsalted and boiled. It promotes no discourse on the value of such a world with such inhabitants, and the goal of the game, when accomplished, has less textual or emotional bearing that “you played a great game”.
Mortal Shell is certainly one of those games, and also certainly for the worse. It breaks off from the Souls conventions in many ways, but those ways are almost exclusively to the detriment of its systemic interactions and balance, leaving a mishmash of things which have the silhouette of Dark Souls (or really, more Demon’s Souls) without any of the refined features. If anything is unique in this game, it is a uniquity of extremity made from a childish lack of acknowledgment concerning blossomed restraint, utterly convinced that things are mature when they are simply more than they had been: Dark Souls was opaque, Mortal Shell is without form; Dark Souls was slow and methodical, Mortal Shell is leaden and finicky; Dark Souls was fantastical, Mortal Shell is maniacal. It is devoid of not simply new ideas, but of ideas at all, creating a mess of a game which promotes no excitement at progressing through any of its design axes - where Dark Souls had eureka moments of combat, building, exploration, storytelling, Mortal Shell is pages on pages of deluded beats admiring themselves for the semantic freedom, refusing to acknowledge that a sign which can mean anything means nothing, and if it is surrounded by shit, it is crowned the signatory of waste.
I realise that I was overly general in my summation, so here are just a few concrete examples of things which nip a player’s heels to bone over the course of a playthrough:
- Enemy attacks proc in regard to player proximity alone and calculate hits from that proximity, which I imagine was designed to increase use case for the hardening so that players might ostensibly have a longer period of reaction, but this proc does not consider terrain. What this means is if there is a slope between an enemy and the player, the enemy will begin an animation at the top of a slope, have the distant foreshortened because the decreased exponential distance between enemy and player, and warp to the player to compensate what the game thinks is the animation completing sooner due to proximity. Nearly every big enemy in the game has this behaviour. In every area, I would be about a 5 second run from a big bad type enemy who has begun an attack only to have them begin a sword swing that started at the maximal difference and ended .3 seconds later through my torso.
- The area design across every portion of the game world is 1) entirely a single primary colour with a minor highlight (and highlight here is roughly analogous to the way moles highlight skin), so differentiation and personality drawn from the disparate areas is nil, and 2) the architecture, both in terms of the plausibility of intelligent habitation in the world design and the traversable space afforded to the player in the level design, is laughable, literally worst in class, something that would be weakly made in Halo’s Forge mode. The game is without a map (because Dark Souls didn’t have a map, duh), and I cannot stress enough how frustrating navigating the game is when compared to, as it so desperately wants to be, Dark Souls’ masterclass in influencing navigation. The majority of the game will, even if you look at fan made maps, be spent running around in circles in a monotonously green forest fighting idiotically arranged enemy encampments, because bad level design begets bad encounter design, and the game will not reward that investment with either a systemic mastery of space nor a narrative understanding of the space’s purpose.
- Narratively speaking, of course, the game has mostly gaps which are meant to be filled; Souls never tells the story straight, so why would its imitators. The number I’ve seen thrown around for how much of the narrative is explicitly within the text of the Souls series, which here specifically does not include Bloodborne or Sekiro, is about 70%. That means that while the game can progress mostly with a majority understanding of the events imparted, major inferences must be made to complete the cycle in a player’s appraisal. Mortal Shell can’t really be described as 70% or 40% or any percent because the narrative is less a cohesive progression of events or thematic happenings and instead a boss rush with dialogue. The goals are insipid, the mummery of the PC is pointless when compared to Mortal Shell’s influences, and the flavour of the cast is unsalted and boiled. It promotes no discourse on the value of such a world with such inhabitants, and the goal of the game, when accomplished, has less textual or emotional bearing that “you played a great game”.
Mortal Shell has immense potential, it just isn't fully realized here. Its ideas in world design, build diversity and combat are fascinating - sadly they suffer in many small ways, often through their unpolished state: this game feels very clunky. I do quite like the weapons, how using special abilities and parrying works though; at its best it can be really fun!
Level design and bosses are...not very good. There is a boss that stands out, visually it's all great and the optional metal soundtrack for bosses elevates the fights, overall however it's just lacking. The lore and story try to be like Dark Souls, to be very vague yet very deep - ultimately it just comes off as if everyone is just mumbling gibberish.
It all comes down to this: amazing ideas, middling execution! I hope it gets a sequel that irons these issues out; it could become a fantastic game.
Level design and bosses are...not very good. There is a boss that stands out, visually it's all great and the optional metal soundtrack for bosses elevates the fights, overall however it's just lacking. The lore and story try to be like Dark Souls, to be very vague yet very deep - ultimately it just comes off as if everyone is just mumbling gibberish.
It all comes down to this: amazing ideas, middling execution! I hope it gets a sequel that irons these issues out; it could become a fantastic game.
If you explained dark souls to an alien species with no idea how humans think or feel about anything this is what they'd make
A quantidade de notas baixas e reviews negativas que esse jogo recebe me surpreende, de verdade. Mortal Shell não é um jogo perfeito e também não trás nada de inovador, mas está longe de ser considerado ruim; ele não perde tempo com invenções e parte logo para a boa e velha fórmula de sucesso: um soulslike sólido, simples e bem feito.
Levando em conta que a equipe responsável pelo desenvolvimento do jogo foi composta por apenas 15 pessoas, o resultado foi bem positivo. Achei o jogo bastante balanceado, com uma boa variedade de itens e várias opções de builds pra você montar, dependendo da arma/shell que você escolher. O sistema de endurecimento, que serve como um escudo, também funciona muito bem. O jogo possui até mesmo um sistema próprio de parry, através do tarnished seal; que apesar de ser um pouco chatinho de se dominar em questão de timing, quando você acerta, fica bem mais prático e eficiente. Suas boss fights são bem feitas e conseguem te proporcionar um certo grau de desafio.
Apesar de eu o considerar um bom jogo, Mortal Shell não é imune à falhas; e o mesmo faz questão de deixá-las bem expostas. A começar pelo seu level design, que de início, pode ser bem tedioso e frustrante de se aventurar. Em vários momentos, tive a sensação de não fazer a mínima ideia de onde eu estava e para onde eu estava indo, sempre pensando que estava deixando alguma coisa para trás. Outro problema constante foi a queda brusca de FPS que ocorria na névoa, que é liberada toda vez que você derrota um boss principal no jogo. Parecia que eu estava jogando o jogo a 15 FPS toda vez que tinha que ativar a névoa para pegar algum baú ou fazer alguma coisa que só era liberada no mapa sob aquela condição.
