Hello everyone! And welcome back to another blog post. Valfaris delivers a visceral, adrenaline-pumping experience, drenched in heavy metal and dripping with pixelated carnage. Steel Mantis, the creators of Slain: Back from Hell, developed Valfaris, pushing the brutal aesthetic and challenging gameplay to a new level. The game unleashes a symphony of destruction that resonates with fans of classic run-and-gun titles like Contra and Turrican.
You launch the game and immediately enter a world of striking visuals and a thunderous soundtrack. You control Therion, a valiant son of Valfaris, who returns to his corrupted home to confront the darkness that consumed it. While straightforward, the game’s narrative provides a compelling backdrop to the relentless action and exploration.
This review explores every aspect of Valfaris, from its meticulously crafted pixel art and heavy metal soundtrack to its challenging gameplay and intricate level design. We’ll show you what makes this indie gem stand out in a crowded genre and why it deserves a place in the pantheon of great retro-inspired action games.
Gameplay: A Masterclass in Brutal Challenge
Valfaris is unapologetically difficult. It embraces the punishing nature of classic arcade games, demanding precision and mastery from players. Therion wields a diverse arsenal, including a powerful plasma pistol, a devastating heavy weapon, and a brutal melee sword. You must switch between these weapons for survival, as each enemy requires a different approach.
- Weapon Variety and Customization: The game offers a satisfying array of weapons, each with its own strengths and weaknesses. Players upgrade weapons using Blood Metal, a resource enemies drop and you find throughout the levels. This progression system adds depth to the gameplay, allowing players to tailor their loadout to their playstyle.
- Challenging Combat: Valfaris doesn’t hold back. Enemies relentlessly attack, and boss battles are epic encounters that test your reflexes and strategic thinking. The game’s difficulty curve is steep, but fair, rewarding players who persevere and learn from their mistakes.
- Level Design: The levels feature intricate designs, including hidden paths, challenging platforming sections, and environmental hazards. Players discover hidden upgrades and lore fragments that enrich the game’s world through exploration.
- The Energy System: A core mechanic involves managing Therion’s energy. Using the heavy weapon and sword drains energy, forcing players to balance offensive and defensive strategies. This adds tactical depth to the combat, preventing players from simply spamming attacks.
- Checkpoints and Difficulty: While challenging, Valfaris provides generous checkpoints, minimizing frustration and encouraging players to keep pushing forward. The game’s difficulty design rewards players, providing a sense of accomplishment with each victory.
Aesthetic and Sound: A Heavy Metal Masterpiece
Valfaris feasts the eyes and ears. The game’s pixel art stuns, featuring detailed environments, grotesque enemy designs, and fluid animations. Curt Victor Bryant composed the heavy metal soundtrack, perfectly complementing the game’s brutal aesthetic and creating an immersive and intense atmosphere.
- Pixel Art Excellence: The game’s pixel art demonstrates the developers’ skill and dedication. Every frame is meticulously crafted, showcasing a level of detail rare in modern pixel art games.
- Heavy Metal Soundtrack: The soundtrack drives the game’s atmosphere. The thundering riffs and pounding drums perfectly capture the action’s intensity, creating an unforgettable auditory experience.
- Visual Design: The game’s visual design is dark, gritty, and grotesque, reflecting Valfaris’s corrupted nature. The environments vary, ranging from decaying industrial complexes to alien landscapes, each with its unique visual identity.
- Enemy Design: The developers creatively designed the enemies, featuring a mix of biomechanical horrors and demonic creatures. Their grotesque appearance and relentless attacks add to the game’s challenging and immersive atmosphere.
Narrative and World-Building: A Dark and Intriguing Tale
While the gameplay and aesthetic take center stage, Valfaris also presents a compelling narrative and rich world-building. Environmental details, item descriptions, and brief cutscenes reveal the game’s lore, creating mystery and intrigue.
- Lore and World-Building: The game’s world steeps in lore, with a history of corruption and conflict. Players uncover fragments of this history by exploring the levels and discovering hidden items.
- Character Design: Therion is a compelling protagonist, driven by duty and a desire to reclaim his home. The game’s other characters, while limited, add depth to the narrative and contribute to the overall atmosphere.
- Environmental Storytelling: The environments themselves tell a story, revealing the devastation that befell Valfaris. The decaying structures, abandoned machinery, and grotesque creatures all contribute to the game’s dark and oppressive atmosphere.
- Minimalist Storytelling: Valfaris excels at telling its story without long winded cutscenes. The world itself and small interactions tell the story.
Replayability and Longevity
Valfaris offers significant replayability, thanks to its challenging gameplay, hidden secrets, and multiple difficulty settings. Players revisit levels to find missed items, master challenging sections, and test their skills against higher difficulty settings.
- Hidden Secrets and Collectibles: The game features numerous hidden secrets and collectibles, encouraging players to explore every corner of the levels.
- Difficulty Settings: Multiple difficulty settings allow players to tailor the challenge to their skill level, providing a satisfying experience for both casual and hardcore gamers.
- Speedrunning Potential: The game’s fast-paced action and challenging gameplay make it ideal for speedrunning, offering a competitive outlet for skilled players.
- New Game Plus: Although not a traditional NG+ the ability to return to levels with upgraded gear provides replayability.
Conclusion: A Must-Play for Retro Action Fans
Valfaris triumphs as a retro-inspired action game. It delivers a visceral and challenging experience that is both rewarding and unforgettable. Its stunning pixel art, thunderous soundtrack, and meticulously crafted gameplay make it a standout title in the genre.
If you enjoy classic run-and-gun games like Contra and Turrican, or if you appreciate well-crafted action games with a heavy metal aesthetic, Valfaris is a must-play. Its challenging gameplay, immersive atmosphere, and compelling world-building will keep you hooked from start to finish. Let us know in the comments, have you played Valfaris? Don’t forget to check out the devs website here to learn more.