3.5/5 ★ – squid0812's review of Blasphemous.

A flawed game with one particular aspect that stands out as S-tier: the astounding pixel art, which is possibly the best I’ve ever encountered in games. Whatever type of imagery you prefer, this game has it: the creepy, the surreal, the ineffable. A giant, blindfolded baby with bleeding eyes. A floating head pockmarked with scars and exposed brain matter. These are just a few of the more jaw-dropping examples in a game that is full of this kind of stuff. Even if this isn’t your type of game, you owe it to yourself to check out some screenshots - it really is that good. Alas, every other part of the game registered as just OK for me. The combat is fun enough, but it’s also rather simplistic. Nearly everything that isn’t a standard attack, dodge, or parry feels tangential or only situationally useful. The various Metroidvania upgrades are all exploration-based and thus never play a role in combat as sometimes happens in other games of this ilk (i.e. Hollow Knight). Fundamentally, the combat moveset at the beginning of the game is very similar to the moveset at the end. It’s fine, there’s just not a lot of movement. I feel similarly ambivalent about the platforming and exploration. I love the way the dodge feels in this game, but the jumping always felt a bit off for reasons I can’t describe. It didn’t happen a lot, but there were definitely times when I missed a jump or mantle that I felt like I should’ve had. Normally, I wouldn’t consider this a big deal, but when instant death spikes are in play (why?), even trivial amounts of platforming jank are unacceptable. Most of the really tough platforming is in optional areas, so at least there’s that. Speaking of which, there are plenty of cool, optional secrets here - illusory walls and riddles abound. Unfortunately, a lot of what you find are meaningless Kickstarter collectibles - this game sort of has a desperate need for more useful items that give you a reason to fully explore its world. It doesn’t help that your character never picks up any movement upgrades - I kept hoping to pick up a double jump or air dash that would make it more fun on a moment-to-moment basis to backtrack and scout out the map for secrets. The stellar imagery and oppressive mood were enough to keep me going here - but a follow-up with some gameplay and story refinements (more direct storytelling and a little less figurative / lyrical mumbo-jumbo might help the plot stick a bit more) has the potential for greatness.