Um baita de um metroidvania! Impressionante como eu não conhecia o jogo e só de ver uma screenshot já o quis comprar logo de cara, e deu muito bom. Ender Liles é absurdamente imersivo e recheado de inspirações, seu mundo desolado e solitário me lembra bastante Nier Automata, somado por seu lado Dark Fantasy que é bem voltado pra Dark Souls, e indo mais a fundo, da até pra tirar uma pitada de Shadow of The Colossus aqui, visto que nossa protagonista, Lily, está em um mundo no qual ela não conhece muito bem, purificando os Corrompidos, e a cada chefe principal purificado, sua aparência vai ficando mais e mais devastada e corrompida.

Antes de tudo num Metroidvania pra mim, o principal foco é ter um motivo pra explorar, seja achar alguma arma, equipamentos, armaduras, etc. Aqui não usamos armas, já que Lily não ataca, apenas anda, pula e desvia, a função de ataque traz um grande diferencial sensacional pro jogo, que são os Espíritos Corrompidos. Cada chefe do jogo derrotado se torna seu aliado, sendo usado pra combate. Basicamente eles funcionam como stands, equipamos ele num set de skills (no meu caso X, Y e B) e o resto é óbvio. Ou seja, todos os chefes do jogo (com exeção do último) são suas armas, e isso é sensacional, pois tirando os bosses principais, o jogo tem toneladas de opcionais e cada um com uma skill diferente abrangendo varios estilos de jogo e estrátegias, um atira um projétil, outro arranca pra frente, outro ataca em diagonal, outros que combam e por aí vai, a lista é grande e o combate se torna muito varíado graças a isso. O jogo definitivamente não é fácil e exige bastante cautela, os inimigos machucam, e no último ato alguns inimigos te matam com dois golpes. Os chefes variam, eu tive problemas com uns dois, espcialmente o último que tive que ir upado no talo, aí virou passeio.

Depois de tudo, Ender Lilies entrega tudo, o jogo é lindo de morrer, tendo uma paleta de cores bem escura com ambientes de encher os olhos de tão lindos, trilha sonora no piano solene e melancólica que ajudam ainda mais na imersão, uma lore muito bacana com toneladas de arquivos de texto pra agradar todos que gostam de se aprofundar, acompanhado da história linda, e claro, seu combate diverso e divertido. O jogo foi um pouco longo, platinei em 25 horas, embora eu não tenha ficado entediado em nenhum momento, achei a exploração e a progressão bem diversificada e intiuitiva, por exemplo, o pulo duplo é um dos primeiros upgrades, com isso você acha que vai fazer a festa achando novas áreas, já que esse upgrade geralmente é um alívio quando se pega em qualquer metroidvania, mas o jogo consegue trancar bem a progressão pra que tudo pareça orgânico, e a cada upgrade novo, a movimentação acaba ficando cada vez mais divertida, e quando se pega o gancho é a cereja do bolo. Uma coisa meio estranha é que no mapa, a sala não vai se formando conforme você anda, e sim já fica um bloco inteiro representando que você está ali, isso faz o backtracking ficar meio confuso já que o jogo tem várias salas que são gigantes mas em contrapartida, o jogo é bem intuitivo marcando blocos laranjas pra áreas completadas e azuis pra não completadas, sem falar que marca em vermelho rotas fechadas.

No fim mais um jogo indie que deu um verdadeiro show, um joguinho que vai deixar saudades e que definitivamente merecia mais reconhecimento.

To be honest, I wasn't expecting much when I finally wanted to catch up on Ender Lilies. I knew beforehand that it was a rather dark Metroidvania and that its narrative was based on games like Bloodborne or Salt and Sanctuary. Since I really like these games (especially Bloodborne), I had put Ender Lilies on my wish list years ago and had ignored it ever since :D So now the moment finally came when I had some time and was in the mood for a good Metroidvania over the Easter holidays.

It didn't take too long for the game to put me under its spell. It quickly became apparent where the influences for the world design and narrative lie. The game is very dark and the narrative rather convoluted; you shouldn't expect a clear, straightforward plot here. In typical Souls-fashion, you are thrown straight into the action and have to piece together the story piece by piece. Storytelling and worldbuilding heavily rely on item descriptions, comments from your companion and cutscenes that are played after defeating a boss or at key points in the game. I don't want to give too much away here, but I was very interested in the storyline and became quite emotionally involved. You could describe the narrative as a kind of dark, adult fairy tale. If that's what you're in the mood for, you'll be completely satisfied here.

