Superbrothers: Sword & Sworcery EP

 PC
User Score
6.4

Mixed or average reviews- based on 213 Ratings

User score distribution:
  1. Positive: 104 out of 213
  2. Mixed: 51 out of 213
  3. Negative: 58 out of 213

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  1. Jman4
    Jun 3, 2012
    7
    This game is quite bizarre, but the strange puzzles, graphics and storyline are simply pleasing. For no real reason, the game is quite enjoyable. The music sets the ambiance well, whether you are peacefully trotting to your next destination, or fighting a golden triangle. It's eclectically experimental, and that's what makes it's unique charm worth the time and money.
  2. Akuto
    Aug 15, 2012
    6
    This review contains spoilers, click expand to view. A beautifully organized game with great visuals, music, and a short, simple, and overall enjoyable story. However, it's weighed down by inane "quirkiness" through frequent outdated 90s lingo and overt Legend of Zelda influence (I mean, spoiler alert, you fight the pieces of the triforce in the same manner that you fight Ganon at the end of Ocarina of Time). This problem is shoved further down your throat as the game constantly reminds you that you can tweet every single phrase they put up on your screen. If you can ignore the niggling feeling that you're playing a game for hipsters, you'll find this game very rewarding in it's own unique way.… Expand
  3. bluemoogle
    Jul 30, 2012
    6
    The intentionally nonsensical story and eloquent "hipster" dialogue is sure to delight some, but unfortunately the obtuse gameplay often overshadows the otherwise beautiful presentation. Some puzzles require unintuitive thinking to solve, such as dragging together two mountains in the background. Beyond the minimalist puzzles, the game plays more like an interactive story, and it's duringThe intentionally nonsensical story and eloquent "hipster" dialogue is sure to delight some, but unfortunately the obtuse gameplay often overshadows the otherwise beautiful presentation. Some puzzles require unintuitive thinking to solve, such as dragging together two mountains in the background. Beyond the minimalist puzzles, the game plays more like an interactive story, and it's during these quirky story-telling moments where the game excels.… Expand
  4. ns0l
    Oct 22, 2015
    6
    Unique game. Music and sounds are perfect. But in my opinion I think the game can be better. And it needs more work to make it even more interesting.
  5. Rangerage
    May 15, 2012
    6
    I enjoyed the historical references and music in this game, but the actual gameplay was extremely disappointing and boring with quick time event combat.
    The interface hasn't been improved for the PC and reeks of being ported from an iOS without much effort to really use the PC platform as much as possible.
  6. joem282
    Jun 3, 2012
    6
    While the gameplay and combat mechanics were boring and lackluster, the rest of the games was great! Obviously, this is not a standard point and click adventure. It forgoes most of the puzzle mechanics of the genre for a more intuitive, streamlined adventure that was obviously created for a touch screen device. Still, the game has a unique story and design. The beautiful music fits inWhile the gameplay and combat mechanics were boring and lackluster, the rest of the games was great! Obviously, this is not a standard point and click adventure. It forgoes most of the puzzle mechanics of the genre for a more intuitive, streamlined adventure that was obviously created for a touch screen device. Still, the game has a unique story and design. The beautiful music fits in with the game and makes for a relaxing experience. In summary, although the game is short (only a few hours long), it is both beautiful and unique but the gameplay is somewhat bland .… Expand
  7. CorbeauNoir
    Jun 4, 2012
    6
    If nothing else it's worth it for the soundtrack - especially if you picked it up for cheap as part of the current Humble Bundle. That said, it's not really a 'game' as much as it is an interactive vehicle for the excellent pseudo-electronic score. It's obviously intended for a touchscreen, the gameplay and combat mechanics are extremely limited and navigating from area to area is a bitIf nothing else it's worth it for the soundtrack - especially if you picked it up for cheap as part of the current Humble Bundle. That said, it's not really a 'game' as much as it is an interactive vehicle for the excellent pseudo-electronic score. It's obviously intended for a touchscreen, the gameplay and combat mechanics are extremely limited and navigating from area to area is a bit frustrating to control using a mouse, especially later in the game when you're being chased by Generic Evil Spirit. It was at least moderately engaging and they keep it short and sweet, but beyond the music I don't really see why S:S&S is getting the praise it is.… Expand
  8. TotalNyan
    Jul 17, 2012
    6
    Sword & Sworcery was a short, stylish, enjoyable diversion for me. The music is unbelievable, and I would recommend picking up the soundtrack somewhere. The presentation is really good. The overall atmosphere the game creates is stellar. Unfortunately, the gameplay is lacking. Puzzles are often confusing or boring, and the combat system is similarly frustrating. There are some gems inSword & Sworcery was a short, stylish, enjoyable diversion for me. The music is unbelievable, and I would recommend picking up the soundtrack somewhere. The presentation is really good. The overall atmosphere the game creates is stellar. Unfortunately, the gameplay is lacking. Puzzles are often confusing or boring, and the combat system is similarly frustrating. There are some gems in here, but they are pretty infrequent. I'd still recommend a playthrough though, as it's a pretty cheap and cheerful diversion. I had some fun with it, but mainly due to the presentation and not the gameplay. Definitely a game of style over substance.… Expand
  9. kotep
    Jul 6, 2012
    5
