@Thrillho Yeah I listened to the series and the 65daysofstatic one was a great interview and a great soundtrack. I am a huge soundtrack fan. I tweeted how much I liked the game and got retweets and likes from Jessica Curry and her husband who is creative director of Chinese Room an because I am loser I geeked out this morning. My wife wasn’t as impressed though.
Now I may be an idiot, but there's one thing I am not sir, and that sir, is an idiot
There's the tragic ones whom you end up empathising with. The ones that are just plain evil that you love to hate. The perhaps once righteous hero that has now lost thier way...
Iconoclasts for me nailed a well realised villain in Agent Black. I loved her from start to finish and was without a doubt my favourite character in the entire game.
But let's back up a bit first.
Iconoclasts is a story driven platformer with metroidvania elements.
... I know some of you reading this just saw the word "Metroidvania" and probably ducked for cover but it's not that prominent in it's design choice (Well at least to me though I've only played two)
Stop hiding behind those bushes like Robin!
There's admittedly one area that's particularly maze like in it's design that requires some backtracking through it. The game also has puzzles revolving around the enviroment and the few various items Robin has at her disposal but otherwise it's a pretty linear and straightforward adventure I found.
There's definitely no moment where you have to run round the entire map trying to find that one place to use that triple jump you just unlocked to find the next new area to get another new item to then go to another area etc... (There are materials for the tweaks system that do use this sort of philosophy... But that's not really important at all if you're just playing through the story)
Iconoclasts even has your current objective written on the pause screen for where you should be heading.
This game is a passion project made by one man over the course of six years. He's called Joakim Sandberg. He's swedish and every now and again there is a sentence or a word or two that just doesn't come out quite right in the game's text... But it's a remarkable effort in my opinion.
And as you can clearly see from the the screenshots it's without a doubt a visual treat with some lovely pixel art and smooth animations for said pixel art!
Don't let it fool you. Iconoclasts isn't all smiles and sunshine.
I found it's also a rather splendid audio treat as well with some very catchy music across a variety of styles (These aren't necessarily my favourites, just showing off the different styles)
Like the starting area theme
Or General Chrome's theme
And one of the later boss battle themes
(There's one I'd really love to put but... It's one I think has to be experienced with the boss fight. Moonlight/VS Ivory Beast is easily my favourite track though)
Iconoclasts is a rather story driven game despite what you might think of when you hear the word platformer.
You play as Robin whose father has unfortunately passed away recently.
She secretly moonlights as a mechanic to help the nearby town that her brother lives in, only for the religious governmental faction called "The One Concern" and it's agents to drop by and accuse Robin of fixing things without obtaining a job from the One Concern (And they helpfully fill you in on who Robin is too)
Naturally things don't quite go to plan...
And Iconoclasts does a lot of things in it's ten hour or so runtime. There's a bunch of religious & theological themes on display here and there's a good focus on the characters too.
As already said at the start one of the main villains is my favourite character and even characters I didn't like Goddamn f***ing Elro I thought were written well and could generally see where they were coming from even if I don't agree with it.
And the boss fights are really fun too. All of them feel quite different from one another. Whether there's a simple dodge it's attacks boss or a more puzzle based one (One even involves stealth mechanics in a more deadly game of hide and seek) there's a good variety on display here mechanically yet alone visually.
The Silver Samurai Watchman fight
If there's one thing I have to negatively say is that the platforming elements weren't quite as interesting to me. They got a bit more interesting as they went on but it's probably the weakest element the game has.
I'm kinda glad I actually took so long in writing this review too as after playing Day's Gone and just thinking about Iconoclasts more clearly after all the stuff I've played recently...
... This does a lot of interesting things and I'm looking at it very fondly compared to just after beating it. Where I still thought it was the best of the bunch I'd played so far at that point but I hadn't quite appreciated what it had done.
I feel a bit bad I didn't buy this even (Thanks to winning it in a competition/giveaway) as it is something I feel is rather unique and worth the effort that was put into this.
I believe it was given via PS Plus at some point and if you redeemed it but haven't played it yet, I'd urge you to at least give it a try.
The end is finally in sight!!!
