Разработчик: Elden Pixels
Описание
Alwa’s Awakening это игра, которая старается быть как можно ближе к аутентичной 8-битной атмосфере с великолепным пиксель-артом и саундтреком, наполненным цепляющим чиптюном. Все это очарование вернет вас прямо в эпоху NES. Благодаря интуитивно понятному управлению, игра легка в освоении, хотя достичь совершенства в ней будет трудно, прямо как в старых добрых играх нашего с вами детства!
- Новая приключенческая игра в духе NES, которая непременно бросит вам вызов
- Используйте волшебный посох, чтобы решать головоломки и побеждать врагов
- Находите улучшения для ваших предметов и способностей
- Исследуйте огромный мир в стиле Метроидвании.
- Наслаждайтесь новой 8-битной музыкой с более чем 25 оригинальными треками
Поддерживаемые языки: english, swedish, german, spanish - spain, portuguese - brazil, french, italian, russian
Системные требования
Windows
- ОС *: Windows XP, 7, 8, or 10
- Процессор: 2.1 GHz Dual Core
- Оперативная память: 2 GB ОЗУ
- Видеокарта: Intel HD Graphics
- DirectX: версии 9.0
- Место на диске: 280 MB
- Звуковая карта: Yes
- Дополнительно: Gamepad Recommended
Mac
- ОС: Mac OS X 10.7
- Процессор: Core 2 Duo
- Оперативная память: 2 GB ОЗУ
- Видеокарта: Intel HD Graphics or better
- Место на диске: 280 MB
- Звуковая карта: Yes
- Дополнительно: Gamepad Recommended
Linux
- ОС: Ubuntu 16.04
- Процессор: Dual Core 2 GHz
- Оперативная память: 2 GB ОЗУ
- Видеокарта: Intel HD Graphics or better
- Место на диске: 280 MB
- Звуковая карта: Yes
- Дополнительно: Gamepad Recommended
Отзывы пользователей
The instant deaths that send you back screens and screens for you to do the same thing over again in order for 1 more chance at a jump is just not fun gameplay. There's really no reason that the instant deaths couldn't just do 1 damage and send you back to the start of the room.
Alwa's Awakening is a fun little Metroidvania style game, but I highly recommend playing the NES version as opposed to the PC version. That NES ROM is fortunately available as DLC for the game here, and frequently goes on pretty good sale if that's a concern.
This version is almost the same, but it cuts a bit shorter than the NES one. Also, the design here suffers a bit. Bosses are a bit more unfair in their patterns. For example, the second dungeon's boss, the one that circles itself with orbs, is a nightmare on this version, because he moves as fast as you do. So, you evade his first around of attacks, go down to hit him... and then die because you cannot get away from him anymore. He is right behind you, will chase you straight into the wall, or will prevent you from using magic to escape. Likewise, the fourth dungeon's boss' attacks now go up past the ceiling, so you cannot safely jump over them, and the timing of the spawning enemies makes it difficult to hide behind a bunker for the attack. There's a few areas where having the screen stretched out meant jumps were longer and thus more difficult, and a few places where the timing was different - such as two blades circling around blocks in such a way that one blade was ALWAYS in the way of the place to stand. The orange faces here fire continuously so they are more challenging to dodge. This game had moments that did feel cheap, and unfair, where the NES version to me did not, even though that one had a more challenging final area that's missing from here. By all means, play this game, it is worth getting, but the NES version is the superior experience.
So i walked through a "safe area" doorway and ended up in the abyss, bouncing off the walls forever
Difficult to recommend.
Does a great job at mimicking the NES era, but fails to deliver a unique or interesting experience. Feels mostly devoid of personality in it's music, level design, characters, and art.
The gameplay itself is slow, boring, and littered with poor design choices. Deaths feel sufficiently punishing, but not always fair... leading to many mind-numbingly slow run-backs through areas you've already backtracked, and will likely need to backtrack again once you're in the late game.
Alwa's Awakening is a game that desperately needs, but lacks, a late-game speed/sprint power-up and a map upgrade for finding collectibles. As it is, you're practically forced to rely on drawing your own collectible map. And even then, it's an absolute slog to find everything you need for progression... let alone all 99 optional orbs.
If you must play Alwa's awakening, do yourself a favor and learn how to double jump off of your blocks and chain your bubbles. These unintentional gameplay mechanics are great for skill expression, allow for sequence breaking, and are the only fun and rewarding movement options you're going to find.
(This is a review from someone who, in spite of better judgment... did 100% Alwa's Awakening.)
The game is mostly based on exploration and it's quite chill (the boss are braindead if you collect enough orbs and literally hardcore if you do not collect those).
The problem, for me, arises at the last level where they decided to pack a lot of super annoying platforming exercises for no damn reason.
from 8/10 to 4/10 thanks to the last level.
The game is just way too damn slow.
