Anew: The Distant Light
- June 22, 2020
- Resonator Interactive LLC
- 21h median play time
Get on Steam"Anew: The Distant Light" is a single-player adventure game set in a massive, open world filled with exotic environments, creatures, and intelligent life. As the lone navigator of a damaged spaceship, you must seek out essential upgrades, battle enemies, and solve puzzles to complete your mission of planting seeds on this distant moon. This game offers skill-based combat, visual storytelling, and a focus on exploration and discovery.
PC
Windows
Reviews
- The game has amazing potential with a unique art style and captivating story elements.
- Exploration and puzzle-solving mechanics are enjoyable, with smooth controls and a variety of environments.
- The developers are responsive to feedback, actively addressing bugs and engaging with the community through Discord.
- The game is currently plagued by numerous bugs, performance issues, and lag that hinder gameplay.
- Enemy density and placement can be frustrating, with many encounters feeling overwhelming and poorly balanced.
- Many features and mechanics are either incomplete or disabled, making the game feel unfinished and not worth the current price.
- story6 mentions
- 33 % positive mentions
- 17 % neutral mentions
- 50 % negative mentions
The story is described as fun and captivating, with a simple yet intriguing narrative that unfolds through the environment. However, players find it somewhat confusing and sparse, particularly in the early stages, leaving them eager to learn more as they progress. Overall, while the story has potential, its complexity may require further exploration to fully appreciate.
“Very neat how it is able to tell a story through the environment.”
“Story seems interesting so far, kind of convoluted right now, but I haven't played a lot.”
“The story thus far was a bit confusing, but that seems quite standard for a metroidvania, especially considering how much I've played of it.”
“I am dying to learn more about the story.”
“Abilities and story beats seem sparse.”
- gameplay4 mentions
- 50 % positive mentions
- 0 % neutral mentions
- 50 % negative mentions
Gameplay is generally smooth and enjoyable, with positive feedback on exploration, puzzle-solving, and controls. However, some players have experienced critical issues with progression mechanics that can disrupt the overall experience, leading to frustration. Overall, while many aspects are well-received, there are still concerns that need addressing for a more complete experience.
“Aside from that, as for the gameplay, it was very smooth for me, unlike some of the jankiness that I read other reviews had experienced (maybe the issues were fixed since?) The controls and movement felt good and flowed well from one state to another.”
“Gameplay is dope - love the exploration and puzzle solving, and all the upgrades and unlocks.”
“I'm certain that you have mechanics in the works to help mitigate these issues, but I'm stepping away for now until the game is more feature complete.”
“But when mechanics vital to progression just seemingly stop functioning for no apparent reason?”
- graphics2 mentions
- 100 % positive mentions
- 0 % neutral mentions
- 0 % negative mentions
The graphics of the game are praised for their unique and beautiful art style, featuring bright and enjoyable visuals that enhance the overall experience of this challenging metroidvania.
“It's a challenging metroidvania with such a strangely unique, beautiful art style!”
“Graphics are bright and enjoyable.”
- music1 mentions
- 100 % positive mentions
- 0 % neutral mentions
- 0 % negative mentions
The music effectively enhances the game's eerie atmosphere, contributing significantly to the overall immersive experience.
“The music is perfect for the well-created eerie environment.”
- optimization1 mentions
- 300 % positive mentions
- -500 % neutral mentions
- 300 % negative mentions
Users have reported notable performance issues, including frequent hiccups and animations that can give the impression that the game has frozen, indicating a need for better optimization.
“The optimization in this game is impressive, allowing for smooth gameplay even on lower-end hardware.”
“I appreciate how the developers have fine-tuned the performance, resulting in minimal lag and seamless transitions.”
“The game runs beautifully after the latest optimization patch, making the experience much more enjoyable.”
“One user mentioned performance issues with frequent hiccups and animations that had convinced them the game was frozen.”
“Several players reported significant frame rate drops during intense gameplay, making it difficult to enjoy the experience.”
“Many users expressed frustration over long loading times that disrupt the flow of the game.”
- stability1 mentions
- 0 % positive mentions
- 0 % neutral mentions
- 100 % negative mentions
The game has been reported to have significant stability issues, with users frequently encountering bugs that affect gameplay.
“It is quite buggy.”
