Recent reviews by Max1045

I don't normally bother writing reviews for games, even ones I enjoy. I only take the time if a game is extra special or otherwise unique enough to deserve it. Noita has wholeheartedly earned my recommendation.

Many other reviews talk about how much fun the pixel-based physics-driven gameplay is, and they're all correct. The amount of ridiculous deaths and memorable situations you'll find yourself in will keep you entertained for a long time. The game is also shockingly content-rich considering its early access state - there are tons of secrets and special areas to discover, some requiring extremely obscure methods to reach - like taking advantage of polymorphic potions, for instance.

However, the thing that I want to discuss the most is something I don't think has received enough attention: the sound design. Noita's sound design is absolutely stellar. If you have a good pair of headphones, you're doing yourself a disservice if you don't use them while you play. Each aspect is noteworthy: The music is atmospheric and three dimensional. The ambient noises are crisp and surprisingly detailed - footsteps especially compliment the mood of the game. Wands have a satisfying meatiness to their sounds, as do projectiles. Explosions might be the most impressive of all - through headphones they sound spectacular. The sub-bass gives them real weight and a startling impact.

Noita has become the game I pick up to play when I have 10 minutes. It's been the game I pick up to play when I have an hour. It's one of the best rogue-lites I've played in a long time, and it's absolutely worth the asking price in its current state.

Buy Noita.

Definitely the best modern Total War since Shogun II. The factions play very differently from one another, but are also reasonably well balanced. Any issues you have with the open-endedness of the campaign can be fixed via day one mods.

Easily the least buggy release by CA in a long time.

Despite my (currently) low play time, rest assured I've put at least 30 hours into earlier kickstarter-exclusive builds. This a simply fantastic roguelike platformer. To me, it feels like a combination of Spelunky and Super Smash Bros in a fantasy environment.There are four big selling points I'll discuss below. TL;DR: Very fun, fluid movement, challenging skill based combat, incredible variety of organic environmental interactions, and all play styles are equally supported

The thing that initially drew me to this game is the way the player moves throughout the environment. It's the smoothest system I've ever played with, and traversing the environment is not just a means to an end, it's a pleasure. The only gripe I have with it is there are occasionally environmental hazards you can't protect against, but they're few and far between.

This game is extremely difficult, make no mistake. In my opinion, not all of the stats are as balanced as they should be; it's very difficult to survive hits from Grumbuls (humanoid enemy, think orc) early on, and getting good will definitely take practice. That said, the combat is very fun. Killing the enemies is always satisfying, and your deaths feel horribly brutal, but never unfair. The magic system is very intuitive and is useful both in and out of combat.

The third and perhaps biggest selling point for me is the interactions that happen organically in the world. For instance, within the game there are poisonous mushrooms, boulders, pools of water, and fire magic. Let's look at the interactions possible between these four objects. If there are fish in the water, a mushroom can be thrown in to leak poison into the water and weaken the fish. Using fire magic, you can burn up the mushroom and it's poison cloud to safely pass. Using the same magic, you can super heat the boulder, and hit it into an enemy to deal extra damage and potentially set them alight. If you need food in a pinch, you can heat the rock, push it into a pool to boil the water, and then throw in the mushroom, which will cook and become edible.

The final aspect is that this game supports playing essentially however you want. In many roguelikes, leveling up is based on getting experience from fighting enemies, completing objectives, and so on. In Catacomb Kids, each floor has a leveling orb, which, once picked up, allows the player to level up once. Nothing else matters, as long as you get the orb, you can level up. That means if you want to play by dodging dangerous situations with teleportation magic, no problem. Want to slaughter everyone you come across? Cool. Tackle the levels however you want, because you won't be punished for skipping rooms and opponents like you would be with an EXP system.


Overall, it's a very fun and unique experience that I think is absolutely worth $16 in the current state. The developer is very communicative as well, and does weekly Dev streams on Twitch.

Edit: I forgot a HUGE aspect (equal playstyle representation), so I've updated the TL;DR and added the section.

This is a very good squad based RPG. It's a much more tactical RPG than most of late, with pausing to issue orders regularly an encouraged mechanic. More along the vein of Baldur's Gate than action RPGs such as the Witcher or the Elder Scrolls Series.