Tom and Phil talk AAA development, but also cover the original Xbox, Yakuza Zero, Hollow Knight, Torment: Tides of Numenera, Doom, Scarface, Mafia III and some discussion of Nintendo's Switch
That Switch is turned on.
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Hollow Knight, Team Cherry’s stunning debut game, has taken the Metroidvania genre to a whole new level, with its intricate exploration and challenging combat. Hollow Knight’s parallels to From Software’s Souls series are obvious, but make no mistake, it stands alone in its own uniquely desolate world.
Hollow Knight is a deceptive game; on the surface it looks simple, but it is much more complex than it lets on. When I played the sneak peak—which was limited to the first level, the Forgotten Crossroads—I was already surprised at how intricate it was. The more I played, the more shortcuts I unlocked, and the previously isolated caves became an intertwining web of tunnels and pathways. I compared Hollow Knight’s level design to From Software’s infamous Souls series in my first impressions, but in terms of intricacy and complexity, Hollow Knight is on a whole other level. Indeed, the levels are so intricate that although I completed it in 25 hours, it has a 3 hour speed run achievement. Early levels feature inaccessible pathways leading to later stages. As you explore, each level becomes a hub leading to every other level, allowing traversing the caves, even without the unlockable fast travel, to evolve from slow and meticulous to rapid and effortless.
In the ancient ruins of Hallownest, which lie deep beneath Dirtmouth, you can find many hidden secrets, treasures, odd friends and dangerous foes. These colourful characters have distinct personalities and quirks, and a select few will even set up shop in Dirtmouth. For a fee these shopkeepers provide some essential abilities, tools and items that aid you in your long travels in the perilous caves below. Other characters you meet provide you with the the lore and context of the world, and, much like in the Souls series, it’s really up to you to put the pieces together. One important character sells you a map, a necessity required for navigating the often confusing caves for the first time. The map will only update after you finish exploring and rest at a bench. These benches also replenish your health and act as save points.
Hollow Knight puts an equal emphasis on exploration, platforming and combat. The combat itself starts off relatively simple, with the unnamed character you play as only able to slash enemies, but as enemies begin to spit acid and throw spears, you learn to dodge and keep on the move. You unlock more evasive abilities and offensive attacks as you progress and the combat becomes increasingly more complex; the diverse array of insectoid enemies attack with more ferocity, and a variety of attacks and projectiles begin to fill the screen in an almost bullet-hell-like way. New enemies are introduced in each level, but some enemies return with reskinned looks and retooled abilities. Each unique enemy provides an interesting challenge as you try to figure out their attack patterns, and many of the reskinned enemies also add surprising wrinkles to the combat. For example, the flying mosquitoes that attack in a docile way early on become furious and unrepentant bloodseekers.
Not only are the normal enemies varied, but almost every boss is unique, each with a diverse set of attack patterns and quirks. Analysing these attack patterns is integral to defeating each boss. If you rush your attack it’ll lead to almost immediate death in most cases, as each boss packs a devastating punch. The boss battles are definitely the highlight of the gameplay, as they really emphasise the game’s dodge-based combat and put your skills to the test.
Progression is very deliberate and slow; when you progress it feels meaningful and game changing. Hollow Knight’s controls are tight and fluid; allowing you to deal with the intense platforming and combat with ease. As you attack enemies, your special souls meter fills; souls are used for healing yourself and/or attacking enemies in various devastating ways. In intense battles you have to balance healing and special attacks. Combat is complicated further by charms you buy from the vendors or find in the decrepit tunnels. When equipped, the charms alter your abilities in numerous ways, or even add new ones. For example, one charm can automatically absorb any coins dropped from fallen enemies or found in deposits of treasure; another decreases the cost of using your spells; and yet another gives you extra health, but takes away the ability to heal yourself. Mixing and matching these charms to create interesting combinations provides some variety in the downtime between acquiring new abilities. The platforming can be unforgiving, with seemingly impossible jumps and spikes littering the levels, but these sections are passable with patience and skill and reward you with charms, coin deposits and bountiful treasure chests. The combat makes great use of the platforming mechanics by forcing you to keep nimble and bob and weave as enemies bombard you from all directions with various attacks. Vanquishing enemies without a scratch is an exceedingly satisfying feeling when pulled off.
As mentioned before, Hollow Knight is visually stunning. Its hand-drawn 2D aesthetic looks painstakingly crafted, and is key to bringing to life the isolated and depressing atmosphere of its withered world. Each area has a distinct look and feel, and each is as gorgeous and haunting as the last; the barren and sterile caves of the Forgotten Roads are a far cry from the densely overgrown ruins of Greenpath or the violet-hued industrial caves of the Crystal Peak. Ari Gibson’s art direction coupled with Christopher Larkin’s chillingly beautiful, appropriately subdued soundtrack, propel the atmosphere beyond anything I’ve experienced in a 2D game before.
However, Hollow Knight’s major flaw is its obscurity. I spent a few hours lost in many levels because I either missed a certain ability, or an obscured pathway. Nooks and crannies where required items and abilities are to be found are often so small they’re easy to miss, even when checking the map. It was also difficult to remember every individual room, especially when there were so many distinct rooms containing only extra items unnecessary for progression. For example, you come across so many locked doors early on that when you finally find a key, it’s a tedious case of trying every previous door until one unlocks. And in most cases the item description only contains the vaguest of hints for where it’s meant to be used.
