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Gleamlight

Gleamlight is a simple 2D platformer with a pretty premise but not a lot of substance to back it up.
42%Game Brain Score
graphics, gameplay
story, atmosphere
36% User Score Based on 106 reviews
Critic Score 51%Based on 8 reviews

Platforms

PCPCXboxXboxXbox Series X|SXbox Series X|SPlaystation 5Playstation 5Playstation 4Playstation 4WindowsWindowsPlayStationPlayStationNintendo SwitchNintendo SwitchXbox OneXbox One
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About

"Gleamlight" is a 2D action game set in a stunning, transient world made entirely of glass, where players navigate without a traditional UI to uncover an unspoken story. The game's unique art style and immersive design aim to provide an organic experience as players traverse this beautiful yet dangerous world, fighting enemies and uncovering the mystery behind the world's history, all while avoiding the damaging effects of darkness on the fragile glass environment.

Genres & Tags
Play Modes
Gleamlight screenshot
Gleamlight screenshot
Gleamlight screenshot
Gleamlight screenshot
Gleamlight screenshot
Gleamlight screenshot
Gleamlight screenshot
Gleamlight screenshot
Gleamlight screenshot
Gleamlight screenshot
Gleamlight screenshot
+3

36%
Audience ScoreBased on 114 reviews
graphics17 positive mentions
story7 negative mentions
  • The art style is beautiful and immersive, with a unique stained glass aesthetic that enhances the visual experience.
  • The game features a unique health system where players regain health by attacking enemies, adding an interesting twist to combat.
  • The soundtrack is enjoyable and contributes to the overall atmosphere of the game.
  • The controls are unresponsive and clunky, making gameplay frustrating and tedious.
  • The game is very short, with many players completing it in under three hours, which does not justify its price point.
  • There is a lack of story and character development, leaving players feeling disconnected and unengaged with the game world.
  • story
    53 mentions Positive Neutral Negative

    The story in "Gleamlight" is largely criticized for being minimal and poorly conveyed, relying on silent presentation rather than dialogue or engaging narrative elements. Many reviewers found the plot to be bland and lacking depth, with uninteresting enemies and environments that fail to enhance the experience. While some appreciated the game's dark atmosphere and subtle twists, the overall consensus is that the story feels incomplete and fails to provide a compelling backdrop for the gameplay.

    • “If you want a tl;dr review, this game is too expensive, but the game itself is a perfectly good little linear action platformer with a subtly dark plot (for lack of a better term), some fun story twists, decent bosses, and a short but satisfying run time.”
    • “If you go into this game without the silly preconceived notion that it's a 'Hollow Knight' clone (which I will stress, it is in no way trying to be), what you will get is a tight, short, fun little platform hack-and-slash with power-ups that make combat progressively easier and faster, some fun (if not super complex) bosses, a few interesting 'twists' (the game fakes you out with a 'game over' credits sequence...twice. Make sure you look up how to get to the real final boss) along the way, it's got a dark, foreboding atmosphere and environments that help to subtly tell the minimal story, and the whole thing just works.”
    • “Story is narrated still without text, but it's by design.”
    • “The so-called 'unspoken story' might feel like the narrative is non-existent.”
    • “The game has barely a story and no dialogue.”
    • “With no story to latch onto, it all just feels shallow.”
  • graphics
    40 mentions Positive Neutral Negative

    The graphics of "Gleamlight" are widely praised for their unique stained-glass art style, which creates an atmospheric and visually appealing experience. However, many reviewers note that the art can be confusing in terms of navigation and lacks consistency, detracting from the overall gameplay. While the visuals are a highlight, they are often overshadowed by repetitive gameplay and poor level design.

