Loop Hero Review (lex.mcmurray)
This game has amazing potential... and you know a review that starts like this is trouble. First and most importantly: this game is genuinely broken. How is this being sold right now? If you use a controller, a bunch of inputs just do not work (for example, changing the game speed is an L in a circle, I assume pressing down left stick... this does nothing. I have to switch to mouse to go click on the game speed options if I want to change them). Also, using a controller, for some reason the options menu is different? There is no option to switch to full-screen when using a controller, you can only do so with the mouse. Clicking on the options with the mouse brings up an entirely different options menu which does allow you to select full-screen mode. What? Not to be rude but what kind of jank..
Perhaps more importantly, I wasn't kidding when I said the game is broken. Try a mouse if controller is bad, right? Well, putting it in full-screen mode, then trying to use the mouse, does not work. The mouse icon in the game stops suddenly before reaching the bottom of the screen, so you cannot click very important things like the build cards. In fact, this issue caused me to experience a bug which is apparently so common it comes up when googling anything about how to make the game full-screen (which I did when it seemed like the option wasn't there as I used my controller)... tabbing out of the game caused it to bug out, so the window was smaller and the game inside that was even smaller, and the aforementioned mouse bug meant that I could not bring the mouse low enough on the screen to click on the options menu so as to fix it... Thankfully, folks online mentioned that hitting F4 will change it to and from full-screen, which will allow you to get back into a run (which is good if you're halfway through one, like I was, and don't want to lose progress).
So, in summary, the game is clearly not really compatible with controller as you'll need the mouse for stuff on the top of the screen, BUT, if you try to play with the mouse, you won't be able to access stuff at the bottom of the screen. As you may imagine, both top and bottom of screen items are important. I ended up playing with controller for most of the game but needing the mouse to access items at the top of the game and to access the "real" options menu (again... what? WHY?)
So... If you've read through all that and you're still thinking, "amazing potential, he said?", I have to say, it's a shame to leave this negative review. The game's pixel art is stunning, the music is fine or good, the writing is interesting and well-done so far, and the core idea (or, *loop*, lol) of the game is actually quite interesting. This give and take between wanting to build a very dangerous loop so that you can maximise your item and resource acquisition as you go around it, while also worrying about making it TOO difficult to survive, potentially losing some items... it's very cool. I honestly might keep playing, which is why I'm not asking for a refund. I got this on quite steep sale, so if you're willing to deal with the above issues, and it IS on sale, yeah... I guess you could grab it.
However, I'm quite disappointed to purchase a game that is broken, especially since the issues are well-documented online, and such an old game too... one can only imagine it's just never being fixed? Buyer beware, for sure. There's also a lot that isn't super-well explained, for example, you get this chance to "easily" (as in, automatically) escape with all of your collected meta-resources when you reach a campfire, and the way this is written heavily suggests that trying to leave a run without being at a campfire could cause you to lose resources... how many? Half? All? Does death make you lose all? I'll just have to find out I guess... similarly, I built a meta upgrade that gives me potions, apparently I have three... where are they? Does my guy take them by himself? I replenish them at the campfire but how do I use them...? I'm concerned that the entire game will be like this.
All in all, I want to like this game, I really, really do. The art is gorgeous, and the story and main/meta loops have me feeling a little hooked... But you can't sell broken games, that's crazy! I'm especially disappointed in Devolver which is a publisher I like and trust. Glad I got this on a mega sale, is all I'll say... 5 bucks is worth the hour I just played, I guess, we'll see if I return.