VideoGame The Metroid Influence is Clear
However, despite that, Axiom Verge is definitely its own thing. It takes the greatest parts of Metroid, mixes it with a bit of Contra, slaps some H.R. Giger into the pot and stirs until it's its own thing.
First off, atmosphere. This game has it in spades. There is a lot of movement, a lot of energy in the environments and the music. Some of the background pieces are even synced up to the bass of the music, and the bosses move to the beat of the boss themes. The music is as much a part of the game as the way the game looks.
Speaking of that, the game looks amazing. It nails the 8-bit/16-bit look it's going for, and the "glitches" in the game look rather authentic for NES hardware. The Address Disruptor (which is an early weapon that lets you glitch enemies) adds a massive amount of depth to the game. Enemy too tough? Glitch it to slow it down, or maybe even turn it over to your side. Low on health? Glitch that enemy and it will burst into delicious health nanomachines when you get near it!
You can even get into some awesome looking glitched "secret worlds" that emulate the look of the secret worlds of older Metroid games. While the items in them aren't necessary for 100%, they're still nice to go through for their goodies and the old timey static filter over the screen is nostalgic.
The story takes a backseat to the gameplay itself but is still wonderfully engaging and will make you want to complete the game. Even after beating it I was left with answers, and since Tom Happ has said there is enough money from the game's release to make a sequel, I'd say those are answers well worth waiting for.
All in all I'd give the game a 9/10. The only downside it has going against it is a slight lack of control once you gain a certain ability, but other than that it runs flawlessly. Any fan of a Metroidvania game would love to get their hands on this.
VideoGame A love letter to the creepier games of the NES
Remember the demonic imagery and disturbing backgrounds of Ninja Gaiden as you got closer and closer to fighting the demon? How about the sci-fi creepiness of Metroid? Axiom Verge takes these elements and cranks them up. The setting is creepy, the music unsettling, and the story increasingly disturbing. There's even some impressively melancholy chiptune music at one point.
The game at first begins as an utterly shameless ripoff of Metroid. The enemy types, gameplay, and style scream Metroid, and it's painfully blatant. Amazingly, the game not only doesn't continue in this direction, but it even deliberately subverts expectations.
See that thin space that you just can't fit through? In Metroid, you'd get through it by turning into a ball. Axiom Verge never gives you an equivalent ability, but rather, a drone that can fit through spaces that you cannot. High up areas you can't reach? Grappling hook - there is no Space Jump. You don't freeze enemies to stand on them - you "glitch" some of them to stand on them, or you "glitch" the world on occasion.
What's this about "glitches"? Well, Axiom Verge has a little fun with the fourth wall. Remember how NES games looked when they malfunctioned? When graphics glitches caused things to get garbled and strange looking? When in some cases, a graphics glitch would even transform an enemy or object in such a way that its behavior became totally different?
This game does that for deliberate and sometimes unsettling effect. There are "fake graphics glitches" you encounter quite often, which perfectly simulate what actual NES games looked like when they malfunctioned. The glitches and how they are used almost make it seem as if the world is tearing itself apart - an impressive way to take an error from our childhoods and use it as both plot and gameplay device. Your "glitch gun" weapon can invoke this deliberately to a degree, as it transforms enemies into glitchy abominations and even changes their behavior.
Axiom Verge is more than just a nostalgic throwback to the creepier side of the NES - impressive as that is. It's an amazingly creative experience that plays with the expectations of the 30-somethings and late 20-somethings that it's aimed at. Even if you hold no such nostalgia, it's still a great game.
VideoGame Good on its own merits, but don't listen to the Metroid hype
Axiom Verge is a good game on its own, but the abundant comparisons and allusions to Metroid, particularly Super Metroid, make the game look weaker by comparison, and the attempts to emulate it only wound up making the game worse in my opinion.
A major problem is that AV has all the worst aspects of Super Metroid without the mechanics that would offset them. In Super Metroid, if there was a block you couldn't break or a door you couldn't open, item symbols or coloring made it very clear what was needed, so you wouldn't waste your time. But here there's no way of telling what upgrade you need to pass a certain obstacle, or if you've obtained it, so first-time players will wind up backtracking a LOT trying to find items that aren't there, and there are fewer shortcuts and no speed enhancement to help you. It's also tedious looking for secret items, because there's no equivalent to power bombs or the x-ray scope to expedite the process. The level design falls short as well. Super Metroid had very distinct designs and layouts for its rooms, but Axiom Verge's rooms all kind of blend together, and I only recall a few of them based on how frustrating I found them, such as a very tall one filled with laser-firing enemies which was a pain to navigate without taking damage. I enjoyed the game most when it distanced itself from Metroid, such as with the remote drone device rather than a morph ball, which was creative, fun, and useful.
The plot takes a while to get going and starts off a bit cliche: you're a scientist trapped on another world after a bizarre lab accident, trying to find your way out and learning what happened to this awful place. It's not very engaging at first, but the atmosphere is good and it's enough to keep you going. Though considering the protagonist isn't a silent one, you'd expect him asking more questions and showing more shock at the frankly disgusting things he's finding early on, even if he's only talking to himself. Which might be another misstep in trying to make the protagonist stoic like Samus, but I'm not certain how the character was intended to come across.
Overall, I'd still recommend it, and it's very impressive for a game made by one person, but don't let other reviews make you think you're buying the new Super Metroid.