Well, I'll start by saying that the game's name isn't the most creative. A Souls-like game with the title "Souls Like".
Watching the trailer, you can see the game's basic mechanics, the gameplay loop, but I feel that in the cinematic parts, many parts are blurred.
The game starts straight to the point. No menu, no pause menu, no possibility to adjust settings.
The background music, besides being short, doesn't have a smooth transition between songs, which is reminiscent of those old Flash games.
There is absolutely no controller compatibility. This becomes a negative point that could be easily resolved.
The art direction varies towards Synty's low-poly assets, which isn't a negative thing, as for a solo developer, it ends up being a viable option to follow.
The lighting is interesting because it mixes the graphic patterns of Unreal Engine with Synty models, which brings an interesting atmosphere to the game.
Unfortunately, there's no key mapping, so I reckon the only option here is to guess the keys.CORRECTION: For some reason, when walking forward, the game's key mappings are displayed on the screen, with a horrible PNG of an Xbox controller, even though the game isn't compatible with the controller. Or at least it doesn't seem to be, considering I tried connecting my controller via both Bluetooth and USB, and it doesn't seem to want to work with this game, even though it's plugged in and working.
The HUD isn't very pleasant as it doesn't match the planned atmosphere. Especially the health and stamina bars.
The footstep sounds are strange, and most of the sounds don't fit the environment.
The walking animations are good, but there's no possibility of using sprint.
For some reason, it's possible to roll while standing still.
When using the sword, it's possible to attack normally with the left mouse button, but the combo is done with the right mouse button, which eliminates the possibility of defending attacks, let alone parrying.
The shield appears to be useless since it doesn't show up as equipped. I couldn't find any button that would make it work.
The game doesn't have visual keyboard binds; only the supposed controller binds appear next to an item.
There are clear grammatical errors in the game's text, such as: "Intract To rest at bonfire".
The combat isn't as fluid or responsive as expected. I'd say it's almost boring, considering the low health of the enemies.
There's no difference in animations between weapons, which detracts from the game's attention to detail, since an axe is handled the same way as a sword. Something that doesn't make sense.
The Lock-On is more of a nuisance than a help, since sometimes it focuses on the enemy furthest from the player, without the possibility of properly switching between targets. So 90% of the combat becomes turning the Lock-On on and off until it focuses on the right enemy.
The enemies glitch on literally anything. From standing still at the door like the well-behaved boys they are, to getting stuck on the stairs without moving, to trying to hit my character through the wall.
The mini-boss is weak, at least compared to the lack of weight penalty for the hammer item.
Since the animations are the same for all weapons, there's no penalty for using a weapon that deals more damage. Which, in theory, should be weight and dimensions. Not to mention that it's simply possible to spam combos infinitely.
My favorite part so far is opening chests and doors, being the most polished part of the gameplay.
The environment isn't anything new; it's atmospheric, but it just feels like a collection of assets thrown together without much connection. But at least considering the rest, it becomes pleasant thanks to the well-done lighting.
Interacting with bonfires, besides restoring health, doesn't really offer much else. It's impossible to upgrade anything with our Souls, much less travel between Bonfires, making the system somewhat useless.
The boss, besides being ridiculously easy considering its low health and damage, has an animation that makes absolutely no sense. A giant paladin, with armor and an axe on his back, but who moves and hits like a gorilla.
After killing the boss, there's really nothing to do; you're left with 11,330 Souls, all weapons unlocked, and nothing to do.
I think adding a good replayability factor would be making weapons harder to obtain, or for example, making the Sword of Mars a secret. This would encourage players to replay the game just to find the weapon they couldn't get.
Overall, it's still a very weak WIP, but with polishing and attention to detail, it could become a good project to have in the future.
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Souls Like - craven22
Final Score: 3/5 Stars
Well, I'll start by saying that the game's name isn't the most creative. A Souls-like game with the title "Souls Like".
Watching the trailer, you can see the game's basic mechanics, the gameplay loop, but I feel that in the cinematic parts, many parts are blurred.
The game starts straight to the point. No menu, no pause menu, no possibility to adjust settings.
The background music, besides being short, doesn't have a smooth transition between songs, which is reminiscent of those old Flash games.
There is absolutely no controller compatibility. This becomes a negative point that could be easily resolved.
The art direction varies towards Synty's low-poly assets, which isn't a negative thing, as for a solo developer, it ends up being a viable option to follow.
The lighting is interesting because it mixes the graphic patterns of Unreal Engine with Synty models, which brings an interesting atmosphere to the game.
Unfortunately,
there's no key mapping, so I reckon the only option here is to guess the keys.CORRECTION: For some reason, when walking forward, the game's key mappings are displayed on the screen, with a horrible PNG of an Xbox controller, even though the game isn't compatible with the controller. Or at least it doesn't seem to be, considering I tried connecting my controller via both Bluetooth and USB, and it doesn't seem to want to work with this game, even though it's plugged in and working.The HUD isn't very pleasant as it doesn't match the planned atmosphere. Especially the health and stamina bars.
The footstep sounds are strange, and most of the sounds don't fit the environment.
The walking animations are good, but there's no possibility of using sprint.
For some reason, it's possible to roll while standing still.
When using the sword, it's possible to attack normally with the left mouse button, but the combo is done with the right mouse button, which eliminates the possibility of defending attacks, let alone parrying.
The shield appears to be useless since it doesn't show up as equipped. I couldn't find any button that would make it work.
The game doesn't have visual keyboard binds; only the supposed controller binds appear next to an item.
There are clear grammatical errors in the game's text, such as: "Intract To rest at bonfire".
The combat isn't as fluid or responsive as expected. I'd say it's almost boring, considering the low health of the enemies.
There's no difference in animations between weapons, which detracts from the game's attention to detail, since an axe is handled the same way as a sword. Something that doesn't make sense.
The Lock-On is more of a nuisance than a help, since sometimes it focuses on the enemy furthest from the player, without the possibility of properly switching between targets. So 90% of the combat becomes turning the Lock-On on and off until it focuses on the right enemy.
The enemies glitch on literally anything. From standing still at the door like the well-behaved boys they are, to getting stuck on the stairs without moving, to trying to hit my character through the wall.
The mini-boss is weak, at least compared to the lack of weight penalty for the hammer item.
Since the animations are the same for all weapons, there's no penalty for using a weapon that deals more damage. Which, in theory, should be weight and dimensions. Not to mention that it's simply possible to spam combos infinitely.
My favorite part so far is opening chests and doors, being the most polished part of the gameplay.
The environment isn't anything new; it's atmospheric, but it just feels like a collection of assets thrown together without much connection. But at least considering the rest, it becomes pleasant thanks to the well-done lighting.
Interacting with bonfires, besides restoring health, doesn't really offer much else. It's impossible to upgrade anything with our Souls, much less travel between Bonfires, making the system somewhat useless.
The boss, besides being ridiculously easy considering its low health and damage, has an animation that makes absolutely no sense. A giant paladin, with armor and an axe on his back, but who moves and hits like a gorilla.
After killing the boss, there's really nothing to do; you're left with 11,330 Souls, all weapons unlocked, and nothing to do.
I think adding a good replayability factor would be making weapons harder to obtain, or for example, making the Sword of Mars a secret. This would encourage players to replay the game just to find the weapon they couldn't get.
Overall, it's still a very weak WIP, but with polishing and attention to detail, it could become a good project to have in the future.