In one of the coolest methods of inventory management in recent memory, slashing enemies and items with your sword provides you with more ammunition to use in your guns. By combining swordplay that feels like a the love-child of 2D Zelda and a modern character-action title with a variety of guns and the ability to use a phase-dash to avoid attacks, Hyper Light Drifter makes you feel powerful enough to conquer the challenges in front of you while still maintaining a high level of difficulty. Where Hyper Light Drifter truly shines is in its absolutely brutal combat. A more rigid structure in this type of atmospheric title would create the same issue that plagued the often pompous audio logs in The Witness Hyper Light Drifter gives you a basic structure and all of the beats you’re looking for from a video game, but it’s left open enough to allow it to feel as though it’s your own. It’s for this very reason that players are able to warp its message to fit whatever mood they happen to be in at the time. Though there are moments where fans of traditional narratives might feel a bit confused by this lack of language or the heavy reliance on atmosphere, Hyper Light Drifter simply isn’t a game that holds your hand at all. Heart Machine has crafted a title in Hyper Light Drifter that manages to convey its message without having to speak. Through the combination of easily identifiable symbols to recurring characters that each play a role in your progression. The entire story is told without a single line of dialogue (in fact, the only English text to be found simply explains what each button on your controller does), meaning that player discovery and experimentation is the key to progression here. Unfortunately for The Drifter, each of the four areas are riddled with enemies, mysteries and traps that threaten to end his life before he can obtain the cure he so desperately seeks. Essentially, players have to activate a pillar in each of the four sections of world, something that’s far simpler said than done. With that caveat in place, Hyper Light Drifter tells a wordless story of The Drifter, a mysterious cloaked character with warping abilities, intense sword and gun skills and a debilitating illness that is threatening to end his life unless he finds a cure. From the Souls games to something like Journey, if you were to go about describing everything that you do in ambiguous or obtuse titles, it would completely sap the entire experience from what makes it inherently special. There are certain games that make for a near-impossible review challenge, largely because the entire package is designed to be one of discovery and secret-finding. Still, you don’t have to be battling heart disease, depression, anxiety or any other tangible hardship to feel an emotional draw to 2016’s best indie darling to date. This inspiring story translates into the genuine passion and love you can feel during every moment of Hyper Light Drifter. Preston’s lifetime battle against heart disease was not only the thematic basis for Hyper Light Drifter, but it also was the clear inspiration for the name of his studio, the aforementioned Heart Machine. Personal analogies aside, the main inspiration of this gorgeous 16-bit action title is the struggle of its creator, Alex Preston. From its perilous difficulty to the sense of powering through being completely lost, all the way to the ethereal soundtrack and ambiguous symbolic language, Hyper Light Drifter allows you to embrace the feeling of overcoming impossible odds. Of course, it also helps that it includes some of the best combat of the year, as well as a downright gorgeous world that even sprite-art haters can enjoy. Hyper Light Drifter, the debut title from Heart Machine, is not directly a game about anxiety or depression, but its narrative and themes are left open for interpretation just enough to allow any player to use the main character as a conduit for their own struggles. So why bring this up in a video game review? Make no mistake, it’s perilously difficult and extremely uncomfortable at times, but there’s a sense of pride and clarity that has emerged as a result. In recent weeks, I’ve decided to actually face those negative feelings head on. Though I’ve attempted to fight my demons in the past, it’s always been a halfhearted journey down the least painful path possible (of course, anyone in the same situation knows that the tougher path is the correct one). As someone who suffers from a combination of crippling panic attacks and bouts of depression, despite a penchant for goofiness and a generally jovial demeanor, the idea of overcoming a major challenge really hits home. Hyper Light Drifter came into my life at the most perfect time imaginable and there are going to be quite a few of you that feel exactly the same way.
0 kommentar(er)