I give Iconoclasts an low 9/10.
I'm looking forward to going back to it again sometime and taking on the secret boss or two that's apparently in it and maybe going to collect all the materials.
I'm sure you're already aware that my "objective" score is essentially me covering my ass by going a bit more positively if I don't like a title or going more negatively if I do like it.
It's impossible for me to be completely objective and if I somehow was the review would be completely pointless for you to read as I'd be contradicting myself every two seconds.
I guess it's a nice little acknowledgement on my part that there can be things other people may or may not like about the title in question or something that didn't bother me that could bother you?
I could honestly probably ditch the scores as well but there's just something about assigning a grade (or rather a number) that pinpoints how I feel about a game more or less. It just feels right.
Anyway rambling aside for Iconoclasts I guess your milleage may vary with the story in particular as it does a few things that could surprise you (For better or for worse) or that the characters don't quite gel with you.
But there's nothing I feel it does wrong mechanically at least besides the general platforming being a bit mediocre.
So perhaps a low 8 or maybe a very high 7 is apt for being a touch more subjective?
@Foxy-Goddess-Scotchy Great write-up! The presentation in Iconoclasts is absolutely phenomenal. I know people cringe when they hear "pixel art indie platformer," but there's no reason these games can't be gorgeous and highly detailed.
I'm glad you enjoyed the thematic and narrative complexity on display here. The setting itself is great, and it's hard not to be impressed with the large, distinctive cast.
And yeah, I also felt like the platforming was mostly a miss for me. Additionally, the level progression (as you acknowledge, there's not a ton of exploration in this Metroidvania), upgrade system, and plot resolution in general were all a bit undercooked for my liking.
It's a messy game, but definitely one that showcases talent and potential. I'd love for the developer to find a proper team of people to help him develop more games in the future.
I agree with almost all of it. I struggled with the difficulty though may have been due to playing on Vita with harder controls. However, the story really gripped me and Agent Black was a fantastic villain.
Now I may be an idiot, but there's one thing I am not sir, and that sir, is an idiot
This was actually part of a gigantic review post (nearly 4000 words) with three other games but I decided to give Iconoclasts it's own post by itself for a little more exposure.
I actually quite liked the twist that the Star Worm was actually just a spaceship for some Birdman Trucker Mechanic who was just looking to refuel his engine. Quite out there and a massive bit of mood whiplash for sure but I just utterly loved it
I also quite liked the visual pun that after the "face yourself" kinda battle in Robin's pysche and the Starworm... You end up fighting a mirror boss whom is a bird. It was kinda clever... At least I thought it was 😅
I think I only struggled with Mother as a boss. I got really lost with her attack patterns (Panicking no doubt a bit thanks to that giant cat thing she was riding around on) but I somehow got past her on my second try. Other then that I thought the normal difficulty level was generally quite fine. Though of course I was playing it with a nice Dualshock 4.
It must look pretty nice though on the Vita @Rudy_Manchego!
@Rudy_Manchego Sorry I missed your post about Little Orpheus earlier in the week, particularly since it sounds like something I'd really enjoy (being a student of Cold War history, as well as a fan of narrative games and charming platformers). Shame about its exclusivity with Apple but, thanks to your write-up, I'll be there the day it ever launches anywhere I have access to! Cheers!
***
@Foxy-Goddess-Scotchy Loved reading your thoughts about Iconoclasts, despite never having played the game myself. Your enjoyment of it came across real strong, particularly in your closing thoughts before your first score; very effective writing!
Oh, and even though I don't use scores myself, I really like that you do. Please don't ever feel conflicted about assigning a number to your reviews, or worry that it isn't a subjective one; after all, you're describing your own thoughts and opinions about the game (or movie, or show, or book, or whatever) and summing it up with a grade you feel appropriate. If you reckon Iconoclasts is an 8.5 then heck, it's an 8.5 and don't let anybody tell you otherwise! The interesting thing for passers-by to then judge is whether they agree with you or not. It sure looks as though two fellow players of it do!
"We want different things, Crosshair. That doesn't mean that we have to be enemies."
