I remember being blown away by the 2024 reveal trailer ownernew game from hyper light drifter Developer Heart Machine. The trailer features a striking art design, where an animated 2D character explores and battles in a side-scrolling environment with gorgeous 3D backgrounds, and it’s set to moody, powerful music. The final game, which came out this month, wasn’t as awesome as the early trailer seemed, and I almost gave up on it – but I’m really glad I saw it to the end.
In ownerYou play as a girl named Luca who is possessed by Reham, a demon from another world. After a disaster strikes, Rehm saves Luca’s life by making legs for him – but from then on, Luca acts as a host for Rem, meaning they can talk to each other all the time and occasionally see each other’s memories. There is a controversial relationship between the two. they fight ContinuousDue to which sometimes it became difficult for me to take care of them. But over the course of the game, their relationship evolves as they begin to understand more about each other and the world they come from.
Heart Machine Description owner as a “fast paced action side scroller”, but it is a Metroid– Or Castlevania-Style game through and through. You’ll explore an interconnected world with different areas, spend a lot of time looking at the map to find the next path to explore, and collect helpful traversal upgrades like Wall Runes to help you reach new areas. Very quickly, you’ll pick up a whip, and it serves double duty as an exploration tool for crossing large gaps and a major weapon in combat.
Battles are inspired by platform fighters like super smash brosWhich means they’re fast-paced and crisp, and you’ll take on enemies with weapons inspired by regular things you have around your house. My usual strategy involved attacking enemies with a large baseball bat, stunning them with electrical blasts from a cellphone to create space, and throwing monstrous silverware across the room to hit distant targets. Advocacy is also an important part of the fight.
Image: Devolver Digital
However, initially, owner Was Very Difficult. Regular enemies hit hard, and if you lose focus for just a second or get caught in an unlucky combination, you can die without having time to react. dying sends you back owner equal to dark Souls Light a bonfire, but trips back to where you died can be long, difficult, and fraught with danger. (a is also used in the game spirits-Like the flask system, you swap flasks for painkillers to recover health.)
Usually, I like this kind of challenge, but something about ownerThe level and enemy design often made the early game more frustrating than fun for me. I got it too Very After the first few hours I got lost, searching the map excessively as I couldn’t figure out how to get past some mysterious walls with glowing cracks. I considered quitting the game forever.
However, after finally learning how to open those walls (use the whip!), getting some health and painkiller upgrades, and seeing more nuance in Luca and Rem’s relationship, I started to enjoy the game more. I finally settled in satisfaction Metroid Exploring a new area, finding a new upgrade, using it to reach the next boss, getting the next MacGuffin and then doing it all again in the next area.
owner It didn’t capture me the way I hoped it might. Based on my initial experiences, this game appeared to be laboratory-cooked to my exact tastes. I just needed to have some patience. The game culminates in a final level that really tested my skills and set up a fantastic battlefield for the final boss. As soon as I watched the credits roll, I realized that it finally evoked some of the emotions I felt watching the game’s first trailer.
owner Now available on PC and PS5.