Levando tudo em consideração, saí extremamente satisfeito com a experiência que tive com Mortal Shell. O jogo promete e te entrega um soulslike, que consegue ser desafiador e te entreter na mesma proporção, da sua própria maneira.
Levando em conta que a equipe responsável pelo desenvolvimento do jogo foi composta por apenas 15 pessoas, o resultado foi bem positivo. Achei o jogo bastante balanceado, com uma boa variedade de itens e várias opções de builds pra você montar, dependendo da arma/shell que você escolher. O sistema de endurecimento, que serve como um escudo, também funciona muito bem. O jogo possui até mesmo um sistema próprio de parry, através do tarnished seal; que apesar de ser um pouco chatinho de se dominar em questão de timing, quando você acerta, fica bem mais prático e eficiente. Suas boss fights são bem feitas e conseguem te proporcionar um certo grau de desafio.
Apesar de eu o considerar um bom jogo, Mortal Shell não é imune à falhas; e o mesmo faz questão de deixá-las bem expostas. A começar pelo seu level design, que de início, pode ser bem tedioso e frustrante de se aventurar. Em vários momentos, tive a sensação de não fazer a mínima ideia de onde eu estava e para onde eu estava indo, sempre pensando que estava deixando alguma coisa para trás. Outro problema constante foi a queda brusca de FPS que ocorria na névoa, que é liberada toda vez que você derrota um boss principal no jogo. Parecia que eu estava jogando o jogo a 15 FPS toda vez que tinha que ativar a névoa para pegar algum baú ou fazer alguma coisa que só era liberada no mapa sob aquela condição.
Levando tudo em consideração, saí extremamente satisfeito com a experiência que tive com Mortal Shell. O jogo promete e te entrega um soulslike, que consegue ser desafiador e te entreter na mesma proporção, da sua própria maneira.
What is a souls-like?
Slow methodical combat, stamina, build variety, dark fantasy setting, losing valuable resources upon defeat unless you reach the area you died before dying again, massive boss health bars, parrying, dodge-rolls, ambiguous lore, steep difficulty, etc. etc. etc.
Now why do I bring this up? Everyone and their goddamn grandma knows what a souls-like game is at this point and this genre certainly isn't going away anytime soon. Well, even though all the aforementioned concepts/mechanics are generally seen as staples of the genre, I've come to notice that even the most popular games that follow this genre outside of the official Souls titles don't borrow all of these concepts. Taking a look at one of the most popular titles under this category Hollow Knight shows that it largely earned this comparison for its difficulty and lore exclusively. So called souls-like staples like stamina bar, visible boss health bars, and dodge rolls (though this could be attributed to the shade cloak sharing the same function) were absent. Another souls-like title Code vein also went for a much faster-paced combat flow along with more straightforward storytelling and a larger focus on co-op, even when playing offline. Hell, even From Software's very attempt to reinvent their formula with Sekiro saw the removal of stamina and practically flipped the idea of combat on its head as a sort of rhythmic fight of deflecting attacks at the right time to break enemy posture. I could go on with examples but the main takeaway is that all of these games were confident with straying away from the established souls-like conventions to create experiences that feel like their own thing rather than just riding off everything that worked for souls titles.
I bring all of this up as I believe this is where my meh feelings towards Mortal Shell arise and largely all come back to. Mortal Shell practically rips every element of a souls-title to a tee and doesn't really use them in creative ways to set it apart from the source material in any meaningful way. I'll give them credit for toying with some interesting mechanics like the hardening and shell system, but these were never fleshed out to justify their inclusion in combat. Hardening has potential for interesting ways to clearly telegraph delayed attacks and mix up combos but only one enemy uses this and you are better off using this as an "oops, I fucked up, am out of stamina, and need i-frames" button when you get impatient waiting to find openings in enemy combos. Shells basically amount to different pre-selected builds but have their own perk system, though I can't say this is anywhere near the level of replayability as being able to allocate into any stat you want in the souls games.
I understand this is a very small team and it would be extremely difficult to replicate something in the caliber of Dark Souls and I 100% appreciate the efforts seen hear. But I find it a lot harder to justify going back to this when it does hardly anything to stand as its own game and just ends up feeling like a lesser imitator on all fronts. And there are surely things I liked and even loved about the game. The art direction is phenomenal with some really distinct and cool areas for as short as the game was. The locations did a great job really selling the atmosphere of this decaying world and the interesting theming of some areas even somewhat set it apart from the traditional dark medieval atmosphere that has become tired in this genre. And while I think the boss fights were unfortunately pretty lame for the most part, the battle with Tarsus honestly kicked ass and I wish other fights would be as creative with their movesets.
So to answer the bullshit hypothetical question above, I don't think it's necessary that a souls-like needs to have all the aforementioned mechanics, rather, I think it's more about how these ideas are used to build the foundation of an experience that isn't afraid to take liberties that work in its favor. At least, that's what I think when we get such widely beloved souls-likes like Hollow Knight and Sekiro. Mortal Shell is by-the-book a souls-like through and through, though I don't think that's to the game's benefit. It ends up feeling like a diet Dark Souls game at the end of the day and while there was stuff a certainly enjoyed about this title, I can't say it really hit the mark for me. With stuff like the Tarsus fight and the art direction I'm convinced this team could make something truly special, this just isn't the game to do it.
Slow methodical combat, stamina, build variety, dark fantasy setting, losing valuable resources upon defeat unless you reach the area you died before dying again, massive boss health bars, parrying, dodge-rolls, ambiguous lore, steep difficulty, etc. etc. etc.
Now why do I bring this up? Everyone and their goddamn grandma knows what a souls-like game is at this point and this genre certainly isn't going away anytime soon. Well, even though all the aforementioned concepts/mechanics are generally seen as staples of the genre, I've come to notice that even the most popular games that follow this genre outside of the official Souls titles don't borrow all of these concepts. Taking a look at one of the most popular titles under this category Hollow Knight shows that it largely earned this comparison for its difficulty and lore exclusively. So called souls-like staples like stamina bar, visible boss health bars, and dodge rolls (though this could be attributed to the shade cloak sharing the same function) were absent. Another souls-like title Code vein also went for a much faster-paced combat flow along with more straightforward storytelling and a larger focus on co-op, even when playing offline. Hell, even From Software's very attempt to reinvent their formula with Sekiro saw the removal of stamina and practically flipped the idea of combat on its head as a sort of rhythmic fight of deflecting attacks at the right time to break enemy posture. I could go on with examples but the main takeaway is that all of these games were confident with straying away from the established souls-like conventions to create experiences that feel like their own thing rather than just riding off everything that worked for souls titles.