In terms of gameplay, Ender Lilies really surprised me, as the game has some interesting ideas that I have rarely or never seen in this form in other games of the genre. What struck me right from the start was that I didn't directly control the game's protagonist - Lily - in battles. Instead, I could choose from a range of "guardians" who have different abilities and attack patterns. The variety of these guardians is truly amazing. From the classic sword wielder to rather slow hammer attacks and magical ranged attacks, everything is included here. In addition, you can summon supporting guardians and thus create a very individual play style. This was super cool and kept me wanting to try out new combinations of abilities. As the boss battles can be quite tough at times, it was also necessary to adapt my strategies from time to time in order to succeed.

In terms of exploration, I always had enough motivation to search the areas to discover items or other secrets throughout the entire game. What I really liked here was that the game shows you directly on the map whether there is still something to be found in a level section or not. However, I do have a small point of criticism here. Unfortunately, it has often happened that I still had something to do in a level area. However, as some of these areas are huge and you have no clue where exactly something is located, you sometimes spend ages walking through an area in search of the hidden item. This can be frustrating, especially in the later areas of the game, which are at times very monumental in size.

All in all, however, I can thoroughly recommend this game. The narrative is interesting, the world is beautifully designed, the exploration is fun and the boss battles are challenging. Towards the end, some of the battles get a little overly difficult but I never felt like the game presented me any unfair challenges. And hey, if you die, there's no punishment, no souls to retrieve or anything like that. You like cryptic narratives, dark moods and Metroidvania? Then definitely check out Ender Lilies.

Como podes compreender pelo teor da análise até ao momento é garantida a minha recomendação. Não só ENDER LILLIES: Quietus of the Knights é um excelente Metroidvania, como também uma peça coesa em todas as frentes. Sinto-me um pouco picuinhas com alguns aspectos, algo que não merece devida atenção nesta análise, mas senti a falta de outras personagens com as quais interagir durante a aventura.

Seguindo esse mesmo molde, apesar da história ser satisfatória, poderia ser muito mais, bastando para isso apenas expor e simplificar mais um pouco a forma como a narrativa desenrola. Repito, no entanto, aquilo que vieste ler: ENDER LILLIES é merecedor do teu tempo e do teu dinheiro. Ponto final.

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See more @ https://squared-potato.pt/ender-lillies-quietus-of-the-knights-analise/
Written in European Portuguese
Played on Xbox Series S
Published on 16/08/2021

This game is just beautiful. I didn’t know Mili did the ost for this game the first time, and upon replay it hits so much harder. The unending somber, regretful mood reinforces the experience so much. It’s also a lot less linear than I remembered, at least after i got the ability to swim. Combat never felt dull, but i can understand why it wouldn’t appeal to some. A lot less souls-y than most other similar games, which i think is a good thing. Viking attack is still way more fun than the umbral knight, and i definitely feel bad for not utilizing any of the other spirits beyond the hammer, projectile, and both counters.
I would recommend this game to most people who like metroidvanias, though I’ve been informed that the first YouTube result for it is some review channel dogging on it lmao.

a year ago I tried ender lilies and thought combat is clunky, unresponsive and I shelved after beating the first boss without giving it a second glance, now with the sequel coming soon (early access at the moment) I wanted to get back to the first game and oh boy did I got back to it and did my first impression aged badly. I simply had to get used to the overall feel of it and after that it just flowed from start to finish. I couldnt give my attention to games for about 1-2 months but ender lilies broke it and ignited my gaming side again with me being absorbed in this visually beautiful but storywise bitter hidden gem for 3 days straight. only nitpick I do have is that (and its probably my fault) while backtracking after getting new movement upgrades I felt I wasted my time because sometimes it wasnt clear what to do or how to find the the way even if I knew which paths got open (I checked one resting site for maybe 10 times and found the secret at the end of the game lmao), probably because map isnt detailed, I had to leave 2 areas not full so no %100 :(
also mili slaps as always, even though I knew and listened to ender lilies soundtracks before playing, it got even better while experiencing the game
I was not familiar with your game binary haze, you can cook and keep cooking. ender lilies is one of a kind game and a masterpiece at that. I'll wait for ender magnolia full release

Fun combat and level design (minus the final area) and some fun boss fights (only the main ones, the side ones are a joke, and there are 2 bad main boss fights). The bosses and combat aren't as good as something like hollow knight but they are fun enough in their own right.

