Was the game fun to play?
It’s super fun. I loved switching between fighting the hordes of enemies to looking after the pet. The loop of feeding freshly dead bodies to increase health, petting for happiness and boosting energy by switching a light off when it sleeps so it can use magic is such a fun game loop. I especially like that the bodies go rotten and that the magic spells feel powerful and juicy. Being able to choose which path the pet evolves is amazing too and I love how there is so much choice.
Did the game include the core elements from the original?
Absolutely. The character starts by hatching from an egg and has different life stages. Looking after the pet’s needs (health, food, sleep and happiness) was included. The pet calls for your attention. If the pet is fed a rotten body, it gets sick and you can heal it with a herb. The branching evolution path is done exceptionally well.
Was there a clear path of progression?
Definitely. The tutorial explained how the game works in a fun low pressure way by using the training dummy. Getting a high happiness score was a clear objective. Defeating enemies and looking after the pet’s needs was a clear and well balanced method to progressing.
How good was the audio and sound FX?
The background music is brilliant and I like that there are multiple high quality tracks that keep the atmosphere fresh. The sound effects are all juicy and I like that you have volume controls for music and SFX.
How well implemented was the UI?
Exceedingly good. Being able to enter your own name and the pet’s name at the start is great and I love the leaderboard, especially because I got 6th. The colourful bar charts for stats are easy to read at a glance. I also really liked the control scheme where you can hold the left mouse button down for continuous attacking and petting. Swapping the custom cursor with 1,2 and 3 was very intuitive and the skill point presentation is the cherry on the top.