I bring all of this up as I believe this is where my meh feelings towards Mortal Shell arise and largely all come back to. Mortal Shell practically rips every element of a souls-title to a tee and doesn't really use them in creative ways to set it apart from the source material in any meaningful way. I'll give them credit for toying with some interesting mechanics like the hardening and shell system, but these were never fleshed out to justify their inclusion in combat. Hardening has potential for interesting ways to clearly telegraph delayed attacks and mix up combos but only one enemy uses this and you are better off using this as an "oops, I fucked up, am out of stamina, and need i-frames" button when you get impatient waiting to find openings in enemy combos. Shells basically amount to different pre-selected builds but have their own perk system, though I can't say this is anywhere near the level of replayability as being able to allocate into any stat you want in the souls games.
I understand this is a very small team and it would be extremely difficult to replicate something in the caliber of Dark Souls and I 100% appreciate the efforts seen hear. But I find it a lot harder to justify going back to this when it does hardly anything to stand as its own game and just ends up feeling like a lesser imitator on all fronts. And there are surely things I liked and even loved about the game. The art direction is phenomenal with some really distinct and cool areas for as short as the game was. The locations did a great job really selling the atmosphere of this decaying world and the interesting theming of some areas even somewhat set it apart from the traditional dark medieval atmosphere that has become tired in this genre. And while I think the boss fights were unfortunately pretty lame for the most part, the battle with Tarsus honestly kicked ass and I wish other fights would be as creative with their movesets.
So to answer the bullshit hypothetical question above, I don't think it's necessary that a souls-like needs to have all the aforementioned mechanics, rather, I think it's more about how these ideas are used to build the foundation of an experience that isn't afraid to take liberties that work in its favor. At least, that's what I think when we get such widely beloved souls-likes like Hollow Knight and Sekiro. Mortal Shell is by-the-book a souls-like through and through, though I don't think that's to the game's benefit. It ends up feeling like a diet Dark Souls game at the end of the day and while there was stuff a certainly enjoyed about this title, I can't say it really hit the mark for me. With stuff like the Tarsus fight and the art direction I'm convinced this team could make something truly special, this just isn't the game to do it.
Indie games are often relegated to a description of, “Oh it’s just [existing game] but…” Mortal Shell certainly isn’t avoiding that shorthand by way of the Soulsborne series, but studio Cold Symmetry’s combination of polish, tweaks to an existing formula, and thoughtful presentation make their debut game truly stand out in the sea of aspiring Souls-like indies.
Mortal Shell has all the components a fan of the sub-genre would expect–checkpoints, high-damage mobs quick to overwhelm in numbers, and spongy bosses just begging to be studied for attack patterns. The key differences can all be described as more arcade-like in comparison to their obvious inspiration. Rather than a single interconnected playspace demanding dozens or hundreds of hours of engagement to complete, Mortal Shell consists of a hub and 3 dungeons–my playtime was around 15 hours for a single playthrough. Instead of a deep RPG-system dedicated to crafting a unique character one stat at a time, Mortal Shell offers players four “classes” in the form of the titular shells their character can inhabit. The same streamlined sensibilities are at work in the different weapons, upgrades, and enemies in the game. While a trimming of fat for ease of development alone is a detriment to many Souls-like indies, Mortal Shell presents these changes with purpose. Each shell and weapon is distinct enough to offer a notable variety in playstyle, the shell system itself can be forgone for a sort of hardcore mode, and the “harden” mechanic replacing a traditional block entirely is a unique and notable addition.
In all, Mortal Shell is no Dark Souls 4, but it doesn’t seek to be. It’s a thoughtfully-crafted hors d'oeuvre of Dark Souls with just enough the same and just enough different.
Mortal Shell has all the components a fan of the sub-genre would expect–checkpoints, high-damage mobs quick to overwhelm in numbers, and spongy bosses just begging to be studied for attack patterns. The key differences can all be described as more arcade-like in comparison to their obvious inspiration. Rather than a single interconnected playspace demanding dozens or hundreds of hours of engagement to complete, Mortal Shell consists of a hub and 3 dungeons–my playtime was around 15 hours for a single playthrough. Instead of a deep RPG-system dedicated to crafting a unique character one stat at a time, Mortal Shell offers players four “classes” in the form of the titular shells their character can inhabit. The same streamlined sensibilities are at work in the different weapons, upgrades, and enemies in the game. While a trimming of fat for ease of development alone is a detriment to many Souls-like indies, Mortal Shell presents these changes with purpose. Each shell and weapon is distinct enough to offer a notable variety in playstyle, the shell system itself can be forgone for a sort of hardcore mode, and the “harden” mechanic replacing a traditional block entirely is a unique and notable addition.
In all, Mortal Shell is no Dark Souls 4, but it doesn’t seek to be. It’s a thoughtfully-crafted hors d'oeuvre of Dark Souls with just enough the same and just enough different.
Decent indie title that has weirdly got so much unnecessary hate on this site. It’s kinda short and it’s lacking some more complex bosses but i personally don’t mind if games like this are short as long as the content is well constructed and for the most part it is.
I think the opening area is the game at its best tbh, very similar to fire link shrine in DS1 not just in its aesthetics but also in its function. The way every dungeon is immediately accessible no matter its difficulty is something i dig. I started with one of the harder ones and it was really challenging for where i was at progression wise so i came back to the hub area and explored different pathways and then later in the game i returned to that dungeon and absolutely walked through it like it was nothing which was pretty satisfying. That being said the level design in the separate dungeon areas isn’t so satisfying, a lot of them are very linear and i think some areas in the game are pretty poorly paced and go on for too long which is pretty damning considering this game is considered to be quite short. Nevertheless the art direction is pretty cool and the combat can be cool most of the time. Bosses can be enjoyable but they are nowhere near the complexity of anything in the souls games and most of them are pretty easy.
As long as you are able to accept that the game is mechanically really quite unoriginal, i think it was a decent time.
I think the opening area is the game at its best tbh, very similar to fire link shrine in DS1 not just in its aesthetics but also in its function. The way every dungeon is immediately accessible no matter its difficulty is something i dig. I started with one of the harder ones and it was really challenging for where i was at progression wise so i came back to the hub area and explored different pathways and then later in the game i returned to that dungeon and absolutely walked through it like it was nothing which was pretty satisfying. That being said the level design in the separate dungeon areas isn’t so satisfying, a lot of them are very linear and i think some areas in the game are pretty poorly paced and go on for too long which is pretty damning considering this game is considered to be quite short. Nevertheless the art direction is pretty cool and the combat can be cool most of the time. Bosses can be enjoyable but they are nowhere near the complexity of anything in the souls games and most of them are pretty easy.
