Hindsight 20/20 - Wrath of the Raakshasa

[b]Playing status:[/b] 100% achievement (3+ playthroughs) [b]Grindy Achievement(s):[/b] No. [b]Optional Achievement(s):[/b] Yes (16 achievements). [b]Difficult Achievement(s):[/b] No. [h1]Intro[/h1] [b]Hindsight 20/20 - Wrath of the Raakshasa[/b] is an action-adventure game with various story branching. You'll be given decisions every time you act, which leads to 6+ unique endings. [b]Pros:[/b] - 6 endings with slight variations - Choice to use between 2 weapons that can affect your progression - Decisions that will change the endings [b]Cons:[/b] - The game never makes it clear when it saves the game - Maps can be time-consuming to traverse - Unskippable cutscenes - Blocks readjust themselves whenever you are pushing them [b]Specs[/b] Intel Core i5-9300H 2.40GHz, 8GB RAM, NVIDIA GeForce GTX 1650 [h1]Should you buy this game?[/h1] [b]No.[/b] [i]There are just too many "fillers" in the game with nothing special to offer.[/i] [hr][/hr] [h1]In-Depth Review[/h1] [h3]Visuals[/h3] The design of the area can be odd sometimes if you realize where you are going. There are a lot of outdoor areas in a castle, along with traps, and dungeon-like rooms. I could understand that there might be some clash between the aesthetic and in-game decision as to what the building is used for, but it just doesn't make sense most of the time. [h3]Story[/h3] Despite having numerous endings, the story feels bland to me. I couldn't relate to any NPCs since there isn't much to talk about - talking to them feels as if I'm just talking just for the sake of receiving quests. Although it might be true to some extent, the game clearly wants to go beyond that. There might be some events that shake my emotion sometimes, but that only occurred once or twice throughout my playthrough. The ending helps to make you curious about the other endings. It always gives you a slight hint of the other endings by letting you know about what's happening in the main character's thoughts and regrets. I found the approach to work best for these kinds of games, and I admit that I couldn't predict some of the endings. However, some endings are just way too similar to each other. The same video will be played again and again, and there is no way to skip these at all. It was boring to watch the same scene several times since it can take a few minutes to finish. [h3]The Game[/h3] [b]Gameplay[/b] The game provides a vast area where you need to do a very long walk to reach an objective, even in dungeons. This forces you to use your stamina to dash, although there is a limit on how many times you can do it in a short time. To make it worse, you'll walk slower whenever you run out of stamina. The story mode, the easiest difficulty that is accessible from the options, might eliminate the stamina bar, but that only happens in combat. I couldn't think of any reason not to implement unlimited stamina outside battle except to eat up your playtime walking between places. Once you're out of vast maps, there will be narrow paths that can lead you to death. The second area is full of these and the thing is, it's easy to fall if you are not walking carefully. Moreover, you also need to wait for a very long time to respawn if you die. https://steamcommunity.com/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=2605752187 [b]Weapons[/b] There are 2 weapons with slightly different mechanics that you can use. You need to chain a combo of 3 to deal damage to the enemies with both weapons, although the sword can also damage the enemies on the sixth combo. To be honest, I don't understand why I couldn't deal any damage with the 6 combos using my stun baton, even though it is harder to execute compared to the 3 combo ones. It defeats any reason to chain longer combos, especially since the 6 combo hit doesn't give any benefit apart from a knockback and health packs, which are not needed most of the time. Despite having 2 weapons with different mechanics, the stun baton is way better compared to the sword. You might need to learn how to chain combos with the stun baton at first, especially since you need to attack different enemies to initiate a combo, but it will be easier and faster to defeat the enemies that way. The sword deals less damage than the stun baton, and although it might work better in one vs many situations, you mostly have to deal with two enemies at the same time. Furthermore, most endings are tied with the use of stun baton, lessening your reason to use the sword. https://steamcommunity.com/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=2605751701 [b]Dungeons[/b] Dungeons are way too similar to each other. The rooms will have either enemies, block-pushing puzzles, or obstacle courses where you need to walk slowly to avoid getting hit by hazards. The puzzles are usually easy enough to figure out and can be brute-forced if needed, although the obstacles are way too annoying. Some obstacles are just way too close to each other and you have to walk very carefully to go through them. [b]Combat[/b] Combat feels dragging out. Although you will be in a one vs many situations at first, enemies will respawn slowly later on, to the point that you'll be in a one vs two. I don't get why they are not putting the same amount of enemies until the end of a battle or making it more difficult by putting more enemies on the screen. On the other side, enemies have different attack patterns, forcing you to prioritize the more dangerous one first. Boss fights are all about waiting until they expose their weak points. There isn't any sense of danger from fighting bosses, and they can be defeated the same way despite their different attack patterns. There are no additional phases either, and it was too boring to wait for them to expose their weak points. https://steamcommunity.com/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=2605753165 [b]Length and Replayability[/b] I finished the game in 5.1h in the normal difficulty. I switched my difficulty to the easiest mode afterward to unlock the remaining endings. However, as a game that offers replayability value, it lacks too many features that are commonly available for such games. Most endings only differ at the very end of the game, and you are forced to replay the game from the beginning to experience the other endings. Moreover, there is no option to skip cutscenes or speed up the playtime either, forcing you to spend as much time as your first playthrough to finish your following playthroughs. Everything that slows down the game starts to irk me at the end, including the slow-motion that happens after you kill the last enemy, simply because it eats too much time for something that I have experienced before. [b]Problems[/b] The game never tells you when it saves the game, and it only saves at certain checkpoints. It also doesn't give clear instructions on keyboard control in both the manual and in-game tutorial. [h1]Conclusion[/h1] As a game that relies on replayability, the game doesn't seem to have accessibility options for the subsequent playthroughs. It wasn't fun to replay the whole game again from the beginning just to see a slight change towards the decision that you make at the very end of the game, and the story isn't that interesting either to justify another playthrough. The gameplay is also boring and redundant since enemies spawn one by one, forcing you to fight in one vs two most of the time. I feel like wasting my time being in battle because I have to wait for the enemies to spawn and walk towards me instead of dealing with all of them at the same time, and there are just way too many enemies that spawn before the whole battle ends. A lot of design choices don't suit me at all, and I couldn't feel like recommending this game because of it. [quote]This game was reviewed with a key provided by the developer for free[/quote] [quote]Visit SaveOrQuit.com for detailed game reviews, posted daily![/quote]

[h1]Premise[/h1] [h3]Spoiler-Free Review[/h3] [b]Hindsight 20/20 - Wrath of the Raakshasa[/b] (HWOR) is a third-person action-adventure set in a fantasy world. Players impersonate Jehan, a skilled warrior that signed a pact with the Gods in order to go back in time and undo a terrible mistake, that led to his city, Champaner, being destroyed. The choices made on his path will make him either a brave hero or a ruthless killer, with consequences to match. [h1]Sum-Up[/h1] [table] [tr] [th]🟩 [b]Pros[/b][/th] [th]🟥 [b]Cons[/b][/th] [/tr] [tr] [td] 1. Excellent array of meaningful choices. 2. Original dual-purpose combat system. 3. Solid variety of enemies from start to end. 4. Great replay value. [/td] [td] 1. Absolute lack of any settings menu. 2. Lackluster character progression. 3. Most bosses don't feel challenging enough. 4. Unrewarding exploration. [/td] [/tr] [/table] [table] [tr] [th]🟨 [b]Bugs & Issues[/b][/th] [th]🔧 [b]Specs[/b][/th] [/tr] [tr] [td] - Unwieldy control scheme for M+KB. - Maximum resolution locked to 1080p. [/td] [td] - 3900X - 2080Ti - 32GB RAM - SSD - 1440p [/td] [/tr] [/table] [quote]Follow our Curator page, [url=https://store.steampowered.com/curator/41449676/]Summit Reviews[/url], to see more high quality reviews regularly.