Just remembered (And wasn't quite sure whether to tag you as you may've already seen it and I don't think it really adds a whole bunch from our previous chat about it) but my Iconoclasts review is up above @KratosMD if you fancied a looksee
I had you and Th3Solution in mind in fact when writing about it's semi questionable genre assigment of Metroidvania in particular @RogerRoger cus If I recall you pair aren't quite fond of them... I thought the more sci-fi-ish setting might've intrigued you alongside the narrative focus!
I'm glad you liked section just before the closing thoughts... and I appreciate you wading through my waffling on too! Cus there was a fair bit of it! 😅
I do like that subversive element of the space worm fight (fits well with the larger technological and metaphysical themes). Has a bit of a Douglas Adams flavor to it.
I found it funny how, after 'killing God,' so to speak, Robin just goes home and flops down on the bed to take a nap. Elro even tries to have a discussion, but she's too exhausted to even bother.
@Foxy-Goddess-Scotchy It is defo a beauty on the VIta and it runs really well but I found the same with Undertale that I'm just not sure boss fights and reaction heavy games, particularly with small characters and a lot of detail on screen work as well on Vita. Or I could be rubbish - I found on Undertale the bullet hell style combat things were really hard on a small screen and with the controllers.
@RogerRoger Thanks! If you are interested in this era then it is a must play and I would say it is amongst the best games on Apple Arcade but yeah, I hope they will extend to other platforms though it does say in the credits it is produced by Apple so not too sure if it will. It is a shame if it doesn't as this would be great on other platforms too.
Now I may be an idiot, but there's one thing I am not sir, and that sir, is an idiot
Saints Row 4, Shining Resonance Refrain and Sonic CD @Ralizah were/are the other three. I might even cut the Sonic CD section out as it doesn't really add much to the next piece, leaving it as a double feature.
I also have a paragraph or two with acknowledgements and very brief thoughts to Nier Automata, Resi Revelations 2 & The Last Of Us which I'm not going to review fully as I feel there's not really a lot I can say about them. (... I also want to save my sanity regarding my thoughts on Nier Automata)
Danganronpa will be up next after them which I know you're looking forward to reading.
I'm not going to play the sequel til I get that done and dusted which shouldn't take me to too long... getting good (and non spoilery) screenshots will be the hardest part!
and yeah RE: Iconoclasts and it's ending
I quite liked that part of the ending I mean she indirectly helped start a civil war/revolution, saved Mina, her brother (Though he lost an arm) and Samba, killed a tyranical overlord, left her friend(?)/royal to die on the moon, killed 'God', travelled miles on foot, still missing her dad... The poor girl's gotta be pooped! And frankly I didn't mind she just ignored Elro 😂
Robin does get a decent amount of character development too with her body language which is pretty good for a silent protagonist.
And like you said on the previous page I do look forward to seeing what Joakim has in store next, especially with a team at hand 😄
Previously known as Foxy-Goddess-Scotchy
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"You don't have to save the world to find meaning in life. Sometimes all you need is something simple, like someone to take care of"
@DonJorginho This is just my own selfish opinion : a legitimate user review of TLoU2 would be helpful for those of us who haven’t bought the game yet and are a little confused about it. Since in order to avoid spoilers and the stupidity of the populace, I’ve been actively avoiding internet discourse about it, (including comments and threads here on Push Square) I’m curious to get a honest assessment of the game from a trustworthy source. I did read Sammy’s official PushSquare review and found it enlightening, but it would be nice to hear a non-professional critical review also.
I think I’ll eventually buy it, but I’m kind of waiting to let the dust settle.
If you do decide on TLoU2, then I have a couple questions including the basic ones about gameplay, technical achievement, and story — The rumors of the game being exceedingly dark and uncomfortable have me hesitant to play it. Thematically I can handle heavy subjects, but superfluous suffering, sorrow, and personal anguish is not what I want to spend my free time engaging in. I loved the first one because it has a beautiful redemption arc to it. If this one just drags the player through the experience of excessive pain, misery, and agony with no real resolution, then I’m not sure I want to play it.