A more minor complaint is a technical issue; the game sometimes stutters, often in the middle of a jump or an intense battle, resulting in loss of health, or death. Though, Team Cherry have already said they’re working on this, so expect it to be patched soon enough.
Nevertheless, Hollow Knight has set the bar for other indie games; it may appear simple, but its complexity rivals the Souls series from which it draws much of its inspiration. The combat and platforming are tight and satisfying and the character progression keeps the game interesting and fun right to the end. The cherry—pun definitely intended—on top is the unrivalled art direction and soundtrack, which complements the intense gameplay to create a uniquely withered and bleak world.
Phil and Tom are back to talk about the upside of Inside, as well as the rest of the current independent development, a counter point to Episode 92.
- Phil
Above: Hobo and the Narc pulling together the latest episode.
Yes, it's in French. Yes, you have to read subtitles (amusing, considering the video content he shows is dubbed in French!). And, yes, it's a dude improvising a review over a video of the game he's reviewing, while he plays the game. If that doesn't sound bad enough, did I mention he's French?
Yet his stream-of-consciousness critiques are tres haute cuisine, and this one in particular indulges irreverently in one of Game Under's favourite guilty pleasures, criticising videogame criticism (see title), while masquerading as videogame critics.
Tom Towers joins the Endless Backlog Podcast as a special guest. Hosted by Gagan, Episode 103 is an attempt to make the smugingest podcast ever. Even if this dream-doubles team doesn't succeed, smugness and hubris go hand in hand, meaning that failure is literally impossible.
Phil Fogg's in hiding for a week, Tom Towers is in biding [of his time], which means it's time for some shameless hustling by Aarny, in the form of a release trailer. If games journalism was a captcha, robots would still pass.
Coming out in but 12 days as of writing (which will be first, Hollow Knight or the next episode of the Game Under podcast?), Hollow knight is apparently shaping up promisingly. Read Aarny's first impressions here.
- Tom Towers
Knowing nothing about Hollow Knight going in - besides that it was a Metroidvania - I was extremely surprised that a hand drawn 2D game could evoke the gloomy and utterly depressing atmosphere of From Software’s Souls series.
The parallels between the games don’t stop at the aesthetics, as Team Cherry - a three man team based in Australia - took inspiration from the Souls series’ intertwined levels that are filled with hidden shortcuts and secret treasures. While exploring the caves below the city of Dirtmouth, I found myself facing many locked doors, initially unreachable platforms and giant enemies, who, in one case, inadvertently destroyed a section of wall which led to hidden treasure. On your travels you meet an array of colourful characters who provide you with the lore of the world and, when you eventually reach the surface, will provide you with essential tools and abilities used to navigate and conquer the chasms below. You buy these tools and abilities through coins collected from fallen foes, treasure chests, and various mineral deposits scattered throughout the decrepit caverns.
Insectoid enemies are the norm, and while the combat starts simple, it requires some relatively precise dodging and, judging by the way the game was progressing, will eventually get more complex. Outside of the bugs, there is a nice variety of humanoid-insect hybrid enemies that attack in different ways, including one that charges head first with a deadly spear on his head. There are also, of course, various bosses and mini-bosses within the depths which provide a great challenge. When you die, you are stripped of your coins and your body splits with a dark spirit. To reclaim your wealth you must return to the dark spirit and destroy it. It’s an interesting twist on the Souls series’ bloodstain mechanic.
This is all brought to life by a hauntingly beautiful hand drawn aesthetic, which is coupled with a sparse and ambient soundtrack that encapsulates the isolated, foreboding and hollowed ancient world you explore. Characters and enemies are distinct and colourful enough to never blend in with the desolate backgrounds.
I’m really surprised at how much I enjoyed the Hollow Knight Sneak Peak, considering it was an added bonus in this month’s monthly Humble Bundle. I’m greatly anticipating the full game, especially since it ended just as I started getting really into it.
You can pre-order Hollow Knight at http://hollowknight.com/ which is coming early 2017 on Steam (PC, Mac & Linux) and the Wii U.
Yes. Just like THAT! Woah, sick hyperlinking dude. Yes I know. Episode 93 of The Game Under Podcast. This episode we start examining the state of so called triple A development and start with Naughty Dog's Uncharted 4.
You'll hear analysis you will not hear anywhere else, so even if you are not interested in Uncharted 4 you will have an enjoyable hour or so listening to the unique perspective fo Tom Towers, and to a lessor extent, Phil Fogg.
Thanks for listening.
- Phil Fogg
Final Fantasy 7: An Oral History
Not only does it features "oral" in its title (which is a word that sounds like "aural"; Phil Fogg's favourite descriptor for reviews on the show), but also because it's one of the few pieces of long-form writing in videogames that deserves its reputation as being good, not simply long.
The key to successful videogame criticism is verbosity. Even popular "short" videos on YouTube, such as Game Maker's Tool Kit, work on the principle of taking a subject that may be covered in a few minutes, then finding a way to wax lyrical verbosity for ten or more minutes about it instead.
But the development of Final Fantasy VII and the impact of its success on SquareSoft is a subject substantial enough that it actually justifies tens of thousands of words of commentary.
A recent exchange with Jamie Galea of newgameplus.tv, friend of the show.