[/quote] https://steamcommunity.com/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=2598225970 [h1]In-Depth[/h1] [h3]Pros[/h3] [b]1.[/b] The choices given to Jehan throughout the adventure are significant enough to result in at least 4-5 different endings, maybe more. Not only that, but the reactions, tone and behavior of both enemies and important characters are reflected well in relation to them. [b]2.[/b] The duality between Ruthless and Merciful combat systems, which can be alternated freely at any time, opens up to varied combat options and interesting approaches to each fight. Both styles have their nuances and dynamically change how enemies fight against the player, which is something rarely seen in any game. [b]3.[/b] From simple grunts to grenade throwers, ranged units and a variety of mutated abominations, there is no shortage of new foes in HWOR. Each of them feels distinct and unique in their role on the field, albeit some could be balanced better. [b]4.[/b] With all the different choices and approach possibilities, replay value is definitely solid. At least two playthroughs will be needed to see the difference between evil and good behaviors, while several more to see all endings. [h3]Cons[/h3] [b]1.[/b] A PC game without even basic options like resolution or audio settings - in 2021 - unbelievable, right? Well there we have it folks. For whatever reason, the Devs decided to not include any option (except difficulty selection) at any point. That is simply unacceptable for a PC release. [b]2.[/b] Aside some new special attacks unlocked progressively, there isn't any new weapon, move or mechanic added to combat or exploration at any point. Despite the variation in enemies, traps and setting, the character will remain mostly the same from start to end gameplay-wise. [b]3.[/b] Aside for the final boss which is a bit better in challenge, the others feel slow, predictable and not as dangerous as one would expect. There have been normal fights far more deadly than actual bosses, in my experience. This downgrades the importance and impact of such central fights. [b]4.[/b] Just a few pieces of paper with additional lore, that's it for exploration. Some levels are even rather large and open, but most of such areas just feel redundant and "full of nothing", as they have no reason whatsoever to be explored. https://steamcommunity.com/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=2598226253 [h1]Gameplay Breakdown[/h1] [b]Exploration[/b] Is performed on foot, and sometimes using moving platforms. While the main city of Champaner has a map, all other locations don't - not that it's much of an issue anyway, given the general linearity of their layouts. The main target of exploration is finding and acquiring set of keys that are used to open gates to access further parts of each area, every key is guarded by enemies, traps, puzzles or a mix of these elements. Additionally, there are a few scattered collectibles that give some more lore-related info when found, but other than that, there aren't any secrets, secondary areas or divergent paths in each level. Sometimes, pickups of Health or Shakthi (mana) can be found outside of combat, though it's an uncommon occurrence. [b]Combat[/b] Plays out in two different styles: Merciful and Ruthless, each with their own special abilities, nuances and combo styles - other than different enemy behaviors as reaction to them. The first one is non-lethal, as it uses a staff to stun and force foes into submission - this is the "good" playstyle choice, so to speak. Ruthless instead uses a sword to cut down any enemy, effectively killing them. Both styles share some mechanics, such as inflicting damage only on the third hit of a combo, and unleashing a special attack (that makes enemy drop health and mana "coins") on the sixth. Moving towards an enemy while attacking will auto-lock them, and then hit them if close enough - doing this in a rhythmic alternation, choosing what enemy to strike on the third combo hit to prioritize greater threats, is one of the core mechanics of combat. Jehan also can dodge multiple times in a row, partially negate enemy damage by blocking, redirect most ranged attacks to the sender if hit mid-air, and use Shakthi (mana) to fuel powerful special attacks, of which many are only unlocked further in the story, based on the play-style and choices followed thus far. In case of death, checkpoints are saved between each fight or solved puzzle, so not much time is ever lost. [b]Character Management[/b] Is limited, and performed in a