Where in the world did this one come from? I'm pretty quick to dismiss early-Zelda clones, but something caught my eye, and I'm sure glad it did...

This game is sublime - a mix of Zelda and classic Secret of Mana influences, but in no way derivative. The gameplay incorporates the best aspects of character-building, world-building, and combat to come along since those games blazed the trail.

First, the combat- looks simple, and it is, in the sense of 'user-friendly,' but it's also deliciously deep. It's a fully fleshed-out set of mechanics, with many different builds and paths you can go down. 1H Warrior, 2H Warrior, Wizard, Battlemage- whatever you'd like. It feels really good. Well forged, with a creative and diverse set of enemies and bosses. The shield mechanics are simple but a great addition.

There are two difficulty settings, and Normal is no push-over: you'll get clonked if you don't fight well, but at the same time, you're always growing in power, so it's no sweat to power up if you're getting killed (the death penalty is negligible, so there should be no frustration if you have to retry). There's a Hard setting too, and I like the way they scaled it (you take more damage, but enemies don't become sponges). I think Normal is really well-balanced.

Great equipment and crafting - you've got a full set of armor options, and again, you can build towards your desired character. The RPG elements are excellent- a large but manageable suite of skills, spells, and passive talents allow you to build the way you want to. You can also collect rare 'cards' that give your character permanent bonuses, and these are creatively implemented as well. If you want to switch your build up, the penalties for changing your skills are pretty light.

The story is endearing so far. I really like how they've done it- nice and cozy, engaging, but you won't be sitting through long (boring) conversations. That said, there are 'books' to be found with surprisingly detailed stories, which elaborate on gameplay mechanics and tactics you might use. Genuinely funny sometimes, too. I don't look to video games for humor, but this got me a time or two in the first 5 hours.

It's a lovely world, with fun puzzles too- you might be like, 'I don't care about puzzles,' but they really add depth. They're challenging without being frustrating, and they don't bog down the momentum. Interesting and creative challenges face you as you work through new areas, and it really does add to the experience. SoG is not just 'perpetually increasing enemy levels' as you trounce through re-skins of similar areas ... this was evidently built by a team that spent a lot of time thinking about building an engaging world.

I'm incredibly impressed. I had never heard of Secrets of Grindea before its release yesterday- but it sounds likeit has been in the works for over a decade by a very small team, and you can tell this is a labor of love - really thoughtful, fun work.

Where in the world did this one come from? I'm pretty quick to dismiss early-Zelda clones, but something caught my eye, and I'm sure glad it did... This game is sublime - a mix of Zelda and classic Secret of Mana influences, but in no way derivative. The gameplay incorporates the best aspects of character-building, world-building, and combat to come along since those games blazed the trail. First, the combat- looks simple, and it is, in the sense of 'user-friendly,' but it's also deliciously deep. It's a fully fleshed-out set of mechanics, with many different builds and paths you can go down. 1H Warrior, 2H Warrior, Wizard, Battlemage- whatever you'd like. It feels really good. Well forged, with a creative and diverse set of enemies and bosses. The shield mechanics are simple but a great addition. There are two difficulty settings, and Normal is no push-over: you'll get clonked if you don't fight well, but at the same time, you're always growing in power, so it's no sweat to power up if you're getting killed (the death penalty is negligible, so there should be no frustration if you have to retry). There's a Hard setting too, and I like the way they scaled it (you take more damage, but enemies don't become sponges). I think Normal is really well-balanced. Great equipment and crafting - you've got a full set of armor options, and again, you can build towards your desired character. The RPG elements are excellent- a large but manageable suite of skills, spells, and passive talents allow you to build the way you want to. You can also collect rare 'cards' that give your character permanent bonuses, and these are creatively implemented as well. If you want to switch your build up, the penalties for changing your skills are pretty light. The story is endearing so far. I really like how they've done it- nice and cozy, engaging, but you won't be sitting through long (boring) conversations. That said, there are 'books' to be found with surprisingly detailed stories, which elaborate on gameplay mechanics and tactics you might use. Genuinely funny sometimes, too. I don't look to video games for humor, but this got me a time or two in the first 5 hours. It's a lovely world, with fun puzzles too- you might be like, 'I don't care about puzzles,' but they really add depth. They're challenging without being frustrating, and they don't bog down the momentum. Interesting and creative challenges face you as you work through new areas, and it really does add to the experience. SoG is not just 'perpetually increasing enemy levels' as you trounce through re-skins of similar areas ... this was evidently built by a team that spent a lot of time thinking about building an engaging world. I'm incredibly impressed. I had never heard of Secrets of Grindea before its release yesterday- but it sounds likeit has been in the works for over a decade by a very small team, and you can tell this is a labor of love - really thoughtful, fun work.