As long as you are able to accept that the game is mechanically really quite unoriginal, i think it was a decent time.
I hate the final boss so damn much. Such a fucking pain of a fight. My god is it so fucking boring and elongated. I had a relatively good experience with the game till that fight.
I never want to think about this game cause of that fight. Thank fuck, I didn't spend a single penny on this game. I'd never be able to forgive myself if I did
I never want to think about this game cause of that fight. Thank fuck, I didn't spend a single penny on this game. I'd never be able to forgive myself if I did
O jogo é realmente muito bom para um indie game do jeito que é achei o tempo de campanha perfeito não é mto curto e não mto longo obviamente é inspirado nos Souls que são obras de arte e tem uma mecanica mto legal e diferente pra souls like, a dublagem é absurda de boa, os design de inimigos e npc é 8/80 ou mto bom ou meio paia no geral se vc curte um Souls Like vale a pena conferir esse joguito
eu tentei defender esse jogo, mas na moral, não dá.
o jogo tem uma ótima ideia, com uma péssima execução.
o jogo tem uma ótima ideia, com uma péssima execução.
Despite a number of balancing issues, Mortal Shell is probably the best of the Dark Souls impersonators to date, making it a must play for fans of the genre.
The Good:
Excellent combat - Challenging normal enemies keep you on your toes - Creative on the fly class switching - Healing system rewards skill - Nails the atmosphere
The Bad:
Becoming overpowered is too quick, makes bosses easy - Harden mechanic is too forgiving - Navigating the main hub can be confusing - All-important parry is not easy to get the hang of
---------
Recent years have seen a proper landslide of Dark Souls clones, more or less faithful to the formula, ranging from the ocean of amateur stubs (refer to Iron Pineapple on youtube for more), to the multitude of indie 2D ones like Salt and Sanctuary, Hollow Knight, Blasphemous, Death's Gambit and Immortal Planet (just to chip at the tip of the iceberg), boss rush ones like Titan Souls and Sinner, and a handful of fully featured 3D ones, starting with 2014's mediocrity Lords of the Fallen, the better performing The Surge and its improved sequel, and ending with recent efforts like Ashen, Code Vein, the unimpressive Hellpoint and Remnant from the Ashes, made by the same people who had previously turned Darksiders into a soulslike. It's in this context that Mortal Shell tries to break the mold by offering a budget-priced 10-12 hour experience that fans of the genre are likely to enjoy.
The first mention goes to the visuals presentation and art style, which absolutely hit the spot, to the point of being derivative: everything is immersed in the trademark dystopian shroud of dejection and despair that one has come to expect from Souls games. Similarly the sound design features a quality offering of punchy impacts, meaty slashes and chilling death rattles, coupled with the ominous toll of distant bells, growls of nearby creatures and a minimal, oppressive ambient soundtrack that adequately sets the mood. A special mention goes to the voice acting, which complements quality writing (sparse as it is in such games) with grim, convincing performances. It's not original, it's more of the same, so if that's what you've been looking for after the sci-fi and stylized romps from aforementioned games, Mortal Shell will deliver.
The twist in the gameplay department is that leveling is handled differently: instead of stats to dump points into you find and possess a handful of different "shells" (read: corpses) with different skills and fixed attributes. There is a quick one with little life and lots of stamina and whose skills are centered around poisoning enemies with toxic clouds, the brutish one that hits real hard but lacks stamina, the scholar which gains upgrade tokens faster and reaps grater benefits from items, and of course the balanced all-rounder which will be what most people go for. The equipped shell can be changed at the central hub, or even summoned on the fly using uncommon consumables. The ones still to be found are marked at the Firelink equivalent with memories that show you brief visions of where they are located. They are vague enough not to give it too much away, but sufficiently informative so that you'll be unlikely to miss the shells with a modicum of attention. The same happens for weapons: instead of hundreds of similar ones, Mortal Shell features a handful of radically different ones. These can also be tracked down via visions, but they require defeating optional bosses in a dream world before they can be wielded.
All games in this genre need to come up with some gimmick to stand out and here it's that instead of carrying shields (absent from the game) you can hold down L2 to indefinitely harden yourself, petrifying your body and becoming impervious to light ranged attacks and negating the effect of the first melee strike that reaches you while in this state. It's not unlike the tanuki suit from Super Mario Bros 3, only breakable and on a brief cooldown. It also can be used offensively, making your next swing hit harder or slamming on the ground with a plunging attack. This mechanic really makes the game a bit too easy, being too forgiving for its own good. It's too convenient to lunge at the enemy with a staggering jumping slash, then follow it up with a combo and then petrify to interrupt retaliation. Rinse and repeat since cooldown on the harden skill is so short (about 5-7 seconds depending on the shell). It's a good mechanic, but one that would need a bit of balancing, since it makes bosses an absolute breeze if used skillfully, which still requires good timing. Nothing that a good patch can't fix, but in the current state a decent player will have little trouble against foes which should prove to be progress stoppers.
Combat is what you've come to expect from such games: heavy stamina focus, lock on to the enemy, dash and roll dodge, short combos of fast attack and heavy attacks, overhead dashing slashes, enemies deal high damage and inflict frequent status ailments. It's Dark Souls. The equivalents of the bonfire are spaced enough between them that dungeons are tense and exhausting, in the best of senses. You will dread what lies ahead, since death means being sent back considerably. There is no estus equivalent: healing is left to ineffectual and slowly respawning mushrooms you find in specific places around the world, but mostly the game expects you to master and use the parry system, which allows for a quick riposte that heals a latrge (and upgradeably so) chunk of your health bar. The problem is that the parry window is very small, leading you to get smacked in the face and dying when you desperately need to pull a parry off in order to save your hide. It definitely rewards skillfull usage of the mechanic, but were the game difficulty harder as a baseline, this healing system could easily become an issue, leaving the player to rely on mushrooms.
Much like in Sekiro, Mortal Shell features the "die twice" system: instead of being sent back to a checkpoint, the minute your health reaches zero your soul form simply gets ejected from the shell it's inhabiting, at which point you can still fight, but a single hit will finish you off. Your hope at this point is to manage and retrieve your now empty shell for a full health bar and a second chance at survival. This can initially only happen once per life, while later on an expensive skill can be unlocked which allows to replenish the die rebirth token after killing enough enemies.