menu where players can choose which mana-powered special attack to currently set as active, and use in combat when possible. There are five of them for each combat style, some are better than others depending on the foe at hand. Other than this, there isn't any other character progression mechanic. [b]Dialogues[/b] Are one-sided when talking to random NPCs, but become pivotal moments when important characters come into play. Different events will unfold based on the protagonist's actions and choices, and dialogues have multiple options to choose from, to which characters may react favorably, or with hostility. The various combinations open up to multiple endings for the game, and different story paths. https://steamcommunity.com/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=2598804040 [h1]Verdict: Good[/h1] [url=https://steamcommunity.com/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=2548409603]Complete Rating List Here[/url] [i]It took me around 5 hours to finish a playthrough on Hard difficulty. Replay value is solid, given the multiple approaches to combat and choices. The overall content amount is in-line with the proposed price of 12,50€, and for this quality I can warrant buying for full price.[/i]

[i]This review is further detailed in the video below.[/i] Hindsight 20/20 is a surprising game when it comes to your choices ACTUALLY MATTERING! While the combat is nothing special beyond the adapting AI, the story is where it’s at. Seeing the world change and characters react to your decisions is quite satisfying. Hindsight 20/20 delivers where many “choices matter” games have failed. I just wish there was voice acting. [table] [tr] [th][h1]✔️PROS[/h1][/th] [/tr] [tr] [td] ✔️Your choices ACTUALLY matter. ✔️The story is excellent. This game is not afraid to kill characters. ✔️New Game+ !! ✔️10 Endings! (Wow) ✔️A huge variety of enemies. ✔️AI adapts to your weapon choice. ✔️A single run is quite longer than I expected. About 6+ hours. [/td] [/tr] [/table] [table] [tr] [th][h1]❌CONS[/h1][/th] [/tr] [tr] [td] ❌The combat is mediocre but good enough that I didn’t get bored with it. ❌A full 3 hit combo is needed to inflict any damage with the sword. ❌Not much in terms of character progression. No leveling up, earning gear, or talents. ❌The city was quite bland. Beyond a collectible here and there there isn’t anything to find or do. ❌No optional content. [/td] [/tr] [/table] [table] [tr] [th][h1]⚠️BUGS[/h1][/th] [/tr] [tr] [td] ⚠️ No bugs found! [/td] [/tr] [/table] [h1]REVIEW VIDEO[/h1] https://youtu.be/RSd9oId2n2I Follow our [url=https://store.steampowered.com/curator/38590438/]CURATOR PAGE[/url] for more reviews and videos!

Is a ok game not very friendly on keyboard and mouse the combat seams repetitive and story from what I played leaves something to be desired got board within a hour of playing

[i]Я не просила, но этот проект выбрал меня. Предложили халявный ключик от экшен-РПГ. Почему бы и нет? Взглянув на отзывы, я была крайне заинтригована! Что могло ТАК не понравиться игрокам в чистом инди-проекте? Посмотрим.[/i] [hr][/hr]Обзор написан при поддержке щедрого и запасливого стимчанина [u][url=steamcommunity.com/id/Domenik_]vipuser2007[/url][/u]. Спасибо огромное![hr][/hr] [b]Техническое исполнение:[/b] без нареканий(!), что поразительно. В игре встречаются «шероховатости», но происходит это очень редко, так что некритично. [b]Графика:[/b] простоватая. Усугубляется это еще и тем, что опций по настройке изображения нет вообще. Нельзя поправить яркость, уйти в оконный режим или смягчить тени. Большие однотипные пустые пространства и скудное количество обитателей не дают глазу зацепиться. Даже наличие двух биомов не исправило ситуацию. Однако, отмечу, что над стилем авторы поработали – все модели были придуманы и воссозданы вручную, а далекие пейзажи ярки и сочны. [b]Звук:[/b] неплох. Пара-тройка добротных треков не давят на уши, а немногочисленные звуки качественны. Ничего запоминающегося, но и раздражать не будет. Озвучки в игре, предсказуемо, не предусмотрено. [b]Сюжет:[/b] витиеват. Всё, от выбора реплик и оружия до вашей скорости влияет на повествование. Вы убиваете? Персонажи будут сразу атаковать и на вас ополчится весь город. Вы милостивы? С вами захотят договорится, а горожане поблагодарят за помощь. Вы неспешны? Значит не так уж вам и важен «старый друг». Сама история создана по лекалам индуистской мифологии, с её многогранностью и неоднозначностью зла и добра. Богатый фундамент, что не использован и на треть: текст написан слишком «в лоб», с бесконечными повторами и «литрами воды». Авторы, тем не