Why you should play Phoenotopia: Awakening
May. 3rd, 2022 08:07 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
schneefinkPhoenotopia: Awakening is a fantastic game that I absolutely loved. It's a beautiful exploration adventure game with puzzles, action, and platforming elements. Or, quoting one review:
"Adventure, exploration, side-quests upon side-quests, upgradable tools and weapons, flute-playing, platforming, collectibles, hair-dying, puzzle-solving, fishing, upgradable songs (not joking), bat-swinging, boss fights, countless varieties of food, cooking, teleporting, attack-charging, dashing, leaping, swimming (eventually), and so so much more wrapped up in absolutely gorgeous pixel art both background and foreground and music that can haunt, relax, tense up, and enlighten the mood whenever required." (emkaylucky on Steam)
Missing from that list: there's a sidequest where you collect chickens - I'm sorry, perro – from all over the map, and you can pet cats. There's even an achievement for it!
Check out the trailer:
I have frequently seen it described as a Zelda-like, or as a mix between a metroidvania and Zelda 2. I can't say much about Zelda, but the metroidvania elements are great, going new places as well as backtracking and discovering even more secrets every time I got a new upgrade/ability was a lot of fun.
And there are so many things to discover! I found entirely new gorgeous areas even after I finished the main game. This world is full of exciting places and creatures and more importantly full of people, all of whom you can talk to, which makes it feel so vibrant and alive. I loved just walking around and exploring everything I could, it was always so rewarding. There are so many puzzles, for several I needed pen & paper, and they all feel great to solve (and I looked up solutions only a few times because I was impatient.)
There are also enemies to fight. It took me a little while to get used to the combat because the bat is much more short-range than the weapons I used in the previous games I played (but otoh there is no contact damage.) Thankfully there are many difficulty options, and I decided to play in easy mode very soon. That meant I could enjoy the world and story while only occasionally dying, but anyone who wants a challenge can certainly find one.
I enjoyed the story too. You play as Gail, a teenager from the village of Panselo on an Earth that is recovering from an apocalypse half a millennium ago, who has to go on a big adventure to save her family. I was going to say why at first, it's even in the "about the game" section on Steam, but then I watched someone play the game who had no idea what was going to happen and it looked like a fun surprise. So in Rot13: Rirelbar va Tnvy'f ivyyntr, jvgu gur rkprcgvba bs Tnvy naq n srj bs gur puvyqera jub jrer bhgfvqr ng gung zbzrag, vf noqhpgrq ol nyvraf. Abobql rira xarj nyvraf rkvfgrq! Abj Tnvy unf gb svther bhg jub gbbx gurz naq ubj gb trg gurz onpx. Naq gur fgbel bayl trgf zhpu ovttre sebz gurer.
Along the way Gail meets old friends and makes new ones, and learns things about the world she never could have imagined…
Gail is a delightful protagonist, and I really enjoyed the other characters too. The ending is satisfying while also leaving a lot open for a potential sequel, and I have many thoughts and feelings about it (I have written one post-canon fic so far and started four others…)
How long it takes you to finish the game really depends on how much of the world you want to explore. It took me about 55 hours to finish the game with 58% completion, but I didn't care about speed. It took me a little over 80 hours to get to 100% completion.
The game is currently available on Switch, Playstation 4, Xbox, Steam (Windows and Mac), GOG, and Stove.
If this sounds in any way up your alley, there's a demo of the first "chapter" of the story on Steam that you can check out. D, who likes to explore everything she can, played the demo for over four hours, but it could also be finished in less than half the time.
"Adventure, exploration, side-quests upon side-quests, upgradable tools and weapons, flute-playing, platforming, collectibles, hair-dying, puzzle-solving, fishing, upgradable songs (not joking), bat-swinging, boss fights, countless varieties of food, cooking, teleporting, attack-charging, dashing, leaping, swimming (eventually), and so so much more wrapped up in absolutely gorgeous pixel art both background and foreground and music that can haunt, relax, tense up, and enlighten the mood whenever required." (emkaylucky on Steam)
Missing from that list: there's a sidequest where you collect chickens - I'm sorry, perro – from all over the map, and you can pet cats. There's even an achievement for it!
Check out the trailer:
I have frequently seen it described as a Zelda-like, or as a mix between a metroidvania and Zelda 2. I can't say much about Zelda, but the metroidvania elements are great, going new places as well as backtracking and discovering even more secrets every time I got a new upgrade/ability was a lot of fun.
And there are so many things to discover! I found entirely new gorgeous areas even after I finished the main game. This world is full of exciting places and creatures and more importantly full of people, all of whom you can talk to, which makes it feel so vibrant and alive. I loved just walking around and exploring everything I could, it was always so rewarding. There are so many puzzles, for several I needed pen & paper, and they all feel great to solve (and I looked up solutions only a few times because I was impatient.)
There are also enemies to fight. It took me a little while to get used to the combat because the bat is much more short-range than the weapons I used in the previous games I played (but otoh there is no contact damage.) Thankfully there are many difficulty options, and I decided to play in easy mode very soon. That meant I could enjoy the world and story while only occasionally dying, but anyone who wants a challenge can certainly find one.
I enjoyed the story too. You play as Gail, a teenager from the village of Panselo on an Earth that is recovering from an apocalypse half a millennium ago, who has to go on a big adventure to save her family. I was going to say why at first, it's even in the "about the game" section on Steam, but then I watched someone play the game who had no idea what was going to happen and it looked like a fun surprise. So in Rot13: Rirelbar va Tnvy'f ivyyntr, jvgu gur rkprcgvba bs Tnvy naq n srj bs gur puvyqera jub jrer bhgfvqr ng gung zbzrag, vf noqhpgrq ol nyvraf. Abobql rira xarj nyvraf rkvfgrq! Abj Tnvy unf gb svther bhg jub gbbx gurz naq ubj gb trg gurz onpx. Naq gur fgbel bayl trgf zhpu ovttre sebz gurer.
Along the way Gail meets old friends and makes new ones, and learns things about the world she never could have imagined…
Gail is a delightful protagonist, and I really enjoyed the other characters too. The ending is satisfying while also leaving a lot open for a potential sequel, and I have many thoughts and feelings about it (I have written one post-canon fic so far and started four others…)
How long it takes you to finish the game really depends on how much of the world you want to explore. It took me about 55 hours to finish the game with 58% completion, but I didn't care about speed. It took me a little over 80 hours to get to 100% completion.
The game is currently available on Switch, Playstation 4, Xbox, Steam (Windows and Mac), GOG, and Stove.
If this sounds in any way up your alley, there's a demo of the first "chapter" of the story on Steam that you can check out. D, who likes to explore everything she can, played the demo for over four hours, but it could also be finished in less than half the time.
no subject
Date: 2022-05-28 02:54 pm (UTC)One difference to Hades though that might be relevant to you is that this game is harder to put down for an extended period of time and pick up again because you will likely have forgotten much about the side-quests in progress and things spotted to be collected later (unless you do what D did and write a detailed journal.)
no subject
Date: 2022-05-28 07:55 pm (UTC)