Bang for your Bounty (Value): 10/10 (Gamepass) 8/10
Gamepass. That's all I can say. Seriously though, this game is a steal if you have Gamepass. If they end up removing it, a $20 price tag isn't too bad considering the replay value and overall enjoyment you’ll get out of playing Unsighted. If you are tight on cash, you can wait for the end of the year sale.
Ocular Pleasure (Graphics): 8.5/10
When I first started this game, I wasn't expecting much from the graphics; I was surprised with how the colors used brought so much life to the world and the characters that inhabited it. The cutscenes are very simple, but that doesn't take away from how they impact the story and character development along the way.
Butter or Stutter (Gameplay/Mechanics): 9.5/10
Unsighted has all the feel of a Megaman X packed into a classic top-down Zelda with a hint of a Souls-like. I wasn't sure how that combination would mesh, but they did an amazing job combining both of those games into one. The controls feel very smooth in relation to how you interact with the environment. The ability to dash across the world and the addition of wall jumps captures that Megaman X feel and combat has a Souls-like feel to it due to the dodging, stamina bar, and parry system. I would have given it a perfect 10 if it wasn't for the active reload. Sometimes when you go to reload your weapon, a single click will register twice and blow the active reload window which can lead to a tragic outcome.
Body of Expression (Story): 8/10
Unsighted sets you in the world of Arcadia, a planet that has been deserted by humans and all that's left are the androids they created. These androids are referred to as automatons and they need Anima to stay self-aware of their actions. Without it, they go into a berserk mode and become an “Unsighted.” The Anima they need is produced by a meteor that has been taken over by what they call a Shadow Creature. You learn early on in the game you can't take them on without some much needed upgrades. Every character in the game has a clock by their name that shows how much time they have left before they turn Unsighted; this can put some additional strain on you as the player because now you have to worry if your blacksmith or a merchant in the game will turn and you will lose access to what they have to offer.
The character you play (Alma) is dealing with some memory loss after nearly dying in a battle you learn about as time goes on. In your race against time, you set out to recover 5 shards of the meteor that were given to powerful automatons to protect. They unfortunately turned and now it's up to you to defeat them and get the shards back to create a powerful weapon to defeat the Shadow Creatures who are corrupting the meteor. As you go through and collect the shards, you gain parts of your memory back. The main focus of your memory revolves around a character named Raquel, who you don't seem to remember much about, but you know you need to find her. The story is very enjoyable, although predictable at times, but the manner in which it’s told along with the pacing makes it so good.
Harmony of Workings (Balance/Interest/Gameplay): 9/10
In my 7 hours of gameplay, it never once felt stale. Each weapon and upgrade gives you a new way to traverse the world and solve puzzles. Every enemy felt unique and had specific timings to their attacks, which helped make them feel challenging. Each boss brought a different challenge to the game to make sure it wasn't a stroll in the park. There are substories to keep you busy and plenty of chip upgrades and secondary weapons for you to find during your playthrough, some of them might even require a second playthrough to find.
After finishing the game, I felt myself wanting to go back and replay to find things I missed during my first run. They have different modes other than the main story to help the lasting value of the game. Dungeon mode sets you up in a fully randomized playthrough where you enter your run with nothing and the game generates a few items for you to pick to start your run. Once you're done, two doors pop up and you get to select which area you want to play in. You go through 4 stages of that area until you get to the boss. As you continue on, you get more items at the end of each stage. The other mode they give you is a boss rush mode, pretty self-explanatory.
Unique Entities (Characters): 8/10
Every character you meet in the main village of the game has something unique to offer you, whether it's upgrading your weapons, buying items to boost your stats, or even taking care of dogs you find on the way. This makes every character you meet in the game feel valuable, giving you a reason to make sure you keep them around and they don't turn Unsighted.
Undefined duty (Other):
Studio Pixel Punk consists of two people and for this being their first game I feel they knocked it out of the park. Unsighted left a better impression with me than most AAA developed games that were released this year. I'm excited to see what other games come from this team in the future.
#unsighted #gamereviews #pcgaming #steam #indiegames #videogameblogger #ps4 #xboxone #gamepass
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