Recent reviews by WebFishy

So, the negative reviews are interesting. A lot of their complaints are the following, so if you experience any of these give this a try:

1. "The combat feels boring" - have you tried moving... faster? Like, genuinely, this game WILL ALLOW you to go slow if you WANT to... but it's not like it doesn't reward hitting things with a big stick. It absolutely does. However, unlike Hades 1, it does not actively PUNISH slow combat. You can get away with cutting and running considerably more, and a lot of people can end up tricking themselves into thinking they "should" do that. Mate, do whatever your little heart desires. Just try actually taking a risk.

2. "The weapons are different to Hades 1" - this is true. Try using them. I use all of them except the ♥♥♥♥♥♥♥ torches one. ♥♥♥♥ that weapon.

3. "The characters are boring" - I genuinely don't know which game these people are playing. The characters are FASCINATING. The main difference, though, is that many of them don't FAWN on Melinoë like they fawned on Zagreus in Hades 1. This is because Zag had already proved himself a friend before the start of the game; Mel has not, and the purpose of the game is to prove yourself. They will be more interesting and open up when you TALK TO THEM. Nectar is also MUCH easier to get in this game, which gives you a lot of chances to expand character dialogue when you might not have had those in Hades 1.

4. "The game is woke/DEI/whatever" - I mean. The Ancient Greeks were some of the most aggressively bisexual people on the planet. That's not news to anyone. Really this is an ideological problem: if you don't like seeing non-Aryans in your games, you won't like this. If you are a fan of reality, you'll probably like it. Oh and Hermes is Asian because his mythology often describes him as "from the East", as he represents the rising sun (which rises in the East). Just so you know.

5. "There are too many currencies" - There are also more things to do with them. Nobody is obligating you to use a feature you don't like.

6. "X build is way better than Y build" - I think you're just better at using that build. I actively push myself to use different builds and I quickly find I can use all of them when I just like. Get good.

7. "Game's too easy" - keep playing to unlock the challenge run menu, then.

8. "Game's too hard" - go to Settings -> Gameplay -> Godmode. Turn on godmode. If you dislike that it's making the game TOO easy, scroll down and set "maximum resistance" to whatever percent you like. Accessibility is for everyone.

Very easy to get 80% through, hard as ♥♥♥♥ to get 100% through. 10/10, play it. Note: it is MUCH MORE luck-based than something like 'Slay The Spire' or 'Balatro', so be prepared to shout "THATS ♥♥♥♥♥♥♥♥" a couple of times. Still great.

I suck at Soulsborne games, but this one makes me feel like that state is temporary. If you hate these games, consider giving this one a shot.

I cannot stress enough:

Play. This. Game.

This is a $30+ indie game that has been given to us for FREE. This is literally my *Game Of The Year* and I am STAGGERED at how beautiful it is. And it's FREE.

**PLAY THIS GAME!**

If you are a fan of RPGs, either digital or tabletop, then you'll love the sense of this world as a true space: it feels less like a "game world" and more like a world in which we happen to be playing a game, but which would continue on without us should we depart. It has a beautiful, sorrowful sense of both quiet joy and eerie unease around it, as we traverse a dangerous and hostile world in which people carve out lives from the trees, from the rock, from the water and find any way that they can to survive.

This is, quite genuinely, a US$30 game that has inexplicably and miraculously been given to us for free. Please, if you are someone who enjoys classic video games, who enjoys TTRPGs (especially ones that *aren't* your regular D&D, Pathfinder-style world but are much more narrative and collaborative), or who wants a game that is both challenging and rewarding?

Please. Play this game.

This is my favourite platformer of all time. If you haven't played it... play it. If you have played it, play it *more*.

Apparently I've played for like 1,800 hours. That's assuming you don't ask my browser history.

This is the best game I've never played.

An acid trip had a lovechild with deltarune and left it to be cared for by guitar hero. Play it. You don't think you'll like it, but you will. PLAY IT.

Beautiful. Made me feel wonderful. Get this game (on sale).

This is, without a doubt, the best novel I have ever watched via a keyboard and mouse. There, I said it.

By that... yeah, I basically mean "this is beautiful, it is artistic, it is fun, it is engaging as ♥♥♥♥. It is also not a game." DO NOT walk in with an expectation of a game. Walk in with an expectation of an EXPERIENCE, one you will almost certainly love and one that will leave you just a little sad when it's over and you want more.

The story is, if I'm honest, wonderful "in its own way". The conclusion is not... thrilling? I kind of wish I had more of the ending, as this one felt like it ended right in the middle of the ending - it will make sense when you... play? Read it yourself.

It has big "ABZU" vibes and feels like all the best parts of walking sims (a genre I really enjoy, personally) without the guff. I think that, if you enjoy the freedom of exploration, the sense that you're not totally sure what the story is but are moving in the right direction, and the fun of flying racing drones at high speed without the anxiety of every crash costing you $125 in parts... then you will not only love this interactive novel but will probably come back to it over and over as a stress-reliever.

Personally, I have this game on Switch and I think that is a very close second-place to having this on desktop. The Switch is just a liiiitttle compromising on graphics whereas having this on a computer allows it to max everything out. I can imagine it would be a true JOY on the Steam Deck.

Playing with controllers is probably advised, but I personally had enormous fun with a M&K. I'm not very good at using controllers as I didn't grow up with them, so I personally prefer M&K for this and I never experienced issues with the controls (though I did have to set the "Invert Y Axis In Bird Form" to off, as it is on by default).

If you like ABZU, you will love this. If you like interactive novels, you will love this. If you crave violence and blood and combat and think a game is worthless without them... not so much, this has zero combat and is purely about the joy of flight and the freedom to make your own way in a world with no true guidance.

Also, the Lighthouse is closer than you think. If you're looking down at a big blue lake or a giant-ass tree, you've gone too far, turn around and go back to Settlement and look for the Lighthouse again. I stg every time I play this game I get lost for the first 10 minutes, and I've played it like 5 times...

Doesn't hold your hand, but also doesn't pick you up and drop you off a cliff.
Except for the one time the game does actually do that and it's in Ramparts.

Don't let people scare you off: definitely can play this if you're not a "HARDCORE GAMERRRR". Might take you a bit longer to learn it, but so long as you don't let dying and restarting frustrate you then you're golden.

Have a goal in mind. The game helpfully provides one: "get to the next boss cell". Each boss cell becomes your next difficulty.

The game starts at 0 cells, which is normal mode. 1 cell is hard, 2 cells is harder, 3 cells is "okay this is getting a bit intense", 4 cells is "excuse me is a game ALLOWED to do this?", 5 is "oh dear".

You are probably not going to survive to the final boss on your first few runs. Maybe if you're good at hack-n-slashes and have experience with them. That's fine. Don't worry about dying, as crucial progression (runes) is saved and doesn't rely on getting to the Collector at the end of each level. Death is extremely important and you're not going to get very far without it.

You can smash the door in the Collector's room and save your cells up. Don't let that ♥♥♥♥♥♥♥♥♥♥♥♥ fool you that you have to spend all your cells on him to open the door, just smash it.

You do actually have to take a mutation though. And you should.