    I'll start with what was great about the game: The pixel art was beautiful, the effects were lovely, and the soundtrack and sound effects were fantastic. The setting, too, was fairly interesting to me, if only for the fact that you play as a Scythian. Then, what's not so great: the controls are bad with a mouse. It's very obviously meant for touchscreen devices, and minimal effort wasI'll start with what was great about the game: The pixel art was beautiful, the effects were lovely, and the soundtrack and sound effects were fantastic. The setting, too, was fairly interesting to me, if only for the fact that you play as a Scythian. Then, what's not so great: the controls are bad with a mouse. It's very obviously meant for touchscreen devices, and minimal effort was made to port things like the battle interface to PC controls. It's slow. Now, I've played adventure games. I love Riven, and that game has about three puzzles in the entire game. Slow-paced is one thing, but this is just slow. It's atmospheric, sure, but without solid direction, it can be difficult to know what you're meant to do at points. Its tone is very poor. It tries to be half-epic, but covers its own ass by ensuring just about everything shifts into an ironically modern tone halfway through. I could see this working as a distinction between reality and the dream world, and that could have strengthened the theme even more, but that's not the case. And so, finally to the whale in the room: it's got Twitter integration. Everything you read is packaged as a tweet, and can easily be tweeted onto your own Twitter account. On some level, writing 140 character-long snippets of exposition is an artistic exercise of sorts, and if that was all, I wouldn't feel too strongly about it. I might even like it. But the way that it was used here, with that smarmy ironic writing, not only was enough to disrupt my immersion in the game world pretty harshly, but it came off as being far too confident of their own damn writing, that they wanted every bit of it to be able to be shared. So points for art/music design, atmosphere, story as a whole, points off for writing, Twitter crap, overconfidence, and poor gameplay design/port job.… Expand
  10. GhostsOnTv
    Aug 19, 2012
    5
    First of all, credit where credit is due - what we have here is a sincere attempt to do something different in gaming. If I was rating based on aesthetics alone, my score would be much higher. However, as a gameplay experience, Sword and Sorcery is dull at its best moments and deeply frustrating at its worst. The puzzles seem to rely predominantly on guesswork, and on more than oneFirst of all, credit where credit is due - what we have here is a sincere attempt to do something different in gaming. If I was rating based on aesthetics alone, my score would be much higher. However, as a gameplay experience, Sword and Sorcery is dull at its best moments and deeply frustrating at its worst. The puzzles seem to rely predominantly on guesswork, and on more than one occasion I found myself randomly clicking around the screen trying to move the story forward (this may say more about my own intelligence than the quality of the game, but I don't think I'm the only person to raise this complaint). I do hope these developers stay in the business, as I think they have the potential to make something truly special. However, it'll take a few more trips back to the drawing board before that happens.… Expand
  11. rafael_miolow
    Jun 1, 2012
    5
    GREAT music and stylish visuals, but as far as gameplay goes there isn't much to do here. The quest is repetitive and has such a boooooring pace. Came curious about the hype, and left extremely disapointed.
  12. Billick
    Oct 10, 2012
    5
    This is a weird game to review, because it does a few things really well, and a few things really poorly. The soundtrack is great, and they get a lot of mileage out of the 8 bit graphics. Some of the puzzles are okay, but the combat is painful. It's a game that looks and sounds nice, but just isn't fun.
  13. mrnice
    Dec 12, 2012
    5
    Good bits: varied and affecting soundtrack, good field recordings of foresty sounds, experiments in graphics and animation and storytelling.... Not so good bits: The gameplay is a banal and frustrating action clickfest at times, and a pixel hunter at other times. It's forgivable and the good bits and few outstanding gameplay moments make it kind of worth trying. I think the best partsGood bits: varied and affecting soundtrack, good field recordings of foresty sounds, experiments in graphics and animation and storytelling.... Not so good bits: The gameplay is a banal and frustrating action clickfest at times, and a pixel hunter at other times. It's forgivable and the good bits and few outstanding gameplay moments make it kind of worth trying. I think the best parts where those where I didn't have to actively play the game.… Expand
  14. jordan853
    Jul 22, 2012
    5
    This game has amazing art and awesome sound, however the gameplay just doesn't cut it i'm afraid. After playing 10 minutes you kinda feel like you either want to see something really amazing or just end the level so you can move onto another game.
  15. Metrogeek
    Oct 2, 2012
    5
    Finished it. Simple gameplay that becomes repetitive and requires no skill (simply spam the button); nonsensical puzzles and plenty of walking and backtracking over and over through the same areas in a very small world. Far too little game here, and what there is isn't well executed. Why the 'perfect' reviews then? Because an indie game, with 8-bit style graphics, an atmosphericFinished it. Simple gameplay that becomes repetitive and requires no skill (simply spam the button); nonsensical puzzles and plenty of walking and backtracking over and over through the same areas in a very small world. Far too little game here, and what there is isn't well executed. Why the 'perfect' reviews then? Because an indie game, with 8-bit style graphics, an atmospheric soundtrack, topped with snarky dialogue. Hipster 'gamers' rejoice, your checklist is fulfilled. Too bad gameplay isn't on the list.

