Definitely one of my new favorite indies. After a decade of retro throwbacks that either misunderstand their source material or try to 'be better 'as if their identity is something to be ashamed of, it was really refreshing to play something that is literally just a new Wonder Boy game with some Zelda II flair. Tight gameplay, great dungeon items and progression - it gets the exact kind of snappiness and brevity that defines this era of games.
The one knock against it is that the art looks kinda shovelware-ish at first glance, and the music is really underwhelming. I wouldn't say it 'lacks' an identity, but in its attempt to perfectly emulate the NES/SMS style, it doesn't try to do anything insanely different. It's an extremely 'safe' game - which isn't at all a bad thing in this case, luckily, but something that keeps it from having the same emotional weight as other games in the genre.
The one knock against it is that the art looks kinda shovelware-ish at first glance, and the music is really underwhelming. I wouldn't say it 'lacks' an identity, but in its attempt to perfectly emulate the NES/SMS style, it doesn't try to do anything insanely different. It's an extremely 'safe' game - which isn't at all a bad thing in this case, luckily, but something that keeps it from having the same emotional weight as other games in the genre.