Runa & the Chaikurú Legacy Early Access impressions for PC

The problem with Runa & the Chaikurú Legacy is the same problem that afflicts a lot of Early Access games: you can see where the game wants to end up, but it’s not really close to that point in its current state.

On some level, that’s okay, because some of the issues are totally fixable. For example, Runa & the Chaikurú Legacy feels a little lacking in content, but the developers are promising that the final release will have roughly double the content. I didn’t dislike what I saw of the world in my time with the game, so getting more of that will certainly be a good thing.

Of course, a lot depends on how that new content is structured. More worlds to explore and more puzzles to solve will definitely be a welcome addition, particularly if it means we get to see more of the game’s Argentine roots come shining through. At the same time, though, at present Runa features only six different types of enemies. While I don’t think having a huge array of enemies is a defining feature of 3D platformers, six is a little on the low side, and if we’re not getting many more of those, then it’s easy to imagine the game feeling repetitive.

On this front, it also doesn’t help that one of Runa’s major drawbacks is its combat. The hit detection feels all wonky and imprecise; this doesn’t matter a tonne when you’re fighting through a pit of snakes, since you can just button-mash until they’re gone, but when you’re attacked by flying enemies, it means you can often lose a bunch of health as you’re trying to figure out exactly where you need to stand to make contact with your enemies. What’s more, you only have a handful of combat skills in the current version of the game, so hopefully the finished version will offer a little more variety.

The biggest problem with Runa & the Chaikurú Legacy, though, is its performance. I had more than my fair share of crashes, and even if I didn’t lose much progress when they happened, they’re still suboptimal. Similarly, far too often I found the camera clipping through walls or having items pop into existence. None of these issues are impossible to fix, but the frequency with which they all happened makes me wonder how much better the final product will be.

I don’t want to be too critical of Runa & the Chaikurú Legacy. After all, it’s essentially a studio’s first outing (not counting a few game jam games that, as far as I can see, aren’t available to play anywhere), so it seems like it’d be mean to be overly harsh about the game. Plus, of course, the fact it’s still in Early Access means the finished, final product could iron out the kinks and end up being a very enjoyable 3D platformer. But right now, at this stage? Runa & the Chaikurú Legacy is a little hard to recommend.

Fanny Pack Studios provided us with a Runa & the Chaikurú Legacy PC code for review purposes.

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