Review of Hyper Light Drifter

Intro

Hyper Light Drifter is a hack-n-slash action RPG in the vein of Dark Souls and its main inspiration the Zelda series. You play as The Drifter, the blue-skinned protagonist that travels through the world in order to do... Something...

Story Analysis

Which brings me to the first problem that I have with this game.The story is told in a rather unique way. Instead of relying on typical text-based conversations. The game's NPCs instead draw the scene involved, asking you, the player, to fill in the details. While this is sound in theory, after all you are letting the players fill in the gaps of the story, it does not do enough to create an understanding of the world and the world's history. However, the story itself is pretty engrossing even without the details. The world is fascinating, it's characters while not very deep, carry a hard to describe emotional weight. Most of them, were affected in one way or another by the main antagonists of the story and the aforementioned drawings of their hardship and tragedies really do motivate you to avenge them.

Visuals

The game's pixel art design allows for the creation of a very strange world and it's something that I do appreciate. The landscapes and scenes created are amazing and some of the color-design choices do well to differentiate the areas that you visit. Like I mentioned before, there are no text based conversations in this game. And to the credit of the developers and the art team, the pixel art style carries the narrative of the game throughout. There are some slight issues here and there. The fixed camera angles and isometric view means that sometimes enemies are hidden behind walls. It's not often, but when it does happen you inevitably lose a previous health-bar or two.

Sound

The game's ambient soundtrack is basically a trip down to the 80s. Heavy synth-bass and easily repeatable melodies. All of the areas you visit have their own theme associated with them and all but one fit the bill perfectly. Your character's sword swings and weapons fire audio is decent. More importantly each weapon's audio signature is different enough that you can recognize the weapon your using based off of sound itself.

Gameplay

The game is focused heavily on it's tough-as-nails and reflex heavy combat. You only have 5 health-bars and a limited number of health packs. Enemies typically deal 1 to 2 damage with their attacks and there is no invulnerability phase after getting hit, which means you can and will get stun-locked to death if you don't watch your spacing. The game does give you ample tools to combat this though. Your weapon has a 3-hit basic combo. Your character has a dash to weave in and out of battle. You also get a basic pistol at the start that helps to deal damage to enemies that are closing in and ranged ones as well.

You'll meet a variety of enemies that use a variety of attacks. As you'd expect, the longer the animation of an attack, the more damage it deals. This is true of almost everything in Hyper Light Drifter. However, you do get stun-locked upon taking [b]]ANY [/b] form of damage. So stacked sequences of light attacks are often time more dangerous than eating a heavy attack. In between bouts of combat, you will explore the game's dungeons. These are a well-crafted series of forced-combat rooms, traps, puzzles and dashing segments. Sometimes, these rooms combine elements from the previous sentence. These are few and far in-between, at least until you get to the end-game dungeon, but they ramp up the difficulty in a great way and the exploration mechanics are solid. Health-packs are scattered throughout the areas you are traveling and there are plenty of secrets littered throughout the map. I am very sure I didn't find any of them but from research, these secrets unlock cloaks with different abilities and modifiers.

I don't have a lot of complaints with the game-play mechanics. The game is designed in such a way that you could technically finish the game without any of the upgrades that you buy in the shops in the main town. However, it will make the game significantly harder. If there is one complaint I do have, is that the frames for consecutive dashing are all over the place. It might be a personal issue, but sometimes I could pull off 7-8 dashes no problem and then fail to even pull of 2 if I tried it again. It's frustrating but then again, there really wasn't anything that demanded dashing that many times (that I found at least).

Conclusion

In short, Hyper Light Drifter is a great game that mixes hard and fast combat with dungeon crawling sequences. I'm not a great fan of the narrative. But the initial premise was super interesting. It took me 5 hours to beat the game. However, hunting for the secrets, the boss-rush mode and New Game + (which puts you at 2 health permanently) can definitely increase playability. I recommend playing this game and checking it out when you can. For $20, you get a great combat system, immersive atmosphere and a nice soundtrack that really ties the package together. If you are looking for a short, great game that will stick with you long after its done, then please do yourself a favor and buy this game.

The New Year

So New Years was crazy, between the crazy amount of drugs, movies and people that were over, things turned out pretty epic. I found out that Cloud Atlas was an insanely awesome movie. And that sometimes the best movies are the ones right in front of you. Maybe this will be a different year. It sure feels like it. I'm older, (supposedly) wiser and (apparently) more mature. Plus I will be 21 soon ;) I'm liking 2013 already.

I'm BAAACK!!!

It's been an amazingly long 2 weeks. I had two midterms, plenty of drama and fraternity stuff to keep me busy. Not only that, I'm still struggling with my sleep issues, forcing me to choose the most unorthodox times and places to fall asleep (like a hobo). In any case, the week has been plenty eventful I'm keeping on top of my assignments (mostly) and doing my best to stay on top of my academic and extra-curricular responsibilities. But other than that, just keep going awesome, awesome and awesome!!!! Hope you guys had, have and continuing to have fun over the week.

Goodbye.

I love to think about the word goodbye. I means so little. Yet carries so much in social interactions. Why would anyone want to say goodbye? Given the choice I'd rather say "See you again" or "See you around". Honestly, it may be linked to my fear of finality (I hate it when things are dealt in absolutes) but when you see someone whether you hate them or not wouldn't you like to see them at a later date? If only to compare yourself to them or genuinely share what's up. I would love that. A world where goodbye doesn't exist, where should you and I meet we set conversations in a way that subconsciously make us want to meet each other again. You might hate me today, but what about tomorrow? We could begin as enemies and end up lovers. The world would be an even more awesome place then. When we meet up more often, we learn more about the other. With knowledge, ignorance takes a back seat and that would go a long, long way in reducing all the hate in the world. If you think goodbye is overrated, say so in the comment section below. If you don't, tell me why you think so. It'll be a pleasure hearing from you guys ;)

So have a good day guys, wherever you may be!!

