pillowmantis

After playing the frankly disappointing Ender Lilies, I didn't have high hopes for this title. But, having now finished it after around 20 hours, I can safely say that this game is a quality product. First, the music. It's alright, not the greatest but definitely serviceable. Though most of the music is fairly generic, there are a few standout boss themes that are still stuck in my head and have found their way onto my playlists. The sound design is superb, with clear audio cues that help a player get a grasp of where they stand, where an enemy might be up ahead off screen, if a projectile they need to parry is coming. World Design is interesting. They did a good job with interconnected zones and making sure that there are a lot of shortcuts to unlock. While the lack of convenient fast travel will be an issue for most, I often found that the available methods saved more than enough time to make backtracking feasible. As for the often mentioned checkpoint starvation, I do agree there aren't very many. However, the world is full of shortcuts you can open that make a given checkpoint end up close to a route further ahead. Things like activating an elevator that goes to a prior checkpoint. The actual map design is pretty cool, with a lot of random empty crevices that make it feel more like an actual place rather than a game world where every inch has a specific purpose. Though that's a downside for many, it's an element I appreciate. For gameplay, Grime really excels. Every enemy type feels unique, with slightly different approaches and strategies needed to deal with them. The main mechanic of combat, the parry/absorb feels incredibly satisfying to land, and they do a good job of communicating exactly which attacks can be parried. As you unlock added mechanics, combat gets more complex. A "pull" ability that is used for traversal can also be used to grab enemies during parts of their animations, knocking them out of it and opening them up to attack. Red flashing attacks can't be parried, so dodging is the only option. There is a variety of weapons, though I only ended up using a few due to my build. Still, they seem to offer enough differences to appeal to many playstyles. Platforming segments can get very challenging, especially mandatory to progression segments. You need to learn how to chain together every mobility option in the game to reach the ending. Having played with a keyboard and mouse, I can't really say how difficult they'd be to someone with a controller. If you don't like tense and sometimes exasperating 2d platforming, don't get the game. Bosses are phenomenal. Each boss feels very distinct in terms of attacks and appearance, and provide plenty of exploitable openings for an enterprising player that understands the mechanics. There is always a checkpoint less than a minute away from each boss, so death never feels too punishing. It also has a good mechanic to help with grinding, if you're so inclined. By killing enemies, your Ardor meter goes up from 0 until 100. The higher it goes, the more mass (basically Souls from Dark Souls) you acquire from enemies. I didn't need to grind to beat the game, but for those who need a bit more levels I'm sure it will be handy. As for story... I don't want to get too detailed. Personally, I liked it. It's got that "modern Metroidvania" style of storytelling, with the overly cryptic lore and item descriptions. While it isn't the best story out there, I still felt emotionally invested. And that's what really matters.

To be perfectly clear, the game itself is not bad. Movement is pretty intuitive, with none of the unlockable mobility upgrades feeling hard to use. Combat is satisfying, and offers enough room for personalization that each player can find their own methods. The map could use work, but I appreciate the clarity in communicating which rooms still have secrets to find. Where Ender Lilies falls flat, in my opinion, is its presentation. People call it a mix of Hollow Knight and Dark Souls, but it felt more like a reheated meatloaf of the two. Tastes good, but lacks memorable charm. Storywise, I was interested at first, before I knew what was going on. But as I discovered the lore, it turned out to be a lot of reused concepts from its main inspirations. They were executed competently enough, but a copy is still a copy. It simply didn't feel as meaningful the second time around. The bosses, with a few exceptions, are generic knights that fail to leave much of an impression. The flash of red that almost every attack in the game is preceded by hurts their memorability, since you spend less time actually examining foes and learning their animations than you do simply reacting to the color red with a quick dodge or parry. Despite the plethora of unlockable attack abilities, called spirits, you won't wind up using most of them more than once. Since you need collectable resources to upgrade them, a player will naturally only want to stick to the ones they've upgraded even if they get a cool new one. On top of this, each change in spirit composition necessitates a period of relearning muscle memory. While I appreciate what they were going for with the system, it still ultimately harmed my experience. The art style and environments look pretty, but in that generic soulslike gothic way that doesn't stand out. Even now, only a day after 100% completing it, I wouldn't be able to describe most of the locations in great detail. This is despite combing through the world several times to obtain every last optional item and scrap of lore. As for the music... I was disappointed. I like MILI, so I was really looking forward to the OST. But even now, looking at the OST on its own, barely any of it actually stands out. I wouldn't be able to tell you when these songs actually play in the game, and most of the boss music seems to be going for the Dark Souls "Gwyn's Theme" vibe. That would be fine, if it wasn't EVERY SINGLE BOSS THEME. When all the music has the exact same feeling to it, no tracks really get a chance to stick in the mind. Jumping back to the combat, a lot of the basic enemies are very uninspired. Throughout the entire game there are these slime things that just walk at you slowly and periodically leap forwards. Generic zombie archers shoot at you unerringly, only really a threat when one is busy with another enemy. The unique enemies for each area, meanwhile, almost all fall prey to the simple strategy of dodging into their body when red flashes and then hitting them. Repeat until dead. As I said earlier, if it weren't for the flashes of red it might be more interesting. But since the actual animations barely matter to learning their moves and timing they all end up feeling the same aside from how tanky and damaging they are. For someone that wants an easier game in the genre, I would heartily recommend Ender Lilies. In fact, I think it's a great introduction to the genre. But, having played far more interesting titles with far more interesting stories and settings, I can't say I really enjoyed it. Oftentimes I'd find myself wishing I was playing Blasphemous or Hollow Knight instead. If I were to rate this game more accurately, I would probably call it a 7.5/10. A fun way to spend your time, but not one that you'd keep coming back to.