Chasm Review

After being kickstarted on May 2013, Chasm took the long road around to finally have a full release game on July 2018. It aimed to be a great Metroidvania type game with retro pixel graphics and replayability. Has being in development for that long as an indie game affected the outcome? Regardless of how long it took to make, is Chasm a good game? Read on to find out in our Chasm review.

The first thing you’ll notice about Chasm is its beautiful pixel art. It has a great style that helps to set the mood of the game and works well with a Metroidvania style game. Not only do the characters look crisp and fun, but the backgrounds look really good which is a good thing considering the RNG of what the next area you step into will be. The only complaint may come in the odd blur like after image of the hero as he jumps or runs. For some people this could be off-putting, while it felt ok, it could have done without it.

The story in Chasm starts off as a fairly generic one we’ve seen before countless times. As the game progresses it evolves and changes. I felt there could have been more backstory for the hero or at least more choices overall. Not bad for what it is, but not the greatest story in the gaming world.

Music plays a key part in most games these days. This is very true for Chasm. The beat can come fast and hard in boss battles and then be calm and soothing as you visit the town.  you can tell time and heart went into the music for the game and it can be something you listen to after just for enjoyment.

When talking about any Metroidvania the biggest thing to discuss is combat and how it plays. The basic combat in Chasm feels solid for the most part. You will find out soon enough simple hit and run tactics don’t work the deeper you go. You’ll have to jump more and start to use other tactics. Using a controller, the overall control of the character felt good. It did feel that some more time could have gone into the combat system in general though. While good, it doesn’t feel like anything particularly brilliant to write home about so to say.  The boss battles get harder and harder like in any Metroidvania, but there were times it just felt like they were hard simply for lack of a more elegant combat style. You can upgrade weapons and gear, use different objects and such. I felt stuck in a loop of doing the same thing over and over again because it worked the best, not because I was enjoying myself.

Summary
Chasm is a good Metroidvania game. But it feels like it could have been better at certain points. A game that took five years to develop feels like it should offer more than Chasm currently does. Is that an unfair assessment? Possibly, but then maybe you should ask someone who kickstarted it if they’re happy with what they received after all these years.
Good
  • Great pixel graphics
  • Solid combat & controls
  • Good music
Bad
  • Lackluster story
  • Combat that felt the same for too long
  • Repetitive and unfun boss battles
6.5
Fair
Written by
Gamer/geek, awkward selfie taker, wanna be streamer. Writer of thingz. Streaming dailyish at - https://www.twitch.tv/brandedwolfe

1 Comment

  1. Bummer! Looked promising. But I’m all about a good story, a game that is lacking in it doesn’t hack it.

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