Moonfall
- April 12, 2017
- Fishcow Studio
- 2h median play time
Moonfall is a hand-painted side-scrolling 2D action RPG beat'em up set in an industrial gothic universe named Terra Nihil. It tells a story of a once small Empire at the peak of its glory attained by a mysterious element called Lunarium that suddenly experiences a surge in attacks from so-called Savages, aboriginal tribes living outside its borders.
Reviews
- Beautiful hand-drawn graphics and an engaging gothic steampunk art style.
- Fun and satisfying hack and slash combat with three distinct classes and character upgrades.
- Atmospheric orchestral music that enhances the overall experience.
- Repetitive gameplay with limited strategies and shallow combat mechanics.
- Lack of variety in environments and a weak, text-based story.
- No mouse support and unintuitive menu navigation, making controls cumbersome.
- graphics32 mentions
- 47 % positive mentions
- 44 % neutral mentions
- 9 % negative mentions
The game features stunning hand-drawn graphics that are often described as beautiful and immersive, with a unique gothic steampunk aesthetic. While the visuals are a standout aspect, enhancing the overall experience, some reviews note that the animations may not match the high quality of the artwork. Overall, the graphics are praised for their detail and artistic style, contributing significantly to the game's appeal.
“The graphics are a nice painterly style and they're just gorgeous.”
“The environments look fantastic and the levels are full of graphical detail.”
“Game's greatly designed - Moonfall boasts hand-drawn graphics, every level feels like a separate world; yes, you can definitely see the motives that inspired a world of this or that level, but these references to the best ever games only add to the overall perception of Moonfall.”
“However, the animations aren't quite up to par with the graphics.”
“Even if I were to complain while playing the game the entire time, the artwork makes up for quite a bit of it.”
“The game is entertaining and gives you a little bit of that 'old game' feeling while being graphically on a higher level.”
- story31 mentions
- 10 % positive mentions
- 74 % neutral mentions
- 16 % negative mentions
The story in the game has received mixed to negative feedback, with many players finding it basic, linear, and lacking depth. While the vibrant world and gothic industrial setting are praised, the storytelling is often described as convoluted and unengaging, with players feeling disconnected from the narrative and its characters. Overall, the missions tend to feel repetitive and uninspired, detracting from the potential richness of the RPG elements.
“A new era in the classic arcade game Golden Axe, but you have beautiful hand-painted graphics, a gothic industrial story, and RPG elements including 3 classes and character upgrades.”
“You're part of the empire, and there's evil enemies attacking, so you take on missions that will help the empire.”
“The game is very playable but then we fall to the story for a bit of help to cover the 'RPG' elements of this game and oh boy is the story quite the trip.”
“The story is pretty basic and you get thrown into the game without much explanation.”
“The story of this game feels minimal and linear.”
“If I wanted to play an RPG for the story, I couldn’t go to Moonfall.”
- gameplay18 mentions
- 17 % positive mentions
- 67 % neutral mentions
- 17 % negative mentions
The gameplay in "Moonfall" is characterized by its repetitive mechanics and limited strategic options for defeating enemies, which detracts from the overall experience. While the side-scrolling beat 'em up format offers engaging objectives across 13 levels, the combat feels basic and slow-paced, leading to a sense of monotony over time. Despite some enjoyable elements, many players find the gameplay lacks depth and polish, making it less compelling than expected.
“The sound effects offer good feedback during gameplay, and you won't have many quiet moments, which is good.”
“Overall, I found Moonfall to have simple, yet fun and engaging gameplay.”
“I am sure you will find it quite challenging, especially from the start until you get to Moonfall's mechanics.”
“Repetitive gameplay with limited strategies to defeat enemies.”
“It's not inherently a bad game, but I was unpleasantly surprised to realize that the decent-looking visual style was hindered by the repetitive gameplay mechanics to a larger extent than in most video games I get to write about.”
“The overall gameplay is serviceable, but slow.”
