“Neon White swings for the fences with its card-based gun-platforming, but it pays off to create a wildly enjoyable action game.”
Pros
Strong worldbuilding
Ingenious card fight
Fast and enjoyable
Packed with extras
Cons
Not a lot freedom in ranges
Late phases is usually a slog
At a primary look, Neon White sounds just like the sort of sport that might have your native priest performing exorcisms. The indie shooter paints a grim portrait of the afterlife, one the place divine judgment is was a gun bloodsport. But look beneath the floor sacrilege and also you’ll discover a extra nuanced meditation of spirituality and the actual heretics that weaponize it in opposition to the weak.
Developed by Angel Matrix, Neon White is a genre-bending motion sport a few group of deceased misfits who need to struggle their method into Heaven (actually). The oddball sport has gamers accumulating weapons within the type of playing cards that may shoot enemies or be discarded to carry out platforming strikes. It’s a fast-paced motion sport about killing sufficient demons to appease a bloodthirsty God as a part of a holy conflict that doesn’t scent proper.
Through its trendy artwork and devilishly artistic card fight, Neon White is a sharp-witted sport in regards to the hypocrisy that may typically go hand-in-hand with spiritual fanaticism. Though it has some harsh phrases for zealots, it comes from a spot of honest spirituality as a substitute of cynicism.
Judgment day
When Neon White begins, the sport’s protagonist is already useless. The amnesiac hero is within the afterlife awaiting entry into Heaven together with a number of mask-wearing people who’ve all been renamed after colours (your given title? Neon White). The story’s left flip comes instantly: All the “Neons” are sinners who’re being pitted in opposition to each other in a divine competitors. Whoever can kill probably the most demons in God’s title will acquire entry into the pearly gates.
Writer Ryann Shannon delivers a searing sermon about spiritual fear-mongering …
It’s an instantly gripping setup. Right from the bounce, it’s clear that one thing’s off as self-indulgent angels watch the violent proceedings like a Sunday derby. The central thriller on the coronary heart of Neon White turns into extra layered as every chapter progresses, revealing extra about White, the opposite Neons, and the mechanics of the afterlife. It performs out like a full season of an excellent anime.
The worldbuilding is a spotlight all through. While it’s an motion sport primarily, it has a good quantity of visible novel DNA. Between every chapter, White spends time in a heavenly hub chatting with different characters that step by step paint a full image of the world. It’s darkly comedic and a bit absurd (flying cats play a significant function within the story), but it surely isn’t foolish or irreverent. Rather, author Ryann Shannon delivers a searing sermon about spiritual fear-mongering and the loyal “believers” who by no means appear to observe their very own recommendation.
It could be straightforward for a narrative like that to shortly dip into brow-beating atheistic territory, however I recognize that Neon White doesn’t write off faith altogether. Instead, its story acknowledges that spirituality is usually a wholesome power for good, particularly for many who are merely searching for goal or peace in a busy world. Its heavenly gatekeepers could also be snooty and judgmental, however the sport sincerely believes that anybody is worthy of forgiveness, whether or not that be from up above or right here on Earth.
Shoot and discard
While its considerate story is price delving into, Neon White’s major power is its artistic fight, which fuses first-person taking pictures, platforming, and card administration. Levels are brief pace gauntlets the place gamers must wipe out each demon earlier than making it to an exit. Many of its 90+ ranges are supposed to be accomplished in underneath a minute, giving the sport a hellishly enjoyable breakneck tempo.
The enjoyable comes from orchestrating a violent ballet stuffed with bullets and completely timed pirouettes. [/pullquotes]
Different weapons (handgun, shotgun, the standard) seem within the type of playing cards. While a card is energetic, gamers can shoot demons. However, every card has an alternate motion that’s activated by discarding it. Drop a rifle and White shoots ahead in a straight line that may lower by means of partitions and enemies. Trashing a submachine gun, alternatively, permits White to carry out a devastating stomp. The puzzle of every degree is that gamers want to determine when to spend ammo and when to activate a capability in an effort to filter out all enemies whereas platforming. It’s a sequence of lightning-fast choices which are extremely satisfying to string collectively.