The overall map design is ugly, confusing, not physically possible, and not actually 2D which makes it hard to conceptualize where everything is, which is why it's a god send that there is an easy fast travel system with generous locations. It's also really nice that they let you know on the map where there are unexplored routes you haven't found yet, and color the rooms based on whether you have found all the secrets in them or not.

The game isn't punishing on death like hollow knight or dark souls despite the familiar formula with save point benches.

The metroidvania power ups are cool and enhance the exploration is neat ways, though because I disliked the map I didn't feel the need to find all the secrets.

The story will probably appeal to some people. Personally, it didn't hit me at all, but I don't have any real problems with it.

The art is gorgeous (though some people might find it generic I guess).

The music is very good too.

Overall, it's a decent game. Worth getting on sale if you want to check out a new metroidvania and have played all the masterpieces of the genre already.

So before I moved to Southern California I almost never ate fast food. Living in New York if I needed something cheap and fast in the middle of the night I'd just get a slice of pizza, or maybe Chinese food, hell maybe even a bodega sandwich. Then I moved out here and started grad school and found myself eating Taco Bell or Jack in the Box 2 or 3 nights a week because it was the only thing open at 1 in the morning. I guess it became a habit because now getting fast food and eating in my car in the parking lot next to the drive-thru is like a weekly occurrence. My go-to spots are Taco Bell, Wendy's, Popeyes, and In-N-Out, and I can't really eat at Jack in the Box anymore cause I had too many of the gnarly 2-for-a-dollar tacos and now everything from there makes me nauseous. (Psychosomatic?) When I first moved here I'd never tried Del Taco before, and my first experience I remember being like "this is awful, it tastes like nothing." The mild sauce tastes like someone literally just squeezed a tomato onto your food and the hot sauce tastes exactly the same but it makes your tongue tingle. The ingredients are all pretty fresh. Unlike Taco Bell it doesn't feel like you're eating a simulacrum of human food. It just kind of feels like someone made one of those Old El Paso taco kits, but they somehow lost the seasoning packet so they had to raid their own spice cabinet but all they had was salt and some cumin powder that expired 3 years ago. After that first experience I figured I'd never eat there ever again. But every once in a blue moon I'll find myself getting a craving for it. I eat at Del Taco probably once every 3 or 4 months now, and it's nice. I wouldn't say it's "good" or "tasty," but in some weird way it hits the spot.

ANYWAY! This was like... fine? Got to the final boss and kind of just didn't feel like finishing. But it wasn't a bad experience, just kind of a bland one. If they ever make a sequel I'll probably play it.

The controls are tight. Cool, diverse skill set. The enemy and level design are nothing special but aren't terrible. Some decently challenging boss fights. Lots of goodies to collect. A little on the linear side for a Metroidvania. The art is really well done, if not exactly my taste.

Does not tug on the heart strings or 'make ya think' as much as it seems to think it does. There's an area of the map filled with poison gas that quickly kills you if you don't have a special mask item, and it's straight up called "The Verboten Domain." That's the level of poetry we're talkin' about here lol

Also: Games have GOT to stop doing the Dark Souls "have a bunch of flavor text vaguely point toward a story rather than just telling you a story outright" thing unless they actually know how to write evocatively and have a lore that's WORTH BEING CURIOUS ABOUT!! Like idk, I'm an obsessive completionist so I picked up all of the notes or letters or engravings or what have you and what I can tell you is that this game is about princesses. Who are sort of like clones, maybe? And there was like a plague or some shit, for sure. Turned people into zombies, sort of? A king went mad at some point, definitely. I don't know who "The Ancients" are but they're definitely important. And some well meaning (?) wizards did some evil experiments or something? Whatever, who care.

✨𝒄𝒖𝒆 𝒕𝒘𝒊𝒏𝒌𝒍𝒚 𝒑𝒊𝒂𝒏𝒐 𝒎𝒖𝒔𝒊𝒄 𝒂𝒏𝒅 𝒈𝒍𝒐𝒘𝒚 𝒑𝒂𝒓𝒕𝒊𝒄𝒍𝒆 𝒆𝒇𝒇𝒆𝒄𝒕𝒔✨

This is my second time through this game. My first time through, I only obtained one ending. (the default ending), and went on with my life. I did enjoy the game back then, all the same. But going through it again? Knowing what I'm doing, getting to see every nook and cranny, and besting every obstacle to finally, FINALLY, after more than 2 years, get all of the endings?