- music15 mentions
- 73 % positive mentions
- 20 % neutral mentions
- 7 % negative mentions
The music in the game is predominantly described as atmospheric and epic orchestral, enhancing the overall experience with its beautiful and immersive quality. While many players appreciate the soundtrack, some find it repetitive, suggesting that it may become tiresome over time. Overall, the combination of music and sound effects is well-executed, contributing positively to the game's ambiance.
“The music is epic and the art style is awesome.”
“The artwork and music is beautiful to be honest.”
“Excellent music.”
“The soundtrack is a repetitive tune which you might quickly wish to mute and replace with songs of your own choosing, while the other sound effects are just as 'noteworthy'.”
- humor5 mentions
- 100 % positive mentions
- 0 % neutral mentions
- 0 % negative mentions
The game features a humorous tone, enhanced by its hand-drawn graphics and lively notes that mimic conversation with expressive elements. While the humor is generally well-received, the poor English translation occasionally detracts from the experience, leading to unintentionally funny moments that can be confusing. Overall, the humor is a highlight, though it may require some patience due to translation issues.
“The game is pretty funny and it has beautiful hand-drawn graphics.”
“Not to mention the notes can be pretty funny as they’re written as if they’re actually talking.”
“Also, the English translation was poorly done and while it did end up creating some hilarious moments, it was distracting and sometimes led to my having to decipher what the intended phrase I was reading was supposed to say.”
- atmosphere2 mentions
- 100 % positive mentions
- 0 % neutral mentions
- 0 % negative mentions
The game's atmosphere is enhanced by its atmospheric orchestral music, which complements its unique blend of classic action and minimal RPG elements, creating an immersive and engaging experience for players.
“The game's rare mix of Golden Axe and minimal RPG creates an involving, atmospheric experience.”
“Atmospheric orchestral music enhances the immersive quality of the game.”
- stability2 mentions
- 50 % positive mentions
- 0 % neutral mentions
- 50 % negative mentions
Overall, "Moonfall" is praised for its stability, with users reporting a consistently smooth frame rate and no noticeable bugs or glitches, contributing to an enjoyable gaming experience.
“The game looks very pretty and runs great.”
- replayability1 mentions
- 300 % positive mentions
- -500 % neutral mentions
- 300 % negative mentions
The game offers solid replayability with a playtime of approximately six hours, enhanced by a New Game+ mode and three distinct classes that provide unique playstyles, encouraging players to experience the game multiple times.
“The game is about 6 hours long, but it offers New Game+ and three different classes with unique playstyles, enhancing its longevity and replayability.”
“With multiple classes and a New Game+ mode, this game provides a fresh experience every time you play, making it highly replayable.”
“The variety of playstyles and the option to start a New Game+ keep the gameplay exciting and encourage multiple playthroughs.”
“The game is about 6 hours long, and while it offers a New Game+ mode and three different classes with unique playstyles, I still found the replayability lacking.”
“Despite the New Game+ feature and multiple classes, I didn't feel motivated to replay the game after finishing it once.”
“The game has a short runtime of around 6 hours, and even with the different classes, I didn't find enough variety to warrant multiple playthroughs.”
- character development1 mentions
- 100 % positive mentions
- -300 % neutral mentions
- 300 % negative mentions
The game successfully blends traditional gameplay with modern elements by incorporating character development and an inventory system, enhancing the overall experience for contemporary players.
“This game stays true to the age-old formula, but adds some character development and an inventory system for modern gamers.”
“The character development feels shallow and lacks meaningful progression.”
“I was disappointed by how one-dimensional the characters are; they don't evolve throughout the game.”
“Despite the potential for growth, the character arcs are predictable and uninspired.”
- optimization1 mentions
- 300 % positive mentions
- -200 % neutral mentions
- 0 % negative mentions
Overall, "Moonfall" is praised for its strong optimization, delivering a stable frame rate without any noticeable bugs or glitches, ensuring a smooth gaming experience.
“Performance-wise, Moonfall runs in a stable manner with consistent frame rates and no bugs or glitches encountered.”
“The optimization in this game is impressive, allowing for smooth gameplay even on lower-end systems.”
“I appreciate how well-optimized the game is; it runs seamlessly without any noticeable lag or performance issues.”