The solely factor that lets it down is a scarcity of freedom in every degree. Cards are laid out strategically alongside a linear path, so there’s hardly ever a lot room for experimentation. When I choose up a handgun, I’m nearly all the time going to be utilizing it straight away. That’s a constructive in some respects, because it retains the sport from getting too difficult with deck administration — one thing that might be too troublesome to do on the sport’s pace. Still, there have been occasions after I left ranges feeling like I’d ridden on a rollercoaster trip, versus finishing a fluid motion scene.
Shorter ranges work significantly better than a number of the sport’s longer late-game gauntlets too. In 30-second ranges, it’s straightforward to discover a path by means of a degree after which spend time making an attempt to attain the right run (quicker occasions unlock rewards like leaderboards). Later ranges can start to really feel like a slog when you must replay one minute of straightforward platforming to get again to the split-second second that’s tripping you up. Some checkpoints in longer ranges could have helped alleviate a number of the late-game drag.
Those gripes apart, the motion in Neon White is all the time sharp. It’s an execution-heavy sport in the identical vein as indies like Boomerang X, and like these video games, the enjoyable comes from orchestrating a violent ballet stuffed with bullets and completely timed pirouettes. The sport continues to layer new weapons, skills, enemies, and obstacles into every degree, making each chapter really feel like a recent hell to be mastered.
Demon courting
At round 12 hours casually, Neon White is a considerable sport even earlier than stepping into its additional options. Its side-content is kind of important although, increasing the package deal right into a challenge-packed motion sport that’ll final some time. There are almost 100 well-designed ranges to excellent, every of which has its personal leaderboard, medal necessities, and collectible presents that unlock after it has been cleared as soon as.
Call it a heavenly delight or a responsible pleasure; both method, it’s divine.
The final half is likely one of the sport’s most intelligent hooks. Gifts give gamers a motive to return into ranges and use their gun playing cards a bit extra freely to trace down each hidden current. Once discovered, these could be given to the sport’s NPCs to unlock wonderful bonus ranges, in addition to story-moving dialogue. Yes, on prime of every little thing, Neon White additionally capabilities as a reasonably good courting simulator.
While it’s not fairly the grasp tradesman that one thing like Hades is, Neon White does every little thing it units out to do fairly effectively. There was hardly ever a degree the place I felt like I used to be slogging by means of uninteresting lore to get again to the motion or vice versa. Every piece matches into each other to create a profitable hybrid sport glued along with trendy visuals and a soundtrack stuffed with bops. It has the chaotic power, however nonetheless cohesive imaginative and prescient of an excellent Suda51 sport — my head retains going again to Killer7 when I attempt to discover the correct non secular touchstone.
While there is perhaps bits and items of different video games in right here, Neon White is the sort of wholly distinctive expertise that makes the fashionable gaming scene so thrilling. It deconstructs style staples and narrative clichés, reassembling them into its personal funhouse mirror picture. Call it a heavenly delight or a responsible pleasure; both method, it’s divine.
Our take
Neon White takes some massive swings with its card-shooter/platformer premise and luckily doesn’t miss. Its execution-heavy motion is wildly quick and enjoyable, pushing gamers to finish complicated demon-slaying gauntlets that pepper in thrilling twists by means of the sport’s final moments. Levels can really feel disappointingly linear and longer phases can drag the momentum down, however the motion is essentially satisfying from begin to end. That could be sufficient to make this a worthwhile package deal, however its surprisingly considerate commentary on spirituality and powerful late-game hooks make this a sport worthy of divine judgment.
Is there a greater different?
Hades has an analogous genre-bending method, although there’s nothing on the market that’s fairly like Neon White. Though writer Devolver Digital has loads of nice execution-based motion video games of comparable high quality. Take your choose.
How lengthy will it final?
The story could be accomplished in roughly 12 hours, however there’s a ton to chase after the credit roll. Unlockable presents, time chases, bonus ranges, and extra flip this into a strong package deal throughout.
Should you purchase it?
Yes. Neon White is a cool and assured motion sport with an odd motion hook that’s quick and improbable in equal measure.
Neon White was reviewed utilizing a PC copy primarily examined on Steam Deck.
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