Unlocking skills requires two resources, aquired by killing enemies and looting chests and shinies: tar (read: souls) and glimpses, which are upgrade tokens of sorts, used to unlock each shell's skill set. Some skills will require only a couple glimpses, while other will demand massive amounts. This brings up another problem: since tar is plentiful and glimpses are initially not, the palyer will be wondering what to do with all this tar they cannot spend to level up until more glimpses are found. As such it will likely be used to purchase items from the (surprisingly well hidden) merchant, which sells rare upgrade materials you will need to boost the damage of your weapons. The problem is that this is supposed to be an expensive solution for superficial players who missed out on collectibles around the dungeons, but in practice it makes your weapon way too strong way too early. This means that bosses will be cut down way too quickly unless one has been spreading upgrade resources over too many of the multiple weapons available.
The final issue is tied to the design of the main hub of the game world: while not poorly designed by any stretch, it suffers from a lack of signposting, making it difficult to find one's way around, especially at first. It's nowhere near as infuriatingly mazelike as Hellpoint and the issue eventually mitigates itself with a bit more familiarity, but it's definitely there for a good chunk of the game. Maps are a no-no for this genre, of course, so the smart player may want to drawn one or, for the laziest among us, google one. There is no fast travel of any kind either, not until endgame anyway: once a single shell is maxed out, the NPC used to level up will tranform into an engame shop that trades directly in glimpses. Among other things, the shop sells an outlandishly expensive mask that allows for fast travel to every unlocked safe area in the game (a dozen in total). The alternative is using a tarnished mask, which sends you back to the last visited safe area, but at the cost of all of your glimpses, which is a nasty trade off.
In conclusion, Mortal Shell is definitely worth playing, despite being a bit confusing to navigate and a tad on the easy side for people used to games like Bloodborne. It's entirely possible to discipline oneself to not exploit the harden mechanic too much, and there is a monument in the game which allows to renounce all shells and play in spirit form for the ultimate challenge, so the hardest of the hardcore will find something to bite into even here.
The Good:
Excellent combat - Challenging normal enemies keep you on your toes - Creative on the fly class switching - Healing system rewards skill - Nails the atmosphere
The Bad:
Becoming overpowered is too quick, makes bosses easy - Harden mechanic is too forgiving - Navigating the main hub can be confusing - All-important parry is not easy to get the hang of
---------
Recent years have seen a proper landslide of Dark Souls clones, more or less faithful to the formula, ranging from the ocean of amateur stubs (refer to Iron Pineapple on youtube for more), to the multitude of indie 2D ones like Salt and Sanctuary, Hollow Knight, Blasphemous, Death's Gambit and Immortal Planet (just to chip at the tip of the iceberg), boss rush ones like Titan Souls and Sinner, and a handful of fully featured 3D ones, starting with 2014's mediocrity Lords of the Fallen, the better performing The Surge and its improved sequel, and ending with recent efforts like Ashen, Code Vein, the unimpressive Hellpoint and Remnant from the Ashes, made by the same people who had previously turned Darksiders into a soulslike. It's in this context that Mortal Shell tries to break the mold by offering a budget-priced 10-12 hour experience that fans of the genre are likely to enjoy.
The first mention goes to the visuals presentation and art style, which absolutely hit the spot, to the point of being derivative: everything is immersed in the trademark dystopian shroud of dejection and despair that one has come to expect from Souls games. Similarly the sound design features a quality offering of punchy impacts, meaty slashes and chilling death rattles, coupled with the ominous toll of distant bells, growls of nearby creatures and a minimal, oppressive ambient soundtrack that adequately sets the mood. A special mention goes to the voice acting, which complements quality writing (sparse as it is in such games) with grim, convincing performances. It's not original, it's more of the same, so if that's what you've been looking for after the sci-fi and stylized romps from aforementioned games, Mortal Shell will deliver.
The twist in the gameplay department is that leveling is handled differently: instead of stats to dump points into you find and possess a handful of different "shells" (read: corpses) with different skills and fixed attributes. There is a quick one with little life and lots of stamina and whose skills are centered around poisoning enemies with toxic clouds, the brutish one that hits real hard but lacks stamina, the scholar which gains upgrade tokens faster and reaps grater benefits from items, and of course the balanced all-rounder which will be what most people go for. The equipped shell can be changed at the central hub, or even summoned on the fly using uncommon consumables. The ones still to be found are marked at the Firelink equivalent with memories that show you brief visions of where they are located. They are vague enough not to give it too much away, but sufficiently informative so that you'll be unlikely to miss the shells with a modicum of attention. The same happens for weapons: instead of hundreds of similar ones, Mortal Shell features a handful of radically different ones. These can also be tracked down via visions, but they require defeating optional bosses in a dream world before they can be wielded.
All games in this genre need to come up with some gimmick to stand out and here it's that instead of carrying shields (absent from the game) you can hold down L2 to indefinitely harden yourself, petrifying your body and becoming impervious to light ranged attacks and negating the effect of the first melee strike that reaches you while in this state. It's not unlike the tanuki suit from Super Mario Bros 3, only breakable and on a brief cooldown. It also can be used offensively, making your next swing hit harder or slamming on the ground with a plunging attack. This mechanic really makes the game a bit too easy, being too forgiving for its own good. It's too convenient to lunge at the enemy with a staggering jumping slash, then follow it up with a combo and then petrify to interrupt retaliation. Rinse and repeat since cooldown on the harden skill is so short (about 5-7 seconds depending on the shell). It's a good mechanic, but one that would need a bit of balancing, since it makes bosses an absolute breeze if used skillfully, which still requires good timing. Nothing that a good patch can't fix, but in the current state a decent player will have little trouble against foes which should prove to be progress stoppers.
Combat is what you've come to expect from such games: heavy stamina focus, lock on to the enemy, dash and roll dodge, short combos of fast attack and heavy attacks, overhead dashing slashes, enemies deal high damage and inflict frequent status ailments. It's Dark Souls. The equivalents of the bonfire are spaced enough between them that dungeons are tense and exhausting, in the best of senses. You will dread what lies ahead, since death means being sent back considerably. There is no estus equivalent: healing is left to ineffectual and slowly respawning mushrooms you find in specific places around the world, but mostly the game expects you to master and use the parry system, which allows for a quick riposte that heals a latrge (and upgradeably so) chunk of your health bar. The problem is that the parry window is very small, leading you to get smacked in the face and dying when you desperately need to pull a parry off in order to save your hide. It definitely rewards skillfull usage of the mechanic, but were the game difficulty harder as a baseline, this healing system could easily become an issue, leaving the player to rely on mushrooms.
