Recent reviews by Bloodycrow

Really enjoyed the story.

A true cyberpunk experience. Fantastic characters and a wonderful soundtrack. Really enjoyed it.

I could tell you about how much I love this game, but instead I'm going to tell you what I know about it's journey.

Matt White was a simple gamer, just like us. He liked Super Metroid, he liked Dark Souls, he even liked fighting games. It had been years since Nintendo had touched the Metroid franchise. So, he thought to himself, why don't I make one?

It was 2012. Matt had already been toying around with Flash sidescrollers. Having fun dipping his toes into making stuff, just for fun. Matt was also an excellent artist already; he drew comic book art, in a style similar to those old 80s sci-fi anime's. He didn't really know anything about programming, but after conversations with a mutual, they agreed to partner up and try to make something special. Try and make a Metroid-like that was somber, yet lively, and hauntingly beautiful.

So a Kickstarter was made. Matt didn't really know anything about making games. Few people outside of the industry really talked about it back then. They did some math, guessed about how long it would take them, and a goal was set - mere $15,000. A measly amount compared to even most indie games of today. It seemed like enough back then. And the Kickstarter was a rousing success, funding waaay above goal. Not quite enough to reach the oft-joked about Wii U stretch, but a windfall nonetheless. The money was divided evenly between the two bright-eyed and idea-filled partners. This was it. It was time to hunker down and get started.

But then the programmer's work started to slow. He would miss calls, skip out on meetings. He stopped returning messages. Slowly, he himself became a ghost of the project. He had taken the money, but wasn't producing the work. There was so much to do! But only Matt remained. And only Matt would continue the project.

Stencyl is a good engine to work with visually, especially if you are new to making games. Although shaken by the silent departure of his once-partner, he soldiered on; dutifully creating all the artwork, pulling from sound libraries and implementing his ideas into the game engine. It was rough going, for a single man. But it was going. And that was all that mattered, with the weight of the fully funded Kickstarter behind him, and the growing coverage of his dark, yet vibrant take on the (for the time) neglected genre.

However, Stencyl just couldn't keep up with Matt. Fixing bugs was a struggle for this new developer. And the more content and artwork and ideas he shoveled into the engine, the longer and longer it would take to compile, sometimes up to 45 minutes for each change! Instead of smoothly moving forward, working on the game was becoming frustrating. This couldn't go on. A change had to be made.

So Matt makes the tough decision to switch engines, communicating this to all the Kickstarter backers. It is an understandable, if regrettable choice. The game was already at least halfway done! But it was also necessary. The engine was pushed as far as it could go, and Matt, burning the candle at both ends to make his dream a reality, had no choice but to start over.

The next years are spent learning to code. Unity has plugins to work visually, like Stencyl. But so much MORE could be done by directly coding it. Ideas exploded forth. The animations could now be expanded upon. Even more options for including melee and different weapons were now a possibility. Matt hadn't stopped playing other games during these years, and they all helped to shape and grow this new vision of Ghost Song.

A vision I hope you will enjoy in its completion as much as I have.

Thanks for reading.

Has birds.
Soundtrack actually really banging'.
Skateboarding is fun. The hats are fun. This game is fun. I had fun.

Easily the best puzzle game on Steam. The interface is modern and slick, the gameplay is relaxing and snappy, and the puzzles are unique and challenging. The animations add an extra delicious flavor, and being able to pick your puzzle edges is really fun! Incredible Workshop integration, along with Daily Challenges and a VS mode keep you coming back for more.

Additionally, I had a rare crash at game close that the developers worked me to fix, which earns them all the bonus points that I could possibly muster. Highly recommend!

Delightful to play, with an intriguing premise and a unique style. Some voice acting would have been amazing, but the game is no less enjoyable without it. A very go-at-your-own-pace experience that fosters imagination and curiosity. Also the music is good to.

A tantalizing world, an interesting premise, classic gameplay, and a great style.

And birbs.

Developer is friendly and active, open to feedback and implementing fixes/changes.

I wanted to leave a positive recommendation because I thoroughly enjoyed this game and the time and effort put into it.
It is mechanically interesting to control, the story is not barebones or an afterthought, and I appreciate the voice acting, which is not common in projects of this size.
I found it both challenging and fun, and I understand there are QOL updates in the future. The devs have been friendly, active and receptive.
I hope to see more in the future.

Monster Hunter veteran here, and this is the best of the series. The few downsides don't hold back the amazing quality of life changes and the stunning graphical upgrade. So much free content to boot. Absolutely love it.

Admittedly, there's not a lot here. And the dev team is currently tied up with other, previous projects. I do desperately hope they come back to it though, because what is here is enjoyable to me.

Can you move around? - Only what roomscale gives you.
Is it wave based? - Yeah.
Do you only shoot dinosaurs? - Yes.
How many weapons? - 9 guns, some explosives and an optional melee weapon (plus a melee challenge with multiple).
What about variety? - Six types of dinos and two environments in this current Early Access version.
Again, you really only shoot dinos? - Yah, but the Challenges give small twists to the wave-based formula.

I understand this may not fulfill what a lot of other people are looking for in a VR game, but it does work for me.