The Mobius Machine

I really want to like this game, the design (characters and level design) is nice, nice ideas. But the main issue I have with it are the level design (the repetitive parts) causing navigation issues for me. Backtracking is horrible, the map areas are too big for their own good, the respawning enemies and how much of a tank they can be at times even with upgraded weapons feel more annoying than challenging. Not allowed to take shortcuts too or your booster except for puzzles at best since everywhere you go a projectile or spikes hit you. This makes it slow and sluggish, combined with the backtracking it can take just for a simple chest is bad. I can not recommend it if there are not some Quality of Life changes with the map like teleport, better checkpoints and better shortcuts to open. I hate to say it, but I hate this game sadly. It started to frustrate me, not knowing where to go next after certain upgrades and even felt like no progression at all anymore after a while. It was no fun anymore to explore, and I just wanted to get through an area, only to notice I need another upgrade in this area, so back to backtracking of course. Overall the movement and shooting is nice but all the other points here drag it down for me. I simply reached my limit with this game after 9 hours, most of it i dare say 5 hours of it were backtracking and trying to navigate. Exploring is important in a metoridvania, but if basically 10 areas are open to go from the start only to notice in the middle of it you can't go further due missing an ability, it is way to annyoing.

Good graphics and map

The Mobius Machine was a game I picked up after Axiom Verge because I was looking for more Metroid-Like games. This game is very fun to play with smooth controls and good movement. There isn’t really that much of a story which I think is completely fine because it just lets you freely explore an abandoned alien world with very little pauses for dialogue. I liked the bosses even though there were very few of them. They were not hard, but they were fun at the same time. A complaint I have is that I like the idea of adding in mini-bosses, but the execution I thought wasn’t very good. Firstly, I didn’t think the fights themselves were super enjoyable and I also don’t like the idea of making them required. Unless I missed a way to skip over them then disregard this section, but I feel like they should have been placed off the beaten path were you have to uncover them rather them be required for progression. I would have also maybe liked if the map was a touch smaller. I feel like this would have benefited fast travel because portals are few and far between. After you complete the game and go back to 100% everything, it can get a bit tedious traveling around looking for everything. However, this game is still very fun and looks great. 7/10

Ахуена

Muito bem feito. Horas de diversão.

steam deck ok

fun fun fun

A good, if somewhat flawed, little Metroid experience that surprised me in a pleasant way. Fully 2.5D games are a rarity in this space, so I commend the development team for taking that route, and the art suitably mixes alien landscapes and unnerving strange beings with familiar concrete and steel structures, and seeing the lighting visibly shift between zones was a good way to keep things distinct. I'd have liked to see a bit more variety in two certain late-game areas, but 3D environments are complicated and expensive enough as is, so I understand the practical reasons why this wasn't done. Though the weapon upgrades are a bit lacking on impact relative to the effort taken to acquire them, actually firing them is reasonably satisfying and the overdrive mechanic makes the typical "hold button to heal" system a lot more mechanically interesting as overdrive shots are [b]really[/b] powerful, adding a neat little risk/reward feature. Mobility upgrades were the highlight here, some of them are a bit familiar (wall climbing, gliding), but there's one upgrade that recontextualized a gameplay element I hadn't thought much about in a [i]big[/i] way which gave me the same feeling as learning how to wall-jump in Super Metroid. What also surprised me in a good way was the emphasis on shortcuts. It felt like every other area where I'd expect a scrap cache or an upgrade fragment, there was a shortcut that could be blasted open that made exploration a smooth experience. Definitely a bit of an underlooked experience that has its own positives to offer.

Update2: Just finished the game after approx 45 hours. 10/10 Every bit as impressed as when I wrote the earlier reviews. I see a few people have mentioned the game can seem grindy at times. Here are a few tips to prevent mindless wandering: -> Check the map - look for areas that aren't fully explored. -> On the map, do you have diamonds anywhere? Those are the blue upgrade orbs. -> It can help to take a screenshot of a section of the map and note what parts are blocked - there's always another way in. -> At some point you unlock the ability to swim underwater, and also to use a parachute when falling - it felt like half the game was beyond these two unlocks, so if you haven't gotten those, don't give up! -> You can use the mobius machine to quickly jump around the map. -> A lesser known trick - workshops all point to the same place, and there's a mobius machine near the workshop, so you can use workshops as a secondary way of getting around the map. -> Some of the bosses are tough, and some are multi-phase - these were challenging - I probably had to play through the first phase a dozen times to get enough cracks at the second phase to win that - the good news is after the first 5-6 attempts most of the "first phase" bosses were actually not that hard. -> A few of the harder bosses required a slightly different weapon mix between the first and second phase. -> If I recall right, all bosses unlock something, so they are worth the effort. My original Update: How did I not find this game sooner? I know people can split hairs over the "perfect" game, but if this isn't a 10/10 game, I don't know what is. The game is beautiful, and Fairly deep - multiple areas with distinct personalities and things to discover. This feels like one of those "Must have" games that I somehow missed. If you've just stumbled upon this - no need to wait - it's an awesome game, go ahead and buy it. One tip for new players: The map lets you place markers - I suggest you place these in areas you can't get past, this will make it easier to find them later, when you have a few upgrades. Original review: What a beautiful game. Really seems well done - I've only played a short bit but I'm in such awe I had to stop and leave a review.

SuperAdictivo!!!