Mulaka

87%
Game Brain Score Based on 60 reviews
  • story
  • gameplay
  • graphics
Mulaka Game Cover
Mulaka is an excellent example of what smaller indie studios have to offer. A rich game, in both terms of story and gameplay, Mulaka is most certainly worth considering.
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"Mulaka is a single-player fantasy platformer game featuring ingenious visuals and immersive gameplay. The game highlights the rich history and unique culture of the Tarahumara indigenous people of northern Mexico, weaving their mythology and creatures throughout the game. Listen to the full cultural experience with its traditional soundtrack available on Soundcloud."

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Reviews

87%
Audience ScoreBased on 60 reviews
story5 positive mentions
grinding3 negative mentions
  • The game beautifully showcases the Tarahumara culture through its narrative, art style, and music, providing an engaging and educational experience.
  • The combat mechanics are generally fun and fast-paced, with unique boss fights that add excitement to the gameplay.
  • The minimalist graphics and distinct environments create a visually appealing atmosphere that enhances the overall experience.
  • The controls and movement mechanics can feel clunky and imprecise, leading to frustrating gameplay moments, especially during platforming sections.
  • The story is often perceived as shallow and lacking depth, with minimal character development and a simplistic plot.
  • Many players found the side quests and exploration elements to be underwhelming, with repetitive tasks and a lack of meaningful rewards.
  • story30 mentions

    The game's story, rooted in Tarahumara culture, is generally perceived as simplistic yet intriguing, offering players a glimpse into indigenous folklore. While some players appreciate the cultural representation and artistic presentation, others criticize the shallow narrative, lack of character interaction, and tedious pacing, leading to mixed feelings about its overall depth and engagement. Despite its flaws, the story remains a highlight for many, providing a unique backdrop to the gameplay experience.

    • “Playing this game, seeing the folklore act as a story, gave me a new perspective on my home state.”
    • “The story tells very well about the tarahumara (rarámuri) culture, an original tribe of Mexico where the protagonist, being part of the tribe, has to face various enemies with forms of animals, insects, or elements to save the world from incarnate corruption, which is guided by demigods who grant different abilities to the protagonist.”
    • “The story may not seem like much on its face, but it's the tarahumara creation myth playing out in front of you, so you can even say you learned something by playing this game.”
    • “However, some of the controls and animations were clunky, especially the puma animation, and overall the story felt shallow, not helped by the lackluster and anticlimactic ending.”
    • “I didn't like the story much and lost interest when the static cutscenes played; they felt slow and boring to follow.”
    • “There are barely any meaningful interactions with characters, and the 'story' is barebones and cliché.”
  • gameplay25 mentions

    The gameplay is a mixed bag, featuring smooth combat mechanics and engaging exploration, but marred by cumbersome mechanics such as long potion animations and frustrating platforming elements. While the game offers interesting abilities and cultural insights, players may find the initial areas basic and some mechanics, like the spear-throwing aim, lacking in fluidity. Overall, it provides an entertaining experience with room for improvement, especially for an indie title.

    • “This game is an incredibly fun action-adventure 3D platformer with smooth combat mechanics.”
    • “Great game, really interesting mechanics and ideas and an intriguing story.”
    • “It has great controls that don't feel jittery at all, all the gameplay mechanics are exciting to use, and receiving new abilities each level gives a sense of the player becoming a stronger warrior over time.”
    • “The spear-throwing aiming mechanic may be the worst of all, since there is no smoothness to maneuvering the aim.”
    • “The potions mechanic seriously sucks because using a potion locks you into a 5-second animation, praying to not get interrupted by anything.”
    • “Many of the mechanics of the game are extremely cumbersome: levels that look open but are full of invisible walls and slippery hills, 3 out of 4 potions have excessively long dance animations to use making them not feasible in combat, the magic vision is something you have to activate ten thousand times and can only sustain for brief periods, the platforming elements are bad, you have to go to a specific old woman in a village every time you want to upgrade instead of being able to do it in a menu, invisible enemies that only exist to make you have to use spirit vision because they will shut off your magic mid-jump, save points exist in each level but you often have to trek long distances to reach them, enemies who can stun lock you super easily, tedious harvesting of crafting ingredients, long animation times for when you lose a soul that allow enemies to pile in on you, and the water puzzles that are tedious at best and very frustrating at worst.”
  • graphics24 mentions

    The graphics of the game are characterized by a striking minimalist art style that pays homage to northern Mexico and its indigenous culture, featuring unique environments and versatile enemies. While some players appreciate the low-poly aesthetic and atmospheric soundtrack, others note that the visuals can feel dated, reminiscent of PlayStation 2-era graphics. Overall, the art style is generally well-received, contributing to an enjoyable gaming experience despite some gameplay criticisms.