Even though my experience with this second playthrough is very skewed with personal anecdotes, I can safely say that Ender Lilies is now my new favorite metroidvania, unfortunately dethroning Momodora: RUTM. This game has so many things coming together to weave the perfect storm, and it's truly beautiful. Musical composition, gameplay, an immaculately perfect blend of difficulty that I wouldn't change if I could (and I can, if I wanted to, another nice thing to note that the devs threw in for finishing the game.), an enthralling plot that evokes deep emotions and powerful melancholy...

It really is worth all the time that it asks of you. Check it out if you even have an inkling that it might be your style, I don't think you'll be disappointed.

All-round a very solid soulslike/metroidvania. And this game deserves those two genre labels more than most. Ender Lilies is so heavily influenced by other games in those genres that it almost comes off as some hybrid or compilation. The theming and enemy design is very Dark Souls, the story is very Hollow Knight, the boss design is very Bloodborne and the art style reminds me of Salt and Sanctuary, albeit a fair bit better. Don't get me wrong, Ender Lilies is good or great in almost every aspect, but it can feel like it isn't bringing a whole lot new to the table.

I guess the main innovation/gimmick that EL:QotK does contribute to the genre is the spirits system, where you unlock new moves by beating associated bosses / minibosses and recruiting their spirits to your side, and then equip up to six of these at each bonfire/bench/respite. I do quite like this system, it leads to a lot of build variability, but it does feel a little out of place alongside the other RPG elements (a copy of the charms system from Hollow Knight and a character levelling system that... I never worked out what it was doing). It makes combat pretty fun and varied, and some of the most satisfying I've played in the genre (at least once you get the dash, because the basic dodge kinda sucks to use).

I'd say the game probably puts the most effort into building its atmosphere; but I think it perhaps goes a little too hard too fast. The first couple of levels of this game are just so damn sad, and not really in a good way. You're thrown in at the deep end with an extremely bleak and hopeless seeming world before you have any time to get invested in anything, and the game doesn't offer any NPCs to talk to to show any faint sign of life or reason this world deserves saving. I dunno, I didn't feel this way by the end once the game had earned my engagement at a story and setting level, but this kind of thing has completely thrown me out of other Metroidvanias before now (main example being Ori and the Blind Forest), so I think the feeling of 'unearned atmosphere' I got from the start of this is worth a mention.

But yeah, other than that and its lack of originality at times, Ender Lilies is just good all-round. Beautiful art, great music (I particularly like how it dynamically changes between different rooms in an area), spot-on difficulty curve and no major glaring issues to point at. Pretty much the exact definition of a 4/5 game to me.

Ender Lilies proving, once again, that the summoner class of any fantasy setting is overpowered.

