Feudal Alloy

Genre: Metroidvania

Players: 1

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Review:

Feudal Alloy is a Metroidvania released in 2019 on PC, PlayStation 4, Xbox One, and Nintendo Switch. In this game, players take the role of a fishbowl-headed robot (with an actual fish living in his head) who heads out to reclaim supplies stolen by a roving gang of villainous robots (also with fish in their heads). Despite the robotic nature of all the characters, this game has a vaguely medieval tone, as your character fights enemies with a sword and your mission is framed as a fantasy-style quest.

In keeping with this odd mix of genres, Feudal Alloy has a presentation that meshes disparate elements, using nicely-detailed hand-drawn 2D visuals for its world and characters, and animating them using a “paper doll” style that accentuates the robotic nature of their movements. This is backed by an instrumental soundtrack that sound like someone took musicians from a Renaissance Faire and added in a clinking percussion element.

The gameplay here places a great deal of focus on health (oil) and stamina (overheating), with the latter gauge proving to be a major limiting factor in fights, with players having to manage their heat levels by pacing themselves as they attack, or by at least quaffing a cooling liquid to enable this level of activity. This mechanic is likely to be divisive – some will find this limitation to make for a great strategic element in combat, while others will find it to be highly frustrating.

There are other flaws here that are a bit harder to spin into a good thing – this game’s areas feel far too samey, making it easy to get lost. Additionally, some of the button assignments here seem a bit awkward and take a great deal of getting used to.

Despite its flaws, Feudal Alloy presents enough charm and originality that Metroidvania fans may find themselves enjoying this game despite its problems. This isn’t likely to be anyone’s favorite Metroidvania, but if you can manage its eccentricities you’ll likely find it to be an enjoyable one.

tl;dr – Feudal Alloy is a Metroidvania where players take the role as a sword-swinging robot in a medieval setting where everyone is a robot. The major role stamina plays in combat won’t be to everyone’s liking, and the repetitive areas are less than ideal, but if you can look past this game’s flaws you’ll find that at its heart it’s still a charming entry in the genre.

Grade: C+

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