    • “Developer dico created a beautiful stained-glass graphic style for their platformer.”
    • “The art style is beautiful, and I love the stained glass theme that the developers used.”
    • “Gleamlight's art style is beautiful and immersive, but the combat here is slow and tedious.”
    • “The only ups may be the art style (that is still not justified lore-wise, has nothing interesting gameplay-wise and at times makes the navigation really confusing, since one can't tell what's in the background and in the foreground and what can be broken due to no consistency in the room level design) and the boss fight song (which is seriously the only thing I enjoyed, even if it doesn't fit with action scenes at all).”
    • “If they had gone for a different art style to help differentiate it from Hollow Knight, then maybe it wouldn't feel like such a mediocre game.”
    • “I really like the art style, but after the third boss and the poor level design, I gave up and refunded the game.”
  • gameplay
    34 mentions Positive Neutral Negative

    The gameplay of the game has been widely criticized for its lack of depth and engaging mechanics, with many players finding it inconsistent and frustrating due to issues like backtracking, unclear mechanics, and uninteresting level design. While some appreciate the art style and music, the overall experience is marred by a short playtime and a perceived lack of content, leading to a general recommendation to seek alternatives for a more fulfilling gameplay experience.

    • “The life steal mechanic makes bosses a nice challenge and adds a nice way to remove item drops.”
    • “But learning the mechanics comes easy after exploring a bit, and there is great forgiveness with the death system.”
    • “Despite being really short and gameplay-wise bland, Gleamlight has an interesting art style, easy progression, and nicely done eerie music.”
    • “Unfortunately, the inconsistent gameplay focusing on backtracking and re-runs of the game makes it really hard to get engaged.”
    • “Avoiding focusing on the plain issues with the main menu (new commands that get overwritten by the default ones as one replays the game; some options that lack sound effects; simply uncomfortable to navigate in; video settings that just set the window size), there is no content whatsoever: uninteresting rooms (you cannot be serious to make the player walk a linear map to go back just to have a bunch of more enemies there. This is not level design, let alone a metroidvania!), broken enemies, no story (let's be real: nothing transpires in the playthrough: there is no pathos in the bosses you defeat, they have no personality, many just have the same sprite), unclear and broken mechanics (it just praises tanking, it asks no wits from the players. Also, losing life for just moving and double jumping is such nonsense when you're just going for the other room, I'm serious), no replayability... there is nothing one would enjoy playing, let alone to justify the price (the first playthrough can take at most 2 hours, at most, for €17).”
    • “The mechanics are not very well explained anywhere; the only reason I know the enemies are supposed to be some kind of ghosts is because that's what they are called in the achievement. The enemies feel forced with the platforming, and the difficulty curve is forced, not something enjoyable.”
  • music
    33 mentions Positive Neutral Negative

    The music in the game receives mixed reviews, with some praising the boss fight themes and ambient tracks for their beauty and ability to enhance the atmosphere, while others find the overall soundtrack to be forgettable and repetitive. The transition music between areas is noted for its clarity, but the credit music is criticized for being too short. Overall, while the music contributes positively to the game's ambiance, it lacks variety and can feel bland at times.

    • “Despite being really short and gameplay-wise bland, Gleamlight has an interesting art style full of breaking the glass, easy progression, and nicely done eerie music.”
    • “Lastly, the soundtrack, while generally subdued, creates a nice ambiance.”
    • “I very much liked the art style, music, and atmosphere of the game.”
    • “The credit music doesn't even last for the whole credit scene, my god.”
    • “The music is forgettable and somewhat repetitive, but it fits the game's atmosphere well enough.”
    • “And the music's discordant clanging is rubbish, too.”
  • atmosphere
    8 mentions Positive Neutral Negative

    The game's atmosphere is characterized by a dark and foreboding tone, enhanced by its art style and environments that effectively convey the minimal story. While the music may be repetitive and forgettable, it complements the overall ambiance, creating an engaging experience for players. Despite some animation shortcomings, the visual presentation contributes positively to the game's atmospheric appeal.

