F.I.S.T.: Forged In Shadow Torch (2021)

NOTE: I have played this game on the Nintendo Switch. Do not make the same mistake. It is not optimized for the Switch.

F.I.S.T. is a metroidvania action game that features a big world, great combat mechanics and a decent story. The difficulty of the game is great. Starts relatively easy, but as the game progresses, it gets more hard. The last 3 bosses were quite a challenge for me.

The world map is huge, and it neatly follows the classic metroidvania formula, with backtracking, opening shortcuts and new paths as new power-ups become available. Its dark cyberpunk style fits neatly with the story of the game, however, one downside of it is that a lot of areas appear similar to each other, making it rather difficult to differentiate between them.

By the end of the game, you end up with three different weapons, each with its own strengths and weaknesses. I ended up using one for bosses, one for multiple enemies, and one mostly for navigation. The protagonist can learn additional moves and combos with all three weapons, through an intuitive upgrade system. The upgrades themselves aren't hard to unlock - there is no annoying, unnecessary grinding.

The soundtrack isn't remarkable. The overworld songs that play are groovy and nice to listen to, but they aren't memorable.

Having said all that, there are some things I'd like to address that drastically lowered the grade for me. First of all, there is a lot of amateurism in the way the game is created. It has been created using Unreal Engine, and it's clear the developers didn't clearly understand the engine. Animations snap, fade in/out is triggered too late, the FPS is low (at least on the Switch) and widget navigation is buggy.

Second, I like anthropomorphic animals, and I don't have anything against the furry fandom, but saying "furtizens" instead of "citizens" is extremely cringy.

All in all, if you don't mind indie amateurism, it's a fun game. 3/5.

The best way I could describe this game is “Metroidvania candy”. It’s really impressive at first, with great HD 2.5d graphics, smooth responsive movement and combat, and a super well-designed map. It’s so fun to run around collecting secrets and learning new combat moves.

But the game really loses momentum. The story is super boring and generic, the characters and art style are just corny, and the game doesn’t really make you think outside the box. It’s just the same gameplay loop over and over. Even with the few new mechanics introduced, they’re all pretty dull and actually worse than the initial game.

I got all the way to the final area and decided to quit. I didn’t care about the ending, getting 100%, or doing the final boss fight. I was just ready to leave the games atmosphere forever, as it became quite draining and mindnumbing.

I like the map, the movement, and the graphics are definitely high quality. But I couldn’t recommend this game past the first few hours, as it really doesn’t offer much beyond that.

As I played more of the game, it appeared clear that it was developed by fans of the Metroidvania genre with a lack of experience or skill. There is ambition at work here, expansive map, tons of items to discover and ever expansive combat tools, however it is in the fine details that the game falters. Tedious and friction laden stealth and puzzle sections that showcase an inability to spice the game up without resorting to tired ways to challenge the player, and an overall sameness to the entire affair.

The creators are trying really hard to create a memorable story and charming characters, but the fuzzy cast seems pulled out of a creepy third rate puppet tv show cancelled after a test screening ended up with traumatized children begging their parents to leave. I’m not sure whose idea it was to have a bunch of rejects from Watership Down and Animal Farm as the unlikely heroes of a clunky futuristic rebellion, but suffice to say I was skipping cutscenes and hitting buttons with zeal during conversations.

To be honest I’ve always preferred my Metroidvanias light on story and dialogue, environmental storytelling should be key here, and the only thing the environment was indicating was a lack of creative spark in the world design department.

It’s not all bad, mind you, combat was enjoyable enough in a belt action kind of way, and the presentation even though lacking in style indicates a lot of work went into it, but there is a very strong lack of polish that permeates most aspects of the game and I can only recommend it to Metroidvaniacs who’ve played pretty much every other game in the genre and need a fix. For others, if the mood strikes you there is so much better out there.

PROS

• Expansive map is fun to explore and uncover secrets in
• Punching the shit out of enemies is pretty damn satisfying
• Move set continually gets better as you unlock upgrades
• Highly-detailed and attractive environments
• Some tense, challenging boss fights

CONS

• Too many obnoxious level gimmicks and attempts to add mechanical variety
• Confusing tone lands somewhere between cutesy and grimdark -- it doesn't work
• Charmless story, concept, and characters
• Janky cutscenes and poorly mixed audio
• Crappy English translation makes for off-putting dialogue
• "Furtizens"