Strayed Lights
- April 25, 2023
- Embers
- 6h median play time
Strayed Lights is a solid debut title from Embers that delivers atmosphere in droves.
Get on Steam
Get on Xbox Games Store"Strayed Lights is a single-player Fantasy Fighting game with compelling game mechanics and fabulous visuals. As a tiny, growing light seeking transcendence, explore an intricate world of otherworldly ruins and duel with rogue shadow creatures. Harness energy in combat, grow and ascend, and confront both inner and outer creatures in this atmospheric action-adventure, accompanied by outstanding music."
Nintendo Switch
PC
Playstation 4
Playstation 5
Windows
Xbox One
Xbox Series X|S
Epic Games
PlayStation
Xbox
Reviews
- Strayed Lights features stunning visuals and a beautiful art style that captivates players.
- The unique color-matching parry system adds an interesting twist to combat, making it engaging and satisfying.
- Boss fights are a highlight, offering memorable encounters with unique mechanics and designs.
- The game is quite short, typically taking only 3-6 hours to complete, which may leave players wanting more.
- Combat can feel repetitive and lacks depth, with limited enemy variety and a simplistic progression system.
- Technical issues, such as crashes and performance drops, detract from the overall experience.
- gameplay82 mentions
- 41 % positive mentions
- 55 % neutral mentions
- 4 % negative mentions
The gameplay in "Strayed Lights" features a unique color-matching mechanic combined with parrying, which adds depth and challenge to combat, particularly during boss fights. While many players appreciate the innovative mechanics and smooth animations, some find the design choices, such as the sprint mechanic and pacing between combat segments, frustrating and potentially repetitive. Overall, the game offers an engaging experience, especially for those who prioritize gameplay over narrative.
“The gameplay is really nice too, that's a cool introduction to the Souls-like genre.”
“Strayed Lights is a great little game with interesting combat mechanics based on color switching to match the attacker's color with one key while also timing parries with another. It's almost like a beginner's introduction to Sekiro, minus the color switching, if I were to compare it to anything.”
“It has super unique and creative core mechanics which lead to some of the best bosses I've ever had the pleasure of fighting, all while looking and sounding absolutely wonderful.”
“The gameplay is okay, but the design decisions are incredibly frustrating.”
“Gameplay was blah when it worked.”
“Its only fault is that character progression and combat are too simple, so the gameplay can quickly become repetitive.”
- graphics68 mentions
- 66 % positive mentions
- 29 % neutral mentions
- 4 % negative mentions
The graphics of the game have received widespread acclaim for their stunning art style and beautiful visuals, which many players describe as a highlight of the experience. While some noted that the initial environments can be bland, the overall aesthetic and attention to detail in the visuals and sound design create a captivating atmosphere. Players appreciate the unique color-swapping mechanics and the seamless integration of visuals with gameplay, making it a visually engaging and enjoyable experience.
“The art style looks amazing and the work for the effects is just wonderful.”
“The graphics are phenomenal.”
“The eerie atmosphere, gorgeous visuals, and outstanding soundtrack make it stand out from the plethora of action-adventure games.”
“And, for all the emphasis I've left to give to the visuals... the game starts you out in some pretty bland, one-color environments.”
“The graphics are not satisfying and the game ends too soon; the story could be more charming.”
“Seems more focused on visuals than the combat system, which is okay.”
- story55 mentions
- 24 % positive mentions
- 71 % neutral mentions
- 5 % negative mentions
The story of "Strayed Lights" is described as abstract and minimal, focusing on a little creature's quest to retrieve something stolen while encountering other characters along the way. While the visuals and symbolism are praised for their beauty, many reviewers feel the narrative lacks depth and direction, often leaving players wanting more context and engagement. Overall, the game is recommended for those who prioritize gameplay over a compelling story.
“The story leaves a lot to interpretation, but you play as a little creature looking to retrieve something stolen from them, meeting and helping other little guys on the way.”
“Strayed Lights is a beautiful game that tells an abstract yet meaningful story.”
“Coupled with a simple yet effective storytelling, it really gets to you, and you can easily get lost in the game (in a good way, of course).”
“Whether it be the boss finishers relegated to QTE-riddled cutscenes, the unimaginative, linear level design, or the story that provides little to no direction or context for my actions, I never felt drawn in or engaged by the world, instead mindlessly trudging through skin-deep environments, not entirely understanding why.”
“As far as the story goes, Strayed Lights gives absolutely nothing: I couldn't give you a synopsis even if I wanted to.”
“Yet that doesn't mean an attempt at a story isn't made; the first hour or so is just infested with 30-second cutscenes literally every few minutes, though they don't say or show anything worth seeing.”
- music45 mentions
- 58 % positive mentions
- 36 % neutral mentions
- 7 % negative mentions
The music in "Strayed Lights," composed by Austin Wintory, is generally praised for its atmospheric quality and ability to enhance exploration, though some players feel it lacks excitement during boss battles. While the soundtrack complements the game's stunning visuals and serene ambiance, a few critiques mention moments where the music feels out of place or fails to fully immerse the player. Overall, the combination of beautiful art and a strong soundtrack contributes to a captivating gaming experience.
