I don't find the idea of coming back and repeating sections to open doors super appealing, though some may get a real kick out of it. The levels are deceptively complex, with many areas that can't be unlocked or accessed right away, and this frustrated me a little bit. There are also some aerial dashes that will often see you zipping through entire zones and past various stages and platforms, leaving you wondering if you should go back and explore what you missed, or just push forwards. Your talking sword doesn't isn't just there to provide sagely advice, but to help you hack and slash your way through beasties by letting you chain together attacks for some real fluidity.Īs you progress you'll pick up new abilities that allow you to combine your powers with Fidget's, creating a whirlwind of attacks that will fill up the screen with dizzying chaos. And it's obvious the game really is designed to appeal to all ages and skill levels, with four difficulty options to choose from, and a really smooth and responsive combat system. Yeah, there's some real childhood love thrown into this game's design. Yeah it's got that kind of slightly retro-feel to it, and there's a lot of love and detail, not to mention bags full of colour packed into each 2D level. I was on the fence about the art style at first, but after a while I realised it really reminded me of the cartoons I used to watch in the early 90s on Saturday mornings. But, that aside, there's a lot to love about Dust as well. I couldn't handle her, Baj, that voice! Argh. Quite possibly the most annoying character in the history of video games. A talking sword, and a weird, cat-fox thing with wings, called 'Fidget'.Īhh, Fidget.

Dust, whose husky voice actor does a pretty good job of adding to our hero's mysterious background, is joined by two companions. Yeah, it's not the most original way to start a game, and the characters aren't the greatest either. I'm so sick of the old 'hero with amnesia' cliche, surely there are other ideas out there that can serve as a worthy substitute-catalyst for adventure.

Set in a world of anthropomorphic creatures whose land has been ravaged by monsters, you awaken as Dust, an adventurer who has no recollection of who he is or how he got there.īoo. Dust: An Elysian tale is an XBLA downloadable title brought to us by indie dev Humble Hearts, the one-man operation behind this hack-n-slash fantasy adventure.

Elysian hack