Slimes

I've never been good at writing reviews, but this game's amazing. The gameplay isn't going to be what's bringing you in (Warning Shot also works on bosses lol) but the story is just magnificent. I've never been so invested in a story of two guys who hate eachother, would definitely recommend!

A short, but brutally compelling RPG. Its writing takes many cues from Drakengard and NieR in the best possible way--I could not stop playing it and it made me feel like absolute ♥♥♥♥ for doing so. The combat mechanics are also easy to understand while being complex enough to facilitate several different ways of approaching each fight, and the difficulty curve is appreciable but manageable. Absolutely worth your time.

Slimes shines in the raw intentionality of everything and how it serves the thematically dense story. The central gameplay alternates between the turn-based combat and explorations of Julius and "Healer" and text based side stories, but you'll slowly uncover how the two sets of plots intersect. Both share the evocative three color art style and bleak scenarios, though finding the connections and piecing together the story as it unfolds. If you play this, earn all the side stories, they are technically optional but really enhance the experience. Especially given that my favorite part would feel a lot less emotional without this prior context. All this narrative stuff interacts well with the JRPG-style game play, which hones in on what is most interesting. Both playable characters have an interesting resource management system, and their new moves reflect developments as they go along. A lot of their abilities help themselves but debuff the other one, emphasizing their sense of animosity. Enemy types feel distinct and require different strategies, and at times will react to the dialogue entering the battle. Exploration emphasizes the general loneliness of the setting, and the literal settings reflect closely on narrative aspects. Also the bonus PDF (I played mostly on Itch) is really cool as someone who likes looking into the artistic process and why the creator did which things.

About a year ago, I tried to play through this game (downloaded it on Itch.io, which is why my time isn't like... 1.7 times as long). Back then, the game's legitimately rancid vibes (I mean that positively) made me give up on finishing it, which I now recognize meant I missed out on an excellent ending to the game (plus, ironically, if I had stuck it out like... one more floor, I would have been much happier with the results). Now, having completed it, I can say, Slimes is a truly fantastic game, and I'm glad to have reached a point where I could play it through. The story is very well told with very good characters, but that's a very general thing to say, so to instead list some of the really strong things about it: - The two party members have an excellent(ly miserable) dynamic. This is reflected very, very clearly in their skills, in a really neat way that I'm not sure I've ever seen before (even through the very end of the game). - The gameplay is mostly fun (the way Julian's guns are set up makes for a surprisingly fun bit of managing guns to manage the fights most effectively). More importantly, when it isn't fun, it's not fun in a way that supports the narrative of the game. - The additional stories told in the notes gotten by clearing the floors are really nicely done and play into the main narrative really well. - Even when I knew the general direction of how things would play out, it still did it in really interesting ways I wouldn't have expected. - The story was really nice to see with how it fit into the wider canon that's also present in scitydreamer's other game on Steam, "I Hate You, Please Suffer" (especially with some certain secret bonus content). I will say, the game is legitimately unpleasant to play at times, and although I consider that a very good thing in this case, it might not be for everyone. In that case, you might want to check out scitydreamer's other game, "I Hate You, Please Suffer", which, although it has sources of stress in it, is ultimately a lot less unpleasant in that regards (and is also an incredible game).

i think the art will probably be the biggest turn-off for people, i wasn't a huge fan at first, but almost immediately i didn't care, and over the course of the game i grew to like it. another thing i like is the combat, i think it provides a good amount of depth for how long the game is. but my favorite part was definitely the writing, i found that the side-stories were all pretty interesting, and really liked seeing how they mixed with each-other and with the main story. i would say this games definitely worth checking out.

it has slimes in it

i really like this a lot. mainly for the story and music. if you're not super into that then maybe not for you but i'd recommend regardless the story is told in an unconventional way. you unlock cut scenes and story bits if you clear out a floor entirely. each one is about different characters and the world from different perspectives and points of time. most of it doesn't directly tie to the two protagonists, Julius and "Healer", but it at least ties to parts of their identities or the dungeon they're in. Julius has 3 guns to switch between that need to be reloaded after certain number of shots. "Healer" has magic that he can regenerate to heal. later on it makes for really interesting battle dynamics. i played on the harder mode and only died like 3-4 times. but it was only at the final boss and other late game enemies. again i think the story is the main highlight. they did a good job in structuring it in a way that really only works for a game.