Undertale Review by: Uzar - 7.7/10
Undertale OverheadUndertale is a fairly recent game. But it's one that has quickly built up a huge following. And...For good reason? Perhaps that may be so. I personally liked the game. Not because of the developer's previous works. But as a standalone work. It's one of the most creative games to come out recently, in my opinion. It reminds me a lot of the Mother series. But it does it in a way that it's not blatently ripping off Mother. And originality is something that I always love seeing. Especially in this age of awful indie games. I LOVE how much DETERMINATION this game gave me from the moment I started playing. ;)
Graphics: 6/10
The graphics are...eh. They are somewhat reminiscent of an NES game. Although with more, and less detail depending on your location in the overworld. It's charming, but also simplistic. It's pleasant though. The pixel art never looked lazy, except for maybe the main character. :P
In the battle screens, the artwork takes a step up. It's fair to say the graphics of this game fall somewhere between NES and GBA. You're treated to a green wire frame screen with a slightly more detailed sprite. The attacks look cool too. Some more than others. Although almost everything but the background is white. Save for a few attacks with different colors, which signify that you need to do a different action. It's pretty cool, which I'll admit. Plus some of the attacks made me burst out laughing.
Addictiveness: 7/10
This game is pretty addicting. With all the different endings, and the plain humor of playing the game the <strike>right</strike> way is more than enough to keep me going. If you find RPG's addictive. Then this is a game for you! As for me...It's addictive for awhile, then I need a break from it for a little while. But that's just my personal habit of playing. But I feel like most would agree with this score.
Sound: 9/10
I love the music in this game! All of it sounds amazing. This game's visuals may set a low expectation for you. But don't be fooled. The music is phenomenal. I can't stop listening to some of the tracks. And I'm not annoyed by them yet. :P
The sound effects aren't very phenomenal however. But honestly, when is there a sound effect that blows you away? Anyway, the sound effects sound good. Although they sound more appropriate for the graphics the game has. They are crisp, but have that overly pixelated sound to them.
Depth: 8/10
There is a decent amount of depth to this game. It has various storylines and endings. Something akin to Shadow the Hedgehog. Although here...You're not the only one who knows you've reset the game. So your actions can cause very different dialogues from some characters. There are a few different endings, characters will comment on your choices, you can [spoiler]permanently screw up the good end. but this can be remedied by deleting a few files from your computer.[/spoiler] So that is a pretty good amount of depth in itself. As for hidden areas, there aren't many. The only few I can think of now seem pretty obvious, save for one.
The game almost becomes two different things depending on whether you do a Pacifist Route, or a No Mercy/Genocide Route. The Pacifist Route, where you spare everyone and everything, makes the game a unique spin on a typical RPG.
A No Mercy run is where you do quite the opposite, killing everyone and everything. This makes the game feel like a horror game...Where you play as the monster! This route makes this a vary different game. Instead of charming moments, you'll get very depressing moments. You will be told how much of a monster you are, and blah blah blah. Although it leads to some character development that, while pointless because they die shortly after, it gives the characters themselves more depth. Then there are a number of neutral runs, killing and sparing different bosses and enemies causes many very different twists to the game.
All of this adds up to a lot of story depth, but not so much game depth.
Story: 8/10
The story is something that is really spoiler heavy. So I'll do a run through of everything I can without any heavy spoilers.
One day a child who's face was just three lines falls down a hole while exploring a mountain. He/She wakes up in a patch of flowers in some ruins. The child has fallen into the monster world! And there is only one way out now. But a long journey stands between the child and its way home. The king of this land, however, isn't particularly fond of humans though. And would rather have you captured, so he can accomplish his own nefarious purposes...Along the way the child is told that peace can solve all problems. Is this kid peaceful, or the biggest monster in this cavern?
Along the way you meet a fish, some lizards, a flower, at least five dogs, and some spooky skeletons. The characters you meet, like in any story, really pull it all together. Mainly since the player character is silent. :P
Difficulty: 6/10
This game isn't too difficult. It's not too challenging to progress through the game. The enemies are a bit tricky; but only if you're being a Pacifist. If you're doing the No Mercy run (And shame on you for doing that. :P) almost everything dies in one hit. Something that, well, seems really stupid to be honest. The game just feels kind of mindless and pretentious in that run. And there are only two bosses that are actually challenging. In a Pacifist run however, it feels like a half puzzle and half RPG. You need to find the right sequence of actions and words to make friends with your enemies, or just make them not feel like fighting you. It's more like a puzzle game disguised as an RPG.
The controls are pretty simple. You use the arrow keys to move around, Z to talk and interact with things, and X brings up your inventory, as well as hitting back on menus.
With battles you have a few options: Fight, Act, Item, or Mercy. Fight, well, kills things in one hit. Act brings up a variety of options depending on what you're fighting. Do you hug this guy? Do you flirt with this slimeball? Do you ignore this dude? That you'll need to figure out yourself. :P Item lets you use items, all of which only heal you. And Mercy brings up two options. Spare or Run Away. When an enemy's name is yellow you can spare them. Running away is exactly what it sounds like.
When you're attacked, there is a box that appears in the middle of the action screen with a heart in the middle. You control this heart with the arrow keys. You need to move out of the way of enemy attacks, which come on the screen bullet hell style in Touhou fashion (as my research has shown). It's pretty fun! I might have found a new genre I like because of this game.
Overall this game is interesting. Depending on how you go about things, this game can give you good times and bad times. Dank meme reference intended. It's a lot more enjoyble to me in the Pacifist Route. But I can't speak for everybody. The game is charming, and actually pretty funny at times. But it can get heart wrenching at other times. But remember, if bad times come your way, you can always go back and make things right. ;) This game made me laugh, think, feel a little, and write a review. It's a pretty neat game. And if it ever goes on sale, or you happen to be able to buy it, I'd suggest giving it a shot if you like RPG's. I enjoyed it for the most part. :)
Overall: 7.7/10
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