I was really, really looking forward to Slain! after the first screenshot I saw. I?m a big Castlevania fan of course, and I?m a sucker for retro-inspired action games/platformers, so Slain! would appear to right up my alley. So imagine my surprise when I found my enjoyment of the game dwindling after just a few short minutes spent with it.
First off, I love the look of Slain!. The developers have really nailed the heavy metal aesthetic here, and regardless of how I feel about the actual gameplay, I never got tired of seeing the game on screen. The animations are pretty solid, I love the detail given to the elemental effects for the fire sword and ice axe, and I generally enjoy the monster designs even if it does get a little repetitive. I find very little to fault with the look of Slain!, which stays true to its theme throughout.
That?s compounded by the fact that most enemies can take a dumb amount of damage before going down. Even baseline skeletons take a handful of hits before crumbling, and the larger enemies you?ll encounter down the road are downright ridiculous. Because of this, you?ll open yourself up to a lot of damage unless you?re willing to jump in, swing a couple times, and slide back out. Doing this will keep you alive, but it?s not a fun way to play the game. I?m not asking for Slain! to be a cakewalk, but I?d like my encounters to be a bit more brief and interesting, as opposed to something that induces an internal sigh every time I have to engage an enemy.
While the penalty for death isn?t much in Slain!, having to sit through a few seconds of the death screen every time gets old quick. Checkpointing is frequent enough that you don?t tend to lose a ton of progress, but the game could do a better job of letting you know when it has actually saved your progress. Since a few encounters can feel like boss fights but aren?t, it?s best to be doubly sure that you?ve ended a level before backing out of the game entirely.
On the plus side, since the launch of Slain! last week it would appear as if the developers are actively listening to players and absorbing feedback on a number of issues. Ideally there are elements here that can be fixed, provided they have the time, money, and knowledge to do so. I?d love to see Slain! round off some of the rough edges. I can?t imagine that everything is fixable, but I certainly think there?s some semblance of a good game underneath all the grime that could potentially shine through here. At the moment, however, I can?t reasonably recommend the game as a must play kind of experience, but I hope that things will improve in the coming months.
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