Spoiler warning: There's no movement items, only movement spells (of which there's 2.). How the hell are there no movement items when your character moves ridiculously slow, can only jump across gaps around 4 tiles across, and can only jump 2 tiles high? From start to finish I was wondering when I was going to get some way to get around faster. Maybe a dash, or a double jump, or hell even speed-walking boots. Nothing.
Oh yeah and I forgot to mention the ridiculous amount of instant deaths, plus secrets hidden behind things that look exactly the same as instant deaths, so you have to drop a block through to find out. Random puddle of water? Block check. Sewer water? Block check. Purple water? Block check. Spikes? Block check.
It's a metroidvania where you gain abilities that let you access areas you previously saw but couldn't get to, except there are ZERO map markers for items; none it places for you, and none you can place. Oh, and many of those items are mandatory to beat the game. The game is small enough that after enough flailing about and dying to random instakills you can find everything, but it's just not fun.
Retro Metroidvania
Steam Deck: Fully playable
This is an enjoyable game in the 8-bit Metroidvania style. The graphics and sound are good, and appropriate, and the controls are better than they would have been on an actual 8-bit console. The level design is good, but not great, as the designer is a little too fond of fake hazards (like spikes, which normally kill you instantly, you instead need to fall through) and minimum height jumps. In a game where the difficulty can be called punishing without turning on some of the options, this can take the challenge from "hard challenge" to "unfair controller quality check." The fact that only 2 of the 3 special abilities "level up" also leaves the game feeling a little incomplete. But the game was cute, fun, and definitely worth my time.
Generally well-balanced Metroidvania with a charming presentation and addicting ability progression.
The last section of the game does ramp up the difficulty a bit too much compared to the progression in the rest of the game. At the very least the last dungeon isn't obscenely difficult like some games, though that may vary on one's skill level. It tests your understanding of the tools you've been given making it satisfying to overcome its challenges.
It feels like an NES game through and through. Unfortunately, it doesn't feel like a GOOD nes game.
Alwa’s Awakening is fantastic. What a great little game. It feels like a true NES game without the NES limitations. It has some quirks, though.
Controls/Gameplay
The pace of this game is SLOOOOOOW! It kind of feels like an NES game that the system can’t run any faster. I’m not going to say that I love it, but I don’t hate it either. It took me 11.7 hours to clear 100% of the map and almost 90% of the items. It feels significantly smaller/shorter than Astalon, another NES-like Metroidvania. I finished that in 32+ hours at 100% for comparison.
The controls are good. I never felt like I made a mistake because the controls were off.
Enemies are mostly slow and very few. If you’re looking for engaging combat, you’re not going to find it here. Being a Metroidvania, the game focuses more on exploration. It also has lots of puzzles, but most of them are easy enough to solve on the spot.
Save rooms are well distributed across the game. The last area has several since it is more difficult. There are warp rooms too--they’re mostly functional. I guess it’s better than having no fast travel system.
I hadn’t heard about the wall jump and double jump “hacks” until nearly the end of the game and didn’t use them at all. Don’t feel like you need to.
Difficulty
The game felt well balanced and had no difficulty spikes. With that said, I did die some 120+ times, though. Either I was in a hurry and made mistakes or didn’t really learn the enemy patterns well enough. I’m not super skilled either.
Some reviewers are saying that the game gets too difficult towards the end (last area to be more precise). It does get harder, but I wouldn’t say it’s terribly difficult. It has a lot of consecutive puzzles and traps that kill you instantly, and you have to take your time getting through them. I did get stuck on one specifically and looked it up, then I felt stupid because the solution was super easy to figure out.
The bosses are fairly easy, especially once you figure out the pattern. In fact, I beat the last boss on my third or fourth try.
Graphics
The graphics look simple, but super nice. The color palette is awesome and really stands out. However, I don’t know if this was done on purpose or if they developed the game planning on releasing it for the NES, but there is not a single moving background in the entire game. All backgrounds are 100% static. Again, I don’t know if they were going for NES authenticity, but I feel like it could have been done a bit better on PC. Not a deal breaker, though. Another thing—I had issues running the game on my 21:9 ultrawide monitor in full screen (5120x2160). The game stretches all the way to the edges and I couldn’t find a way to fix that. I had to turn off full screen mode and play it on a small window, which can’t be resized by the way. I played the native Linux version.
Music
The music is pretty good overall. While they reused assets in at least half of the songs, they sound good, even catchy sometimes. I enjoyed all of it. It sounds nostalgic to me.
Other thoughts
Here’s my opinion on the ending (no spoilers, though). It sucks. I get it that this is supposed to be like an NES game, but holy crap, at least pretend like you’re trying. That may have been a hook for the next game, Alwa’s Legacy—I don’t know. Don’t expect a payoff at the end after all your hard work. I even looked up the ending on Youtube to see if I had missed something. Turns out it’s just that crappy.
There’s not much of a story going on here. Actually, I don’t even remember it, and I’ve been playing this game for a week now.