Here we have another Metroidvania, which will certainly be a turn on or turn off for you right of the bat. You like map completion? Finding every secret to make yourself stronger? Obtaining major abilities to revisit previously inaccessible areas for more power-ups? Utilizing that power to fight tough bosses? Then this, among many others, are for you.
Of course that's the absolute basics of the genre, so what does this game do to itself differentiate from others? It's primarily related to spirits. You play as a young girl who by herself can't do much, but by purifying bosses and mini-bosses she can have those souls as equippable attacks. They range from sword slashes, to ground slams, throwing knives, homing fireballs, claw swipes, poison gases, spear lunges, parries and counters, volley of arrows, autumonous minions that shoot nearby targets and so forth. You can equip up to six. Most spirits have limted uses and short cooldowns, but few have infinite usage. Honestly I could count the amount of times I ran out of a specific spirit attack on one hand. Breakable objects and red lilies replenish their usage, which are plenty common to come across. As long as you integrate one or two unlimited spirits in your roster you should be good... at least in terms of spirit management.
You kind of need as many variety of attacks as possible since this game ain't easy. I wouldn't call it brutal (with one or two exceptions) but everything here hits like a dump truck. If you're use to more easy-going Metroidvanias, do not tank hits in this game. You do that and you'll be wasting your healing prayers very quickly. This game is at it's best when you crafted a specific move list of spirits to more comfortably clear a area or boss that have been giving you shit. There's at least two or three spirits well suited for each enemy. Some enemies fly overhead, but by depleting their stun bar they will be knocked out of the sky and splat when they hit the ground. Shield enemies need to be dodged behind them during their attacks, or you could use a poison gas spirit that ignores shields, or use a spirit that leaps over their shield and hits them from behind. This game does encourage a lot of cheesing strats. Can't count the amount of times I killed a enemy through a wall by using a long-ranged attack to chip at them from safety, though thankfully the reverse doesn't happen. It's also important to note what spirits keep you in place and what ones you can use while keeping your mobility up. That's the major downside of the unlimited spirits, they require you to stop in place and attack, whereas the limited use ones (mostly) allow you to set them up and keep on the move while they do their thing. In fact, you can summon multiple spirits at once under most circumstances, perfect for when a boss is stunned and vulnerable. Even with these capabilities of your main character, I still feel one or two enemy deals a smidge too much damage. If you aren't finding enough health upgrades then some of these will just two shot you. The ones that come to mind are these enormous mounds of flesh that swipe with a tentacle slam, which I swear that hitbox is way bigger then the animation. And it doesn't help how fast and large that attack is on top of its power. Though in fairness it isn't rare for any hard game to have at least a few of those enemies that are a pain in the ass to deal with. Some might even argue that we need those obstacles that are obnoxious as hell, it creates memorable moments and keeps you on your toes. I suppose I won't forget those mounds of flesh, but I also won't ever forget my embarrassing moments from High School and I don't associate them with the best feelings to put it very mildly.
Exploration is pretty solid all around. Though to get a nitpick out of the way, the game tells you want room you're in on the map, but not it's exact location of where in the room. Say in Castlevania, you have a long vertical room about three blocks tall on the map. Castlevania will adjust your player marker on the map depending on which third of the tall room you're in. Ender Lilies doesn't do that and it can make it difficult to remember where in that specific location you have, and have not been to. Thankfully the map is otherwise very generous. It will change color depending on if there's a item there that you haven't found yet, and it will also show how many doors are in a room even when entering it the first time. It makes it pretty easy to look over your map to find places that you missed or haven't explored in full yet. Makes using a guide less of a requirement, and the few times I did use it was for last minute cleanups by the end.
In fact it was such a smooth ride that I got all 38 achievements in 15 hours. Bearing in mind I knew very little about the game going into it, I bought it on a whim during a sale, so I feel that speaks volumes of it's solid design.
That all said, I believe the visuals and setting of this game are easily it's strongest quality. It's a dark, lonely world. Everything you meet is either a hostile blight, corrupted corpses angry at past trangressions, and sorrowful souls whose regrets chain them to living world. Well "living" ain't the right word here. Every spirit you obtain has a small story of who they were in life, and the major ones even have cutscenes to show more of what the world once was before it all went down hill. Notes that litter the world go into further detail on what has happened, most of it amounting to "We done goofed, yes we sure did". In fairness, when the rain itself carries a infectious blight things are kind of fucked from the get-go. The beautiful 2D visuals really nails the tone. The designs of your spirits range from cool but damaged knights in armor, horrifying creatures with a subtle amount of cuteness, and mutated corpses hanging on by a thread of humanity. The areas you comb are big yet hostile. Corpses contain valuable items for upgrades, but they'll also mutter their last words as you approach them. Mostly their final regrets. Yet like any sorrowful-filled story, it has just enough hope for it to not be too overbearing. Also helped by the short length, since anything that you experience too often lessens the affect they have on you emotionally in time (this is not a life lesson fyi). Even in the most dire of circumstances, hope is always there, even if it takes a lot to realize it.

I enjoyed my time with this game. Maybe not enough for a replay, but I'm plenty satisfied with what I did play. With a few exceptions, I think the difficulty is a good high that requires effort but rarely crosses over to annoying. And while the tone is not something I'm interested in usually, it's no less engaging wandering around a diseased, desolate kingdom as a small defenseless girl... who would actually be defenseless if it weren't for her army of ghost friends.
Now give this game a try before another one of my agonizing High School memories comes out of nowhere to cause psychic dama- AH OH GOD!! WHY?!?

I don’t play a lot of metroidvania games, but Ender Lilies looked beautiful with its gothic fantasy style, and that along with its unique combat mechanic hooked me immediately. You see, the player character—a young girl—could only jump and evade, instead the spirits of defeated enemies were utilised as weapons. There were many to collect, offering a range of melee, ranged and magic skills that could be swapped out and tweaked. I had a good time finding out what build worked for me; I preferred ranged and magic.

