PsiloSybil

Don't go for 100 percent

Are you looking for an experience similar to Crash Bandicoot? This game is NOT for you. Are you looking for one of the hardest games you'll ever play? Prepare for one hell of a ride. Honestly, I wish there was a "mixed" rating for Steam reviews. Or like, a numerical value, so that I could give this game a 5/10. Being Crash Bandicoot the staple of my childhood, I played it over and over as years went by, and I achieved a level where I felt confident speedrunning it. Not to "world record" heights (even though I managed to get one a few years ago in Crash 2), but in a way where it would still feel fun. And given its presentation, I was immediately attracted by the fact that, aesthetically, PsiloSybil manages to brillantly capture the atmosphere that PS1 Crash has. But there's a catch. This game has quite a few problems that take the fun away at some point. First of all: the absence of some form of protection similar to an Aku Aku. PsiloSybil really does not f*ck around, it asks you to get good or die trying. And dying I did, plenty of times. Sometimes to things that didn't feel like a lack of skill, more like hitboxes too large for some obstacles or enemies. Combine that to platforms that require frame perfect precision and you have the prefect formula to basically obtain a rage game. At least Crash would be quite lenient on that front (and did not have pixel perfect platforms...no, Road To Nowhere and The High Road do not count, on the 1996 release they're perfectly fine...and the N. Sane Trilogy is garbage because of its immensely flawed hitboxes so we don't talk about that here), giving you the option to have up to 2x protection if something unfair happened (and if you attempted to speedrun it, especially the PS1 version, you know how the game would screw you with things that aren't your fault) The second problem arises more towards the end: there's a distinct lack of checkpoints in one of the levels (no spoilers, I guess) and after the penultimate boss, the level of precision required to get through the levels is like Stormy Ascent multiplied by 10. Mind you, I obtained the gem for that level in both the original 1996 release and the trilogy, along with the platinum relic. That did not feel as bad as playing the final segment of this game. Well, the developer himself even admitted that he could not get a deathless run while playing the final boss stage for his showcase video on YouTube, so that should make you understand how bad it gets in regards of precision as you progress through the levels. Also, there's somewhat of a weird bug with moving platforms where they either accelerate you A LOT (issue encountered in the P.E.A.R.L boss fight) and you end up moving further than you wanted to during a jump, or take away almost ALL of your momentum when you jump off of them, slowing you down. I don't really know how to explain it, since English is not my main language, but I think it has to do with the moment when you jump from a given moving platform. Deaths were aplenty (and there would have been even more if some levels didn't allow you to take "early exits" thanks to specific platforms unlockable by obtainining all tokens in other levels, something that Crash Bandicoot would also do thanks to colored gems and I appreciated this feature quite a lot), even reaching a few hundreds total at the final boss (where the pixel perfect and precision hitboxes issues are really evident), but I'm proud of myself for getting through this game. If physics were better and there was less bs all around (game is "rough around the edges", so to say) I'd attempt to go for 100% but, to tell you the truth, I don't see myself ever opening this game again. Try it if you want to go through torture and you're looking for a real, albeit sometimes unfair, challenge. Otherwise, look for something else. I myself was looking for a challenge that would be difficult in a way that would push you to your limits and make you find more creative ways to overcome obstacles, not something that would require memorizing nearly EVERYTHING and execute it in a very specific manner, otherwise you just don't make it through. I'd have played a rhythm game at that point. And I don't even like rhythm games. My review remains on the positive side because at least the price tag, even without a discount, is not exaggerated. Even then, if you can, grab this at a discount, so that you have less regrets later.

Really well made game, wouldn't reccomend it to people who arent into memorizing specific patterns or very difficult platformers. Its hard as ♥♥♥♥ but really good

a good game for sickos who love bad games (me)

Years ago when the Crash N Sane Trilogy came out people and journalists were quick to treat it as "the Dark Souls of 3D platforming". This was probably in reference to its difficulty as some did not remember or vibe with the gameplay or haven't encountered such a level design in decades or ever. Despite suffering from issues due to limitations leading to tough sections, these games were never contenders for the title. And after playing this game I'm more certain than ever. Psilosybil sells itself as a "tough as nails" 3D platformer with an aesthetic that right from the get-go reminds us of the original PlayStation era. Indeed, its limited polygon count has a charm portrayed from the trailer, luring fans of platformers from that era to give it a go in order to relive those memories. Furthermore, there's the music featuring xylophone, pan flutes here and there among other instruments typical from those games, and that also applies to the sound effects coming from the movement, level and enemies. Basically, every aspect from its presentation oozes vibes from the 1990s and in terms of difficulty the gameplay does as well. Indeed, this is a very hard game. With a fixed camera and only the ability to jump or slap you control Sybil through levels that combine precise jumps with accurate timing. From hitboxes that don't appear as big as they seem to require coyote jumps in very narrow spaces and bosses that will require you to guess the depth of your jumps on the fly, there is certainly a variety of obstacles set by design leading to a challenge not meant for everybody. That is not to mention the optional collectible in each level that lets you rescue one of your friends so long as you rescue them in a certain order with increasingly more demanding restrictions. Plus, there are time trials, brutal ones that not only ask you to not die but to reach the end fast and in case you're going for gold skulls from the very first one may require some speedrunning techniques. With all of this the game may come as impossible and it certainly isn't nor unplayable. In actuality, while the player may rarely encounter an actual bug, the tough nature of the delivery may make it seem otherwise. There are also no lives, meaning that you're welcome to keep trying until you learn and eventually get to the end (unless you're playing on arcade mode which does have them limited). There is immense satisfaction in being able to finally overcome what you'd initially thought you couldn't and that is what initially brought me to like this game more and more. As someone who is such a fan of the Crash games that I was able to get most of its platinum relics, this was something I had been craving for a while. So, if you feel like you're up to the task, go for it. If it wasn't the hardest game I've ever finished it's probably among the top ones and I see myself coming back to it later.

O jogo é bem divertido e super difícil. Também não sei o que ocorre que sempre que desinstalo o jogo acabo perdendo o save, mesmo aparentemente tendo save em cloud. Recomendo se curtem um desafio.

as a huge crash fan and when i say huge i mean A REALLY BIG FAN doing pretty much everything across the entire franchise i started playing this thinking to myself "how hard can it be?'' and then i died 75 times when grabbing all the mushrooms on level three. now i know that may sound bad, but even after all these deaths i just couldnt put the controller down. while most crash like games adapt the crash 2 ish gameplay, this one is all about crash 1: taking a simple moveset and utilizing it to the max. this game is hard, you will die, but fair checkpoint placements and great level design will make you not stop playing. every time you finish a level you get an insane amount of accomplishment only to be thrown a greater challenge in your face when you enter the next level. the graphics are really good, they emulate ps1 graphics without looking jarring, and if you dont want the retro filter you have a lot of customization in the settings. the game has a lot of content 26 full levels with time trials and great bosses. if i had one complaint it would the ost, some of the tracks are really solid, but some of them feel limited because the creator tried to stick to simpler instruments. i wont spoil anything in this review but watch out for the last 3 levels, they wont be a easy. (also for the full completionist there is an optional collectible, where if you collect all the collectibles in a level without dying the character you free becomes shiny. as of writing this review i havent done that but im planning to do it so wish me luck)

I died. 10/10

Es como jugar crash, pero exageradamente dificil, y el juego te odia y sin crash. Eres un hongo, haces cosas de hongo y hay cerdos. Si te odias como yo, lo recomiendo mucho.