4/5 ★ – AvatarAang's review of Another Crab's Treasure.

A really good game that maybe doesn't quite stick the landing. I think it's the perfect game for somebody interested in Souls games but maybe turned off by the amount of time you need to waste to learn some Souls bosses. I was nervous coming off of (the superior, imo) Nine Sols that I was getting sucked into another grind but the game wound up being about just right for me. I got stuck on a few bosses for a bit but it was nothing I couldn't handle. Like another reviewer, I went all in on my Attack stat at the expense of everything else and it paid off. I had a lot of fun being a glass cannon who could blaze through bosses if I pulled off my parries correctly. The story is fairly quirky and goes places you wouldn't expect. There's basically three major arcs, with the middle one being the largest portion of the game, but you wouldn't anticipate there being so much to do from the start of the game. It's kind of like Okami in that regard. You go up against the Big Bad, asking yourself "was that it?" and then it turns out that was only the beginning! This game is much shorter than Okami though; nearly finishing 100% of it (did not get every Shell but did all the things to do) I clocked in at 20 hours. The story starts off with some heavy libertarian themes as Big Government comes for your character's home and he can't pay the necessary taxes to get it back. But much of the game feels more like a critique of libertarianism. Your character's desire to just live alone and not worry about other people really comes into question, and the direction they go with it is pretty dark. I would read it as sort of a cautionary tale about libertarianism (or maybe materialism). The main character made me think a little of Shinji from Neon Genesis Evangelion, in that he clearly does not want to be a part of anything and the game shows the toll that takes on him. But, the ending (after you lose control of the character) is IMO completely at odds with the entire rest of the game. Almost like you completed the bad ending but got the good ending cutscene. And that really sours what could have been a very thought-provoking tale. Another fault I had with the game was its soundtrack. It does its job, but it's no Ecco the Dolphin: Defenders of Time (to reference a game with a similar setting). The title theme takes on new meaning later in the game, which I thought was very cool. But otherwise, the songs are pleasant but unremarkable. I played it months after release and did have to suffer some unfortunate bugs that cost me some Souls. On occasion, I would die and go back to where my Souls should be (they are called "Microplastics" in this game, which is great) only to find nothing there. The map marker still said they should be there, but they weren't. Also, while the map itself is fine, the markers for the fast travel points changed location every time I opened the map. I had to just memorize in my head where they actually were located in the game. I played on PC, for reference. I'd give it a low 8/10, I think the gameplay is probably my favorite take on a Souls game and the story is much deeper than expected but it all leads to nothing and the audio experience doesn't meet its potential. I can see why some people really love the game and I think it deserves much of the praise.