It effortlessly directs you where you need to go by locking the one door that leads elsewhere. The very first area, The Embassy, is straightforward. The game begins with your creation (literally) as a voice called The Author tells you to come to them. Once you get past the initial opening area, the game throws you a bunch of different paths and doesn’t give you any indication which one you should follow. If you can’t make any progress on one road, try another until you find one you can handle because these games always have an intended path to follow. But these moments are in service of pointing you toward the right direction. Dark Souls is famous for this because of how often new players would end up going down the wrong path at the start (into the graveyard or down the elevator) because of how it doesn’t immediately point you in the specific direction it wants you to go (up the stairs toward the aqueduct). Now, yes, I know – any sort of Souls-inspired game already deals in this to some degree. Hellpoint attempts to take that same philosophy and apply it to Souls-likes. It had a clear progression, but you didn’t need to follow it all the way to access the wider world thanks to the many different roads you can use to access almost any area. It was willing - encouraging even - to let you get lost because it trusts you to find your way around its vast world. It’s closer to Hollow Knight, a game that similarly wasn’t afraid of letting you lose your way. No matter how large and intricate the space, the game will always make sure you never feel lost. Most games are careful to ensure you always know where you’re going and what you’re doing at any given moment. It’s rare for games to truly make you feel lost. It was at times frustrating because I had no clear idea of which path was the one I should focus on first – what the game prescribes as the main route of progression – but it was also exciting. I was just wandering aimlessly, seeing where each path led, never knowing whether I was actually making progress or not. I had no idea where I should be going, what I should be doing. Hellpoint isn’t forthcoming with much of anything.
0 kommentar(er)