Much like in Sekiro, Mortal Shell features the "die twice" system: instead of being sent back to a checkpoint, the minute your health reaches zero your soul form simply gets ejected from the shell it's inhabiting, at which point you can still fight, but a single hit will finish you off. Your hope at this point is to manage and retrieve your now empty shell for a full health bar and a second chance at survival. This can initially only happen once per life, while later on an expensive skill can be unlocked which allows to replenish the die rebirth token after killing enough enemies.
Unlocking skills requires two resources, aquired by killing enemies and looting chests and shinies: tar (read: souls) and glimpses, which are upgrade tokens of sorts, used to unlock each shell's skill set. Some skills will require only a couple glimpses, while other will demand massive amounts. This brings up another problem: since tar is plentiful and glimpses are initially not, the palyer will be wondering what to do with all this tar they cannot spend to level up until more glimpses are found. As such it will likely be used to purchase items from the (surprisingly well hidden) merchant, which sells rare upgrade materials you will need to boost the damage of your weapons. The problem is that this is supposed to be an expensive solution for superficial players who missed out on collectibles around the dungeons, but in practice it makes your weapon way too strong way too early. This means that bosses will be cut down way too quickly unless one has been spreading upgrade resources over too many of the multiple weapons available.
The final issue is tied to the design of the main hub of the game world: while not poorly designed by any stretch, it suffers from a lack of signposting, making it difficult to find one's way around, especially at first. It's nowhere near as infuriatingly mazelike as Hellpoint and the issue eventually mitigates itself with a bit more familiarity, but it's definitely there for a good chunk of the game. Maps are a no-no for this genre, of course, so the smart player may want to drawn one or, for the laziest among us, google one. There is no fast travel of any kind either, not until endgame anyway: once a single shell is maxed out, the NPC used to level up will tranform into an engame shop that trades directly in glimpses. Among other things, the shop sells an outlandishly expensive mask that allows for fast travel to every unlocked safe area in the game (a dozen in total). The alternative is using a tarnished mask, which sends you back to the last visited safe area, but at the cost of all of your glimpses, which is a nasty trade off.
In conclusion, Mortal Shell is definitely worth playing, despite being a bit confusing to navigate and a tad on the easy side for people used to games like Bloodborne. It's entirely possible to discipline oneself to not exploit the harden mechanic too much, and there is a monument in the game which allows to renounce all shells and play in spirit form for the ultimate challenge, so the hardest of the hardcore will find something to bite into even here.
Calling this game out for being derivative is besides the point really, it makes no secret of its main inspiration. Indeed, it is in all likelihood to be the game's biggest draw, as it certainly was for me.
Unfortunately I did not enjoy anything about the game besides some visual design elements.
There's clearly a team of passionate and talented people behind this, I just hope they find some fresh inspiration for their next title. I'm completely aware of the contradiction I'm making in criticising a game for being the thing that drew me to it, but it I really did not enjoy the gameplay or structure. On paper, the 'harden' mechanic is just interesting enough to give the game some pull, but the execution is lumpen and offers scarcely any advantage.
After finding all the shells and slaying a few bosses I put it off for the last time. While my experience was unsatisfactory, I still look forward to seeing what the studio come up with next.
Unfortunately I did not enjoy anything about the game besides some visual design elements.
There's clearly a team of passionate and talented people behind this, I just hope they find some fresh inspiration for their next title. I'm completely aware of the contradiction I'm making in criticising a game for being the thing that drew me to it, but it I really did not enjoy the gameplay or structure. On paper, the 'harden' mechanic is just interesting enough to give the game some pull, but the execution is lumpen and offers scarcely any advantage.
After finding all the shells and slaying a few bosses I put it off for the last time. While my experience was unsatisfactory, I still look forward to seeing what the studio come up with next.
Its fine but feels kinda... soulless...
"souls-like" is officially a toxic genre tag, avoid at all costs.
I could be playing Dark Souls
The enemies are scattered around the map and are pointless to fight, it's not realistic to defeat every enemy because of the healing system. The world looks like a sandbox, in the sense that you're just running on a flat surface. The bosses aren't memorable just like the entirety game ..
It's a damn shame, because the combat is actually really interesting, but everything else is just bad.
It's a damn shame, because the combat is actually really interesting, but everything else is just bad.
My heart sank the moment I fought the very first enemy. The worst-feeling soulslike game i've ever played.
I started my attack animation a young man, and my grandchildren were able to see it connect with the enemy.
I don’t have a funny shitpost about this one it just sucks
Neat if unspectacular. A short, breezy entry into the ever-expanding Souls-like genre, this game is pretty fun in spite of feeling a bit like consuming empty calories in certain ways. The level design is complex, but unnecessarily so in many cases (what is up with all of the crawlspaces that bring you to places you likely already discovered by simply walking along a path?) The plot is an extremely stock-standard re-take of Dark Souls post-Lordvessel acquisition - kill some demigods, bring back their essences to a giant, vaguely ominous animal creature, fight the final boss, ascend to a highly compromised form of godhood, etc. Along the way, you'll find the elliptical, ambiguous lore notes that we've come to expect from these stories, but as with most non-From games in this genre, these are dull and ponderous rather than intriguing or mordantly humorous.
So why do I still kind of like this game despite thinking the story is basically complete trash? Well, the gameplay, of course! This game feels great in the hands. Most of what I enjoy in the combat is rooted in the 'hardness' mechanic, one of the cooler twists on Soulslike combat that I've seen. Your character can harden to avoid damage, but you can also get creative by hardening while attacking, hardening to nullify status effects, and so on. It's an unexpectedly deep mechanic that contributes to making the combat a lot of fun. There is also a charming simplicity to the enemy movesets that reminded me of early From games like Demon's Souls - every enemy (including most bosses) has at most 3-4 moves, and each is clearly telegraphed with plenty of time to respond. This is not the twitchy, reflex-based combat of Bloodborne or Dark Souls III, but rather the stodgier, more methodical combat of Demon's Souls or Dark Souls. That may disappoint some, but I like both. Slow and methodical is rarer these days, so I was pleasantly surprised. Overall, a fun if minor game that feels a bit like a proof-of-concept project that From might have made in 2008.
