2023-04-30 16:25:02
Game News Between Silksong and inspirations from Genshin Impact, we found the most magical video game of this beginning of the year!
The prettiest game of April is here and it’s a mix between Ori and Genshin Impact. We played it for a good hour, here are our impressions!
Waiting for Silksong…
With each Indie Direct from Nintendo, it’s the same old story. Everyone goes there with their little joke, overplays the line hoping that basically this time is really the right one. “It’s for tonight!”, “the shadowdrop”… Everyone only has eyes for Hollow Knight: Silksong. And as for every direct for more than 4 years, it is once once more a disappointment. No, the sequel to the acclaimed metroidvania still doesn’t have a release date. And to drown my tears a little (I didn’t want to hope but I gave in yes…), I decided to set my sights on another metroidvania, in search of a bandage to mend my little broken heart. And the game is regarding, it’s Afterimage. It’s been a while since the title of Aurogon Shanghai has been in our sights. It was indeed part of our list of 10 metroidvania to watch in 2022 and beyond. And, we’re not going to lie to each other: he actually doesn’t have much to do with our little Hollow Knight. More rigid and brighter, it is more like an Ori. Moreover, it borrows a lot of things from the first opus both in terms of the interface, and the fights that are repetitive and rigid to say the least. Like any good self-respecting metroidvania, the title offers an appreciable evolution of its gameplay, but it will be necessary, to benefit from it, to go beyond the (great) frustration of the beginnings.
As you will have understood, in 2023, it becomes a bit complicated to take control of a game with the gameplay of yesteryear. After all, we are in the era of all-out remakes, supposed to make games with aging and overly rigid mechanics more accessible. Suffice to say that you will need some time to adapt to appreciate Afterimage and its rigidity. But once your fingers have adapted to the gameplay, the title is quite an enjoyable metroidvania. Unsurprisingly, we find the clichés of the genre and it is of course pleasant to (finally) bring down a boss. The enemies are numerous (and this even with only one hour of play), the complete and interesting interface, the equipment system which allows you to opt for a personalized combat style… The only downside, the difficulty of the title which is more regarding the rigidity of the gameplay than patterns not always very inspired by enemies. As a result, it sometimes lacks a bit of rhythm and the game can be frustrating. But if you manage to get past that, Afterimage is a nice metroidvania. It doesn’t reinvent the genre and doesn’t rank among the best either, but I enjoyed discovering it for an hour. To tell the truth, I was even enchanted by this appreciable parenthesis (although I prefer, in a darker style, ENDER LILIES: Quietus of the Knights). But we must admit that this is not really due to the gameplay of Afterimage. This magic, the game owes it above all to its universe.
Des airs from Genshin Impact in 2D
It literally jumps out at you: Afterimage is beautiful, very beautiful! On the Steam page, we are told regarding a “wonderful hand-drawn 2D world” and the least we can say is that the promise is kept. On certain plans as well as on the design of our heroine Renée, we almost have the impression of dealing with a Genshin Impact in 2D. And that was clearly not to displease me. Throughout, what made me want to continue was above all the idea of being able to discover a little more regarding the vast world of Engardin. Above all, it is not only pleasing to the eye, it is also rich. Over an hour, we were able to see surprisingly varied environments and that inevitably makes you want to see more. Add to that a soundtrack that is not always present but which knows how to get noticed as soon as it appears and you get a very pleasant universe to browse and discover.
On the other hand, on the story side, it’s a mess! It’s funny because during the cutscene at the start, we want to be caught up in what Afterimage is telling us. We let ourselves be carried away by the soft voice of the narrator who speaks to us of a “promised war lost in the meanders of time”of the destiny of the sun and the moon, of a “Courant” which allows souls to transmigrate and to a certain “Elle”. It looked exciting, especially with the beautiful ones artwork basically… but then I didn’t understand much. And I would have a hard time explaining to you what the story of this game is, to tell the truth. Afterimage spends its time showering us with cryptic images, enigmatic terms and a lore that is clearly in no hurry to provide us with explanations. We are still not far from indigestion, and if you want to follow the narrative, you will have to hang on. And that’s kind of the feeling that remains following closing Afterimage: laborious beginnings for a pleasant experience in the end. At least the game will have managed to pique my curiosity, enough for me to dive back into it for a few more hours.
Note that Afterimage is released on April 25 on PC, Nintendo Switch, PlayStation 4, PlayStation 5, Xbox One and Xbox Series.
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