Friendship, the ship that never sinks? Really?

I am of the opinion that friendship is one bond that is sacred yet toxic. On one hand, the bond you share with a friend is one that seems to make the world a bit brighter. The joy of one individual is something that can become so infectious, even more so if they are your friend. On the other however, I have seen far too many individuals destroyed by friendship. The peer-influence, the 'doing things I don't want to do' all become a major factor in affecting us. Take my experience in high school as an example, my buddies Ben, Adam, Iskander and Zhi Jun shared a bond with me. We shared our ups and downs, picked the other up when he was beaten down and cheered on the other in his moments of glory. We exchanged tales of our mischiefs and virtues, laughed about our weakness and scrutinized our strengths. It was amazing! To me, it seemed that we had created a bubble, a safe zone where nothing is true and everything is permitted (Nerd alert). Even when we got involved with our girlfriends we strived to make sure it never drove a wedge between us. If there ever were an exemplification of "Bro's before ho's" our friendship would be just that. Those guys were the clean and clear cut side of my social circle.

Later on, I then met the people who truly opened my eyes to the world, my teachers and my guides to the sides of the world I had missed, they showed me pain and pleasure. They introduced me to alcohol (so damn, good), the beautiful lady Mary-Jane and the wonders of electronic music. Where the first group was the ideal clique, the second was not. And they were proud of it; I saw with my own eyes how their flaws accentuated their existence. It made life easier knowing that somewhere out there, with bigger problems than mine. It made me be more selfless, to strive to lessen the pain of others. To learn be a better listener, and a better friend. They also taught me those lessons you will never learn in class, like when I was being too generous, how to see people for who they are rather than what they should be. I was a naive kid before I met them and they matured me.

However with all good things there must always be the negatives. I met the people who made my life seem so good, it was depressing. I always met people who scammed me off of my money. And the people that would sell me out in an instant if they could. I considered them my friends, for anyone who says hello and smiles can be my friend, and I paid the price in blood, sweat and tears. But I am thankful, were it not for them I would have believed this world to be perfect. I would have been stepped on further in life when the stakes are so much higher. They built me and for that I thank them. Friendship builds you, it's just a matter of putting you up high or pushing you down under. Which is why I love my friends, even the crappy ones for they moulded me into the man I am today.

Duality

Looks like insomnia strikes again. I'm on the cusp of falling into the sweet arms of sleep but the responsibilities I promised myself and my sponsor force me to shun her. Anyways, I was thinking. Have you wondered about how everything has two if not more sides to it? Take a cigaret for example. We all know it's bad side, it's a catalyst for heart disease, lung cancer among numerous other afflictions. But cigarets can be good as well, they aid in curing constipation. It's the nicotine I believe that allows all those bombs you held back to be dropped with glorious abandon. In that small example itself one can see that everything, I repeat everything, has two sides (or maybe more).

For every wrong, it can be justified into a right. Every right, may lead to a greater wrong. To me, this is one of those things, the dualism of life, that makes life worth living. As so eloquently said in Star Wars "What is good, if not the teacher of bad?". Evil is nothing without good as a comparison. Good is nothing without evil as a balance. We've all seen the movies, replayed the numerous 'Disney moments' where good triumphs over evil. But if that were the case, if every Mufasa was killed by Simba, or every evil queen was inadvertently put down by a gallant knight, would the world truly be a better place? Certainly it's a fascinating notion. A world free of injustice. A realm where being just is a matter of life and principle, and evil a thing of the far-flung past. Charity is the main order of the day, and so is compassion, virtue and honor. My question would be, how long would this charade last? If everyone were to give charitably, would not charity lose it's meaning? If everyone gave and never took, charity in turn becomes a paradox in itself. If everyone were honorable, what avenue would be left to distinguish one's self? Other than the primitive need of man to conquer, to control that he may shape honor in his image. Inevitably the failing of men to fall into the absolutes of good and evil serves as a blessing. Our struggles to define these two (ofttimes one becomes the other) have led to astounding developments. Not just in the field of philosophy, but in medicine and technology itself. So as I leave this rather long post (Which honestly has the makings of a good essay). I'd like you the reader, to ask yourself. Is there good and evil? Or are they an imaginary shapes shaped by culture and religion? 

Threading the needle of experience in the tapestry of life...

Poetic title aside, I've discovered something today. That everything no matter how mundane or constant will never be the same. Take a rock for example, leave it on your window in the morning and look at it again come sundown. The thin film of dust that has settled on the rock, the sounds that must have vibrated through it's rocky body, the light playing it's multicolored tunes here and there, the warmth heating the rock up and then escaping away chilling it. That is only physical, who knows what else it could have experienced? It could have heard the whisperings the wind always bring, gazed upon the messages intertwined in the light that shone upon it, tasted the rain on the breeze. Every day brings a new set of experiences some are harsh, some are lenient. All of these and more have shaped the rock in it's near eternal lifespan. If so what of us lesser beings? We who live but a minute wink in lifespan compared to the rock? I take it as a sign that I have to go out and experience the world more. Which honestly I want to do so bad. Just give me some money and I'll figure out the rest :)


But I am where I am, doing what I have to do. Not the most exciting thing for a boy still discovering the beauty of America. But I make do with what I have, and I am thankful for I have a chance to complain where the laments of others are either whispered into the soil or fall upon deaf ears. SO LIVE LIFE!!!!!