This is a review of a game "Below". Below is an action-adventure game developed by Capybara Games. You play as a tiny warrior who lands on an island that features randomly generated environments. The game is a dungeon crawler of sorts that features a permadeath system. Below has two modes to explore which is what this review is primarily based on and survival which to be honest is a mode I'd avoid for first-time players as it is extremely harsh.
Well, after the longest intro in the history of gaming your tiny character lands on a beach. From here you'll gather resources, figure out the buttons for yourself, attempt crafting, and seek out campfires to prepare some hearty turnip stew. I'd say it's perhaps a little too avant-garde at first as there really isn't any story to speak of or idea why you're there. It relies on you being interested in exploring without any idea who you are where you are or what you're looking for or why. So, it's more of an experience that centers on exploration and survival.
There aren't any tutorials or guides or any idea what crafting resources will create the only thing you know is the island has levels leading down into the earth and early on you find a lantern that can be used to illuminate your path. There are precious stones and the like to collect but for what reason is unclear at first. The combat is handled with a twin-stick system and it's smooth and easy to follow. You can attack block with your shield use run attacks and switch out to bow and arrows if you see fit.
The enemies range from weird glowing creatures that drop gems to Gollum-Esque figures that lurk in the deep as well as many many other variations. Despite the combat system feeling intuitive the damage is pretty harsh with not only health damage but bleeding damage to attend to like you have a fight you get nicked by a blade and you start to bleed out if you don't have a bandage or any other means of stopping the bleeding you die and below features a permadeath system which means every time you get killed it's back to the beach.
This really is the biggest negative mark against below as up to that point i found the game to be truly engaging, immersive, and wondrous. But returning you back to the star knowing full well you'll have to retread your footsteps to recover your items and the sacred lantern makes for a mind-numbing chore. Yes, there are ways to set portals to campfires and find shortcuts as you progress but it doesn't remedy the damage done by this gameplay choice. After you've died three or four times the shine of the game experience really starts to fade away and it never truly recovered.
Saying that the game world itself is very well created without any obvious indication that the levels are randomly generated. You have to venture through the dark with your torchlight fend off dangerous enemies and search for floor keys to progress. It's very moody with a really thick and tangible atmosphere and it's one of the most immersive and impressive parts of the experience. Another fundamental issue with the game is the inventory system, not the crafting method of mixing items that were really nicely handled. It's more the limited size of your carry capacity it fills up in minutes and you'll end up wasting so much time with inventory admin management which ultimately slows down the game and it's just a bit of a snooze fest I mean if you love admin then terrific you're in for a treat but you know most people just want to play the game they don't want to have to look at a menu screen all the time.
So, it's a game I really enjoyed at first then when the permadeath kicked in that really did affect how much pleasure I could get from it thereafter. Saying that when you are on a long run with one character it is very captivating and engaging but you know that around the corner the nonsense of permadeath is going to rear its ugly head at some point.
In terms of graphics, it's a beautiful game to explore with a wonderful art style. The game doesn't have a constant UI so it's very immersive. The main protagonist though is a bit too small often making it difficult to see what's going on and when you consider there are tiny traps around that can be a bit of an issue even to the point where small snakes will attack you but you'll never see them because they are the size of an eyelash. Honestly, the game really should have had a zoom function included to negate these issues in particular as the death penalties are so harsh. It kind of feels like the developers are trolling you. Even though the visuals are very clean atmospheric and charming overall the size issue is a bit of a problem. The sound work below is flawless with wonderful music that really accentuates the experience the sound effects the ambiance are fantastic and it's you know potentially the best part of the experience the audio it's just truly wonderful.
What's Good:
The game captures a real sense of adventure. The game world is very atmospheric, crafting is well implemented. There are lots of secrets to uncover the music is fantastic and it's a very enjoyable game when you're on a good run.
What's Bad:
The permadeath system really negates a lot of the stellar work done by the production team. The characters are tiny and in dark environments, it's very difficult to see anything clearly. The inventory system is too small and makes for a boring admin chore on a way too frequent basis and the harshness of the bleeding damage really makes combat quite annoying.
Below is a good game that could have been a great game but ultimately it's let down by the permadeath system, harsh combat penalties, and one of the smallest inventories you can imagine. Permadeath sadly doesn't work whoever decided to include it did a massive disservice to the art team as their work is truly exceptional. It's a gameplay choice that negatively impacts the overall experience in quite a profound way but despite these issues when the game is good it's very good. It's just a shame the overall shine is tarnished by some ill-thought-out structural design It's a good game and definitely worth a look but it also feels like a bit of a missed opportunity for greatness.
