I really love this game. The visuals, the music, the concept and ideas, but I cannot deny its flaws.
First off, it was clearly designed as a next gen game. The PS4 version had load times of about 15 seconds. I can't even imagine how the Switch ran, but when I eventually got a PS5 and downloaded the PS5 version of the game, loadtimes were maybe 3 seconds. Same for my friend's gaming PC. I don't know what happened during development but that definitely left a stain on the game's reputation.
Regardless, I persisted. I fell in love with the game from a single trailer. I bought it digitally because I couldn't wait to play it. Then I bought a PS4 copy for my collection. Then bought the PS5 special edition used on Mercari. I love the visuals, I think splitting the screen between past, present, and future was an awesome idea that can only really be done in the medium of a video game. The combat was serviceable, but I wasn't a fan of the random encounters. They would have been tolerable if the loadtimes weren't awful. Also, I noticed the encounter rate wasn't consistent, which didn't help when there were 2 difficulty spikes during the relatively easy playthrough and suddenly I needed to grind.
The ending was weird to say the least. It should have been so much more emotional than it actually was, but only one character really had an appropriate reaction. In fact, the BAD ending was actually so much more interesting and could be its own game.
This is my favorite indie game. It will always hold a special place in my heart, but I cannot recommend it to anyone who isn't playing on a next gen platform. I might replay it on PS5 someday to see if my love still holds up.
First off, it was clearly designed as a next gen game. The PS4 version had load times of about 15 seconds. I can't even imagine how the Switch ran, but when I eventually got a PS5 and downloaded the PS5 version of the game, loadtimes were maybe 3 seconds. Same for my friend's gaming PC. I don't know what happened during development but that definitely left a stain on the game's reputation.
Regardless, I persisted. I fell in love with the game from a single trailer. I bought it digitally because I couldn't wait to play it. Then I bought a PS4 copy for my collection. Then bought the PS5 special edition used on Mercari. I love the visuals, I think splitting the screen between past, present, and future was an awesome idea that can only really be done in the medium of a video game. The combat was serviceable, but I wasn't a fan of the random encounters. They would have been tolerable if the loadtimes weren't awful. Also, I noticed the encounter rate wasn't consistent, which didn't help when there were 2 difficulty spikes during the relatively easy playthrough and suddenly I needed to grind.
The ending was weird to say the least. It should have been so much more emotional than it actually was, but only one character really had an appropriate reaction. In fact, the BAD ending was actually so much more interesting and could be its own game.
This is my favorite indie game. It will always hold a special place in my heart, but I cannot recommend it to anyone who isn't playing on a next gen platform. I might replay it on PS5 someday to see if my love still holds up.