Gravity Circuit Review (Japonicus)
Okay, overall this is a fun game. It's basically melee Megaman with a Gameboy Color palette. I'm only a couple of stages in, but already I can tell that there's enough here to keep me interested for some time.
Having said that, I do have some gripes:
1. Contact damage
- To be blunt, contact damage is a stupid concept in a game where you control a melee fighter. The OG Megaman games had you shooting enemies from a distance, so contact damage when enemies get too close sorta makes sense. But in GC, you HAVE to get up close to the enemies to deal damage. Which would be fine, if only doing so causes foes to get stunned or knocks them back. Unfortunately, NO; enemies you are pummeling will often walk or jump towards you, instantly dealing contact damage.
- So what's the point of having spikey enemies, when every foe you touch deals damage anyway?
- I would've been okay with enemies swatting at you if you stay too close for too long, or maybe a slight knock back with no damage penalty when you bump into one. But getting killed when you merely brush against an enemy that isn't even looking in your direction -and having that happen to you so very often- is incredibly, hair-pullingly frustrating.
2. Burst gauge is tiny and practically out of sight
- So the burst gauge is right under your HP meter, near the top of the screen. You only get a limited number when filled to capacity (I'm still early into the game, so I currently can only get two max). Knowing when to bust this out while engaging enemies is a crucial part of the game play.
- However, because the gauge is positioned where it is, you must take a quick moment to look away from your character to check if you have enough ammo stored to fire one off. You will likely do this while engaged with the enemy in melee range, meaning that there is a high probability of you getting hit while your attention is elsewhere, even for a split second. Especially since, like I said earlier, enemies will deal contact damage by moving towards you while you are raining your fists on them.
- You can attempt the alternative, which is to not look away and completely focus on the enemy you're currently pummeling. That means you either a. pass on using the burst attack, or b. attempt to use a burst attack anyway; but this means you run the risk of shooting blanks if your gauge happens to be empty, which will likely lead to you taking damage since you basically interrupted your own attack sequence while in melee range.
- It would have been preferable to have some sort of burst gauge indicator directly on or right next to the character. This way, there would be no need to look away while you're right next to an enemy.
Even with just these two issues, they will quickly pile on and potentially hinder your enjoyment of the game. Which is unfortunate, because I personally am quite invested in seeing where it all goes. The melee Megaman concept is rather interesting; I only hope that I do not rage-quit before I've fully experienced it.