![]() ![]() Rei can time slip to slow down time then grapple in, instantly dispatching smaller foes with a slash or two. While there are enemies to fight, encounters with them are streamlined. ![]() This is a world full of swooping rails, of floating platforms, of localised gravity, and of simple but satisfying movement puzzles. ![]() I appreciated having to wrangle Rei’s inertia in order to bring her to a sudden stop from full pelt, but the joy of movement was occasionally stymied by quirks like inexplicably going the wrong way on a rail, missing grinds entirely, or falling off a platform thanks to an unhelpful camera.īut for the most part the skating feels great between those hiccups, whether you’re boosting then double jumping to skip across the surface of treacherous acid lakes, leapfrogging through a series of grapple points in the air, directing then riding mushroom rails, or ascending a bulbous column of clouds in order to reach an ancient structure high in the sky. She smoothly transitions between running and skating, with an incredible feeling - and sounding - boost ideal for zooming past enemies, hitting a lip at top speed, or just catapulting forward from a standing start. Rei has a slight yet powerful set of abilities, crafted specifically for open-world platforming. The fun here is in working out how to reach objectives, not wondering where they are, so I always felt like I was navigating the world with purpose. You’re able to scan each area for key objectives, while telltale icons on surfaces reveal if a hidden audio log is nearby. This kineticism is expressed through wide open environments and platforming challenges that allow Rei to almost always be in motion. ![]() This all helps make the overarching plot more impactful as it gradually comes into clarity, leading to a climax that’s punchier than I was expecting a neat twist for a game that’s so kinetic in focus most of the time. This broad story set-up translates to reaching and clearing out anomalies that are interfering with the conduits, then defeating each area’s colossal boss creature.Īction-platforming is very much the main driver of Solar Ash, but it’s interested in worldbuilding too, and has plenty to dig into via story elements like audio logs left by Rei’s missing teammates, scrawled notes in the environment, a handful of survivors you can talk to, and quizzing Rei’s friendly AI construct Cyd on the details of the mission. These are necessary to power a gigantic, monolithic piece of technology called the Starseed - which, in turn, is the only hope to close the black hole itself and save Rei’s planet from imminent destruction. You are Rei, a Voidrunner who has ventured inside a black hole called The Ultravoid, and you’re trying to find out what happened to each of your companions and ensure the conduits they set up throughout the different sectors of the void are operational. In Solar Ash you’re faced with platforming challenges, light puzzles, enemy encounters, bosses, and impossible spaces - and you glide your way through it all, accompanied by an appropriately atmospheric, synth-driven sci-fi score. Your reward for collecting all six Caches in the Mirrorsea is Ghozam's Suit, the most overpowered one of the bunch since it literally doubles your overall Attack Power.Solar Ash’s vivid colour palette is evocative of developer Heart Machine’s last game, Hyper Light Drifter, but transposed to a 3D open-world, in which momentum is the overriding design principle. From there, take a right and use the grapple point, ride the two Grind Rails, and it should naturally lead you to the final Cache sitting on another intact ship hanging off on its own. Hop across the two jump pads to the intact ship on the other side of them, and just past that ship should be the floating debris with the Sigil on it. Once you unlock the last grind rail shortcut (in case you fall), and all that remains above you is the main Cyclodorean vessel with Admiral Ames on it, you'll be right next to this final Cache. It's a fun platforming section, but the Voidrunner Sigil is easy to miss here since there's so much debris spread around. This is the Cache you'll come across while you're steadily climbing up the remains of the Cyclodorean Fleet floating above the Mirrorsea. It's frustrating, but the last Cache is actually the one most players find first. ![]()
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