It wasn’t without its frustrations as some of the maps were just horrendous to get through, and with it jumping on the souls-like train the difficulty spiked. The bosses, though, were enjoyable and fun to learn, and I consider that an important factor in games like this. Overall it was worth it, the atmosphere consistently moody and enhanced by the excellent music.

9/10.

Que história comovente!

Eu sou aquele cara que jogo pela história, porém este jogo é um ótimo metroidvania, merece mais reconhecimento.

Foi uma experiência muito afável e sofrível malditos corvos!
Gostei bastante do combate e exploração, os signos visuais e entrelinhas na temática de lillie são muito boas, elas evocam algo muito maior em seu final, resultou se a mim lágrimas.

nao teve jeito é o tal do peak.

Man, I really really wanted to like this game more than I did. I'm a sucker for the the pure priestess forced to carry the burden of the world and slowly corrupted by it plotline, and the art is quite good, but actually playing it...

The rooms are huge, like way too big, just big open spaces filled with platforming and enemies. Except the platforming is just, y'know it's fine. Your dodge being more of a face first dive (to start) makes it pretty funny, but it's not really as interesting or smooth as it's contemporaries. Then the enemies... There were so many times I'd just fight through rooms and rooms of the same or a couple of big guys who were kind of a pain and would chip away my health and then it just seemed like they never ended. Runbacks became a huge slog to a point where I was just zipping past guys unless the rooms were locked because it hardly seemed to be worth the effort it took.

Bosses had the same issue. They were mostly Okay, but at the point I gave up I was fighting a guy who zipped around but I could only hit from behind. I could only get a few hits off and his health pool was so big it was just incredibly tedious only to get hit like a truck by an attack... It didn't feel great.

I appreciate what this game is doing, but it unfortunately just feels a bit too amateurish. There are a number of issues (like lever placement and the way they blend in against the dark background) and just the sizes of the rooms, that feel like they wouldn't have been an issue if the game had had proper playtesting and had been tuned accordingly. But I can't fault the game for not having the time and budget for such things.

To speak positively about the game, I think the spirit system is really fun and I enjoyed unlocking the spirits through the minibosses.

I think there is a good and enjoyable game in here, but as it stands I've played 11 hours and I don't think I will be finishing it.

EDIT: I quit this game yesterday in a rage and came back and now I've quit it a second time. It's so frustrating because there's different s good game in here, but man these bosses can eat rocks. I made it all the way to the final boss in the end but I don't think I have the strength in me to finish it, which is agonizing because the ending is So Close, but for real FUCK that boss.

M.I.D

Metroidvania
Inconvenientemente
Dgenerico

I’ll admit, from a complete gameplay perspective, I don’t think Ender Lilies would actually be a 10/10. I still think it’s an amazing game, however I have so many personal connections to Ender Lilies and it’s genuinely one of my favorite games ever. I remember playing this game back when it first enter early access, and I absolutely adored it. I then played it again when it fully released, and I nearly completed it all, though I couldn’t beat the true final boss. After all this, with news of this game getting a proper sequel, I really wanted to replay Ender Lilies, and this time I was able to completely 100% Ender Lilies. And the more I played of Ender Lilies, the more it grew to be one of my favorite games of all time.

Now, I’m already biased here. Ender Lilies is a Metroidvania, and those are some of my favorite games ever. Ender Lilies is absolutely a fantastic Metroidvania, from its aesthetic, combat, and especially its mechanics. There’s so much that I adore in this game. Ender Lilies has one of the best quality of life additions for a Metroidvania, but at the same time I’m unsure how many Metroidvanias actually have this feature. Specifically, on the map it shows when you complete each room in an area, switching between Blue and Yellow, which is really nice. It helps direct you to know when you’re done in an area, or if you’re trying to 100% the game, to know where you need to go to further progress. Some areas are harder to find specific treasures, but when you’re able to succeed in getting them, it feels so good. There’s one that requires you to climb between 2 tall towers, and jump across the large gap between them. It was really difficult, but it felt so good to actually do.

