I love a good action game. In fact, Bayonetta and Okami are two of my favorite games of all time. SoulQuest is inspired by this sort of action, but the irony is that the soul of those games doesn’t quite reach this new Indie action fighter.

SoulQuest puts you in the role of Alys, a woman aiming to fight the gods to be able to resurrect her husband. The world is a fantasy world filled with Celtic gods, and Alys takes the Kratos role, fighting them to bring back what she lost. The voice acting and story are surprisingly interesting, with colorful characters to boot. However, the big problem lies in the level design.

The levels consist of nothing more than short platforming paths in between walled-off combat arenas. The Steam page boasts secrets hidden in the levels, but after several hours and at least 10 levels, I haven’t found any. There are a few small puzzles involving Switches, but it isn’t much to write home about.

The combat aims for the “Keep up combos, don’t take damage, get letter grade ranks” style popularized by the Devil May Cry series. At the end of each level, you are graded as well, and as you perform better, you can get more Souls, which can be used to unlock new combos and abilities for Alys.

There are multiple difficulty levels, each offering different levels of enemy variety and damage. I’ll admit, the enemies and the combos leave a little to be desired too, though that might be a limitation of the 2D plane. It isn’t awful, but I found myself a little bit bored midway through. The story was all that kept me interested after the first few hours.

The art style and animations are great, and the soundtrack is solid. They create a colorful atmosphere that goes along well with the story that is being told. I just wish that the combat and overall gameplay was a bit more satisfying.

As a whole, I think SoulQuest needed a little more time in the oven. Maybe it’s because the 2D plane makes the spectacle action feel a bit more limited, but the combat just feels clunky and bland. Every other part of SoulQuest showcases the time and careful attention that was put into it, but that gameplay feels like it is dragging it down.

SoulQuest isn’t a bad game. If anything, I think overall it is an average game with one major downside that drags the rest down. If you like a challenge and are willing to put up with the clunky combat and frustrating warts on the platforming, SoulQuest is a good sale pick. Would I recommend it at full price? No, but it is still worth a peek if the price is right.

A PC Review Copy of SoulQuest was provided by Indie.io for the purposes of this review.

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SoulQuest

$19.99 USD

6

Score

6.0/10

Pros

• Story is Well Done
• Art and Voice acting are great

Cons

• Combat is Clunky
• Some Platforming is Frustrating
• Combos feel a little bland
• Exploration is boring