Death's Door Review (linna)
hey guys just here to say that I managed to play this for 4 hours without pressing the actual attack button because there is a separate button for slow ass charge attacks that I thought was the only attack in the game
world, writing, music, atmosphere, boss design: amazing, chef's kiss. It's an interesting world and has a really great sense of humour, I loved poking around everywhere for more lore and dialogue. There's all these subtle touches that made me laugh.
It's a small thing, but the sound effect when going through dialogue boxes is the most satisfying thing in the world. Whoever implemented that deserves an award. The music that plays when you give each boss a little funeral is also so melancholy yet has this gentle levity to it that matches the dialogue as well.. They really nailed the tone for this game. SSSS+ tier.
combat: it's alright, upgrading and finding new weapons is fun. I find it on the difficult side though, and very punishing how little health you have. I loved the writing in this game so much that I wished it was some kind of exploration focused RPG instead honestly. I just wanted to talk to NPCs because their dialogue was such a treat (and I was thirsty for the dialogue box ASMR I guess). The combat is serviceable but it's just kinda there (outside of the cool boss fights).
level design: as someone who has 0 sense of direction, this is HELL. The maps seems to be designed to be as confusing as possible, especially when forced to backtrack. Everything is some circular maze so it's painful to find the one little switch or ladder you haven't pressed, and there's not enough landmarks to get a sense of direction.
It's a shame the gameplay (and navigation) is too punishing because aesthetically this game is wonderful and I love everything about it narratively. I'm in disbelief that this game was made by two people.
Also in the post game you can go on a date with a squid. 10/10