

But the game continues, and then continues some more, and doesn't change things up enough. Solar Ash lets you be the GIF, and it's really cool when you're in that moment. It was as if I was playing one of those cool GIFs you see posted on Twitter but you're never good enough to play like. I'd got the controls down, I knew what my character could do, and how best to move at speed in the world and on the backs of giant creatures.

I found the game peaked around the mid-way point. You'll get better, though, so by the end you're a pro - not surprising given that you've been using the same moves for the length of the game. You employ the same moves on these skeletal foes, and early on it's pretty easy to fall over the different button commands due to the speed you need to perform at. Traversal around the world is fairly laid back, at least initially, with only some token enemies to contend with, but the end of each area sees you take on a huge creature. The moves you learn at the start of the game remain your moves throughout your journey, and this has its ups and downs.

The world is fully explorable, and it's best to do this at pace, your character Rei able to glide around as if on ice skates, double jump, dash, slow time, and grapple. It's quite a radical departure in terms of appearance and gameplay, being a full 3D action-platformer instead of a classic Zelda-like action adventure. Solar Ash is the follow-up effort from Hyper Light Drifter developer Heart Machine.
