As the game industry continues, many companies have retired some of their more classic franchises in the wake of new financial moves, leading to indie developers taking the spiritual reigns. From what we’ve seen in the past couple of years, this typically works out, with games like Shovel Knight being some of the more prevalent examples. Now Merge Games and Raven Travel Games are taking their shot with a Ghouls N Ghosts influenced platformer. Do they have what it takes, or is the project reduced to it’s boxers? (Trust me, if you’ve played the game, you’ll get us) Here’s what I found out after my time with the title.
Gameplay:
In some retro inspired adventures, the developers will add a larger array of attacks and or jumps, to match the added controls over a generations span. Strangely enough, Cast of the Seven Godsends doesn’t do this, but that isn’t the only stem of it’s other problems. Nostalgia is overly rampant, and the few good ideas (such as some super moves and bosses) give further ways to cheat the system. This would be poor if the game felt proper in it’s gameplay department, but without that it just feels useless and stale.
Story & Design:
Fans of classic 80 and 90’s hits will be happy to know that Cast of the Seven Godsends keeps the story traits seen back then, including insufficient and awkward translations, typical tropes, and annoying and repetitive catchphrases. Cast of The Seven Godsends also matches the clunky controls seen in that era, with the one positive being that you won’t have to place another quarter in if you’ve died from them.
Presentation/ Visuals & Audio:
Cast of The Seven Godsends could have redeemed itself slightly in graphics or presentation, but this just isn’t apparent. Everything looks ugly and dated, and not in that classic way that some would suppose. The energetic music contradicts other flaws, but with that being one of the only game’s great positives it still doesn’t leave much of an impression.
Conclusion:
Cast of The Seven Godsends is one of the weaker titles I’ve played this year, which is even sadder considering it’s also a remaster. The few redeeming qualities are buried by poor design, resoundingly clunky mechanics, and rough controls. Retro games always had some rough spots, but this is inexcusable.
Cast of the Seven Godsends Redux gets a 3/10 (Painful)
We’d like to thank Merge Games for giving us a code!
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