Unfortunately, the best way I can describe Ghost Song is 'aggressively average."
The game has some very nice ambiance and atmosphere to it, thanks to some top notch sound design. Satisfying clanks of metal hitting the floor as Deadsuit walks, the churning life in the backgrounds of the more biological areas, etc. From quiet to noisy to everything inbetween, the soundscape sells each area rather well.
But alas, the gameplay of Ghost Song isn't anything particularly special. There are plenty of secrets to find, behind breakable walls and all the usual affair, but the map is... shockingly uninspired. It's not bad per say, but it's everything you've seen before and more, with nothing especially notable about the execution.
I'm not against limited fast travel, as I think making things too convenient for the player in regards to speeding across the map in a metroidvania can break the players relationship with the world, but in Ghost Song, not only is fast travel limited to an incredible extreme, there are parts where it straight up turns off. Every time you accomplish one of the main goals of the game, you have to laboriously crawl back to the surface in a death stranding esque delivery job, without much or anything having changed to make the journey any more interesting. It's a strange addition of extra busywork that the game didn't feel like it needed.
Storywise... it's one of those games you have to go digging through lore notes and finding obscure flags and then have to piece together things yourself. It's not bad, and it lends to the sombering atmosphere of the game and has a few interesting ideas, but not worth staying for.
Overall, it's a nice looking game with some solid atmosphere throughout, accompanied by the most average metroidvania loop of all time. I couldn't finish it, but maybe I'll get the urge one day.
The game has some very nice ambiance and atmosphere to it, thanks to some top notch sound design. Satisfying clanks of metal hitting the floor as Deadsuit walks, the churning life in the backgrounds of the more biological areas, etc. From quiet to noisy to everything inbetween, the soundscape sells each area rather well.
But alas, the gameplay of Ghost Song isn't anything particularly special. There are plenty of secrets to find, behind breakable walls and all the usual affair, but the map is... shockingly uninspired. It's not bad per say, but it's everything you've seen before and more, with nothing especially notable about the execution.
I'm not against limited fast travel, as I think making things too convenient for the player in regards to speeding across the map in a metroidvania can break the players relationship with the world, but in Ghost Song, not only is fast travel limited to an incredible extreme, there are parts where it straight up turns off. Every time you accomplish one of the main goals of the game, you have to laboriously crawl back to the surface in a death stranding esque delivery job, without much or anything having changed to make the journey any more interesting. It's a strange addition of extra busywork that the game didn't feel like it needed.
Storywise... it's one of those games you have to go digging through lore notes and finding obscure flags and then have to piece together things yourself. It's not bad, and it lends to the sombering atmosphere of the game and has a few interesting ideas, but not worth staying for.
Overall, it's a nice looking game with some solid atmosphere throughout, accompanied by the most average metroidvania loop of all time. I couldn't finish it, but maybe I'll get the urge one day.