Bone Appetit (PC, 2020)
Graphics-6.5 Sound-7.5 Control-7 Challenge-7 Story-5.5
Level Design-7 Frustration-7.5 Fun-7 Originality-6
Overall Score-7
+
Dash ability which lets you run across spike beds and jump after falling/running off of a ledge (see DKC or ball jumping in Metroid 2). With the right gear you can also dash into some smaller enemies to kill them instantly
Comedic tone
Play as an undead skeleton
Enemies tend to be weak to specific weapons
Some teleporters (more for reaching new areas rather than used for fast travel at times though), Some shortcuts are opened up over the course of the game
Some good bosses (the templars - use the environment (also used vs the final boss), necro (vampire), )
Decent variety
Blocking (press down after getting the shield - Monster World IV) - can't move while using it though
Some decent spatial awareness puzzles
Unlockable new game+/old school mode (draining HP outside of the homebase, save points don't heal, 2x food found+you start with accumulated food from the previous playthrough, cultist shop - buy anything found in the normal mode+some other items, no fountain upgrades)
Fairly large arsenal of weapons (15 although some are very similar) - three of them can be upgraded at hidden fountains
Some environmental storytelling (corpses that can also be examined, spoiled food when nearing the final boss)
+/-
Partially non-linear structure (can beat the first three bosses in any order - giant bat is tough though, beating the giant bat lets you explore the underground including the hidden area within the cultist homebase, blue rod (dark underwater part) lets you get to the secret shop early)
More open-ended old school mode since you can buy the fire protection amulet (which opens up the path through the oven), the helmet and/or the master key before beginning
Only one save slot (and you delete it before starting old school mode)
Frequent save points (which are also healing points) early on. A bit less frequent after the first few
Very crude humour
Pretty steep difficulty curve (grinding a bit for food (which is your currency) and finding the whip helps as you can then upgrade your DEF)
No dodge move
Shows enemy names and HP
Odd high jump in that horizontal length isn't increased
Beating bosses early on doesn't lead to getting a progression item or a crucial path opening up
Stat upgrades
Health and food drops from enemies are pretty rare
Kinda slow movement before getting the dash although if you know where it is you can get it pretty early
Can't carry healing items for later use
Flip screen/multi screen (no scrolling)
Borrows the using frozen enemies as platforms from Metroid
Pretty easy final boss if you get the best gear+the frog (faster MP regen) and flood the room (requires a bit of food grinding unless you skip some mid-game gear amd you'll probably have to use a guide to find all the false walls unless you want to push against every wall in the game). Kind of easy late game overall
Old school mode seems harder (depending on what you bought at the cultist shop in the beginning) however you can easily grind for health on the first few screen next to the homebase using the red armor+dash (lets you dash into rats and bats to kill them instantly)+necklace that lets you regain health when killing enemies quickly. So if you got the mace from the shop you can take your time to get all the other upgrades and just get a somewhat harder final boss (or not harder if you grind until you have 350+ HP)
The yellow magic rod kinda sucks (by design it shoots in a completely different direction from time to time and it's also pretty slow to use) however it can be upgraded if you find a certain fountain
No large scale environmental changes
No new enemies appearing while backtracking through a previously visited area (there is some randomization to enemy spawning however meaning you might not have seen all enemies in a room the first time you went there)
-
Some control/interface issues (overly basic map - only shows the basic room layout+castle exits and where you are (also can't place markers or notes on it), high default jump height, can't crouch, can't examine items before buying them in shops, no button config - using a controller means having to use the stick to move rather than the d-pad, can't light up your surroundings with the torch while wielding a weapon - see Zelda 3 for example (however if you get to the secret shop early you can buy the helmet there and it has the same function), pressing down while standing next to a ladder at the bottom of it makes you grab it, )
Enemies not being hit stunned+randomized damage means it's easy to get hit by mistake even by early enemies - also can't jump cancel your attacks so for fast enemies you might have to soak the hits
Not very good humour overall
Some trial & error (you should not deposit food early on - use it to buy useful items, use a guide to determine which are useful, some false walls without clues)
Difficulty spike in the hidden underwater area once you reach the jellyfish and at the giant bat boss
Easy and slow creeper boss (just get above him and use the whip and shield) - also no health refill or save point nearby after it so you need to backtrack if you want to save
Some tedious aspects (various temporary dead ends in the early-mid game, some boring backtracking (long fall after the creeper boss that the game goads you into - leads to the beginning of the game (you should instead go right and down here to get the dash), old shops never restock so you need to memorize which ones have what you want+backtrack to them, some other similar falls), some spongy enemies like the mages and red knights, can't ash while underwater - overly slow horizontal movement)
A few annoying sfx
A bit short (less than 4h, about 1,5h if you know where to go)
Not much of an ending
Can't grab the museum area ladder in mid-air after gaining the high jump - while this is by design as you're supposed to lower it with a switch after entering from above, it looks unfinished when you can see your avatar clearly reaching it
Bugs:
-Some minor hit detection bugs around walls - can make you slowly climb walls when jumping into them
-Occasional control bug where you won't jump if you're holding dash and standing on a single tile wide platform
