Just because Solar Ash could have been better, doesn't mean that it's not great.
At its core, Solar Ash is a movement based Shadow of the Colossus, that somehow looks even better. It even has the same type of twist, (although Solar Ash's ending, which is so easily the best part of the game, does enough different from SotC to appreciate them equally and separately). Of course, while there are benefits to being similar to such a beloved game, it's hard to not immediately draw comparisons between the two.
On the one hand, when it's at its best, Solar Ash is as fun any really any game can get. Most of the boss fights reach this height, with the final pair being just unbelievably good, as you just zip all around with a really great move set. Visually too, this game is so beautiful, with the stunning colors and terrific sequences being a constant.
Unfortunately, this game does struggle in one key compartment, which is its attempt to recreate 'Team Ico'-esque simplicity. The game makes the decision to not really explain most of its concepts, something that causes a bit of confusion as you just go around hitting stuff until something happens, but something that does increase immersion. The problem with this though, is that this immersion is immediately destroyed by the inherent 'gamey' ness of this game, with health upgrades and glowing weak points and everything. At parts of Solar Ash, it feels like you get the worst of both worlds, as you struggle to figure out what to do, while also feeling like there's a layer in between you and the story.
Speaking of which, the story is... overall fine. There is a ton of dialogue, (especially if you go for the side quest stuff,) all of which having pretty rough voice acting. There are a couple of twists at the end that I did really enjoy though, and it's the type of story where you can kind of forget about the boring first 90% because the ending is just that solid. Definitely a moral at the end that'll rumble around your brain for a bit.
Overall, Solar Ash is a weird game to talk about, as there are so many parts of it that are truly fantastic, but you still unfortunately spend about half your time either looking for the next fun bit, or reading mountains of dialogue. Still, if you can sit through some somewhat boring stuff, and you allow yourself to struggle while learning the game's rhythm, there's a really good core here.
7/10
Game #27 of 2024, May 10th
At its core, Solar Ash is a movement based Shadow of the Colossus, that somehow looks even better. It even has the same type of twist, (although Solar Ash's ending, which is so easily the best part of the game, does enough different from SotC to appreciate them equally and separately). Of course, while there are benefits to being similar to such a beloved game, it's hard to not immediately draw comparisons between the two.
On the one hand, when it's at its best, Solar Ash is as fun any really any game can get. Most of the boss fights reach this height, with the final pair being just unbelievably good, as you just zip all around with a really great move set. Visually too, this game is so beautiful, with the stunning colors and terrific sequences being a constant.
Unfortunately, this game does struggle in one key compartment, which is its attempt to recreate 'Team Ico'-esque simplicity. The game makes the decision to not really explain most of its concepts, something that causes a bit of confusion as you just go around hitting stuff until something happens, but something that does increase immersion. The problem with this though, is that this immersion is immediately destroyed by the inherent 'gamey' ness of this game, with health upgrades and glowing weak points and everything. At parts of Solar Ash, it feels like you get the worst of both worlds, as you struggle to figure out what to do, while also feeling like there's a layer in between you and the story.
Speaking of which, the story is... overall fine. There is a ton of dialogue, (especially if you go for the side quest stuff,) all of which having pretty rough voice acting. There are a couple of twists at the end that I did really enjoy though, and it's the type of story where you can kind of forget about the boring first 90% because the ending is just that solid. Definitely a moral at the end that'll rumble around your brain for a bit.
Overall, Solar Ash is a weird game to talk about, as there are so many parts of it that are truly fantastic, but you still unfortunately spend about half your time either looking for the next fun bit, or reading mountains of dialogue. Still, if you can sit through some somewhat boring stuff, and you allow yourself to struggle while learning the game's rhythm, there's a really good core here.
7/10
Game #27 of 2024, May 10th