менее, постарались подарить каждому игроку собственное приключение с личным финалом (в игре более пяти концовок), что приятно порадовало. [b]Геймплей:[/b] поверхностный. Он весь поделен на четкие куски: разговор, бой, загадка, выбор, дальше. Боссы похожи друг на друга как братья, а некоторые просто повторяются. Эта схема сохраняться, слегка перемешивая свои элементы, до титров. Ваш подход – ваши последствия. Два оружия ощущаются по-разному и приносят разный результат. Линейная прокачка, двигаясь за счет побед, добавляет новые приемы и комбо. Загадки элементарные даже для малышей, а побочные квесты не блещут разнообразием. Слишком плоско. [b]Достижения:[/b] легкие. Чтобы получить честно, придется пройти до конца порядка 10-11 раз(!). Хоть игра и пробегается за 1,5-2 часа, но время придется потратить. Вы конечно, можете воспользоваться «шаманством с файлами», но я не одобряю (равносильно взлому). Для лучшей навигации подспорьем станет [u][url=steamcommunity.com/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=2604927070]единственный гайд[/url][/u]. [b]ВНИМАНИЕ, ХАНТЕРЫ! ПРОВЕРЬТЕ ПРОФИЛЬ ИГРЫ! ЕСЛИ ОН ОГРАНИЧЕН - ДОСТИЖЕНИЯ НЕ ПОЙДУТ В ЗАЧЕТ![/b] [b]Модификации и доп. контент:[/b]нет. [b]Вывод:[/b] «Hindsight 20/20 - Wrath of the Raakshasa» - это честная мобильная игра, которая ошиблась платформой. Она не удивит, но разработчики дали именно то, что обещали. В очень урезанном виде, проскакав по вершкам. И в этом загвоздка – авторы ни на чем не сделали акцент, ни в чем не углубились. Создается впечатление, что все сделано для галочки. И это ничего, так тоже вариант, но не при такой цене. К покупке не рекомендую, а вот за бесценок можно и попробовать разок, подарив себе передышку от переусложненных проектов.

After my first play-through I feel like I can make a review. The only real decision you make in this game is who you kill and who you spare. The dialogue choices you make are going to be made based on that single choice. Although that seems kinda bland, there are a decent amount of endings with just that. I won't spoil anything about the endings however. The game-play is fun enough to want me to play it over but dialog is super bland and the cut-scenes are far too long. The plot isn't anything crazy and is easy to follow so I wish they would implement a skip cutscene or allow me to speed through dialog. Once you beat the game you have to watch it all over again and I find that annoying. The puzzles in the game are pretty simple and also slow down your progression It isn't very keyboard friendly and although I'd probably play this type of game with a controller anyway, I know a lot of people will probably be annoyed by that. Especially by the fact that it defaults to assuming you have a controller ready to go. I like it for what it is! I recommend giving it a try or waiting for it to go on sale. I think a quality of life update would make it perfect.

This game is Stunning, Outstanding, and just overall fun. I do not want to ruin any spoilers, so I will keep it minimal. This games GRAPHICS remind of something like "The Walking Zombie", cel shaded/ cartoonish look which I think are great. I have 20+ Hours so far and have beaten the game 3 times. Supposedly there is TEN different endings with FOUR that will not OVERLAP at all. The choices you make through out the game will have effects on your town, friends, and everything within the game. It can change the story/ gameplay for the better or worse, you will not know right away. You can play MERCIFUL way which you get a baton/ electric shock stick, which will remove the enemies weapons and armor and they will surrender. Which is very cool to see. Or you can go FULL on RUTHLESS with the SWORD that is given too you and kill your enemies, plus when you beat the final enemy in the room that you are in you will perform a awesome FINISHER attack. I think this game is kinda comparable to the old Zelda's games top down/ 3rd person clear a room then proceed to the next the room, as well they added some nice puzzles not too difficult to complete. WHAT ARE YOU WAITING FOR JUST GET THE GAME SUPPORT THE DEVS, I was told this was created by 4 people, but watching the Credits it seems like 4-12 people maybe? This game has a lot of potential. The only CON I have with it is that there is jump but there is a dash and everything controls wise seem to have a great purpose and feels really flawless.

Really smooth combat, and rich story. Finishing moves are really satisfying. Shakti specials are also lots of fun. Lots of replayability (if thats a word), and I am not normally one who replays games.

