Once Glorious Artahk

The game looks well-made and I'm sure it will find its audience, but I'm not one of them. You have to navigate a (seemingly pretty substantial) maze with no map. While being zoomed in to much, as somebody else called it. Navigating a large area while looking through a keyhole will never be something I enjoy. Nor will I ever enjoy having to do game-related things (like quest tracking or maps) outside of the game. I've done it before, back in the 90s, and I do not miss it at all. Also the lore you unlock, while well-written, is kinda hard to read because of the pixellated font. Presenting lengthy texts in this kind of font is just not good practice. Rating: ★★★☆☆

A game filled with mystery and many fun puzzles to solve, and once I got into it I couldn't stop playing! Very very fun, a bit of a metroidbrainia, and I really enjoyed the writing and story! It felt like the perfect length for this kind of game too. The only downside I would point is that the font used can get hard to read, especially on some resolutions, but it didn't affect me too much.

A surprisingly big game, with plenty of puzzles to solve and deep lore to uncover. If you're interested but unsure, consider checking out the prologue stories in this game's events and announcements section (you'll have to scroll down to before the first 1.0.1 hotfix), and see if the writing interests you, as you'll be doing a lot of reading throughout the game. Some of my only criticisms of this game: - The default keybinds are a bit wonky, especially if you have experience with other 2D puzzle games. I'd recommend rebinding the controls before starting. - For long periods of playtime, the game is very open and directionless, sometimes to a fault. You'll usually have plenty of puzzles to solve, but if you miss the puzzle/location for the next major unlock, you'll probably have to scour the areas (or the lore entries) more thoroughly to find that puzzle. - In Outer Wilds fashion, some progression points are locked behind identifying key elements in the lore entries. However, they are not always very well telegraphed: relatively early on, a puzzle in one zone requires reading an entry that's unlocked in another zone, which points to a hidden area in a third zone. Depending on the sequence in which you find these three components, you might not make the link these three things are actually connected. - Relatedly, this game's lore entries have mostly no visual flair, so it's not always clear whether a lore entry is relevant to your progression, or if it really is just lore. Compare to Outer Wilds, where key elements are highlighted in orange, and the ship's log directly shows how bits of information you've picked up fit into the bigger picture. Despite all that, I do recommend giving this game a try if you enjoyed games like Outer Wilds and Blue Prince. It's really a great game, especially for a solo dev.

I'm a huge fan! Great story, and there aren't enough games so devoted to exploration these days. Wander, absorb, solve, repeat. I could say more here, but instead I'll say more here: [url=https://youtu.be/pmV-QvNPpDw?si=QNtE7CwSHuxivfS9]The One-Word Review: Once Glorious Artahk[/url]

Once Glorious Artahk is an excellent puzzle/exploration game with knowledge-based unlocks. This is a note-taking type game! If you like this genre, it's absolutely worth your time. Now, if you're interested in more specifics: The writing is very good, which is important since reading notes is a significant part of the game. The game does a great job of setting up a world and story that leaves you curious to keep learning more, motivating the puzzle solving and exploration. The puzzles themselves are quite varied, with a few staple mechanics (such as the classic laser reflection (with twists, of course)), but the majority of puzzle mechanics are unique. Most of the time the puzzle is figuring out what the environment is trying to communicate, which is done well, and makes for many satisfying 'ah-ha' moments. As for exploration, it is enjoyable to walk the world and discover new things - but you have to expect to be lost alone in the deep dark woods for quite a while before you get a sense for things. Backtracking can be a little tedious at times, but it never got bad enough to really frustrate me. Oh yeah also the soundtrack and the art are both solid, very fitting to the atmosphere! Lastly, for the overarching stuff, the story, world, progression, all that - Excellent. Really, really good. Some of this stuff reminds me of how it felt playing Tunic and Outer Wilds, which is a big compliment. Bismuth Tales, thank you for making an awesome game in my favorite niche genre!

I found this game after the map update and the negative reviews seem to be addressed. Personally I like the beast mechanic and I never felt like I couldn't progress because of it. (It can be disabled if it's a problem.) The map is great for keeping track of loose ends to follow when you change areas. The story and the way it was revealed had me invested early on. I love the unnerving atmosphere especially in late game. I enjoy puzzle/exploration games with plenty of secrets and this one did not disappoint.

Well worth the purchase.

It starts a little slow but I had a lot of fun playing it. The story writing was very enjoyable and I truly hate that nasty emerald eyed trixter.

Brilliant puzzlevania with no platforming, no combat, just walking and puzzles. Each area is large and confusing at first, but eventually become familiar as you revisit them over and over to uncover new secrets. (I understand the monster is not popular, but I liked it as a mechanic to push a new player further into unknown territory rather than sticking in one spot. You can turn it off.) I did not love the lore at first, found it quite verbose really. But soon I appreciated the fairytale stories of trickery and betrayal, then I started seeing the connections and world building. It motivated me to track down every last puzzle. My biggest complaint is the absence of any hint system. I got stuck a few times, including on puzzles required for progression. A couple puzzles (out of ~100) seem rather obtuse, and in other cases I just didn't know where to find the puzzle I was missing.

Amazing game with cute puzzles which just decorate the great lore behind. Long story of once glorious Artahk is unfolded as we persist on looking and reading for hints and details. Not my native language so some words in entries were new to me, but the rhyme and style of writing are marvellous. Though sometimes I mindlessly went around but one can always count on help from developer and other players - thanks guys!