Iconoclasts

Genre: Metroidvania

Players: 1

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Review:

Iconoclasts is a Metroidvania-style action-platformer with strong puzzle-solving elements, and it’s pretty story-heavy too. Suffice it to say, this game is a mix of multiple disparate elements, cobbled together into one charming little package.

The game’s story is about a society suffering religious oppression by a dictatorial government with a caste system that strictly forbids the citizenry from doing anything with machines. As Robin, the game’s protagonist, this puts you at odds with them because, well, you’re a mechanic by trade.

The story is definitely a bit on the heavy side at times, especially considering how lovable and endearing the graphics, soundtrack, and character designs are, even the game’s villains. Don’t get me wrong, it’s all good, it just doesn’t quite seem to fit together.

This game falls squarely on the “linear” side of the Metroidvania genre. There’s lots of areas to explore, and you’ll find yourself repeatedly returning to old areas after acquiring a new ability, but the game isn’t subtle about there being a direct path you’re supposed to take, and deviations from that are pointless beyond acquiring the hidden resources you need to build custom tweaks for your character such as more health or the ability to stay underwater longer. This linearity would be a bit less frustrating if the game was clearer about where you need to go at any given point in the story.

It’s a pity these frustrations occur through the game, because the gameplay itself is interesting, having you use various firearms along with a giant wrench, many of the game’s obstacles are a matter of picking the right tool for the job and figuring out how things will interact.

In the end, everything works, and there’s a great deal of charm to be found in Iconoclasts. The game’s story is compelling, its characters likeable, and its gameplay is inventive. I just felt like it was trying to do too many things at once, and I wish it could all fit together better.

tl;dr – Iconoclasts is a Metroidvania game with strong gameplay, an interesting story, charming characters, a good soundtrack, and an appealing art style. But it also has its fair share of frustrations, in part because some of those elements don’t seem to fit together as well as I’d like.

Grade: B+

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