Shadows of Larth

[h1][i]»Corruption always takes the weakest hearts, not bodies.«[/i][/h1] [h3]– Queen of Vargeth[/h3] [quote][h1]💬 Neutral Review 👍\👎[/h1] There are arguments to be made both for and against recommending this game.[/quote] [quote][h1]TL;DR[/h1] [spoiler][i]Shadows of Larth[/i] is an ambitious 3rd-person action [i]Souls-like[/i] that looks quite gorgeous, manages to create its own identity and generally does many things right but also could use quite a bit of polish, especially in terms of combat - the focal point of the game. It's quite hard to recommend it in its current state but it has quite some potential.[/spoiler][/quote] [quote][h1]❕ Informational ❕[/h1] [i]Shadows of Larth[/i] has been developed by independent solo developer Zine E. Falouti, who had previously made the unique puzzle game [i]Stones of Yalmrith[/i].[/quote] [h1]🎮 Gameplay[/h1] The game is a [i]Souls-like[/i] and features many aspects you'd expect from that subgenre, including punishing combat that's based on a combination of player skill and Stamina management, unlockable shortcuts, different modes of attack [i](think quick, balanced, strong)[/i], limited Spell-casting abilities, a limited amount of healing items and structures that allow you to replenish your Health, Mana and healing items. That said, the game lacks a lot of the polish of a [i]Dark Souls[/i] for example. Most notably, attacks lack a feeling of impact and weight, with hardly any noticeable reaction from struck enemies. Additionally, despite the importance of evading incoming attacks, some attacks aren't clearly telegraphed because they have zero visible wind-up and connect pretty quickly. While this applies to a lesser extend to boss enemies, which have better telegraphed attacks and a clearer defined rhythm, they aren't done perfectly, either. Another big no-go in 2020 is that you cannot change the keybinding, at least not via the options menu. When using a controller, this is less of a problem than when using the less than optimal keyboard layout. As for the more advanced workings of a [i]Souls-like[/i], it doesn't appear like this game has any skill that influences the protagonist's poise, there are no different damage types and what the game calls parry/interact for the keyboard layout is called [i]Marked Force[/i] for the controller layout and does not seem to work as a parry but instead looks like a shoulder charge. [h1]🔥 Difficulty[/h1] As mentioned above, enemies hardly stagger and can sometimes sucker punch you without telegraphing their attacks, which artificially raises the difficulty in a less than fair way. One of the main defining factors of the [i]Souls-like[/i] subgenre isn't [i]extreme[/i] but [i]fair[/i] difficulty and in this aspect the game has quite some room for improvement. Likewise, with each new area you enter, the enemies seem to get exponentially more tanky, taking ages to be brought down and less predictable, ultimately making you and your weapons feel weak. This is made worse by the [b]challengers[/b], members of your own exalted Guild, who canonically are almost identical but slightly inferior to the protagonist in terms of abilities, but seem to have infinite Stamina and Mana and are also very tanky. Lastly, quite a few attacks that shouldn't hit you do so anyway due to a combination of slightly too strong tracking, slightly sub-optimal hitboxes - both must be close to perfection in this subgenre, especially - and an apparent lack of i-frames during dodges [i](I might be wrong about this last point but with the other two aspects being broken it's impossible to tell for certain)[/i]. This point also applies to bosses, sadly. https://steamcommunity.com/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=1997606700 On the flip side, the [i]Marked Bells[/i], i. e. the structures that replenish your Health, Mana and healing items, do not respawn or even heal defeated enemies, unlike the [i]Bonfires[/i], [i]Shrines[/i], etc. of other games in the subgenre, meaning you can, slowly but way more easily than expected or probably even intended, work your way through otherwise perilous areas by picking off one enemy at a time, freely replenishing your resources, including your strong one-use Spells, after each enemy. Additionally, you only lose 5% of the [i]Corruption Harvest[/i] (the Character Upgrade currency), when you die to normal enemies and none at all when you are defeated by a boss, meaning you can cheese your way towards the bosses, die and repeat the process, if you want to farm upgrades easily. https://steamcommunity.com/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=1997601845 While these aspects weirdly enough balance each other somewhat out, they ruin the feeling of dread and overwhelming odds, the pacing and the overall difficulty. [h1]📖 Story / Presentation[/h1] In a more or less typical fashion for the subgenre, the story is told in a rather minimalist way with the focus being on the lore instead, although there isn't quite as much lore as in a [i]Dark Souls[/i]. That's not to say that it completely lacks a story, though. Along your journey, you will meet various different characters to talk to and there is even the [i]Marked Guild[/i], your headquarters, that serves as a Hub-area with various options for Character Upgrades by spending the various items you find along your journeys, Traders and plot/lore exposition. [h1]💻 Graphics / Art-style[/h1] The graphics of this game are very detailed and polished, and feature great lighting effects, lots of foliage that is affected by wind, and much more. In terms of the art-direction, [i]Shadows of Larth[/i] perfectly pulls off ancient, dry, dusty, hot and, at times, lush. It also very well manages to feel Oriental in terms of weapon- and enemy-design, as well as the architecture of the buildings. https://steamcommunity.com/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=2002572100 [h1]🎼 Soundtrack / Sound[/h1] The game shows some promise in the main menu with an epic instrumental score that sets the mood for a great adventure, yet except for the boss fights, the game lacks any music and, in said boss fights, some dramatic but rather generic piece plays. The soundtrack isn't bad but it feels a little underwhelming and stays absent for a lot of the game. One thing that positively surprised me, considering the game's short development time and one-man development "team", is that the dialogues are fully voiced and that most of the voice actors deliver a pretty decent performance. [h1]👨‍👩‍👧‍👦 Target audience[/h1] Basically, if you're into the [b]Souls-like[/b] subgenre, this game is targeted toward you. You'll potentially also enjoy the game if you enjoy [b]stance-based melee combat[/b] and/or the [b]Prince of Persia art-style[/b]. [h1]💰 Business Model[/h1] [quote][u]Classic:[/u] Buy the game, play the game. No paid DLCs, items, lootboxes. Art-book and the Soundtrack offered for free.[/quote] [h1]📋 Conclusion[/h1] For the asking price and the amount and quality of content you get, you probably won't regret getting [i]Shadows of Larth[/i], even if there clearly are aspects that could use more polish. It is a serviceable [i]Souls-like[/i] with its own, unique art-style and lore and it manages to offer a decent amount of challenge and character development. The fact that this is the effort of a Solo developer doesn't magically make the issues vanish, though. Buy it at a discount if you're into the subgenre and have already played the really big ones. Wait for updates to hopefully address some of the flaws, if you can play other, more polished [i]Souls-likes[/i], instead. [quote]This product was reviewed using a free key provided by the developer.[/quote] [url=https://store.steampowered.com/curator/37072886][quote]If you're looking for more quality reviews like this, follow our curator page, [b]Devils in the Detail[/b].