When I first tried playing this game, I was enjoying it for a good while, but then got frustrated at both the difficulty and the lack of guidance for where to go. In hindsight, I think I was playing the game with the wrong mindset, because I actually really enjoyed it this time. However, it is far from the masterpiece people prop it up as.
Boss fights, for the most part, are really good. I do think this game does have a bit of a problem here with quantity over quality. There are a ton of bosses, but I feel like very few of them are all that memorable, and the ones that are tend to be memorable for the wrong reasons. Lost Kin and The Radiance are definite examples of this. Seriously, fuck that Radiance fight, goddamn.
Exploration is definitely this game's strongest aspect. While there is a little too much gray, I did enjoy traveling through all the different environments and seeing what kind of weird enemies I'd have to face. Big weak point of the game here is that movement just kind of sucks. After Metroid Dread, with how fluid and fast paced its movement is, it's hard to play a metroidvania like this that feels so slow. Especially considering how massive the world is. I feel like there should have been more fast travel locations to compensate for the map size, or at least stag stations placed in a more central location.
The Dark Souls elements are a mixed bag for me. While I get that they're there to make the game more difficult and instill a certain tone, I can't say I particularly enjoy them. Walk backs to bosses after dying were always one thing about the Souls games that filtered me and prevented me from enjoying those games. It's not as bad here, but it still feels like pure tedium more than anything. The shade mechanic also becomes pointless once you don't need money anymore.
I do mostly enjoy the charm system, and the different builds you can make is neat. I do think some charms should have just been straight up permanent upgrades to make up for the lack of upgrades there are in the game. Like why the fuck is Wayward Compass a charm and not just a map upgrade? Legitimately what were they thinking?
I do want to mention that White Palace level. I know it's optional, but Jesus Christ this part sucks ass. It's a monumental difficulty spike where it suddenly turns into Super Meat Boy. And all you get for doing it is the chance to fight that Radiance boss that isn't fun at all. Genuinely awful.
Overall though, yeah it's a pretty good metroidvania game that is a bit overhyped. Beautiful art and music, mostly fun combat and bosses, and a massive world to explore. Not even close to the best metroidvania, but definitely up there.
Boss fights, for the most part, are really good. I do think this game does have a bit of a problem here with quantity over quality. There are a ton of bosses, but I feel like very few of them are all that memorable, and the ones that are tend to be memorable for the wrong reasons. Lost Kin and The Radiance are definite examples of this. Seriously, fuck that Radiance fight, goddamn.
Exploration is definitely this game's strongest aspect. While there is a little too much gray, I did enjoy traveling through all the different environments and seeing what kind of weird enemies I'd have to face. Big weak point of the game here is that movement just kind of sucks. After Metroid Dread, with how fluid and fast paced its movement is, it's hard to play a metroidvania like this that feels so slow. Especially considering how massive the world is. I feel like there should have been more fast travel locations to compensate for the map size, or at least stag stations placed in a more central location.
The Dark Souls elements are a mixed bag for me. While I get that they're there to make the game more difficult and instill a certain tone, I can't say I particularly enjoy them. Walk backs to bosses after dying were always one thing about the Souls games that filtered me and prevented me from enjoying those games. It's not as bad here, but it still feels like pure tedium more than anything. The shade mechanic also becomes pointless once you don't need money anymore.
I do mostly enjoy the charm system, and the different builds you can make is neat. I do think some charms should have just been straight up permanent upgrades to make up for the lack of upgrades there are in the game. Like why the fuck is Wayward Compass a charm and not just a map upgrade? Legitimately what were they thinking?
I do want to mention that White Palace level. I know it's optional, but Jesus Christ this part sucks ass. It's a monumental difficulty spike where it suddenly turns into Super Meat Boy. And all you get for doing it is the chance to fight that Radiance boss that isn't fun at all. Genuinely awful.
Overall though, yeah it's a pretty good metroidvania game that is a bit overhyped. Beautiful art and music, mostly fun combat and bosses, and a massive world to explore. Not even close to the best metroidvania, but definitely up there.