EDIT2: Wow, NG+ was hard, but now I also beat that one and did 100% of the game. It was worth every second of my time and all points mentioned below still are valid to me.
EDIT: I finally made it through and I will definitely also play through NG+. I loved all of the game! Just a little tip for starters: Play the game as you like, all builds or paths will finally lead to victory at some point. Be creative with the skill tree, because if you go for a more creative setup (I for my part built a tanky Strength/Shield/Sword warrior, a Wisdom/Axes/Hammers Paladin and an Dexterity/Spears/Poison Blades/Pistols Assassin and the Assassin was the most fun), you are rewarded with a much more versatile and therefore better gameplay experience.

Original Review: This game is exactly what I expected it to be and therefore it can definitely be recommended.
Salt and Sanctuary succeeds in creating a perfect mixture of Metroidvanias and Dark Souls. For some, this might be a reason to call the game's design bland and pretentious, but isn't it better to play something you wanted to and be happy in all aspects than having a completely innovative experience with faults, bugs and design flaws all over a product?
The gameplay is extremely smooth, the levels offer alot of variety, the difficulty is unforgiving and the item amount and skill tree as complex as it could be.
I love the game and have no doubt that players who are looking for exactly these type of games will too.
I can't believe that a game made by just a married couple could impress me that much in the aspects of gameplay/design/sound and depth! 1 point minus for the lack of online multiplayer, but still this sums to a very good 9/10.

EDIT2: Wow, NG+ was hard, but now I also beat that one and did 100% of the game. It was worth every second of my time and all points mentioned below still are valid to me. EDIT: I finally made it through and I will definitely also play through NG+. I loved all of the game! Just a little tip for starters: Play the game as you like, all builds or paths will finally lead to victory at some point. Be creative with the skill tree, because if you go for a more creative setup (I for my part built a tanky Strength/Shield/Sword warrior, a Wisdom/Axes/Hammers Paladin and an Dexterity/Spears/Poison Blades/Pistols Assassin and the Assassin was the most fun), you are rewarded with a much more versatile and therefore better gameplay experience. Original Review: This game is exactly what I expected it to be and therefore it can definitely be recommended. Salt and Sanctuary succeeds in creating a perfect mixture of Metroidvanias and Dark Souls. For some, this might be a reason to call the game's design bland and pretentious, but isn't it better to play something you wanted to and be happy in all aspects than having a completely innovative experience with faults, bugs and design flaws all over a product? The gameplay is extremely smooth, the levels offer alot of variety, the difficulty is unforgiving and the item amount and skill tree as complex as it could be. I love the game and have no doubt that players who are looking for exactly these type of games will too. I can't believe that a game made by just a married couple could impress me that much in the aspects of gameplay/design/sound and depth! 1 point minus for the lack of online multiplayer, but still this sums to a very good 9/10.