Alwa's Awakening

I got it very cheap and had not much expectations. It feels like those old NES games, but much more approachable. After a while it becomes quite addicting and I could not stop playing until seeing the end. You can feel that a lot of love went into this. I am looking forward playing the second game.

Alwa's Awakening is the type of heart-and-soul game which you really like when you start playing, but the gameplay makes it quite difficult to keep up that attitude. It's an 8/16-bit throwback small scale metroidvania, with an interesting spell toolkit, light combat and medium platforming. So far so good, but there are two issues: - The controls are rather imprecise - The save points are few and far between - and the game is not [I]that[/I] easy The second problem was mostly addressed by the introduction of "assist mode" (where you start from the same screen upon dying instead of going back to the checkpoint), but the controls still make the game less-than-enjoyable at places. Also, while the retro audiovisuals are nice and I like the simple but expressive animations, the little songlets are too short and not sufficiently varied to be enjoyable (or bearable, for that matter) for any longer stretch of time. On the upside, the map is quite good, and I really enjoyed exploring the world of Alwa. The puzzles which had to be solved with the magic toolkit were simple but satisfying, and overall the sense of adventure was there, so the 10 hours spent with the game, exploring every nook and cranny were mostly time spent enjoyably.

It’s a decent platformer with puzzle elements that are enjoyable since figuring them out doesn’t take too long. Overall, it’s what you would expect from a retro throwback Metroidvania.

A true minimalist metroidvania. The upgrades you obtain are so basic, you might almost be inclined to think them a joke. They aren't, though. This is a game about pushing those extremely basic and fundamental tools to their absolute limits, and that shows through in how well the game is designed around those very limits. Where other metroidvanias are slick, flashy, and fast-paced, Alwa's Awakening is slow, methodical, and ponderous. This game isn't doing anything that's never been done before, but it provides an absolutely solid experience from start to finish, with an excellent chiptune-style soundtrack. Despite its slow pace and lack of powerful, flashy abilities, exploring the world feels fun and exciting as you gain access to new areas, just like in any other well-designed game in the genre. I'd recommend this in particular only to really dedicated metroidvania fans, or to players looking for a simpler metroidvania with a slower pace of play. Also plays excellently on Steam Deck.

Дуже цікава гра. Є головоломки, лабіринти, секрети. Бектрекінг по ходу проходження і здобуття нових можливостей. І головне відкриття для мене було наявність восьмибітного порту - це просто мега круто! Купив і ПК версію і 8біт версію.

I'm enjoying this A LOT. As someone that has played a literal fook-ton of NES romhacks and homebrews, this game has that same vibe and rivals the best of the best in that regard. While it has that underground, indie, NES game masterfully reworked beyond what is seemingly possible - I believe this was made from scratch from the ground up. So, that being said, capturing the same exact feeling is a tremendous feat in itself. This is just fun, man - blending the best of the gameplay styles of classic 8-bit Mega Man games and Zelda II. I also immediately liked the main character, the villains, and the overall lore of this cool quest. I shall keep playing and I also look forward to its sequel, which is already in my library.

Solid metroidvania