Alruna: End of History

The recommendation is not because it's a *bad* game, though it's not a great game either. It's a fine game, and I'm having a fine time playing it. The recommendation is mostly due to the developer's lack of QA and response to issues the players encounter. There are several ways to soft lock yourself permanently or block progression without resorting to glitches. The dev's response has been along the lines of "lol cool. It's supposed to be broken and is how the game is supposed to be!" This seems more like an excuse for not wanting to test their own game or not knowing how to do so rather than an intentional design choice. They seem unwilling to address the issues that are brought up. Calling it "a tour-de-force of game design" smacks of bitter irony. That aside, for a standard review: Pros: -The exploration is satisfactory. The number of abilities and their presentation are fine, if underutilized. -The length of the game is good. I've played for a few hours (though a large portion of that is due to wandering around due to aforementioned progression block from an unintended sequence break) and still have a lot of map left to cover. -The HUD display works well. I like that the grid position is always on the HUD. I wish more games did that instead of just on the map. Meh: -The puzzles are mostly contained within a single screen. I haven't found any that take more than a couple seconds to solve, but they aren't insultingly easy either. Cons: -The bosses and enemies are extremely easy. There were several "no damage" runs on youtube within a few hours of release, for example. The only difficulty comes from strange hitboxes bouncing you between enemies and killing you in a couple of seconds due to lack of i-frames. Several times I was hit despite a literal inch of empty screen space between me and the enemy. -The music is uninspired and monotonous, though not to the point of being intolerable. -Some of the secrets are too well hidden, requiring you to not only shoot every wall block but also dash against every wall block and slide against every wall block to see if you can go through an invisible wall. Indeed, one upgrade ("ghost shot") actually *decreases* your ability to discover secrets, as before the upgrade your bullets would only go through invisible walls and after they go through every type of wall.

Mixed feelings/sideways thumb. The game feels very claustrophobic, where you often only have access to a few spots yet somehow end up banging your head against every side of the map trying to work out where you're meant to be. It's a tad worse in that respect than I recall the first game being, even though it had some of that in it as well. It's reminding me of other constrictive metroidvanias, like [b]Astronite[/b], [b]Momibosu[/b], [b]Aggelos[/b], [b]Gato Roboto[/b], [b]Environmental Station Alpha[/b], the opening few hours of [b]Zexion[/b] (before that opens up wonderfully) and I do think games like those could learn a lot from games like [b]Astalon: Tears of the Earth[/b] or [b]Alwa's Legacy[/b] when it comes to making the map and exploration feel more open. I didn't finish this one (stuck & confused) but I more or less enjoy playing it.

Fun little Metroidvania, at about 3 1/2 hours to finish it's a nice bite sized game that will entertain you for a night or two some clever systems and a responsive moveset allow you to get places earlier than you probably should definitely worth a play

Sideways thumb. Really enjoyed the first game so I had high hopes coming into this one. It really fell short on nearly every aspect compared to the first. In my opinion bosses were way worse in this game and the world just seemed way more dull and boring. If you leave the game up for around 30 minutes it just closes out and you lose all progress from your last save. The map is small enough where you shouldnt have to scroll around to see the whole map. Theres way less "glitchy" exploration. In the first you could go through a lot of secret walls but that aspect was lacking here. I also got locked 3 times in my 3 hour playthrough which was frustrating. On the last boss if you jump up and chase the boss when he flies up youll hit a sawblade and respawn and hit the blade over and over until you die. There was only 1 warp point I was able to find as well which made backtracking a little tedious. I did really like the purchasable upgrades like longer range on your weapon, shooting through walls, more health, more damage, etc... Took 3 hours to finish the game at 91% completion. Going in my C tier on my metroidvania tier list. Definitely play the first one over this.

Launched the game, found a shortcut, then a hidden technique, then another shortcut and then a shortcut within a shortcut. It is Alruna but bigger and better, and I am all for it. "Body strength is still not enough to unveil the secrets of hermitage." It is my favourite metroidvania.

Alruna: End of History is a 2D Metroidvania and a sequel to the first game "Alruna and the Necro-Industrialists" about Alruna who sets out once again in a world overtaken by the machinery and what's left of it!! The consists of different biomes each interconnected with each other via secret or normal routes that will traverse through as you progress further into the game allowing you to obtain abilities for even further progress. The controls were pretty flawless and I didn't face single bug, fluid character movement and secrets around each corner for you to discover and obtain. There's an ability upgrade system where you can enhance your obtained abilities like dash, rocket jump even further to reach even greater heights, lots of other upgrades as well that will help ease your journey. You get the points by finding dewdrops scattered around the world. The music and OST was pretty awesome, takes you back to the childhood days of 8-bit and 16-bit games as well as helps enjoy your gaming session. The boss fights will require your concentration, quick reactions and dodging timings, screen filling boss fights that will test your skills, I loved the designs of the bosses and the pixel art in general. Really recommended especially if you played the first game, it gets even better with this one or also if you love 2D metroidvanias in general then I'd suggest playing this one. Overall Rating 10/10

Un metroidvania con muy buen pixel art. Toma un tiempo adaptarte a los controles, supongo que si jugaste al primer juego se te hace más fácil. Está bueno.

The future is still dead, but this time we're emo about it. If you like metroidvanias, puzzle platformers and anti-capitalist propaganda as much as I do, you'll love Alruna! Play the first one too. Then buy a second copy for the Switch, why not? It's the end of history, after all.

Качественный метроид с приятным и, главное, необычным мувментом. Косяки первой части исправили, теперь душный пиксельхантинг в комнатах с колючками возникает намного реже. Закрыть игру на 100% нетрудно, проходится довольно быстро, так что не успеваешь от неё устать.

Incredibly frustrating level design. Wonky controller mechanics. Sometimes the crouch dash just doesn't work. Complicated jumps for the sake of being complicated, I guess. It's clearly not for me.