Finished my first run, it took me quite a bit of time cause I wasted time killing everything and experimenting.
My thoughts :
- UNZOOM THE CAMERA TO MAX
- The game is really pretty in gameplay, even if it is somewhat basic at times
- It feels like they transposed the 2D game into 3D, which is not a bad thing in itself but strange for a full remake, I personally liked it, it retains charm
- The gameplay felt loose at first but it's actually pretty fun and satisfying
- I liked that you can cancel out of the floaty jumps with a dodge, and holding a direction after dodge + attack gives you the dash attacks, Hawkeye can spin from corner to corner it was pretty fun to keep attacking the enemies in the dungeon that AoE you by doing this
- The stats upgrades (and abilities they unlock) do make a difference that can be felt during gameplay, I really liked that.
- It was really easy even on hard, I think I read on some JP site that you can unlock a harder one by beating the secret boss (not sure), but I'm also certain things will get tougher after you beat the literal first boss
- Turning off the mini map gives an experience a bit closer to the original, having to find your way through exploration
- I think the flashback versions of the prologues work really well... which contrasts with the playable prologues which I think are the weakest part of the game (only did a couple)
- I think the artstyle and the direction of the game are at odds with each other sometimes and it's a very strange thing to witness (which leads to some cutscenes absolutely not working)
- Some concessions here and there, I think the game got a LOT better the second it opened up, it's strangely relying on its gameplay and progression more than I thought it would.
- OST remastered is fire so far
Some screenshots on top of the ones posted above :
The remade intro is so nostalgic. They remade it in a perfect way, the feelings.
The beach parts are beautiful.
I tested Switch version, there are lots of textures poping, I do not care, but I know there will be people that are going to care.
Combat is smooth, changing different attacks, but I expected a harder challenge, I know it is the beginning, so.
Approved.
I noted the prologues have very poor polish compared to everything else that came right after. For instance, they did fix the texture pop in on the wolf guy in the city but not in the prologues. I believe it may be because of the sheer amount of unique things per character and they focused on what is common to all of them.
I had a long list of gripes after doing Hawkeye's prologue, and almost all of them went away by the time I finished the demo, so yeah.