Chronicles of the Wolf Review (Switch)

The Switch is awash with Metroidvania clones but that doesn’t mean that many of them aren’t both good, and also capable of putting new ideas into the mix. Chronicles of the Wolf falls very much on the Castlevania side of the spectrum and also tries to take influence from one of the more obscure titles in the series in Castlevania 2.

For the uninitiated, Castlevania 2 is the NES game that tried to create a sort of 2D adventure template where Belmont moved around the countryside and visited various towns. It’s not dissimilar to the second Zelda game or the more obscure Battle for Olympus. It was never universally praised but we have always liked it and playing it via the Switch makes the game an awful lot more enjoyable.

Chronicles of the Wolf keeps the template with information coming from villagers that points you in the right direction of areas of interest. There are often buildings or caves which then act as mini levels and give up an object that allows you to progress further after. There are also some light RPG elements with levelling and the ability to acquire and change your gear.

In its homage to Castlevania 2, it is mostly successful. The game looks great, and the music is excellent and varied throughout. The level of detail on the sprites is pretty impressive and there are a host of different enemies even in the early stages. It is incredibly difficult though. Normal enemies can easily take you down and this does add a grinding element to the game at times which is a shame. This is compounded by a sever lack of places to save. There needs to be at least double the amount of saves in the game and they are placed in really strange locations.

What it means is that after defeating a boss or travelling a large distance you will often die and then must repeat too much of the game to be comfortable. There is a fine balance to be struck with save points and here it’s simply a cause of frustration rather than one of challenge.

For a Metroidvania styled game, your progress is actually quite linear. Sometimes there are multiple routes you can go but one will nearly always end in a dead end pretty quickly, so exploring off the beaten track becomes a bit of a chore rather than something players are encouraged to do in order to find new shiny things. Couple this with the fact saves are spaced so far means it can be a costly and unforgiving experience.

The bosses are well designed and exciting battles though, and they are mostly significant in both their size, look and arsenal. They are also fair to deal with so it gives a good sense of achievement when you take one down. You can see the boss’s health bar as well so at least you get an idea of progress when you are repeatedly being killed. Early on you take on a giant hornet type creature who exemplifies the strong design, it looks great, has some varied attacks but also displays clear patterns for players to be able to work around while still being fairly weak.

Overall, Chronicles of the Wolf has a lot of competition in the market but still has a lot going for it. It’s different to a lot of the clones out there (and the official Castlevania games), in that it’s taking Castlevania 2 as it’s core inspiration and it’s clearly had a lot of care put into it. It’s also a different tone to games like Infernax so there really is room for everyone here. If you are a Castlevania fan it offers something a little different and is well worth checking out.

Overall 7/10

Citizen Sleeper 2: Starward Vector Review (Switch)

The first Citizen Sleep was a resounding success, with its space styled cyber punk aesthetic and the mixture of rich storytelling and board game and RPG elements. In fact, it garnered a dedicated following and even had a card game version appearing. It’s not a massive surprise then to see a second game in the series.

There is no direct link to the story of the first game here. Continuity wise it is set a little later in the time period, but new players won’t feel left out if they start here first. To add to this, your character is a malfunctioning android who has no memory of anything either so it’s very much about discovering the world for the first time.

There are a handful of classes to choose from, and you can also upgrade skills and buffs as you get points from completing various missions and objectives. These then add modifiers to your dice or allow you do things like create rerolls or fix them should they become damaged.

The premise is simple, at the start of each cycle (or day) , you get a number of dice that are randomly generated with which to carry out actions. The higher the number of the dice mixed with your affinity for carrying out certain type of task will decide if you are likely to be successful at it. Once, you have used all your dice you can end the cycle and start again with a fresh set.

Of course, things are never that easy and there is normally some kind of cycle timer counting down to a major story event that you need to be aware of. Time is very much essential so resetting a day just because you have bad dice is never really an option. On top of this you need food and need to think about damage caused by stress to your body. There really are a whole host of things keeping you on the edge of anxiety and always watching the clock.

You’ll spend much of your time investigating around space stations or out on salvage operations. The interface is simple, pick the location to move to and then the options of what you can do will show up when you get there. There are options to work or find food, as well as hunt for clues or interact with the population. When you are off the station for salvage missions you need to also think about fuel and the amount of supplies you have with you. These missions are normally perilous as the hulks you try and get salvage from tend to breach and fall apart, just in case you needed yet another time clock to think about.

The initial goal is simply to stay one step ahead of the people chasing you. After that the mystery deepens and you’ll also encounter new characters and crew with their own skills and agendas to deal with. The human interaction element is key to the games philosophy as you will live or die by your network of crew. In this respect it’s important to think about how you are interacting as you’ll want as many options as possible as you venture on your space road trip.

Overall, Citizen Sleep 2 is a beautifully thought out and refined experience. It’s certainly tough but can be progressed through with careful thinking (and there are easier difficulty settings as well). It’s quite unique in its approach to the genre and still manages to stand out from the crowd. If you are looking for an immersive sci-fi adventure with a twist, then this comes highly recommended.

Overall 8/10