So why do I still kind of like this game despite thinking the story is basically complete trash? Well, the gameplay, of course! This game feels great in the hands. Most of what I enjoy in the combat is rooted in the 'hardness' mechanic, one of the cooler twists on Soulslike combat that I've seen. Your character can harden to avoid damage, but you can also get creative by hardening while attacking, hardening to nullify status effects, and so on. It's an unexpectedly deep mechanic that contributes to making the combat a lot of fun. There is also a charming simplicity to the enemy movesets that reminded me of early From games like Demon's Souls - every enemy (including most bosses) has at most 3-4 moves, and each is clearly telegraphed with plenty of time to respond. This is not the twitchy, reflex-based combat of Bloodborne or Dark Souls III, but rather the stodgier, more methodical combat of Demon's Souls or Dark Souls. That may disappoint some, but I like both. Slow and methodical is rarer these days, so I was pleasantly surprised. Overall, a fun if minor game that feels a bit like a proof-of-concept project that From might have made in 2008.
Full Review + Trophy Review and Tips Below
Mortal Shell is worthy entry into the souls-like genre. It has enough new and creative mechanics to stand on its own, even as it heavily borrows from the games that made the genre so popular. You’ll spend around 15 hours exploring the 4 different locations while learning, and yes, dying to the variety of enemies you’ll encounter. If you are a fan of the original Dark Souls, this is a fun and challenging entry that does the genre proud with only a few stumbles along the way.
So like I mentioned, if you played the original Dark Souls, you know what you are getting into with Mortal Shell. You start the game as a specter, which you quickly come to realize has an enormous amount of endurance but only a sliver of health. Although you can play the entire game in this form (there is actually a trophy tied to doing just that), it will be difficult as you are guaranteed to be killed by even the weakest enemy in a single hit. Get poisoned, hit by a single arrow or take a tiny tumble off a small ledge and that is the end of that run.
This is where the first mechanic comes in that is new to the souls-like genre. In the hub world, you can discover 4 different slain warriors that you are able to possess. They become the shell you will use throughout the game, each with their own stats, strengths and weaknesses, as well as their own skill tree. With shells, you are granted flexibility in your play style. For example, if you are having a difficult time with a boss and need some more health/defense you can choose The Tank shell to give you a leg up. Need more endurance, choose The Rogue and dodge to your hearts delight.
The second mechanic that is new is the ability to harden. This is literally turning into stone to absorb a hit. This is a great defensive and an even better offensive maneuver that will add a new strategic element to your play style. If an enemy is about to hit you, harden, take the hit with no damage, the enemy is staggered, and you can attack or put some distance between you and the enemy. You can also go on the offensive by swinging your sword and hardening, you will turn to stone before you finish swinging and when the enemy hits you, you will absorb the hit and finish the swing, damaging the enemy. It really is a great and fun mechanic that I hope we see more of in the future.
The final one is similar to a second chance ability. Whenever you lose all your health, instead of dying, your specter will be knocked out of the shell. In this form, if you are able to get back to your shell to regain all your health and have one more chance to take out the enemy. All three of these mechanics really bring a breath of fresh air to genre and were a lot of fun to use during my playthrough.
Where I feel the game struggles is in the areas you play through. Although atmospheric, I didn’t find them all that interesting nor varied.
Overall, I enjoyed my time with Mortal Shell, compared to the 50-100 hour experience that Dark Souls is known for, it was fun to play a much smaller entry in this genre. It has enough new things going for it to make it worth your time, even though the enemies and locations aren’t that inspired.
Trophies
Difficulty: 5/10
Time: 15 Hours
Trophy Guide: Recommended
Trophy List Score: 7/10
Like all souls-like games, the platinum requires more than one playthrough. Although there is only one ending, you will have to play the game a second time in your Specter form to earn the Forever Alone trophy. This is by far the hardest trophy in the game as you will have to beat every boss without taking a single hit. I would also recommend a guide as you will need to find etchings that are only visible after hitting an invisible area on a wall. I don’t know how people find these without a guide.
Earlier I mentioned there is only one ending, that is not entirely true. There is an NPC called Baghead that you can give a Superior Moonshine and Roasted Rat (both easy to find) which triggers an ending where you and him, eat, drink and don’t give a shit about what happens to the world. Don’t worry, you can do that ending, get the credits, load up your game and continue on your trek.
There are a lot of misc. trophies you can work on throughout, like parrying 100 enemies, which you could literally just do with the same enemy 100 times. Play your guitar close to an enemy that is also playing a guitar for another trophy (just don’t get close enough to where they get aggro’d). Kick an enemy off a high area to kill it, or pick 50 mushrooms.
There is one area that changes after you beat the boss, so you lose the ability to find items or etchings, so watch out for that.
So, I mentioned you would have to do 2 runs. There is a way (that as far as I know has not been patched) that does allow you to do everything in one playthrough. If you’re interested, I recommend watching “Optinoob” on YouTube. Link to his platinum walkthrough:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mIp4inuy_ew&t=51s
The games actually has separate save files for the character, trophy, map, etc. So there is a way for you to save your progress on a usb stick. Start a new game +, load in ONLY your map and start the game at the final boss, with all your progress but in the specter form. This means that for your 2nd run, you can bypass the entire game and just have to beat the final boss. Up to you if this is a trick you want to use, but here if you need it.
Happy Trophy Hunting!
Mortal Shell is worthy entry into the souls-like genre. It has enough new and creative mechanics to stand on its own, even as it heavily borrows from the games that made the genre so popular. You’ll spend around 15 hours exploring the 4 different locations while learning, and yes, dying to the variety of enemies you’ll encounter. If you are a fan of the original Dark Souls, this is a fun and challenging entry that does the genre proud with only a few stumbles along the way.
So like I mentioned, if you played the original Dark Souls, you know what you are getting into with Mortal Shell. You start the game as a specter, which you quickly come to realize has an enormous amount of endurance but only a sliver of health. Although you can play the entire game in this form (there is actually a trophy tied to doing just that), it will be difficult as you are guaranteed to be killed by even the weakest enemy in a single hit. Get poisoned, hit by a single arrow or take a tiny tumble off a small ledge and that is the end of that run.
This is where the first mechanic comes in that is new to the souls-like genre. In the hub world, you can discover 4 different slain warriors that you are able to possess. They become the shell you will use throughout the game, each with their own stats, strengths and weaknesses, as well as their own skill tree. With shells, you are granted flexibility in your play style. For example, if you are having a difficult time with a boss and need some more health/defense you can choose The Tank shell to give you a leg up. Need more endurance, choose The Rogue and dodge to your hearts delight.