Conclusion
I’m really glad I purchased the game. It is a fun, NES-like lite Metroidvania with character and interesting dynamics. I had a lot of fun.
Patience is key
Alwa's Awakening (Alwakening?) is a perfectly serviceable NES love letter...if you have the patience for it and how much it intentionally takes after the less-than-great design decisions that defined that era and the early 4th gen.
This is what I really want to call a "metroidvania-lite" - the world is interconnected through a bunch of individual rooms and there's a little bit of ability gating, but it's very light and there's only a tiny handful of upgrades, making the game feel about as small-scale as the era it's emulating (which is fine...) It makes the most out of the few mechanics it has, with some decent platforming challenges that can be tackled in a few different ways with some tech that isn't hard to find on your own.
The music and art and overall aesthetic are solid as well, not quite completely authentic but the "limit-breaks" are hard to notice for laymen. The music can be a LITTLE repetitive, but they're well composed so it's not that big of a deal.
[hr][/hr]
The problem though is that Alwakening, despite controlling well and tight, is an incredibly slow game. There's other, even slower platformers, but this is one of the most "sluggish" ones I've played in a while. Zoe moves at a leisurely stroll, platforms take their sweet time, scrolling between screens takes a bit, and ascending through multiple floors with the bubble spell is a real test of your attention span.
This is the real difficulty of the game - it's honestly not all that hard, save for the final gauntlet (turn on assist mode respawn there, there's absolutely no shame in it, the checkpoints are spaced kinda poorly there) and the real danger is from making mistakes just out of sheer impatience. This becomes so much worse when checkpoints for bosses are placed a few rooms or so away, requiring a 30-ish second walk every single time you die while learning the patterns.
It doesn't at all shock me that the next game - Legacy - basically just boosts the overall game speed by what feels like 10% and it plays and feels so much better as a result. I beat it just fine and didn't get too bored like with some other recent titles I've sat through, but this can be a make or break for a lot of people. Alwakening also has some janky hitboxes here and there, and a frequent frustration was taking a hit (and sometimes death) when landing a final blow on an enemy because I guess I was in their hitbox on the same frame or something - the wand attack range and height is really puny.
One more issue is the game's fetish for fake walls and fake death pits, especially for intended progression. Most of them aren't too difficult to stumble into, but they're also not super well signposted or discernible from real walls most of the time, and there's some that are genuinely obtuse and obnoxious - the devs' answer to this on the steam forums are unironically to "ask a friend/consult a guide." Don't feel bad about it if you're stumped I guess, but there's a reason we mostly moved past this, or kept them mostly for optional secrets.
[hr][/hr]
There's no comment on the story because there's basically none and it doesn't matter - so ultimately I'd say if you have more experience with and patience for NES games and slower paced platformers, you'd probably do fine here. Otherwise, I'd just recommend to play the sequel Alwa's Legacy instead, which to me, so far is better in almost every way.
Would I recommend Alwa's Awakening? Sure.
It has great nostalgic values with the artwork and music. The game looks very easy and childish but it can be very frustrating and demand you to look around every corner. Several times over. Most rooms and enemies aren't that difficult but those that are will stick in your memory... Your nightmares, lol!
At two times I was very close to look on the internet for where or how to continue. I am glad at didn't and actually finished the game completely on my own. With that said.. I don't blame those who takes a few tips. Chances are quite many have quit the game tired of just going in and out of the same areas too many times over.
There are bosses in the game. Some rather difficult but several are easy. Try to learn the pattern. There is one to every boss.
The game gets 8/10 for me. It's looks simple but can demanad some real memory, trial and error and yes, even thinking from your part. My biggest issue with the game is the simple controls. They work for most parts but sometimes you need to something that isn't very simple and makes the whole thing for more diffcult than it needs to be for the wrong reasons.
Overall though. I have fun with this game and could see myself playing a sequel or something similar. Just not right now. One game like this will feed your hunger.
This is a solid little puzzle platformer with satisfying boss fights. Somewhat challenging platforming sections with a unique system of movement. Excited to move onto the sequel!
I like magic mechanics in this game, but here is the warning:
The game starts like a pretty normal retro-platphormer, but at the end it becomes FREAKING HARD, it is still doable, but last level's five floors was a nightmare.
But controls and hitboxes are perfect, if you master it, nothing can stop you.
Also, you can find a secret word and tablets that are useless for ending, but give you an achievement.
A short and simple metroidvania perfect for those who miss old NES games. Combat was never particularly interesting, but the exploration made up for it.
Unrelated to the ''game'' but I hate speedrun achievement...
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Дополнительная информация
| Разработчик | Elden Pixels |
| Платформы | Windows, Mac, Linux |
| Ограничение возраста | Нет |
| Дата релиза | 01.02.2025 |
| Metacritic | 71 |
| Отзывы пользователей | 78% положительных (433) |