Matterfall, as with many other Housemarque games, is a flawed but fun experience. Its relatively small number of levels helps keep it light on fluff, appealing to people who want to find every collectible and maximise their score on the leaderboards. Its short length also means it isn’t an imposing task for someone looking for a change of pace.
If you love Metroidvania style games, then Matterfall is for you, but keep in mind it's a slim clone of those games. Personally I feel this game does a better job at everything minus exploration. It's very linear, but I'm the type that loves that style of gameplay. Difficult bosses, and a one-hit death game mode that ups the challenge. Great little 2-4 hour game that's regularly available on PS Plus. Highly recommend if you enjoyed Resogun, Nex Machina, or Returnal.
Matterfall is a great shooter and will give you many hours of entertainment if you like chasing high scores and challenging gameplay. However, it does feel like a slight let down after Nex Machina and is the least essential of all the Housemarque games on PlayStation 4. That said, the least essential Housemarque game is still better than most games you will find on the console, so it’s still recommended.
Housemarque could have gone a bit farther with Matterfall, because while the general theme is on point, several elements, the protagonist design included, failed to make their mark on me. While it remains stylish throughout there were a few sections where I felt like I was just going through the motions, doing things I had done many times before, just with a nice HDR sheen to it. It's not quite Outland (which Housemarque also created), but it'll do.
Amongst the hallucinatory explosion storms, some shaded platform phases are also shaded, which make it even less convenient and intuitive to aim with the right precision.
Increible, no puedo decir nada más. Solo 20 euros, una jugabilidad super divertidad y una banda sonora de electronica ochentera que es una delicia; no puedo decir nada malo de este juego sinceramente
Not bad, but nowhere near the standards set by Housemarque in Nex Machina or Resogun. It's by no means a bad game, much better than most titles, just not as good as I was hoping it would be.
This is a rare miss by the folks at Housemarque. Matterfall tries being one part Metroidvania and one part twin stick score attack shoot-em-up and ends up being inferior versions of each. Bosses fights are frustratingly inconsistent, the dash mechanic isn't nearly as refined or as tight as it is in Housemarque's other games like Resogun or Nex Machina, and the Metroidvania platforming is very rudimentary. While playing I couldn't help but feel that there was a lot more that could have been done. In fact, my mind kept going back to Shadow Complex and Epic Games' take on the genre back in 2009.
The biggest issue, in my opinion, is that the game is painfully short. Three acts of three levels each. On veteran, that took a mere 3.5 hours to complete from start to finish. This is a great example of the game being stuck in-between worlds; Short gameplay based on score attack gameplay works well in games like Resogun or Nex Machina which are modern takes on old quarter munching arcade titles but Matterfall is a take on a completely different genre where "score attack" matters less than providing a solid platforming experience with satisfying progression and boss fights. The relay value doesn't seem to justify the $20 price tag and, again, made me recall when Shadow Complex launched for a mere $5 more with significantly more content and more reasons to replay besides Matterfall's score attack.
Ultimately, I'd recommend putting this on a wish list and waiting to see if it goes on sale during one of Sony's periodic flash sales or potentially given as a "free" PS Plus game later down the line. I'd give it a 6.5 if I could but in this case I'll round it up to a 7 rather than down to a 6.
SummaryAs a hero-for-hire, survive high-intensity side-scrolling war zones in vertical cities overrun by mysterious smart matter. Weaponize alien tech to destroy enemies infected by deadly Red Matter -- and control Blue Matter to manipulate the world and forge the path forward.