And I absolutely adore the exploration in this game. Yet again this goes back to my bias with Metroidvanias, and how much I love them. I love getting lost in games, wandering and stumbling upon things, important or otherwise. Aside from very few games, There’s so many fun little nooks and crannies in Ender Lilies, alongside great platforming and combat challenges. The game doesn’t really point the player in a correct direction either, which is really nice. It shows you where exits to rooms are, but you still have to find your way to that spot, and even then, there isn’t even any markers telling the player where a sort of ultimate goal is. The player just finds it themselves, which I really love. With the near lack of direction that Ender Lillies has, the player is fully able to get lost and immersed in the world, which I adore.

And when it comes to the movement abilities, while they’re not completely unique, they’re of such a high quality, and there’s some really fun ideas thrown into the mix. Particularly I adore how this game works with the mechanic of dashing. At the beginning of the game, the player starts out with a rudimentary dash, though it’s purposefully not good. The player falls to the floor, and has to pick themselves back up. It’s good early game for dodging attacks, but not horizontal movement. But later in the game, the player gets an upgrade to their dash, which turns it into a more archetypical dash for a Metroidvania. And that Dash becomes one of the best movement options in the entire game. The other movement abilities are also really fun, and they’re all utilized so well in the game’s environment. Genuinely all of them are amazing.

I also really like the spirits you unlock throughout the game. Aside from the starting soul, you get them all from bosses, major, and minor. There’s so many spirits, and you can practically equip 6 at the time, though you switch between sets of 3. And there’s so much customizability with them, and you can create some really fun builds with them. Back when I played the game for the first time, I really liked using the summonable spirits, having a Summoner build. While this time around, I went primarily with melee build, focusing almost solely on the beginning spirit. I also really love how some of the spirits can help with movement, sometimes necessitating using them to find some of the rarer treasures. The spirits are so malleable and customizable, and I really love them.

The relics as well are really fun modifiers you can include as well. I will say, I think objectively the best one is the one that heals you slightly every time you damage an enemy. There’s also simple ones, such an increasing health, damage, or defense, and there’s also some other good ones, like increasing your healing usages. It’s also well balanced, by limiting how many you can equip, though increasing how many you can hold as you find certain treasure. I absolutely love it.

Combat is mostly simple, but man it’s really fun. The further you get into the game, when the enemies get noticeably harder, it becomes really fun. There was a section in the game where you climb a tower as enemies appear as you climb up, and you have to fight them all to unlock the path forward was really fun. Some enemies are annoying at times, but they all become manageable eventually, and it feels so good going back to an area where you originally had trouble and you steamroll it because of how much you’ve progressed. And I absolutely adore the bosses in this game. Most were relatively easy for me, I beat a majority of the bosses between my first to third tries. I remember when I played this game when it first released, Hoenir was absolutely the most annoying boss day one, he spawned other enemies at a ridiculous rate, though it was patched and became a more balanced boss. For me though the hardest boss was Ulv, he moved so fast, and his attacks were brutal. It probably took me 20-30 tries to actually beat him, but it felt so good to actually do so. An interesting thing though is the boss that actively prevented me from beating the game, the final boss, I beat on my complete first try, barely having any difficulty with it. It honestly was mind blowing to me for that to occur, but it feels so good to have that happen, it feels like I’ve improved so much between then and now.

And I can’t ignore Ender Lilies’ music. This game introduced me to one of my favorite bands of all time, because that band worked on the game’s music. Mili is an amazing group, and all of the music that they made for the game showcases that. I’ll admit as well, the credits music made me tear up, after everything that I’ve experienced within and around Ender Lilies, hearing that end credits music really impacted me, and cemented my love of this game.

Yet again, I can’t guarantee that you would have the same love for Ender Lilies that I do. There’s so many personal experiences that connect me to Ender Lilies that I know other people wont share. However to me that is an important factor on the love of a game, those connections, the impacts that a game have. And because of that, Ender Lilies is downright one of my favorite games of all time, even if you don’t love it as much as I do, please give this game a chance. It may not be a masterpiece for you, but it is a masterpiece for me.

What a wonderful journey; I'd recommend this game to anyone really, even if you don't like Metroidvanias (although it's an excellent one). The art and music are breathtaking, every single upgrade is fun and gives you plenty of secrets to find. The story is bittersweet and is sprinkled throughout the world, a lot of it is interesting but it does require piecing it together through notes and certain dialogue- Similar to another dark fantasy game which I don't think I need to name right now. All in all, Ender Lillies is a gorgeous game that everyone should experience