[h1]Overview[/h1]
[i]Hidden Dragon: Legend[/i] is a 2.5.D action platformer combining the historical realities of imperial China with fantasy elements. Although the game is enjoyable for one playthrough, it has several negatives that reduce the enjoyment of playing the game.
[h1]Pros & Cons[/h1]
[b]Pros[/b]
[list][*]The art style of the game is marvelous, and the graphics are pretty, as well.
[*]The gameplay is enjoyable, as it changes enemy types in every act, making the fights a little bit different.
[*]For the most part, the game has a good enemy and bosses variety. Their movement and attack patterns are always different.
[*]The game has several hidden items you can find, starting from actual equipment, like swords and daggers to collectibles.
[*]The soundtrack fits the atmosphere of the game and has several good themes. And it is for free on Steam.[/list]
[b]Cons[/b]
[list][*]Storytelling, as well as characters, is a bit uninteresting, as it contains a simple plot. It would not be a problem if the game did not have tons of unnecessary cutscenes.
[*]As for the mentioned cutscenes, they sometimes show you where you need to go, although the game is linear, so you literally cannot go wrong.
[*]You need to complete the game if you want to play on higher difficulty settings.
[*]It is way too easy to stunlock enemies, even some bosses with the right combos or dagger throwing.
[*]The game loses its breath after the first half, as the locations and enemy encounters become atrocious and uninspiring.[/list]
[h1]In-Depth Analysis[/h1]
[h2]Story[/h2]
The game takes place in the imperial China, during the lives of Empress Wu Zetian and Wang Xiaojie, meaning in the seventh century when the Tang dynasty ruled. However, fantasy elements in the form of monsters and magic are involved. You wake up at the prison, where human experiments took place. You are the only one alive and find out that a secret organization, Tigram, is doing those experiments to find immortality. So, naturally, you must stop them.
Although the lore itself is interesting, the characters and the plot overall are very bland. You will not care for them. Another main problem is, unfortunately, cutscenes, as situations which are supposed to be tense, surprising or sad, look rather dull and even laughable sometimes.
https://steamcommunity.com/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=2025258279
[h2]Gameplay[/h2]
The game lasts about 5-8 hours. After you finish the game for the first time, the higher difficulty settings unlock. There is no reason for locking the difficulty by this means, as the game is quite easy, so an option to actually choose a challenge if the player wants should be there from the beginning. The gameplay consists of [b]platforming, character customization, and combat[/b].
[u][b]Platforming[/b][/u]
Platforming and combat are separated parts of the game. You never fight with enemies during it. There is mainly jumping, but you cannot climb or grab ledges, so it might be a little unpredictable at some times. You also get a grab hook that can be used only on highlighted areas. The last part is swimming, which is the most boring part of the game because you do nothing there, and it unnecessarily lengthens the levels.
There are also simple puzzles. The game plays cutscenes showing you exactly where you must jump and go next. It is very annoying, as the levels are linear, so you feel like the developers thought that you are not bright enough to figure it for yourself.
https://steamcommunity.com/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=2025263497
[u][b]Character customization[/b][/u]
From defeating enemies and opening chests, you get points for which you upgrade your abilities, weapons, and skills. As for the abilities/skills, there are passive and active ones. As for the passive ones, you can get more points from killing enemies. For the skills, they apply for the combat where you can combine them with combos. You also buy health potions. This can be done only between fights, not in combat. You can carry ten potions, and they are very cheap.
Unfortunately, only the sword is your main weapon. You cannot use spears, crossbows, axes, or other weapons your enemies have. You can throw daggers, but I did not find that much use for them, although it can stun a boss in some occasions.
[u][b]Combat[/b][/u]
When the combat starts, the game locks you in the current location, and you cannot leave until all enemies are dead. There are several enemy types with varied weapons, skills, and magic abilities. You have standard fast/heavy attacks, along with dash, and the mentioned abilities. You can counter enemy attacks by dashing on time, as it starts a new combo. Dash can be used three times and then slowly replenishes. There is no stamina for regular attacks.
There are few design problems with a few boss fights. For example, one boss fights require to be beaten by bombs you throw on him. He can, however, destroy those bombs with one hit, so you are left there with nothing as bombs spawn randomly.
The combat is very simple, and there is not much to describe. It does not bring anything new, and it is the same for the whole game.
https://steamcommunity.com/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=2025257621
[h2]Audiovisuals[/h2]
The art style is beautiful, as the game often shows nice scenery, both in-game and during cutscenes. As for the graphics itself, it is of good quality, considering the price of the game and studio's capabilities. Most of the locations look good, as well as enemies, armour, and other equipment.
As for the soundtrack, it fits the game's setting. It provides themes for calm platforming, as well as for action scenes or combat. The game also has full Chinese audio for better authenticity.
[h2]Performance[/h2]
The game was tested with an [b]i5 8300H, GTX 1060 6GB, and 16GB RAM[/b], running at the highest settings at 60 frames per second, at 1920x1080 resolution. The framerate is stable the whole time with a minimum, barely noticeable drops. The game also did not crash or had other performance issues. The same applies to the bugs, as my playthrough was without them.
[h1]Conclusion[/h1]
[i]Hidden Dragon: Legend[/i] is quite enjoyable if you are looking for a small game. However, I would wait for a sale, as I do not see much replayability there. For the 15€ I would imagine having more polished gameplay or better replayability.
[quote][b]This product was reviewed with a key provided by the developer for free.[/b][/quote]
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