Anno: Mutationem has always been beautiful, with its mixture of pixelized characters and 3D environments. The question was whether it could offer an attractive experience corresponding to this style? It’s kind of the case, but there is a little too much rough edges.
The game is a mixture of two different parts. There is an adventure gameplay in 3D, in which you control the protagonist Ann while investing on the disappearance of his brother in various dystopic neighborhoods. During these phases, you can freely explore, talk to NPCs and visit stores to buy and sell equipment. The other half goes to 2D action, where it exchanges the ability to cross a third axis in favor of the fast platform and fighting.
The scenario is sufficiently dark, although with rapid injections of crazy humor, and the urban landscape Cyberpunk presented here is an interesting setting to explore. However, we would say that the 3D element of the game hurts the experience; You will often get through objects or doors simply trying to move. Combined with fixed cameras, browse each location can be quite tedious.
Fortunately, the lateral scroll combat segments are better. Some slightly elevated jumps, engaging enemies with light and heavy swords, as well as a pistol, are fun and quite difficult, and improve with each new unlocked capacity from the skill tree.
There is a surprising range in the game – you can disassemble objects to get materials, which you can then combine in new weapon modules. There are secondary missions and mini-games, like serving cocktails to make money. It’s also a kind of open world, although very small. Although the ambition is admirable, overall, we think the game seems pretty blurred. It’s a nice experience, and everything here is reasonably good, but the result is a game that does not really shine, with the exception of its rainy aesthetic and infused neon.
- Superb visuals
* Central history intriguing
* Ann is a cool main character
* Fun Fight in 2D
* A surprising sum to do
- 3D exploration is a little ringard
- The platform seems rigid
- Writing is not very strong
- Does not exceed in any field
Not bad 6/10
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Revision copy provided by Lightning Games