WrestleQuest does get the aesthetic down excellently, but the combat is fairly slow at times, as is the movement speed. Dungeons can be a slog with how many enemies there are and how large they are. The story does cut away from a group entirely too often, which drags the game down a bit.

Despite that, when the game nails what it's trying to do with its inspiration, it does it mostly well. But it comes at the cost of a very slow and disjointed narrative.

One thing that should have been taught a little better was what hype offers in terms of combat benefits. We get a short explainer, and no info in the Wrestlepedia.

There are also an extensive number of bugs plaguing this game, such as slowdown, incorrect information on menu screens, and in two cases in a short period of time, equipment just vanishing off of one of my characters. The game needs way more fixes than it's received.

In addition, there are several unnecessary required mini-games that really slow down the action and control poorly.

I love wrestling, I've been a fan since I was a little kid, I watch weekly, I keep up with independent/international wrestling and I have a close to encyclopedic knowledge when it comes to wrestling... EXCEPT for the "Golden Era" of wrestling, which is exactly the market that this game is pandering to. (It was always way too cartoony for me idk)

With all of that being said, this game has SO much promise and looks so interesting, but the actual combat is so slow and boring. This seriously bums me out because I have played for like 4/5 hours and I was looking forward to unlocking all of the cool summons and I have absolutely no interest in continuing this. I'm still happy that I am supporting the development of stuff like this, but I really hope that they make a sequel to this game that really refines the combat and fingers crossed focusing on a different era of the industry. (That part is a fever dream given that a lot of the people are tied up in WWE Legends contracts.)

This is one of the most disappointing games I've ever played.

When I heard there was a retro turn-based RPG where everyone was wrestlers, I was so excited. But, I somehow missed that they were also toys, a whole aesthetic that really just didn't hit with me. But, that would have been fine if the game was fun to play. And, it's not. It's so meandering, it introduces so many strange controls and elements just for one mission, and it's just frustrating. Not to mention that it's buggy as hell and crashes all the damn time. It's like they had a million ideas, and stuck them all in this game as some sort of grand statement, instead of actually making a game that's fun. I should have loved this, by the end I have a rag-tag group of heroes flying around on an airship, giving me big Final Fantasy 6 vibes, but it was just a joyless slog that I was thrilled to be over with.

A very short and not very pleasant soulslike game, that has an atmosphere, but not much else.

The combat system is flashy, but not very good, the bosses are cheap, and the hitboxes, yet again, are not very good.

A meh experience.

I am quite a big enjoyer of the genre of media that is "The wild will just fucking kill you". Especially when it comes to the cold stuff - there's a combination of comforting and creepy about tucking in bed with a cup of hot chocolate and something like Jack London's To Build A Fire.

And the Red Lantern is like halfway there. The story of the dumbest person of all time going out into the wilderness comically underprepared and succumbing to the elements and wildlife on the way to a cabin with her dogs. It is, on paper, a great framework for a little game like this as you live out the mistakes and choices that lead to your death.

Combined with minor roguelike elements with resource gathering, hunger meters and semi-random events, it kinda works. It's a very simple game system no doubt, and is mostly ancilliary to the vibes and doggie fun, but it holds up it's end of the bargain.

But the vibes themselves are a bit off. The Red Lantern is remarkably muddled when it comes to it's messaging and what it's trying to make a point out of. Many parts of it are cautionary, with our unamed protagonist getting injured, starving to death, having her dogs die, falling into ice, and all manner of other nasty things - but it's also clearly aspirational, having fun with her dogs, going to the cutest little cabin ever put to screen, and having a tone thats awfully light a lot of the time.

It really doesnt help that this might be, clearly unintentionally, one of the most annoying protagonists i've ever dealt with a game - legitimately Alex YIIK levels of frustrating without even YIIK's level of awareness and introspection. She's a clearly very privedged californian, who has been legitimately given everything she needs to live out in the Alaskan wilderness, who goes with her and her city dog, and 4 other poor dogs she adopts to go on a voyage that will most likely get them killed. She then murder a bunch of wildlife and basically tramples all over this beautiful bit of the pacific northwest. And despite never stopping talking, basically only one or two lines in the entire game will she admit she's a bit out of her depth - let alone that she's put 5 previously content dogs in mortal peril or killed like 5 moose today. And the game's tone never really addresses it.

I get the aspiration to live out in the wild. I dream of it sometimes. Looking out at woods i sometimes think of building myself a hut, living off the land, doing a bit of hunting and disconnecting from society. I imagine a lot of people do. And in many ways I wish i could do what this person could. But the callous disregard for nature and those she puts at risk in doing so makes her throuroughy unsympathetic when the game clearly isnt going for that and she's rewarded with a bunch of extremely cute puppies and the cutest shack, and her violent deaths are contextualised as nightmares.

It's a bit insidious, really. The Devs clearly see her as aspirational and relatable, but she's a horrible person who's in way over their head and worst of all, endangers others. And then gets rewarded for it at the end.

I feel sorry that Ashly Burch continually gets given the most annoying roles that seem to exist in gaming. Tiny Tina, Aloy and now this, fuck me.

There is plenty to like here, it's pretty, the dogs are cute and the minor roguelike/choose your own adventure stuff works well, but the framing is just so off. There's plenty of ways the devs could have put together a similar setup without making the whole thing so muddled. The protagonist being more forced into this situation rather than seeking it out alone would go a long way, or just having some introspection.

Because as it is this tonal weirdness not only ruins the game as the chracter is so integral, but also makes me questions the beliefs and values of the developer who made it. Which is a really bad conclusion for me to be coming out of a game that seems to mostly want me to think "wow, cute dogs".

WIKTOBER 2023 Log #001 - Stasis: BONE TOTEM
I am so fucking down with this game its unreal.
As far as point and click games go its good, great even. The gimmick is having a three person party where you can swap control over any member at any time, as well as sharing each item between each member. The puzzles themselves are pretty reasonable, especially compared to other adventure games. Things generally make sense and if you read PDA's/logs, and the flavor text each character has for any particular item, then you won't get stuck often. So mechanically the game is solid. But the story, setting, and characters are what elevate it.
This is peak sci-fi horror. The only thing that comes to mind that tops it is Soma, and that's saying a lot. The actual timeline of events is confusing as hell, but thankfully the side characters, all equally interesting to listen to, fill in the gaps.
The dynamic between the three playable characters is great. Husband, wife, and their deceased daughter's animatronic AI teddy bear make a great combo.
Oh yeah, Moses. I could write this whole review on how much I love Moses. He is the cleverest little bear. The relationship between him and one of the side characters that show up is actually very touching. Then there's Calaban. Who/what he is is kind of a spoiler, but what I can say is that he's an aggravating little cunt in the best way possible.
Bone Totem is another entry in the nuthutcore genre and holy shit does it come out swinging. Can't wait to see what this studio produces next.

My Moses. My sweet Moses.