Salt and Sanctuary Review (Preator)
Well, hello there. You're just a fleshy bit of flotsam, washed ashore with the rest of us, hmm?
Introduction
This review is based on playing on the Steam deck.
Salt and Sanctuary is a 2D souls-like, heavily inspired by the Dark Souls franchise in nearly every facet of its creation. You will build your character from nothing, give them the strength of men and Gods, and determine the fate of the land once and for all. But does the game provide the Sanctuary we are hoping for, or does it simply rub Salt into the wound?
🟩 Positives
🟥 Negatives
🟩 A well-thought-out gameplay loop that allows you to level and take on challenges at your own pace. As well as a lot of items to help bolster your abilities or hinder your enemies.
🟩 A considerable excess of weapon and armour choices that allow you to build your character in whatever way you want.
🟩 Boss fights are unique and epic battles that test your mettle and reflexes.
🟩 A large and sprawling open-world map for you to venture across, filled to the brim with secrets and treasures for the dedicated hunter.
🟩 The creeds mechanic allows you to align with a God or Gods to attain their favour, which can significantly assist you in the challenges ahead.
🟥 The game is perhaps a bit dark at times, making it particularly difficult to see bosses or map segments.
Story
You begin the game as a character of your own construction, sailing on a ship to a faraway land with a princess in tow to an arranged marriage that will bring peace to the Kingdoms.
But things rarely go so smoothly in stories like these, for the ship you are on has become besieged by brigands who are plundering and killing without remorse. You quickly dispatch the pirates as you come across them heading towards the deck in search of the princess, only to discover a great beast looming over you. Moments later, your screen goes white, and you find yourself in another place entirely.
The place you awaken is unlike any you have ever seen before. Where shipwrecks dot the horizon in every direction, and the dead pile up on the now-blackened sands. With only one path before you, you set forth in search of the princess and perhaps answers to why you're here.
The story of Salt and Sanctuary is much akin to Dark Souls in how it's told.
Plot points don't get told to you in a conventional sense, and you must discern certain aspects of the story by reading item flavour text or analysing the environments you're running through. I really enjoy this type of storytelling, as I like to build the world on my own as I progress through it. But with that said, what is written here and plotted out is exceptionally well-designed and will keep you intrigued until the end.
https://steamcommunity.com/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=3098259554
Gameplay Analysis
To arms, for nightmares stalk these halls.
As always in these games, combat is a crucial aspect you will rapidly become familiar with as the story progresses. You have the standard abilities to attack, dodge, and jump but very little else at the start. And additional skills will unlock as you kill more bosses and get to understand the world you're in.
https://steamcommunity.com/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=3098256574
Fighting off enemies and bosses will provide you with two valuable resources. The first is money, which, as you can imagine, is used to purchase items. The second resource is salt, which is your levelling catalyst in this game, and upon sacrificing it at an altar, grants you black pearls to invest in a large talent tree to improve your combat prowess across multiple pathways.
Grab your torch and plunder the darkness.
Exploration plays another important part in this game, as many of the best items and armaments remain hidden in the darkest, deepest reaches of the world. The wise traveller will seek these items at their own peril, but should they return victorious, power beyond imagining will be at their fingertips.
Choose your creed and carry their token across the lands.
Creeds act as a religion of sorts in Salt and Sanctuary and provide you with specific boons for devoting yourself to them. With any religion, you also have the mechanic of sin, which is gained minorly for betraying your own or majorly when you commit violence against any creed. It's not terribly important to worry about in the early stages of the game, but as you progress, it's best to pick one and stick with it, as devotion ranks cost you enemy trophies, which can be a pain to farm.
https://steamcommunity.com/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=3098259669
Audio and Visual
Salt and Sanctuary is indeed a beautiful game in its own right, and with a unique art style and sombre colour tones, you will begin to feel the pain that radiates throughout the world relatively quickly.
The audio is much the same, with each area providing a new ballad to carry you through its halls or mires. You will be immediately captivated by the soft trilling that seemingly calls you deeper and deeper into the recesses of the game.
Deck Performance and Specifications
At its default settings, Salt and Sanctuary had little issue running on the Steam Deck hardware and held a firm 60 FPS the entire time. With a full charge, I was able to get around ~10 hours minimum playtime.
Final Thoughts - Excellent
Review chart here.
Salt and Sanctuary is up there as one of the most incredible soulslike experiences I have ever had. The world has been lovingly designed and implemented with well-thought-out decisions, and every aspect of the game feels solid. With the second game now out on Steam, players who weren't quite sure about the investment should jump straight into this one and give this game a shot. I 100% recommend it at any price.
When all you have is a flickering flame in the growing dark, and the terrors begin to encircle you, remember that Hell, Purgatory and Paradise is here to provide you sanctuary and salvation.