Recent reviews by Illusion of Progress

I don't often say much unless I'm saying a lot, but having recently completed this, I felt this game is much better than its score is currently reflecting. It makes me feel awkward for loving this haha. I'm seeing many mixed reviews with some recurring complaints, so I felt I'd leave a review of my own and touch upon some of those things. I did leave a more thorough review in the discussions, but as a warning, it's a bit poorly constructed and very long, so I'll try and do better here while still addressing everything.

Itorah was a game I came across shortly before release when it was featured by one of the Steam events. I wishlisted it, purchased it upon release, and it sat for a very short while until I started, and then quickly finished, it. And, wow. Normally if things "somewhat interest me" I wait for a sale, but the gorgeous 2D art of a Meso-American theme, and the gameplay featured in the promotional material, attracted me. Upon finishing it, I feel it stuck the landing on the bits that attracted me to begin with.

For the most part, it's exactly what it presents itself as. The art is, and I can't say this enough, gorgeous. The Meso-American setting and theme is refreshing. The gameplay is great, though you'll probably fall into one of two camps on that. You'll either love it for not being convoluted and weighed down by systems upon systems, and while it's simple, the ability progression is spot on, or you'll be bored by those same things because you want something more in-depth. I will mention that the difficulty seems slightly "back loaded" rather than consistent. The early game is natural, the mid-game feels flat in places, and the end picks up the slack and is relatively sharp. It's not awful, but it might make people have poor early-mid impressions. If it was developed with multiple difficulties, it'd go a long way in addressing this. Campfires which replenish your health and heals are generously place, and punishments for falling into death pits is too forgiving IMO. It's a bit "casual" but it's great at what it does. You can do what I did and forgo upgrades to see how far you can challenge yourself (just keep multiple saves if you do please, as backtracking is prevented in some spots and you don't want to almost "soft lock" yourself unless you can "get good" enough to pass a later spot with reduced stats). But, the possibility for challenge is there; it'd just be nice if there were separate difficulties to cater to those wanting even more challenge without alienating the casual players.

The music isn't top notch throughout, and I'm a huge proponent that great audio propels a game even further, but it's not awful either. The dialogue isn't fully spoken but instead is what I'll call "grunts of Itorah-lish" (think "simlish"). One one hand, it adds to the idea that these characters are not speaking your language, but their own, but on the other, voice acting can add immersion. But voice acting costs money, so for the price I guess I get it. Again, the audio isn't awful, it just doesn't go all the way. The visual work does the heavy lifting.

The story isn't the script from a classic JRPG game, but like the audio, it works and isn't bad at all. Most of the background is filled in through sequences from either the future or past which suggest something rather than directly stating it, but the direct story as you play is pretty straight-forward. By the end, you'll probably be feeling for many of the characters.

I spent ~11 hours to complete it, being thorough, doing some back-tracking, and repeating some segments. FWIW, I neglected upgrading my character until late (see my comments above about difficulty, this may mean the mid portion being flat is more pronounced if you're upgrading as you should). There are two achievements for completing it within given time frames, one being 5 hours and the other being 10, so I'd say this is fair to call an 8 to 10 hour game on the first play for most people. Given the price, this seems fair.

I had no issues with performance, crashes, or stuttering (on a 3700X and GTX 1060 system). One bug where I fell into a death pit and didn't die, and was stuck in it, unable to get out.

Do I recommend this? Without hesitation, yes. I want more of it. But if you want something more convoluted or less casual, or if the two chase scenes are deal breakers (they weren't to me, a self admitted casual), this might not be something you are wowed by. Otherwise, I'd say it's worth it at full price, and an even easier recommendation on sale.