I played until after the first boss fight and had had enough of the gameplay because it felt like the path ahead was predictable and monotonous, as well as feeling like I've already experienced the majority of what the game has to offer. I found it very arduous that the game basically lays its progression out before you early on, in that I could see three elongated puzzles and boss fights ahead. From what I played, the rest of the game is similarly protracted. Shooting the crystals to refill the energy bar can make for skilled traversal, but this fundamental mechanic became very tiring for me and repetitive to the extreme. The gameplay also leaves a nice first impression but irritated me the longer I played. When boss battles commence the graphics show their true colours and this is quite a sight but also falls into being a bit one-dimensional once you see the patterns and style. My qualm with these graphics is that I don't think they do the game enough justice, especially in the opening hours where everything is dark and morose. Generally nothing overly complex, but smooth and fluid graphics that are similar to cell-shading make for a pleasant first impression. As mentioned, the graphics of The Pathless immediately drew my thoughts back to Journey. So why am I lamenting rather than lauding its achievements? I'll explain below. The Pathless has received near-universal critical acclaim and it's not hard to see why from the premise it comes from an indie-darling The Pathless has received near-universal critical acclaim and it's not hard to see why from the premise it comes from an indie-darling perspective, touting similar graphics and game mechanics to highly regarded titles such as Journey, Gris and Abzu. But with all of that said, it's a good game, with the spark of greatness flickering inside. And, of course, a final level that didn't feel so disappointingly empty would have been nice. On top of that, each of the bosses is functionally the same. Most of the game is thrillingly "pathless" but the boss battles are scripted to hell, and as unsatisfying as the core game is satisfying. Really, the thing this game needed were boss battles which actually incorporated the core gameplay. The final levels are really thin on content, and the final encounter with the boss is beyond unsatisfying. I'd have gotten past it without much issue, but the game loses a lot of steam in its final hours. Compared to the core gameplay, the boss battles and scripted encounters are so bad that they feel like parts of a different game. Boss encounters and battles feel very plain, kinda wonky, and get repetitive almost immediately. Where the game comes up short (sometimes VERY short) is in its combat and endgame content. Think Journey meets Shadow of the Colossus. The core gameplay is incredibly impressive, the sound and art are impeccable, and the puzzles just genuinely feel good. The core gameplay is incredibly impressive, the sound and art are impeccable, and the puzzles just genuinely feel There's a lot to love here.
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