It's alright. It took me about 8 hours to beat with only a few missing items and no checking guides. I think the big positives here are the build variety, as you can freely respec at any bonfire, there are four loadout slots, and every weapon feels different and has multiple upgrades to choose from along with complimentary gear. One of the best ideas here is how subweapons work, having limited ammo but recharging every time you kill a normal enemy or stun a boss, allowing you to use them without restraint.

The exploration is mechanically decent but visually not particularly interesting, I suppose the top down minimalist style can only go so far so only a few locations really stand out. For the store blurb talking about "uncover[ing] twisted secrets" there's basically no story here, only a few lines of lore text towards the end of the game, so there isn't much to engage with in that regard.

I'd probably give it a negative review if not for the new game modifiers unlocked after beating it the first time, but those definitely add to how much it offers. It's probably a bit overpriced though.

This was a great game the pulled me in to the story with essentially none of the narrative being delivered through text. The pacing a difficulty was manageable (as someone who doesn't usually play souls-like style games), but still challenges you to learn how the enemies attack and move through the game thoughtfully. The real treat for me was the puzzles and discover-able aspects of the world. The sense of adventure and discovery is what brought me back to the game and made me want to see it through to the end.