Lopes_Doria
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Lopes_Doria
completed
The Messenger
DISCLAIMER:
This review is entirely for my own sake. You are welcome to read it but it may or may not contain spoilers for the whole game.
NOTE: The playtime includes the Picnic Panic DLC. I should also mention I played this after finishing Sea of Stars, which might affect my understanding and enjoyment of the story, world and lore.
I went in expecting a basic side-scrolling platformer. I got exactly what I expected, PLUS a completely unexpected whole metroidvania on top.
Starting with the simple levels, the game felt quite basic. Cloudstepping was interesting and fun, the dialogue quips with the bosses were entertaining; but what stood out the most was the Shopkeeper, very funny but also deep and interesting stories (it was also curious to find elements of those stories in the overworld)
I knew there was going to be a way to go back to old levels because I kept seeing secrets that I couldn't reach with my current skills, so once I got to the new artstyle I assumed I would be able to repeat levels with all skills unlocked. Imagine my surprise when the game kept going until it seemed to reach an ending by revealing the loop.
I was even more surprised when the game revealed it's real twist by turning the game into a metroidvania. Making everything an interconnected map with collectibles and with a different level layout for both artstyles.
Finding collectibles was fun, but the reward for getting them felt underwhelming. As did most of the upgrades, making currency feel relatively useless.
The story was slightly deeper than it seemed in the first chapter, but still quite simple. It doesn't really take itself too seriously. I did, however, very much enjoy the parallels with Sea of Stars. Hearing returning tracks, seeing familiar enemies and particularly re-exploring the Sunken Shrine andacquiring its Music Note. It was nice to see where all the clues were planted for the sequel.
Speaking of unserious, the DLC is as silly as it can be. It's still as fun as the base game, plus more minigames (funnily enough, this game is the first time I learned how punch-out actually works) and the reward for getting all DLC collectibles is a bit more interesting, or at least it would be if I wanted to play New Game +.
Overall, this game is not the best platformer, nor is it the greatest metroidvania, but it is fun enough and along with the humor it is most definitely enjoyable and recommended.
This review is entirely for my own sake. You are welcome to read it but it may or may not contain spoilers for the whole game.
NOTE: The playtime includes the Picnic Panic DLC. I should also mention I played this after finishing Sea of Stars, which might affect my understanding and enjoyment of the story, world and lore.
I went in expecting a basic side-scrolling platformer. I got exactly what I expected, PLUS a completely unexpected whole metroidvania on top.
Starting with the simple levels, the game felt quite basic. Cloudstepping was interesting and fun, the dialogue quips with the bosses were entertaining; but what stood out the most was the Shopkeeper, very funny but also deep and interesting stories (it was also curious to find elements of those stories in the overworld)
I knew there was going to be a way to go back to old levels because I kept seeing secrets that I couldn't reach with my current skills, so once I got to the new artstyle I assumed I would be able to repeat levels with all skills unlocked. Imagine my surprise when the game kept going until it seemed to reach an ending by revealing the loop.
I was even more surprised when the game revealed it's real twist by turning the game into a metroidvania. Making everything an interconnected map with collectibles and with a different level layout for both artstyles.
Finding collectibles was fun, but the reward for getting them felt underwhelming. As did most of the upgrades, making currency feel relatively useless.
The story was slightly deeper than it seemed in the first chapter, but still quite simple. It doesn't really take itself too seriously. I did, however, very much enjoy the parallels with Sea of Stars. Hearing returning tracks, seeing familiar enemies and particularly re-exploring the Sunken Shrine andacquiring its Music Note. It was nice to see where all the clues were planted for the sequel.
Speaking of unserious, the DLC is as silly as it can be. It's still as fun as the base game, plus more minigames (funnily enough, this game is the first time I learned how punch-out actually works) and the reward for getting all DLC collectibles is a bit more interesting, or at least it would be if I wanted to play New Game +.
Overall, this game is not the best platformer, nor is it the greatest metroidvania, but it is fun enough and along with the humor it is most definitely enjoyable and recommended.
11 days ago