3.5/5 ★ – MaxYibbs's review of Shattered: Tale of the Forgotten King.

I am impressed what Redlock Studios were able to accomplish with a small dev team off a Kickstarter campaign. There are some really strong moments that feel very polished - the Ras Samrah and Malkhel fights are both highlights - and the game's design and aesthetic is gorgeous and consistent. The lore also is well written and interesting, albeit a bit scattered and underwhelming in discovery. I also loved the movement mechanics - the double jump and dash are so satisfying to use along with the portal systems and bike-like device you have for traversing the Ancient Lands. They have also included a couple of side quests that seemed interesting, though I didn't complete most of these. However, in spite of all this good, there's definitely an inescapable feeling of unrealized potential. Some areas feel unfinished (props to anyone who knows what "The House" region is for), and most of the enemies have no poise and, as a result, are often a bit too easy aside from when they put 10 of them in the same room to make it challenging. Additionally, the item system felt lacking - although I did do a lot of exploring simply because I wanted to see the map (a testament to the game's art design), I didn't care much about the items I picked up because it seemed like it was the same 5-10, regardless of the area or the difficulty of obtaining the items. This also made interacting with the merchants a little underwhelming as they didn't sell anything unique. Similarly, the weapons weren't different enough to encourage me to switch from the one I started with. There is definitely room for improvements, so ultimately, you feel a bit like you're playing a game in early access, though it's more polished than what you'd expect to get from a game in that status. I'd recommend it, and I'm excited to see what the studio will do next, but I'm also not sure I'd replay it unless they made some significant updates to it.