Level Design-7 Frustration-7.5 Fun-7 Originality-6
Overall Score-7
+
Dash ability which lets you run across spike beds and jump after falling/running off of a ledge (see DKC or ball jumping in Metroid 2). With the right gear you can also dash into some smaller enemies to kill them instantly
Comedic tone
Play as an undead skeleton
Enemies tend to be weak to specific weapons
Some teleporters (more for reaching new areas rather than used for fast travel at times though), Some shortcuts are opened up over the course of the game
Some good bosses (the templars - use the environment (also used vs the final boss), necro (vampire), )
Decent variety
Blocking (press down after getting the shield - Monster World IV) - can't move while using it though
Some decent spatial awareness puzzles
Unlockable new game+/old school mode (draining HP outside of the homebase, save points don't heal, 2x food found+you start with accumulated food from the previous playthrough, cultist shop - buy anything found in the normal mode+some other items, no fountain upgrades)
Fairly large arsenal of weapons (15 although some are very similar) - three of them can be upgraded at hidden fountains
Some environmental storytelling (corpses that can also be examined, spoiled food when nearing the final boss)
+/-
Partially non-linear structure (can beat the first three bosses in any order - giant bat is tough though, beating the giant bat lets you explore the underground including the hidden area within the cultist homebase, blue rod (dark underwater part) lets you get to the secret shop early)
More open-ended old school mode since you can buy the fire protection amulet (which opens up the path through the oven), the helmet and/or the master key before beginning
Only one save slot (and you delete it before starting old school mode)
Frequent save points (which are also healing points) early on. A bit less frequent after the first few
Very crude humour
Pretty steep difficulty curve (grinding a bit for food (which is your currency) and finding the whip helps as you can then upgrade your DEF)
No dodge move
Shows enemy names and HP
Odd high jump in that horizontal length isn't increased
Beating bosses early on doesn't lead to getting a progression item or a crucial path opening up
Stat upgrades
Health and food drops from enemies are pretty rare
Kinda slow movement before getting the dash although if you know where it is you can get it pretty early
Can't carry healing items for later use
Flip screen/multi screen (no scrolling)
Borrows the using frozen enemies as platforms from Metroid
Pretty easy final boss if you get the best gear+the frog (faster MP regen) and flood the room (requires a bit of food grinding unless you skip some mid-game gear amd you'll probably have to use a guide to find all the false walls unless you want to push against every wall in the game). Kind of easy late game overall
Old school mode seems harder (depending on what you bought at the cultist shop in the beginning) however you can easily grind for health on the first few screen next to the homebase using the red armor+dash (lets you dash into rats and bats to kill them instantly)+necklace that lets you regain health when killing enemies quickly. So if you got the mace from the shop you can take your time to get all the other upgrades and just get a somewhat harder final boss (or not harder if you grind until you have 350+ HP)
The yellow magic rod kinda sucks (by design it shoots in a completely different direction from time to time and it's also pretty slow to use) however it can be upgraded if you find a certain fountain
No large scale environmental changes
No new enemies appearing while backtracking through a previously visited area (there is some randomization to enemy spawning however meaning you might not have seen all enemies in a room the first time you went there)
-
Some control/interface issues (overly basic map - only shows the basic room layout+castle exits and where you are (also can't place markers or notes on it), high default jump height, can't crouch, can't examine items before buying them in shops, no button config - using a controller means having to use the stick to move rather than the d-pad, can't light up your surroundings with the torch while wielding a weapon - see Zelda 3 for example (however if you get to the secret shop early you can buy the helmet there and it has the same function), pressing down while standing next to a ladder at the bottom of it makes you grab it, )
Enemies not being hit stunned+randomized damage means it's easy to get hit by mistake even by early enemies - also can't jump cancel your attacks so for fast enemies you might have to soak the hits
Not very good humour overall
Some trial & error (you should not deposit food early on - use it to buy useful items, use a guide to determine which are useful, some false walls without clues)
Difficulty spike in the hidden underwater area once you reach the jellyfish and at the giant bat boss
Easy and slow creeper boss (just get above him and use the whip and shield) - also no health refill or save point nearby after it so you need to backtrack if you want to save
Some tedious aspects (various temporary dead ends in the early-mid game, some boring backtracking (long fall after the creeper boss that the game goads you into - leads to the beginning of the game (you should instead go right and down here to get the dash), old shops never restock so you need to memorize which ones have what you want+backtrack to them, some other similar falls), some spongy enemies like the mages and red knights, can't ash while underwater - overly slow horizontal movement)
A few annoying sfx
A bit short (less than 4h, about 1,5h if you know where to go)
Not much of an ending
Can't grab the museum area ladder in mid-air after gaining the high jump - while this is by design as you're supposed to lower it with a switch after entering from above, it looks unfinished when you can see your avatar clearly reaching it
Bugs:
-Some minor hit detection bugs around walls - can make you slowly climb walls when jumping into them
-Occasional control bug where you won't jump if you're holding dash and standing on a single tile wide platform