The second mechanic that is new is the ability to harden. This is literally turning into stone to absorb a hit. This is a great defensive and an even better offensive maneuver that will add a new strategic element to your play style. If an enemy is about to hit you, harden, take the hit with no damage, the enemy is staggered, and you can attack or put some distance between you and the enemy. You can also go on the offensive by swinging your sword and hardening, you will turn to stone before you finish swinging and when the enemy hits you, you will absorb the hit and finish the swing, damaging the enemy. It really is a great and fun mechanic that I hope we see more of in the future.
The final one is similar to a second chance ability. Whenever you lose all your health, instead of dying, your specter will be knocked out of the shell. In this form, if you are able to get back to your shell to regain all your health and have one more chance to take out the enemy. All three of these mechanics really bring a breath of fresh air to genre and were a lot of fun to use during my playthrough.
Where I feel the game struggles is in the areas you play through. Although atmospheric, I didn’t find them all that interesting nor varied.
Overall, I enjoyed my time with Mortal Shell, compared to the 50-100 hour experience that Dark Souls is known for, it was fun to play a much smaller entry in this genre. It has enough new things going for it to make it worth your time, even though the enemies and locations aren’t that inspired.
Trophies
Difficulty: 5/10
Time: 15 Hours
Trophy Guide: Recommended
Trophy List Score: 7/10
Like all souls-like games, the platinum requires more than one playthrough. Although there is only one ending, you will have to play the game a second time in your Specter form to earn the Forever Alone trophy. This is by far the hardest trophy in the game as you will have to beat every boss without taking a single hit. I would also recommend a guide as you will need to find etchings that are only visible after hitting an invisible area on a wall. I don’t know how people find these without a guide.
Earlier I mentioned there is only one ending, that is not entirely true. There is an NPC called Baghead that you can give a Superior Moonshine and Roasted Rat (both easy to find) which triggers an ending where you and him, eat, drink and don’t give a shit about what happens to the world. Don’t worry, you can do that ending, get the credits, load up your game and continue on your trek.
There are a lot of misc. trophies you can work on throughout, like parrying 100 enemies, which you could literally just do with the same enemy 100 times. Play your guitar close to an enemy that is also playing a guitar for another trophy (just don’t get close enough to where they get aggro’d). Kick an enemy off a high area to kill it, or pick 50 mushrooms.
There is one area that changes after you beat the boss, so you lose the ability to find items or etchings, so watch out for that.
So, I mentioned you would have to do 2 runs. There is a way (that as far as I know has not been patched) that does allow you to do everything in one playthrough. If you’re interested, I recommend watching “Optinoob” on YouTube. Link to his platinum walkthrough:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mIp4inuy_ew&t=51s
The games actually has separate save files for the character, trophy, map, etc. So there is a way for you to save your progress on a usb stick. Start a new game +, load in ONLY your map and start the game at the final boss, with all your progress but in the specter form. This means that for your 2nd run, you can bypass the entire game and just have to beat the final boss. Up to you if this is a trick you want to use, but here if you need it.
Happy Trophy Hunting!
Souls-like favorável pra jogar num fim de semana
Fazia um tempinho que eu queria experimentar mortal shell, achei ele bem diferentão dos souls que já joguei (que não foram muitos sendo sincero), ele tem um aspecto meio cinemático e um controle do personagem um tanto pesado, acredito eu que propositalmente pra causar esse climão de filme medieval da escuridão.
Eu gostei da gameplay dele e sua lentidão nos ataques não me incomodou, apesar de que os controles não são tão responsivos assim, principalmente as habilidades especiais que parecem ter um delay ferrado pra conseguir acionar
O que me incomodou em mortal shell foi ele ser curto demais, po seria melhor se fosse um pouquinho mais cheio e com mais conteúdo, tem poucas armas e poucas armaduras o que deixa a vontade de rejogar ele meio.. fora de rota.
Fazia um tempinho que eu queria experimentar mortal shell, achei ele bem diferentão dos souls que já joguei (que não foram muitos sendo sincero), ele tem um aspecto meio cinemático e um controle do personagem um tanto pesado, acredito eu que propositalmente pra causar esse climão de filme medieval da escuridão.
Eu gostei da gameplay dele e sua lentidão nos ataques não me incomodou, apesar de que os controles não são tão responsivos assim, principalmente as habilidades especiais que parecem ter um delay ferrado pra conseguir acionar
O que me incomodou em mortal shell foi ele ser curto demais, po seria melhor se fosse um pouquinho mais cheio e com mais conteúdo, tem poucas armas e poucas armaduras o que deixa a vontade de rejogar ele meio.. fora de rota.
Just not fun to play honestly.
Short and overall great souls like.
The art direction is gorgeous.
The art direction is gorgeous.
Very impressive for a small team, but the combat is slow, clunky, and just not fun. Dark Souls was slow, but it also gave you a shield so you could get used to the mechanics. This game has a one time block that has a cooldown. It looks cool, but taking away the shield and replacing it with this mechanic weakens combat and makes it unintersting.
While Soulslikes have been struggling to keep up with From’s genre-topping efforts over the past decade, gaming as a whole has been confusing “bigger” for “better” in that same time frame. They’re two separate issues but are both ones that Mortal Shell simultaneously confronts head-on with a flaming mace in hand. Shamelessly Soulsian in its overall style, it doesn’t attempt to beat From at its own game. Instead, it thoughtfully borrows from that established formula, using a keen sense of intuition to know exactly when to scale back and push ahead.
Read the full review here:
https://www.gamerevolution.com/review/656073-mortal-shell-review-ps4-pc-xbox-one
Read the full review here:
https://www.gamerevolution.com/review/656073-mortal-shell-review-ps4-pc-xbox-one
Solid but unremarkable...
One of those tightrope games where every hour could be the last I spend with it. But somehow it managed to get me through, it's relatively short lenght, unintimidating atmosphere and beautiful visuals surely helped.
Unfortunately even with competent gameplay, enjoyable environments and some neat ideas (hardening, item familiarity, shells) the whole experience felt kind of meaningless. The world/lore wasn't particularly interesting, gameplay wasn't particularly satisfying ... just a whole lot of eh.
If you're hungry for more third person fantasy souls games, sure go ahead. But personally, I'm not sure that it was worth my time.
One of those tightrope games where every hour could be the last I spend with it. But somehow it managed to get me through, it's relatively short lenght, unintimidating atmosphere and beautiful visuals surely helped.
Unfortunately even with competent gameplay, enjoyable environments and some neat ideas (hardening, item familiarity, shells) the whole experience felt kind of meaningless. The world/lore wasn't particularly interesting, gameplay wasn't particularly satisfying ... just a whole lot of eh.
If you're hungry for more third person fantasy souls games, sure go ahead. But personally, I'm not sure that it was worth my time.