    5/10    … Expand
  16. Sexbad
    Jun 25, 2012
    0
    Mindless busywork set to an insubstantial plot with an ass of an attitude. The world and story (which are important to a point-and-click adventure) are nothing beyond the basal, formulaic medieval fantasy hero stuff. The gameplay is pretty much disconnected from everything about the story, apart from how succeeding moves the narrative along, and amounts to quicktime event combat andMindless busywork set to an insubstantial plot with an ass of an attitude. The world and story (which are important to a point-and-click adventure) are nothing beyond the basal, formulaic medieval fantasy hero stuff. The gameplay is pretty much disconnected from everything about the story, apart from how succeeding moves the narrative along, and amounts to quicktime event combat and simple shape-based puzzles. The world is very nice to look at when zoomed out, but turns into just a bunch of garbled, chunky pixels when you're up close interacting with just about anything. It's also very pretentious, in the most intimate sense. It actively just masturbates all over you as you play by pretending that its simple, mindless elements are actually worth giving a damn about with unfittingly sarcastic writing and this annoying guy who pops up in between chapters just spewing mostly nonsense. The only good quality about the game is its soundtrack, which is better off bought on its own, if that's at all possible.… Collapse

Awards & Rankings

31
#31 Best PC Game of 2012
69
#69 Most Discussed PC Game of 2012

Critic Reviews

All reviews »
Metascore
83

Generally favorable reviews - based on 10 Critics

Critic score distribution:
  1. Positive: 7 out of 10
  2. Mixed: 3 out of 10
  3. Negative: 0 out of 10
  1. PC Gamer
    Jun 19, 2012
    70
    Sworcery is worth a look for the presentation and music, but despite the upgrade to HD the mobile version is still the one to go for. [Aug 2012, p.77]
  2. LEVEL (Czech Republic)
    Jun 18, 2012
    90
    Best definition of what an indie game should be: stylish, original, intellectually stimulating and an amusing adventure. [June 2012]
  3. Adventure Gamers
    Jun 12, 2012
    70
    Superbrothers is a unique audio-visual experience that turns an old cliché into a refreshing and intriguing adventure, though it sacrifices gameplay to achieve it.
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