“I just got lost wandering around in this world, entranced by serene vistas and a mesmerizing soundtrack.”
“Austin Wintory delivered another brilliant OST for Strayed Lights, and while the music wasn't as exhilarating for the bosses as some other games, it fit the exploration before said bosses perfectly.”
“The eerie atmosphere, gorgeous visuals, and outstanding soundtrack make it stand out from the plethora of action-adventure games.”
“If I had to critique one thing about the game, it would be the music.”
“I'm not sure whether it was just my audio balance, or the choice of music being used, but it did not get me immersed the way the rest of the game did.”
“Other than a few bugs (music cutting out randomly being the most notable one), this is a fantastic time.”
- atmosphere18 mentions
- 72 % positive mentions
- 17 % neutral mentions
- 11 % negative mentions
The atmosphere in "Strayed Lights" is widely praised for its impressive and immersive qualities, featuring a vibrant color palette, an ethereal world, and a strong soundtrack by Austin Wintory that enhances the experience. Reviewers note the game's peaceful yet engaging ambiance, which effectively contrasts with the challenging combat, creating a unique blend of relaxation and tension. Overall, the game's atmospheric design stands out, making it a memorable debut title.
“Strayed Lights enjoys a wild color palette, strong soundtrack (shoutout Austin Wintory), tight combat mechanics, and a surprisingly zen atmosphere.”
“The eerie atmosphere, gorgeous visuals, and outstanding soundtrack make it stand out from the plethora of action-adventure games.”
“Strayed Lights is a solid debut title from Embers that delivers atmosphere in droves.”
“The atmosphere is peaceful (despite the boss fights) and relaxing.”
- optimization7 mentions
- 14 % positive mentions
- 43 % neutral mentions
- 43 % negative mentions
The game's optimization has received mixed reviews, with users noting frame drops in foliage-heavy areas and significant performance issues on standard definition systems, including hard crashes. Additionally, some found the quicktime event button prompts unintuitive, detracting from the overall experience. Overall, while the game has engaging elements, its optimization could be improved to enhance gameplay stability.
“Some small critiques include some frame drops in certain foliage-heavy environments which suggests it could use more optimization.”
“Some small critiques include some frame drops in certain foliage-heavy environments which suggests it could use more optimization, and that while the quicktime events didn't bother me (as setups for fun and flashy finishers), the icons indicating button presses having the black space be the button to push was strange and not very intuitive.”
“If you're playing exclusively on the SD, the performance is all over the place and will hard crash the system.”
“However, its unique battle system grew repetitive, and some performance issues took some of the fun away.”
- stability3 mentions
- 0 % positive mentions
- 0 % neutral mentions
- 100 % negative mentions
Overall, players report a stable experience during combat with no noticeable freezes or lags. However, some frustrations arise from long load times and visual glitches, particularly in repetitive environments.
“Repetitive enemies and empty environments, long load times, and visual glitches are frustrating and distracting.”
- emotional3 mentions
- 100 % positive mentions
- 0 % neutral mentions
- 0 % negative mentions
The emotional aspect of the game is characterized by a wholesome vibe and a subtly heartfelt storytelling approach, resonating deeply with players.
“The story is told in a subtle, heartfelt way.”
“It just gives off a super wholesome vibe.”
- humor2 mentions
- 100 % positive mentions
- 0 % neutral mentions
- 0 % negative mentions
Players find humor in the game's unexpected moments, such as enemies dodging into cliffs, which adds a lighthearted touch to the otherwise serious tone typical of souls-like games. This blend of unintentional comedy is appreciated as a hallmark of the genre.
“The only unintended thing that happened was an enemy dodging into a cliff once or twice, which was hilarious and a true hallmark of a proper souls game.”
- replayability2 mentions
- 50 % positive mentions
- 0 % neutral mentions
- 50 % negative mentions
Players feel that the game lacks sufficient replayability due to the absence of modifiers and difficulty options, such as parry window adjustments and health/damage tweaks. They believe that introducing these features, along with new attacks, would significantly enhance the game's replay value.
“This game would severely benefit from some modifiers and difficulty options (parry window adjustment, health/damage adjustments at a minimum). New attacks would be amazing, but even just those simple options would create replayability.”
“This game would severely benefit from some modifiers and difficulty options (parry window adjustment, health/damage adjustments at a minimum. New attacks would be amazing, but even just those simple options would create replayability).”
Critic Reviews
Strayed Lights review --- A journey of self reflection
Strayed Lights is a short and sweet game exploring a unique, defensive combat experience. It can feel shallow and falls short in aspects like the music, but it remains engaging throughout its runtime.
70%Strayed Lights Review – An Underwhelming Experience
Strayed Lights has some interesting tricks up its sleeve. It puts a good first impression with its ominous atmosphere and unique brand of parry based combat, but those concepts falter in the face of mediocre game design in almost every aspect of the experience.
60%Strayed Lights Review - Not All Good Ideas Mix Together Well
There's a great deal of cool traits to Strayed Lights, including thoughtful enemy design, strong premise, and charming visuals. However, pacing suffers greatly, and combat forces its way into the forefront with memorization and inconsistent parry windows. It's short and can be sweet, but there's an overarching bitterness that's hard to ignore.
65%