If you decide to do FF7R, then that’s okay too, but I actually think its the next game I’m starting anyways. I’ve seen enough positives about it that I’m sure I’ll like it.
— — — — —
On that subject, I just completed Death Stranding and will drop my own “review” (more like my own personal observations of the game) here shortly.
“We cannot solve our problems with the same thinking we used when we created them.”
@DonJorginho TLOU Part II is the game of the moment, so it'll be more timely, I think.
Not to say FF7R doesn't deserve a good write-up (I plan to post one myself if I can ever stop being lazy), but there's no real timing required now that its moment has passed, so to speak.
I’ve been posting thoughts all along over the past month during my playthrough of Death Stranding, so it’s no secret that this game has become one of my favorite games of this generation. So I won’t write a standard review that outlines the pros and cons to the game. Many reviews have been written recently about it. Rather, I’d like to focus on a few interesting aspects of the game, more as an observational study of the game, rather than a traditional review.
There is just so much that this game does uniquely and so much that it gets right that I’d like to share some of these thoughts.
Symbolism
From the start of the game, the script and gameplay is steeped in symbolism. It may be the most symbolic game I’ve ever played. So many objects are found to carry deep metaphorical and representative meanings. Just a few examples of which are beaches, blood, masks, guns, necklaces, gear you carry like ropes and strands, and talismans.
Sometimes this symbolism is rather heavy handed, such as every single character’s name carrying a rather overt underlying meaning
about their personality, and sometimes it’s subtle like the astronaut toy that hangs from BB’s pod.
The naming and lexicon of the game world is filled with nuanced wordplay and intimation. Words like the “chiral” network, with the term chiral coming from chemistry meaning a component that is asymmetrical and not superimposable. Or the B.T.’s = “beached things” with a lot of imagery of beached whales, fishes, and sea life.
Little things like all this figurative expression are what make me excited about the subtle and crafty symbolism weaved into the game. And it permeates every crease of this world.
Use of Color and Textures
Part of what makes this game so pleasant to play is the interesting aesthetic. I know many will complain about the rather monotone color palette used in the buildings and also in a lot of the environments. However, the drab surroundings serve a narrative purpose to not only represent the dark state of the world during the death stranding, but also it highlights the dramatic usage of color when it does pop up. The bright red of Amelie’s dress, the bright yellow of BB’s pod. The flashback scenes have very dramatic use of oranges and reds during firefight. And the lush greens of parts of the world are just breathtaking.
The texture of the mountainous environment highlights the rugged nature of the world, and adds to tension and also makes the vistas beautifully interesting. I also made note of how the chiral crystals and the some of the mini bosses have the gold metallic sheen to them which is also a dramatic use of texturing to highlight those who come from the other side.
Sound and Music
One of the most pleasant aspects of the game that I noticed was the music. Normally I don’t pay much attention to a game’s soundtrack, but in Death Stranding it is present front-and-center at so many game moments that it’s hard to ignore. And it is beautifully done. As you head out on a long walk with nothing but silence and the crunch of the gravel under your boots, to suddenly have a melancholy song play in the background to keep you company while you trek to your next destination was so satisfying. I grew to really like the song selection.
Other sounds in the game were used sparingly, but when you encountered B.T.’s it was really well done as you could hear them groan but not see them at times which added to the anxiety in trying to hide and sneak past them.
Building vs. Destruction
One of the big themes of the game is that of building and creating structures in a world where they are constantly being torn down and destroyed. It’s symbolic of the game as a whole and with each structure to build to navigate the environment, you experience a microcosm of the games overall theme. With the online aspects, this building is a way to help others and do your part in a community, just like Sam is doing for America.
I can’t remember another game I’ve played that had such an intricate active world building aspect and also a gradual destruction process that all fit into the narrative.
Man vs. Nature
Whether it be timefall, the death stranding, or simply the deep snow or craggy crevasse ridden land, the underlying theme of man overcoming nature is a major one. I’ve played other survival games, and many games will have animals which attack or sometimes weather that may affect gameplay, but I don’t recall ever feeling like I was literally struggling against nature herself in any other game quite to the extent as I did on this one.
