Ender Liles Revue: one of the hidden jewels of 2021
Metroidvania games have enjoyed the Renaissance lately. Between successes as Hollow knight And Orthe renewal of METROID DREADAnd CastleStellaire flows on Netflix, it’s a good time to be a fan of the genre.
Ender Liles: Quietus of Knights Only adds to the momentum. The first title of the publisher Binary Haze Interactive, Lys Enders is an ambitious mixture of Metroid,, Dark soulsAnd Pokémon. It sounds weird, but it works.
It may not have been on my radar at the start of the year, but Lys Enders is an out -of -competition title that gives Genre Staples a race for their money. Some minor nitpicks keep him from being a real classic, but Lys Enders is an addition worthy of the Metroidvania Pantheon.
Fight burn
Lys Enders Start on a dark note. You play like Lily, a white priestess and the last of its kind. The end of the kingdom of land was once prosperous, but has since perished because of a burn that infected the people and transformed them into macabre creatures.
After waking up in a filthy dungeon, Lily meets the spirit of the Umbral knight, who swore to protect her. Together, Lily and this knight must sail at the end of the land in search of a means of reverse the burn and restoring the earth to its old glory.
Lys Enders“The story is quite simple, all told. During 3 to 8 p.m., you will learn more at the end of the land, the burn and the stories of Lily and the Umbral knight.
The game offers most of its story through pieces of paper scattered throughout the country. Although there are cutscenes for pivotal scenes, they are mainly used to deepen the traditions of the game, rather than advancing the intrigue. Just like Dark souls Or Hollow knightThe characters of Lys Enders Take a back seat in the world and the decor.
And it’s not a bad thing. Throughout my playing time, I crossed a Gothic village, snowy mountains, dark catacombs, etc. With each new area has come from striking revelations on the world of the end of the earth and its unhappy inhabitants. While I found the development between Lily and the Umbral Knight which is missing, and their resolution of history surprisingly abrupt, Lys Enders“The intriguing world kept me invested from start to finish.
Motivated
Lys Enders Will feel at home with anyone who knows the Metroidvania structure. The game takes place on an extended 2D card teeming with secrets. At first, most biomes are inaccessible to the player. But by beating certain destroyed minds, you unlock power crossing options that give access to new areas.
While Lys Enders Barely Renousse the wheel with his Metroidvania philosophy, the execution is unparalleled. When I entered for the first time in place of Lily, I felt fragile. For the crossing, I had access to a jump, a slow jogging and a weak dive. Likewise, my only attack option was to call on the Umbral knight and his sword.
It changed a few hours, and for a long time, I climbed walls, precipitated myself on the canvases and executed devastating land books. Contrary to Metroidwhere Samus Aran is a badass in good faith from the start, Lys Enders Nails the feeling of being a little soul in a soulless world.
I have to clean them all
Or Lys Enders The ruptures of the Metroidvania mold are with its combat system. Unlike Parcal, which follows the flow “Get Pow-Up, Backtrack, Find New Area”, the fight is inspired by certain improbable sources.
At any time, Lily can call on the Umbral knight for a sword attack (finished with a tap of a key or a front button). Pressures on the multiple button leads to a basic combo, which can be upgraded by investing pieces of burning gathered in one of the Lys Enders“Many backup points.
At certain times of each biome, you will face Dark souls-Sque bosses and mini -bosses -with an intimidating red health bar. By beating these supercharged minds, you will gain their power like yours.
Are you bored by the annoying crows in the hamlet on the side of the cliff? Find the relevant mini-bosses and add their power to your arsenal. The same goes for almost all the spirits you meet throughout the game. As for the Umbral knight, each spirit can be improved, opening new powerful combos to devastate your enemies.
With six attack slots available and more than 25 spirits to discover, Lys Enders Encourages players to find a load that suits their style of play. The idea of supplying and improving wild minds can feel familiar to fans of fans Pokémon,, Watch Yokaior even the Blue Mage class of Final Fantasy. While these influences are much more joined than the Grimdark world of Lys EndersI would lie if I said that I did not attach myself to my band of minds at the end of my trip.
Prepare to die … and get lost
As Dark souls And Hollow knight Before him, Ender Liles: Quietus of Knights Refers from his labyrinthine world and his overwhelming difficulties. Although I do not consider it as difficult as these titles, it is by no means a breeze.
As with his contemporaries, Lys Enders does not take into account the player. He lets you fall into his world, gives little or no direction and expects you to find your way forward. By beating enemies, you earn experience points that will gradually go from a level 1 to a 100 degree of goddess.
What makes Lys Enders It is considerably easier than a soul is its surprising quantity of quality of life characteristics. The backup points are frequent and double as a welcome means of quick travel. Weapons that you find at the scale of your level of power. The leveling is instantaneous and you will not lose any experience by dying. In fact, there is really no consequences to die.
Instead, Lys Enders Opts for a much more fluid difficulty curve. During the first five hours, I did not have many problems. But the more I played, the more difficult the enemies and the more complex the levels. While most of the bosses have not fought much, some selected made me cursed – and impatient for another blow.
Unfortunately, I took less pleasure in the level of the game level. While the world itself is beautifully designed, Lys Enders“The refusal to provide objective markers let me scratch my head once too many times when I had to go back. A heavy card did not help things.
These moments did not harm the experience too much, because I always found where I had to go. But the test and error crossing felt in contradiction with the otherwise accessible nature of the game.
Fanciful visifiers, melancholy sounds
An area where I had absolutely zero scruples was Lys Enders“Audiovisual direction. The game makes a great use of the visual layers, creating a leading effect compared to a substantive effect in a contextual book. The character and enemy models look just as striking, and there were times when I just had to stop to admire the views.
Even better is music. Japanese group Military Mercé the soundtrack of the game, which highlights everything, dark piano and votes with optimistic brass and stirred strings. The work strongly reminds me of the music of Christopher Larkin for Hollow knightHowever, he stands on his own feet as something completely unique.
I met a little stuttering during some of the heaviest segments in the game, especially on Nintendo Switch. But these technical problems are easy to ignore, given the pure beauty exposed here.
An impressive start – and a surprising competitor
Ender Liles: Quietus of Knights took me with a total surprise. 2021 has been a silent year so far, but it is easy for small games like this to pass the meshes from the net. And it would be a fucking shame.
I could win other elements of the experience. Discovering 100% of the secrets of the game is necessarily frustrating unless you use a guide. I also want it to have a new game more mode that would allow me to start a new file with all the unlocked spirits. But they are minor grievances – and the good goes beyond evil.
If you are hungry for more information on METROID DREAD And Hollow knight: SilksongNo need to hungry. Lys Enders is much more than aperitif; It is a whole meal and one of the best metroidvanias of recent memory. Don’t miss him.
Score: 8.8 / 10
Ender Liles: Quietus of Knights is now on PC, Nintendo Switch, Xbox One, Xbox Series X | S, PlayStation 4 and PlayStation 5. MSRP: $ 24.99.
Warning: An examination code was provided by the publisher.
Update (August 16, 2021): Ask, and you will receive. After depliacing the lack of new game more, my prayers were granted by Lis Ender ‘ 1.10 Patch. The update of the content includes several new modes, including the memories decried (i.e. boss rush), purified memories (boss replay), a new game more and even customizable game parameters for an alternative basic experience. In short, a great game has improved well.