    • “The landscape views are quite pristine for a sleek, minimalist aesthetic.”
    • “But it has an absolutely gorgeous minimalist art style.”
    • “The graphics are simple and beautiful, and the music really fits the areas you explore within the game.”
    • “I can see why the developers decided to use PlayStation 2-era graphics with a minimalist twist.”
    • “The choice of graphics is strange with you phasing through walls and having a detailed face while everyone else has theirs drawn on.”
    • “The move set I cannot say is anything worthwhile, since it is as dated as the graphics.”
  • music13 mentions

    The music in the game is praised for its beautiful integration of indigenous and modern orchestral elements, enhancing the atmosphere and cultural representation of the Tarahumara people. However, some players find the soundtrack repetitive due to a limited number of tracks, which detracts from the overall experience despite its comforting and immersive qualities. Overall, the music complements the game's art style and setting, contributing positively to the gameplay.

    • “Each theme song of the stages perfectly fits, as they combine indigenous music with modern orchestral music without being overblown.”
    • “The art style, music, and even the level geometry itself pay tribute to northern Mexico and its indigenous people, the Tarahumara.”
    • “This is a really well-done game, considering its background and development, with a pretty nice low-poly art style and an atmospheric soundtrack that goes well with the overall setting of the game.”
    • “The music and sounds are not memorable and fail to leave a lasting impression.”
    • “While the art style is nice, the soundtrack feels repetitive and lacks variety.”
    • “The atmospheric soundtrack does not enhance the gameplay experience as expected.”
  • grinding3 mentions

    Players find the grinding aspect of the game to be tedious and frustrating, often feeling that collecting items and upgrading is cumbersome due to long animations, inconvenient mechanics, and excessive backtracking. Many reviewers express that the effort required to gather resources and complete tasks detracts from the overall enjoyment, making the experience feel pointless. Overall, the grinding elements are seen as a significant drawback, hindering the game's flow and engagement.

    • “I beat the main story but did not go back and collect all the things because it felt tedious and pointless to do so.”
    • “Many of the mechanics of the game are extremely cumbersome: levels that look open but are full of invisible walls and slippery hills, 3 out of 4 potions have excessively long dance animations to use making them not feasible in combat, the magic vision is something you have to activate ten thousand times and can only sustain for brief periods, the platforming elements are bad, you have to go to a specific old woman in a village every time you want to upgrade instead of being able to do it in a menu, invisible enemies that only exist to make you have to use spirit vision because they will shut off your magic mid-jump as a big f-you to the player, save points exist in each level but you often have to trek long distances to reach them, enemies who can stun lock you super easily, tedious harvesting of crafting ingredients, long animation times for when you lose a soul that allow enemies to pile in on you, and the water puzzles that are tedious at best and very frustrating at worst.”
  • humor2 mentions

    The humor in the game is highlighted through its witty dialogue and clever achievements, with a unique setting that incorporates respectful nods to Tarahumara lore and hidden easter eggs. However, some players feel that the dialogue could benefit from greater variety. Overall, the humor adds to the game's charm and originality, leaving players eager for more from the developer.

    • “Always a fan of humorous achievements too.”
    • “Magnificent game, from a small publisher, with an extremely original setting and lore, a lot of easter eggs hidden in the lore itself, like peyote named jikuli and being referred to as a divine plant. The dialogue is funny and enjoyable.”
  • stability2 mentions

    The game has been noted for its stability issues, with users reporting various glitches and bugs that detract from the overall experience. While not overwhelmingly problematic, these issues suggest that the game could benefit from further refinement.

    • “A bit buggy, not perfect, not super challenging.”
    • “Of course, it had its share of glitches here and there; my Xbox controller didn't help much in the long run.”
  • atmosphere2 mentions

    The game's atmosphere is praised for its effective low-poly art style and a complementary soundtrack that enhances the overall setting, contributing to a well-crafted immersive experience.

    • “This is a really well-done game, considering its background and development, with a pretty nice low-poly art style and an atmospheric soundtrack that goes well with the overall setting of the game.”
  • monetization1 mentions

    The monetization strategy of the game appears to be minimal or non-intrusive, resembling the experience of playing a classic PS2 title without aggressive advertising or in-game purchases.

  • optimization1 mentions

    The game's optimization has been criticized for poor pacing and overall performance, failing to meet player expectations.

    • “It just doesn't deliver on many accounts with the pacing and general performance.”
    • “The game suffers from severe optimization issues that make it nearly unplayable at times.”
    • “I experienced frequent frame drops and long loading times, which really detracted from the overall experience.”
  • replayability1 mentions

    The game has been criticized for its lack of replayability, with users indicating that once completed, there is little incentive to play again.

    • “Replayability is virtually nonexistent; once you've completed the game, there's little incentive to return.”
    • “The lack of meaningful choices and branching paths makes replaying the game feel pointless.”
    • “After finishing the game once, I found no reason to go back, as the experience felt repetitive and unvaried.”
Positive mentions (%)Positive
Neutral mentions (%)Neutral
Negative mentions (%)Negative

Critic Reviews

69% average critic score

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Play time

9hMedian play time
9hAverage play time
9-9hSpent by most gamers
*Based on 1 analyzed playthroughs

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