Unlit Souls - killereks
Final Score: 1/5 Stars
Let me start by saying that the Itch.io page isn't the best, lacking customization and offering very vague information. It has two images and three GIFs.
This, combined with the keybinds, which are already expected to be removed from the game.
The author obviously doesn't know what name to give the game, since the page says "Unlit Souls," the folder says "Knight Game," and the Unity project is called "3rd Person Game."
Upon entering, there's no menu, no settings, nothing. Just straight to the point.
When it's said that a game is preferable to play with a controller, it doesn't necessarily mean it can't be played with a keyboard. Which is the case with Unlit Souls. The camera sensitivity is extremely low, and it's not even possible to move with the keyboard. So, even though this game has full controller compatibility, it lacks even minimal keyboard compatibility.
The HUD is what you'd expect from a Souls-like game, but it lacks any personality or unique features, aside from some images stolen from From Software.
For some reason, the upper left corner says "false" (like a bool).
The game natively includes an FPS and memory counter, which can be disabled in tab.
The art direction, as in most indie games made by solo devs, is 100% Synty assets. Normally, developers use Synty assets but at least work on them, which isn't the case here, since the entire scenario is just the demo scene already provided in the Synty Fantasy Kingdom pack. This is a big sign of laziness and lack of care.
It can be justified that this is just a Pre-Alpha or Demo, but of all the 21 games I've reviewed to date, many were prototypes, but they had care and maps made from scratch.
The walking animation is a bit slow but doesn't have many flaws, being quite fluid.
One thing I liked about the running, which I hope was programmed by the author himself, was that while running, the character gradually gets faster, which is interesting.
The choice to invert the camera horizontally was strange.
The roll is functional.
For some reason, the healing animation is a taunt, which confused me.
The Itch.io key mappings claim there's a parry system, something that will be tested.
Assuming a defensive stance consumes a lot of stamina, which doesn't make sense, considering that the drain should only occur if we block or parry an enemy attack.
I liked the animation of stamina being drained; I found it fluid.
Defending costs more stamina than attacking and rolling, which, besides not making sense, breaks the entire flow of combat, since defending consumes 90% of stamina.
The attack animations aren't anything special, but they are responsive and work correctly. Even though there are no heavy attacks or charged attacks.
The game has no sound at all. Neither ambient nor combat sound. Which makes everything boring overall.
BUG: IT IS POSSIBLE TO CONTINUE FIGHTING AND WALKING EVEN WITH LIFE BELOW ZERO UNTIL THE LOADING SCREEN LOADS.
The enemies have very fast animations compared to the player, which makes combat extremely difficult overall.
The extremely slow walking animation breaks the flow of combat, to the point of looking like two turtles about to confront each other.
The blood that comes out of the player is simply an existing asset, but it's the asset that least fits the game, since it's low-poly but the blood is realistic with white borders around it. Total visual pollution.
The parry works, but instead of simply stunning the enemy, it sends them flying. It's not a negative point, just a strange choice.
The health bar, as well as the enemy itself, doesn't disappear upon death, activating only a death animation.
The second type of enemy is interesting because it can roll. But it has a very long timing between attacks, which makes it easier to kill than the first type.
Liting the second bonfire doesn't make your checkpoint there; that is, if you marked the bonfire in the center of the village and died, you return to the tents outside.
The combat is ridiculously boring, consisting mostly of being stunned by the enemy, getting beaten up, rolling from one corner to another, and spamming the only 1-2 combo that exists. All this without any sound, with sloppy movement and even worse camera work.
Considering that the animation outside of the constant sprint is walking slowly, there's nothing you can do when you run out of stamina. Once your stamina runs out, it becomes impossible to escape.
Given the unfair, unrewarding, and above all, boring and poorly programmed gameplay, I give up on the game.
Overall, it's a prototype of a prototype; this is something I would do on a bored Sunday while trying out new mechanics. It's not very functional, not very responsive, and absurdly boring. Considering this, and considering other games I've reviewed, I can't give it much more than one star.