Got drawn in by a friend sharing its music, stayed for Sybil. She is honest to god transition goals. I am very normal about this character. Oh, and the satisfying platforming is cool too, I guess. Pseudoregalia’s main draw is definitely its take on a 3D metroidvania, as well as having N64/PS1-esque graphics. As someone who grew up in that era and still prefers to play those kinds of games, I felt right at home. The atmosphere is on-point the whole way through, what with the relatively low render distance, sound design, and classic chiptune music. It oozes with passion. I could gush over the sound design alone for quite a long time.
There is a plethora of movement abilities to find and make use of, and the game gives you just enough time to experiment with one before you come across another. The wall kick is an especially great expression of skill, being the most widely applicable move in your kit. I had a ton of fun messing around with that alone. Most of the time, you aren’t required to have specific techniques in order to pass obstacles, resulting in many moments where it seems like you’re sequence-breaking if you’re determined enough. The game never says you are or aren’t, which is just genius design. I haven’t said the word “schmovement” yet, which is par for the course. Game’s got schmovement, alright. Lots of it. And it’s incredibly fun.
I was disappointed by the combat. If you thought you’d have to make clever use of your movement options to defeat enemies and the (two) bosses, think again. It almost solely consists of circling around them, pressing the same button. Even the final boss wasn’t that spectacular of an experience; one really has to wonder why it wasn’t a platforming gauntlet or something. As fun as they were to find, health upgrades - most upgrades, really - felt ultimately pointless. There’s a system in place where if you keep your magic maxed and don’t heal, your range and/or damage is increased, but I wasn’t ever challenged in the first place to bother giving that mechanic any deep thought. I will say, losing your weapon for the first time is quite a shocker. The lackluster combat didn’t detract much from my enjoyment as much as it usually would, though.
As for the plot, there essentially is none. It’s mostly an implied one, with most of it coming from the beginning and end. Due to that, the ending felt like a wet fart. I’m used to games that don’t tell me much at all, but there wasn’t much payoff for the questions I was asking myself. There is such a great foundation here with the dream setting. So many neat areas and little cryptic goat dudes to wonder about. I wish more woulda been done with it. Bummer.
Many others rue the lack of a map, but I didn’t find it much of a bother. I’m the kind of sociopath that enjoys getting lost and forming my own mental maps. I can understand the grievances, however I think it’s more due to each room’s doorway being blocked by a black haze until you approach it, making it that much more difficult to get your bearings when you inevitably get lost. As of writing, a map hasn’t been implemented yet, and to be honest, I assume it’d be a giant pain in the ass, so I can’t exactly blame the developer for not including one. I believe if the game had more landmarks or vantage points ala Dark Souls which, for the record, doesn’t have a map and also features an interconnected world, the problem would be remedied. I’d be lying if I said I wasn’t anticipating a “I can see Firelink Shrine from X location” moment or two.
As things stand, Pseudoregalia was very much worth the $6 (!!!) and two short evenings it took to finish. I spent most of this picking apart its faults, so the fact that I give it a recommendation should speak of its successes at combining both a 3D metroidvania and a 3D platformer, which is an exceeding rarity.
There is a plethora of movement abilities to find and make use of, and the game gives you just enough time to experiment with one before you come across another. The wall kick is an especially great expression of skill, being the most widely applicable move in your kit. I had a ton of fun messing around with that alone. Most of the time, you aren’t required to have specific techniques in order to pass obstacles, resulting in many moments where it seems like you’re sequence-breaking if you’re determined enough. The game never says you are or aren’t, which is just genius design. I haven’t said the word “schmovement” yet, which is par for the course. Game’s got schmovement, alright. Lots of it. And it’s incredibly fun.
I was disappointed by the combat. If you thought you’d have to make clever use of your movement options to defeat enemies and the (two) bosses, think again. It almost solely consists of circling around them, pressing the same button. Even the final boss wasn’t that spectacular of an experience; one really has to wonder why it wasn’t a platforming gauntlet or something. As fun as they were to find, health upgrades - most upgrades, really - felt ultimately pointless. There’s a system in place where if you keep your magic maxed and don’t heal, your range and/or damage is increased, but I wasn’t ever challenged in the first place to bother giving that mechanic any deep thought. I will say, losing your weapon for the first time is quite a shocker. The lackluster combat didn’t detract much from my enjoyment as much as it usually would, though.
As for the plot, there essentially is none. It’s mostly an implied one, with most of it coming from the beginning and end. Due to that, the ending felt like a wet fart. I’m used to games that don’t tell me much at all, but there wasn’t much payoff for the questions I was asking myself. There is such a great foundation here with the dream setting. So many neat areas and little cryptic goat dudes to wonder about. I wish more woulda been done with it. Bummer.
Many others rue the lack of a map, but I didn’t find it much of a bother. I’m the kind of sociopath that enjoys getting lost and forming my own mental maps. I can understand the grievances, however I think it’s more due to each room’s doorway being blocked by a black haze until you approach it, making it that much more difficult to get your bearings when you inevitably get lost. As of writing, a map hasn’t been implemented yet, and to be honest, I assume it’d be a giant pain in the ass, so I can’t exactly blame the developer for not including one. I believe if the game had more landmarks or vantage points ala Dark Souls which, for the record, doesn’t have a map and also features an interconnected world, the problem would be remedied. I’d be lying if I said I wasn’t anticipating a “I can see Firelink Shrine from X location” moment or two.
As things stand, Pseudoregalia was very much worth the $6 (!!!) and two short evenings it took to finish. I spent most of this picking apart its faults, so the fact that I give it a recommendation should speak of its successes at combining both a 3D metroidvania and a 3D platformer, which is an exceeding rarity.