Upon first booting up the game, Astlibra Revision recommends that you play what it refers to as its “demo mode” prior to embarking on the main quest, do I did, but doing so perhaps set certain expectations for the game. The “demo mode” is actually a tutorial of the game’s combat system, which provides a nice introduction to the game’s combat, but it perhaps suggests that the game awaiting you might be a 2D hack-and-slash side scroller with light RPG elements, but this first impression does the game a massive disservice. While the hacking and slashing is great fun, and is indeed a key component of the game., and the game’s combat is fluid and slick, there’s so much more to Astlibra Revision than hacking and slashing demons. The satisfying combat is mere garnish to a full-blooded RPG, meaning Astlibra Revision is fully deserving of its self-applied “action RPG” description. Astlibra Revision also offers a fine example of world-building, and the world built for Astlibra Revision is an engrossing fantasy world that simply begs to be explored, and in which you’ll find plenty to do and intriguing characters with whom to interact upon your quest.
The 2D platforming style of Astlibra Revision, plus the game’s emphasis on hunting for and using objects to progress, even brings to mind the Oliver Twins’ Dizzy classics but with much more hacking and slashing of demons, and far fewer eggs.
It’s clear that Astlibra Revision, the debut game by a first-time developer, is a real labour of love, and it’s wonderful to see that this passion project, which, as we reported in our preview, has been in development for some 14 years, has been realised into a genuinely brilliant game that plays well and looks absolutely stunning, proving the player with a very satisfying blend of combat and fantasy adventuring.
Like so many of the best indie games, Astlibra Revision feels very much like an “authored piece”, the brainchild of a committed developer, who, once hit by inspiration has clearly been planning both the world of the game and its gameplay style for many years, so to see both aspects of such an ambitious project so well-realized is a wonderful thing indeed.
If you like the sound of an old-school platforming adventure with great combat, you won’t need to study too hard to get the most out of Astlibra Revision, and in answer to the question posed earlier, the years of “Revision” have certainly paid off, so it’s all fantasy and no fail.
Astlibra Revision is available now from the Nintendo eshop.
Rating: 4/5