That Ending
I’ll avoid specifics so as to refrain from spoilers, but the ending was right up with some of the great game endings this generation. I’ve not felt a similar impact with the ending since Red Dead Redemption 2 and NieR Automata. Some games just kind of end with no real connection to the beginning and no resolution for the characters, but fortunately Death Stranding does reach a solid conclusion. I appreciate a game that delivers a moment that feels like it explores the questions and emotions I’ve been building up during the playthrough. And I like it when there is room left to ponder the outcome, and dissect its meaning and direction, and Death Stranding accomplished this, in my opinion.
——————
Those are a few random thoughts and observations. If you came looking for a traditional review with a score, here goes: Death Stranding does many things that I’ve not experienced in a video game. When game developers experiment, some things are bound to fall flat and that happens here with some of the mechanics, controls, and the game’s glacial pace at times. But Death Stranding absolutely delivers with innovative gameplay, an addictive asynchronous online component, a unique and crazy story, an artistically and graphically beautiful presentation, and generally solid acting and characterization. It’s simply one of the most satisfying games I’ve ever played. It’s not perfect (no game ever is), but I’ll be thinking about it for a long time. 9/10.
@Th3solution
Wow, nice write up, you've really sold me on this. I was a little bit on the fence about getting Death Stranding but now I see I need to pick this up next time I'm at the shop.
@Foxy-Goddess-Scotchy
Also read your review of Iconoclasts the other day, Foxy. Definitely going to make this the next Vita game I play now, sounds great!
@Th3solution Nice review and I am torn on getting this game. On the one hand I love all the symbolism you describe and the story seems to be something I would find interesting but I am put off by the length and glacial pace (as you described very well). I find it hard committing so many hours to something.
Will have to wait until TLOU2, Ghost of T and probably Iron Man VR but will keep an eye out for this going cheap. Enjoyed reading!
Now I may be an idiot, but there's one thing I am not sir, and that sir, is an idiot
@LieutenantFatman Thanks and I hope you like it. Be sure to post thoughts if you do end up trying it.
In fairness and acknowledgement of some of the criticisms levied at the game, it is less mainstream than most AAA games and unlike Horizon, Spider-Man, or Uncharted, this is very much a game that will only resonate with a subset of gamers. But I do believe most of the hardcore who give it a chance will find some level of satisfaction and appreciation. The story is a bit self-indulgent, if I’m honest, but not nearly as much as most of the haters out there are claiming. Kojima’s auteur personality is on full display, to be sure, but if you ignore that, then there some pretty deep and mind blowing stuff to be had. If one is looking for a storyline like “hero A takes on villain B and falls in love with NPC C...” then they will likely be disappointed. But as weird as the story is, it does all eventually make sense and for the most part the interwoven narrative isn’t as strange as it seems from trailers, but it is pretty bizarre and unorthodox.
“We cannot solve our problems with the same thinking we used when we created them.”
@JohnnyShoulder Lol, Yeah so I’ve heard. I’m troubled that the game seems to be single handedly bringing down the entire gaming community. Perhaps everyone is on edge because of all the tumult this year in the form of pandemics and riots.
@Rudy_Manchego Thanks and I’m glad it’s at least on your radar. My final play time was right at 80 hours. I probably could have finished the game in about 60, but I was enjoying it enough to take my time doing extra deliveries and laying down structures to build the online community. For what it’s worth, I’m a gamer who lately gets pretty impatient with games over 40 hours. If games stretch beyond that then I get fidgety and thinking about the next one on my backlog list. I never once had those thoughts during Death Stranding. I didn’t ever feel like it was too long and even in the slow sections I found enjoyment. It’s a little like RDR2 in that regard, that some of the joy is in the journey, and when it resonates with you then you’ll not want to rush through. But I know other players described getting annoyed during the second half, but I didn’t.
@Th3solution
Thanks! It's true, Kojima's games tend to be convoluted and bizzare, he's not perfect I know, but chances are I will enjoy a lot of what's in there. I do often struggle to get my head round some of his plot twists but the characters and their relationships, struggles etc are usually very well delivered. And top points to him on game play as well, he strives to deliver something new each time and yet always keeps things fun.
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