Indie games are getting more and more creative these days and many show signs of great potential. Even the ones that do not live up to their full potential still have something very good to give. But sometimes the game has good ideas but they just are not mixed through well.
Exile’s End is an ambitious game with an interesting setup. It takes on the metroidvania genre and tries to provide something new, but doesn’t really succeed. I would tell you the plot, but the truth is that the plot matters very little in this game and a lot of the time it feels like its stuck in the background for the whole game. The gameplay feels like an attempt at being a new metroidvania but comes off as mediocre and not fully done.
A major issue I have is that the game gives very little direction or instruction, and has too much backtracking involved. Even Metroid had instructions albeit in the form of subtle gameplay clues. Exile’s End is just confusing and hard to understand what to do. You will find items and weapons but have no clue what to do with them and it makes for a frustrating experience. Combat feels awkward and clumsy and, to tie it in with the above, when you have no clue where to go in the game, that leads you to die a lot.
This game has a lot of potential, but it is all wasted and leaves you with an experience that is lacking. it isn’t a terrible game but it is not something I would recommend checking out. It has the right ideas but just does not use them in the right places. While hand holding is a bad thing, a little guidance isn’t. And awkward controls and a confusing layout will just lead to a lot of headaches. This game could have been so much more, but it just is not. I would pass on this.