I think this game officially has the longest title of any game I've ever beaten. This is a Metroidvania heavily inspired by Castlevania: Symphony of the Night. Let me stop and re-emphasize that. This game is almost a blatant rip off of SotN, to the point where I think Konami could take legal action. The character animations, level design, even the spritework and physics just screams SotN. That's not necessarily a bad thing, as SotN is a great game and it takes some of the best things from it. In addition to the traditional Metriodvania style, this game also has an Ikaruga-style immunity mechanic, where at the press of a button you can switch between fire and wind, which makes you invulnerable to that type of attack. The game is very fluid and controls very well. Where it loses points is the plot. I have honestly no idea what is going on in this game. None. Apparently this is part of some long running Japanese franchise which ranges into all sorts of media. The game just assumes you're familiar with all of that and drops you right into it. Frankly, from what I could make out this plot is not particularly complex; you're basically trapped in a dream running into various people the player character knows. All of the writing is basically the same, you entire a room, she goes "Oh my god , you're here too?", and then they proceed to fight if evil or give vague advice and vanish if good. Repeat ad nauseam. The upgrades also aren't as good as SotN. They actually give you lots of stuff early on, but later in the game the main way they prevent progression is simply a colored door where you need to find the right colored switch to open. Compare this to getting a new ability which grants access to new areas in most Metroidvanias, and it can be much less exciting.

Reviewed on Jan 10, 2023


Comments