[i] My Experience [/i] Although I don't tend to be the type of player that will replay a game to get a different ending, I was nevertheless intrigued by a game that offers choices in how you approach conversations and enemy encounters. My first impression of the game was an odd one - the first two folks I spoke to in town asked me to bust their loved ones out of police-enforced quarantine. It was suspected that these individuals had been infected with the Raakshasa virus (I suppose I'll call it). As I am familiar with some absolutely devastating viruses in our world (like Ebola) and we are currently living in a pandemic in which public health agencies have strongly recommended quarantine after exposure or infection, I wasn't really inclined to help these folks. I didn't know how contagious the virus in question is or whether it's even curable. However, I couldn't proceed in the game until completing these quests. I suppose that you're given the option not to help when you finally reach the individuals in quarantine, but breaking into this complex and fighting through layers of guards only to kill someone who was already under lock and key seems like nonsense. A weird start to a game about choice and consequences. However, it wasn't all bad. As I progressed through the game I found the combat generally enjoyable, although it sometimes seemed arbitrary whether my strikes on a single boss enemy would begin the three hit combo necessary to actually deal "damage" (I used the non-lethal baton in all of my combat encounters, so I was reducing something other than "health"). I liked reflecting projectiles at the ranged enemies who fired them, and I enjoyed the strategy involved in when to deploy your special attacks. I would often save these for green or red raakshasas, who would either create poison areas on top of me or quickly glide around and hurl their weapons. The environments themselves weren't as exciting as the combat encounters. Traversing through them often meant finding a key, using it to open a door that had another key behind it, then rinse and repeat. I did enjoy the collectible documents that could be found lying around. I liked the illustrations on the front and the extra details and world-building done in the paragraphs on the back. In between combat encounters, there were quite a few lame puzzles in the game. Many of these involved changing the colors or patterns on various blocks and pushing them around. With some of these puzzles (those containing the blocks with specific patterns on top), I found myself just guessing at the solution. However, my guesses were usually correct, so perhaps there is a deliberate logic here (potential players: just try and create some vague symmetry). There were also a lot of rooms with haphazard configurations of blue or red traps strewn across the floor - these just looked silly. Although morality in the game was initially presented as somewhat binary (kill or don't kill, good guys don't kill), it deepened in complexity as it explained how the raakshasa virus [spoiler]evolves to protect its host[/spoiler]. It still struck me as a somewhat clumsy allegory, since the virus essentially [spoiler]overrides the free will of its host[/spoiler], but I suppose there is a larger poignant point being made about cycles of violence. I played through the entirety of the game without killing a single person or raakshasa, and the citizens of the city built a statue of me due to my embrace of their values (refraining from any killing). However, I basically hated the game's ending - which is...maybe the point? [spoiler]The leader of the raakshasas essentially has a nuclear bomb, which he gives to you after you prove yourself in combat against him. The game has previously insinuated that the only thing keeping humans from hunting down raakshasas is the fact that their leader possesses this device. So of course it's a risk for this leader to give you the device, but the hope is that you can bring the knowledge you have about the virus back to your people and the two "races" can live in some sort of harmony. However, I made the decision to destroy the device. I've never liked the way that the United States (where I live) possesses nuclear bombs itself but insists on unilateral disarmament for other countries, especially since (in 2022) it can barely maintain its own functioning democracy. But neither before or after destroying the device was I given the opportunity to explain the nobility of the raakshasas to the citizens. They immediately rushed out into the lands of the raakshasas to commit genocide.[/spoiler] [b]Wow[/b] - what a cynical view of humanity! However, I can't necessarily say it's inaccurate. My temptation to replay the game wasn't to see if I could somehow preserve the peace (I didn't want to do anything differently here), but to absolutely slaughter all of the citizens within the city and just allow the raakshasas to move in. However, I couldn't stomach the thought of going from room to room collecting keys or doing even one more of those block puzzles. Unfortunately, I don't think I can recommend [b]Hindsight 20/20[/b]. The enjoyment that can be found in the combat, world-building, and concept just can't overcome the dull puzzles and clumsy implementation of player choice.

10/10 GAME! LOVE THE SOUNDTRACK THE GAME IS AMAZING! Amazing SOUNDTRACK, and amzaing gameplay.... story line is perfect.... You should get this game guys!