AVOID | LACKING | MAYBE | WORTHWHILE | COMPELLING | UNMISSABLE

Alruna and the Necro-Industrialists is a metroidvania game with a heavy retro feel.

For fans of what tends to make metroidvanias metroidvanias, Alruna is sure to please. This game encourages sequence-breaking and is in turn very non-linear. There are plenty of secrets, including rooms behind breakable walls, things that don't always appear as they seem, and walls that don't act like walls. You (can) get ability upgrades as you progress which allows you to access previously inaccessible areas. There's combat, platforming, and a story to enjoy.

I really enjoyed the narrative, as I felt it fit perfectly with the overall vibe of the game. I've seen some reviews that say it's heavy-handed, and I think that's a bit unfair - it's clear what the message is, but there isn't a lot of dialogue to bog you down or feel like you're being hit over the head with it. The music, in a word, slaps. Although not my general taste, the cyberpunk tone of the music fits with and amplifies the aesthetics of the game overall. The game encourages exploring, as there is plenty to find that isn't immediately obvious when playing.

In terms of what could be improved, I'd love to see achievements for this game, as I think it would help guide the player. I also found some of the platforming to be a bit imprecise, but nothing was too annoying. There were several instances where I thought I was soft-locked, but that ended up not being the case. That said, I've seen quite a few people mentioning it. I'm not sure if it's due to legitimate bugs for others, or you have to get real creative if you find yourself in a situation you think you can't get out of, and because there aren't many guides for this game, you might be SOL if you can't figure it out. Lastly, as far as I can tell, there are at least two, though possibly three (or more?) endings. The game locks your save file when you finish it, so I'd really like for it to let you go back in at your last save and try for the other ending(s).

The game took me just over 7 hours for 100% completion with the revolutionary ending. I don't think 100% completion was required for this particular ending, so I probably could have been done around ~4.5 hours. However, if you want the other ending (transcendent) that I know for sure exists, you should expect to go for the 100% completion. I did have to use a guide for ~5 of the dewdrops (out of 50), which is necessary for 100% completion.

All in all, I found this game to be a delight to play. It felt like a true metroidvania and I think the vibe/aesthetics/general design of the game was spot-on. I adored the way everything fit together and I think it really nailed what it was going for. I loved playing Alruna (she's like the dryad version of Betty Boop, but super badass). The game also has an item called direct action in which you pick up a molotov cocktail which actually sent me 💀