Vigil: The Longest Night is a Soulsborne 2D Metroidvania action-RPG. While the game is a bit rough around the edges and has a lackluster story, both exploration and battles are full of surprises, creating a satisfying experience.
The best way I can describe this game is "What if Bloodborne was a 2D metroidvania?" Bloodborne is my favorite game of all time and Castlevania is my 2nd favorite series so it's only natural that I loved this game a lot too and I love this game so much that it has quickly become one of my all time favorite metroidvanias and I've played far too many metroidvania games to count in my 20+ years of gaming experience.
The combat is very enjoyable and has more depth to it than most Soulsvania style games I've played. You have 4 basic types of weapons which are one-handed swords, two-handed axes, dual daggers and bows. Due to some nice skill trees you can unlock many moves and attack combos for each weapon type, also there's a lot of unique weapons of each type that you can find which have powerful special attacks that you can do by inputting a fighting game like button combo ala up, down, square etc. Also the stamina management system is pretty unique seeing as how you basically have 2 full stamina bars, when you deplete the blue one you deal less damage and take more damage, but you don't fully suffer from exhaustion and a small stun lock until you deplete the yellow bar and I barely ever had that happen to me. It's a very fair and fun system.
The story is fairly straightforward, you play as Leila, a Vigilant and the last of her order which is tasked with stopping an ancient curse plaguing the land. While this in itself is a simple premise, all the things happening in the background and the lore you can find detailing many events and mysteries is what really makes the story interesting and let's just say that things get very dark and Lovecraftian. There are also many side quests to do for characters in the main town hub which are worth completing due to giving actual story content and dialogue which fleshed out the world or characters more, there's even a quest that's a big tribute to Salt and Sanctuary
The level design is top notch with tons of little secret areas and items to discover and tons of variety in the design with everything from flooded towns to vast forests, underground catacombs and everything in between. I have to mention I love the overall art and monster design as well.
One of the biggest reasons this game was put on my radar in the first place was due to the music being composed by Jouni Valjakka, the guitarist/vocalist of the Finnish melodic death metal band Whispered, one of my personal favorite bands and I can say the OST did not disappoint in the slightest. A lot of it is very mystical and atmospheric sounding which is very befitting of a horror themed metroidvania, but there are a few times, especially near the end that the music gets quite upbeat and adds some melodic electric guitar metal flavoring which is just as amazing as it sounds and the whole OST in general sounds like it wouldn't be too out of place among Michiru Yamane's discography which is about one of the best compliments I can give anything.
All in all Vigil is a game that wears it's influences and inspirations proudly on its sleeve, but it wears them well and just as great as the games it is influenced and inspired by and really all I can say is if you're a fan of Castlevania, Bloodborne, Lovecraft, Dark Souls, Salt and Sanctuary or all of the above you'd be a fool to miss out on this game.
Wonderful soulslike metroidvania with gorgeous artwork, lots of exploration and huge locations, interesting NPCs and sidequests tracked in a log.
I'm hard-pressed to think of any negatives with this one, everything about the game is smooth, fun and great to look at.
Recommending Vigil: The Longest Night is incredibly simple: if you’re a fan of Metroidvanias and you loved Salt and Sanctuary, you can’t afford to pass this one up. With a stunning art style and design that delivers all the right spooky notes and diverse boss battle tactics, Vigil: The Longest Night has my vote for one of the greatest hidden gems of 2020.
Vigil: The Longest Night aims high and almost hits the mark thanks to its amazing level design, epic boss fights, uncanny visuals, and Lovecraftian and gothic horror themes. Sadly, it's bogged down by its muddled story, confusing map layout, and perplexing campaign progression.
I suppose that ultimately, what counts in a Soulsborne or Metroidvania or action-RPGs is combat, action, bosses and exploration and in all these areas, Vigil: The Longest Night makes a pretty strong case for itself. It’s a great looking game with a dark and lush visual style and melee combat against some challenging monsters and human type enemies. A tighter story and less labyrinthian levels might make a very good experience even more compelling, but Vigil: The Longest Night will probably please fans of Salt and Sanctuary and those looking for a solid 2D Dark Souls-like game.
On a personal level, I'm still not truly gripped by everything here, but there are a lot of risky design choices and themes in Vigil. Developer Glass Heart Games should be commended for paying homage to the Dark Souls series while taking it in a slightly different direction.
Great game!
Pros.:
- Nice story. Pretty easy to keep track of but still, tragic.
- Gameplay is neat and smooth. Had no problems at all.
- The second arc was entertaining - had to explore a lot. And you just can't stop exploring.
Cons.:
- Music is kind of repeating. I turned it off.
- No chance to make marks on the map.
- Some quest bugs - do not appear.
Un pedazo de juego. Bonito visualmente, corre fluido, buena banda sonora, historia interesante, multitud de misiones secundarias en un juego que recompensa la exploración, un mundo enorme y con su arte y enemigos propios en cada zona, tres niveles de dificultad a elegir que se pueden cambiar en mitad de la partida... Este juego coge la fórmula soulsborne y metroidvania y no hace otra cosa que bordarlo.
for a indie game is good, but is's a indie and i see it, a good progression of your pg, but it's very easily breakble, a combo weapon and poof, all destroyed one shot. and the game is boring because the control system is too slow and not responsive (there is one start animation, and is very easy roll through the enemies and take damage). the secondary quest are boring fetch quest, and in the hub, is easy get lost and bye bye npc...... but the game is not too ugly, if you have nothing to play, vigil can be your choice. for me salt and sanctuary is more better of vigil. but is my personal vision of things.
SummaryBattle through the longest night as Leila a member of the Vigilant Order and uncover the truth behind the eternal darkness, Leila's mysterious sister, and the eldritch horrors that stalk her in a world that has forgotten daylight.