    • “It's got a dark, foreboding atmosphere and environments that help to subtly tell the minimal story, and the whole thing just works.”
    • “The art style itself is quite nice and atmospheric.”
    • “The music is forgettable and somewhat repetitive but it fits the game's atmosphere well enough.”
    • “It's got a dark, foreboding atmosphere and environments that help to subtly tell the minimal story.”
    • “I very much liked the art style, music, and atmosphere of the game.”
  • grinding
    7 mentions Positive Neutral Negative

    Players find the grinding aspect of the game to be tedious, particularly due to the reuse of bosses, such as the flying one, which leads to drawn-out battles where both players and enemies regain health. This slow-paced combat can become especially frustrating for those aiming for trophies, making the overall experience feel repetitive and laborious.

    • “But, fair warning… if you go for the trophies, this game becomes tedious fast.”
    • “Gleamlight's art style is beautiful and immersive, but the combat here is slow and tedious.”
    • “You regain HP as you attack and so do enemies, so the flying boss is a big tedious battle most of the time as you both chip away at each other while recovering.”
  • replayability
    4 mentions Positive Neutral Negative

    The game lacks significant replayability, with reviewers noting uninteresting level design, repetitive gameplay, and a lack of engaging content or story. Players find the experience to be linear and devoid of depth, making it difficult to justify multiple playthroughs. While the initial playthrough is short, the absence of compelling mechanics or variety leaves little incentive to return.

    • “Avoiding focusing on the plain issues with the main menu (new commands that get overwritten by the default ones as one replays the game; some options that lack sound effects; simply uncomfortable to navigate in; video settings that just set the window size), there is no content whatsoever: uninteresting rooms (you cannot be serious to make the player walk a linear map to go back just to face a bunch of more enemies there. This is not level design, let alone a metroidvania!), broken enemies, no story (let's be real: nothing transpires in the playthrough; there is no pathos in the bosses you defeat, they have no personality, many just have the same sprite), unclear and broken mechanics (it just praises tanking, it asks no wits from the players. Also, losing life for just moving and double jumping is such nonsense when you're just going for the other room, I'm serious), no replayability... there is nothing one would enjoy playing, let alone to justify the price (the first playthrough can take at most 2 hours, at most, for €17).”
    • “Not a major time investment, not a lot of replay value, but if you stop treating it like something it's not, you will find that it's actually really good at being what it's supposed to be.”
  • stability
    2 mentions Positive Neutral Negative

    The game suffers from significant stability issues, particularly characterized by frequent buggy movements during boss fights, which detracts from the overall gameplay experience.

    • “There are lots of buggy movements, especially during boss fights.”
    • “There are lots of buggy movements, especially during boss fights.”
  • character development
    2 mentions Positive Neutral Negative

    The reviews indicate that while the game incorporates a distinctive artistic style reminiscent of Hollow Knight, characterized by simplistic character designs and dynamic visuals, it does not contribute to character development in a meaningful way, as these visual elements are rooted in a long-standing artistic tradition rather than original character growth or narrative depth.

  • humor
    2 mentions Positive Neutral Negative

    The humor in the game is primarily derived from the unique and quirky designs of the enemies, which some players find amusing. However, once players understand these quirks, the enemies become less challenging, diminishing the comedic impact over time.

    • “Some of the enemy designs are nice; some are refreshingly unique, and some of them are funny. Although a good majority of the enemies just have a quirk, once that’s figured out, they’re not really a problem going forward.”
  • emotional
    2 mentions Positive Neutral Negative

    Players express a deep emotional connection to the game's unpredictable nature, highlighting the tension between vulnerability and resilience. The contrasting experiences of sudden death and survival evoke a sense of frustration and triumph, enhancing the overall emotional impact of the gameplay.

51%Critics’ scoreBased on 8 critic reviews

Buy Gleamlight

3h Median play time
11h Average play time
1-30h Spent by most gamers
*Based on 6 analyzed playthroughs

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