![]() Mystery and exploration are major elements of the game, as many of the tower’s keys and items of importance are hidden in odd ways. These include upgrades to stats on specific heroes, an increase to the collective health pool, or any number of general boosts and bonuses, some temporary and others permanent. Epimetheus will also sell upgrades in the downtime between death and new life, payable in soul orbs collected from slain monsters. Changes made to the tower, including the activation of shortcuts and the defeat of any bosses or mini-bosses, are permanent, so there is always forward progress even as the heroes die over and over again. Unknown to his companions, Algus has made a pact with Epimetheus, the Titan of Death, to bring them all back to the starting point of the tower whenever they’re slain, with only the wizard (and the player) remembering the full details of the now-collapsed alternate timeline. True to its appearance, the Tower of the Serpents is a hazardous place to visit, and death is a frequent experience. Once the ability to party-switch at will becomes available, the puzzles steadily ramp in complexity. ![]() Proper character choice is an important factor in success, as for much of the game the player can only swap out at campfires. Two other recruits, Zeek the merchant and Bram the slayer, add their own special abilities, allowing the player to solve more of the puzzles hidden in side chambers. With their combined skills, most of the tower can be explored, though it is not an easy task. Algus is the wizard, formerly a companion to Arias’s father, who can blast his way around obstacles with magical force. Kyuli is the roguish archer, striking from a distance and scaling walls that the others cannot manage. At the start, he’s the one with the best defense, and his sword cuts through barriers with ease. Arias is the warrior, heir to a title and a legacy he has yet to earn on his own. The game spends the first few minutes introducing the player to the three principal characters and their strengths in exploration. One tower in the wastes is poisoning the local river, sickening and killing the people who live downstream, and so three heroes enter the darkness to put an end to the threat. These Gorgons are abominations of twisted flesh hidden within facades of stone, and they do not so much hate humans as find them delectable. Out of the sands rise ruins, towers, and temples dedicated to demons born from the memories of old hatred. The world of Astalon is blasted and bleak, as most of the land has turned to desert from the atrocities of an ancient war. This retro-styled game bears all the hallmarks of its genre: a dark and foreboding tower to explore, grotesque monsters to exterminate, and the all too likely chance that the heroes are going to die in the near future. The latest addition to my Switch download catalog, Astalon: Tears of the Earth, is one such example. Some way, somehow, my gaming library is slowly being infiltrated by Metroidvanias. Though I Walk Through the Shadow of the Tower of Death
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