Astalon: Tears of the Earth

 PC
Astalon: Tears of the Earth Image
Metascore
84

Generally favorable reviews - based on 5 Critic Reviews What's this?

User Score
7.1

Mixed or average reviews- based on 17 Ratings

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  • Summary: Three heroic explorers wander the post-apocalyptic desert on a mission to save their village’s resources from despair. They soon find a dark, twisted tower that has risen from the depths of the planet and seemingly holds the key to their survival. In order to ensure their victory, one ofThree heroic explorers wander the post-apocalyptic desert on a mission to save their village’s resources from despair. They soon find a dark, twisted tower that has risen from the depths of the planet and seemingly holds the key to their survival. In order to ensure their victory, one of them has made a secret pact with the lord Epithemeus, allowing them to reincarnate until they have accomplished their mission. But what fate lies in store for the heroes and their village? Astalon: Tears Of The Earth is an action-platformer set in a dying world where life is cruel, but death can be a stepping stone to victory. Use the unique skills and weapons of Arias the warrior, Kyuli the archer, and Algus the wizard, to surmount the mysterious tower and find the answers to their survival. Slay terrible monsters, discover powerful artifacts, and solve fiendish puzzles, reaching new heights in the tower with the aid of a dark titan. Strengthen your party and change their fate by embracing death. Discover the countless secrets of the Tower of Serpents!… Expand

Critic Reviews

Score distribution:
  1. Positive: 4 out of 5
  2. Mixed: 1 out of 5
  3. Negative: 0 out of 5
  1. PC Invasion
    Jun 3, 2021
    90
    An amazing game only dragged down a bit by luck or prior knowledge being required to make it through side areas earlier, plus the most unnecessary bit of artificial difficulty I've seen in recent years. It's called the Ruins of Trash and I just wanted to say that one more time. I'd write that on a brick and throw it through a window if I could.
  2. Noisy Pixel
    Jun 3, 2021
    90
    Astalon: Tears of the Earth is an unexpected masterpiece of retro designs blended so delicately with modern roguelite elements. Death doesn’t punish the player as much as it sets them up with improved ways to approach situations. There’s a sense of discovery in every area, but this does limit direction causing some confusion when trying to figure out where to go. Further, bosses can be underwhelming compared to normal enemies, which creates an awkward balance of challenge. Regardless, this is the must-play game of the summer.
  3. COGconnected
    Jun 11, 2021
    88
    Astalon: Tears of the Earth is a great reminder of what small developers can achieve with simple graphics and simpler controls. I would heartily recommend it to anyone who craves some old-fashioned platforming action and isn’t afraid to die a lot. Just remember to turn off the flashing lights and screen shake if you’re sensitive to that.
  4. Hardcore Gamer
    Jun 3, 2021
    80
    Astalon: Tears of the Earth is a tough, but fair NES-inspired Metroidvania that tests your mettle and makes it worthwhile. Each of the three playable characters is fun to use and the gradual difficulty curve makes it easy to learn from trial and error and succeed more with each new run. It controls wonderfully, looks great, and has impressive sound design too. Beyond just a killer chiptune soundtrack, there are subtle touches to the sound design that help put this above a lot of NES-inspired games on the market over the past decade. Astalon: Tears of the Earth is a must-play for anyone with a love for 8-bit gaming, or Metroidvanias.
  5. GameGrin
    Jul 29, 2021
    70
    Astalon: Tears of the Earth is a great looking rogue-like Metroidvania game with a good story. It is incredibly challenging and can get very frustrating with the amount of backtracking, collision detection issues and lack of direction of what you need to do to progress.

User Reviews

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Score distribution:
  1. Positive: 4 out of 4
  2. Mixed: 0 out of 4
  3. Negative: 0 out of 4
  1. kasparius
    Aug 23, 2021
    10
    Many Metroidvanias falter in one of its most essential aspects, the ability upgrades. There are fewer feelings as incredible as unlocking anMany Metroidvanias falter in one of its most essential aspects, the ability upgrades. There are fewer feelings as incredible as unlocking an ability you've been hoping for since the beginning of a game, like finally getting a dash or a double jump, but an even greater feeling is getting unexpected ones that make you jubilant because of how they transform the way you have approached the game thus far. I can count the games that achieve this on one hand. Not only does Astalon have such abilities in store, it hands them out at a masterfully careful pace, and I still found myself surprised and delighted by ones I found when most of the map had already been uncovered.

    There are many wonderful aspects that I could describe in detail here, but I don't want to take away from the experience of playing it blind, and I strongly recommend not looking up anything and just losing yourself in the game, it will reward this approach strongly.

    I hope I haven't given the impression that this is a game strictly for retro enthusiasts with a fondness for the NES. While Astalon: Tears of the Earth is in one hand a love letter to that era, it is also very much a modern game in its approach to game design and you most certainly do not need nostalgia or video game history knowledge to appreciate what it has to offer.

    This is a superb Metroidvania with few equals and I strongly recommend it to anyone with even a passing interest in the genre.    … Expand
  2. dstammel
    Sep 2, 2021
    9
    I absolutely adore this game. If you like Castlevania Symphony of the Night, this game is for you.
    Combat is very tight and remind me of    I absolutely adore this game. If you like Castlevania Symphony of the Night, this game is for you.
    Combat is very tight and remind me of Megaman. The game feels difficult at first, but every time you die you get to purchase upgrades with the currency you earned by killing enemies.    … Expand
  4. TheHambro
    Jun 12, 2021
    9
    Astalon: Tears of the Earth is a fantastic Metroidvania that takes notes from Mega Man, La Mulana, Bloodstained, Shovel Knight, and otherAstalon: Tears of the Earth is a fantastic Metroidvania that takes notes from Mega Man, La Mulana, Bloodstained, Shovel Knight, and other retro-inspired platformers. It’s got bangin’ music, tight platforming, a good variety of character abilities, and a healthy amount of exploring and secrets to uncover. My small complaints are that it’s a bit buggy, and some of the playable characters are more powerful than the others; otherwise, it’s a solid game. If you’re a fan of the genre, and have remotely some interest in checking this out, just pick it up and enjoy.… Expand
  5. somedude14
    Jun 21, 2021
    8
    The two big things I didn't like is you can't change characters on the fly for the first half of the game, which really adds to theThe two big things I didn't like is you can't change characters on the fly for the first half of the game, which really adds to the backtracking and these games are already backtracking heavy. And that some rooms it feels like you have no choice but to take a hit to get through it, there's this one area in particular that during my backtracking in Ruins of Ash (you will probably die a lot here, there is a long stretch without an elevator) I was always getting hit by a demon's fireball no matter what I did. But I'm sure someone will come along to do a no-hit run and prove me wrong. Not as hard as Castle in the Darkness, spikes don't kill you in one hit (they do a decent amount of damage though) and the platforming isn't hard.

    You're still going to die frequently, but again some of those will feel like the game making you take hits sometime, those adding up on really good runs (where you dodge most attacks) and that getting you killed. But you're always opening shortcuts each attempt (at least I was always making *some* progress), and this makes it easier to get back to where you left off. There's also an upgrade you can buy that gives you more HP when you break an orb that's placed in the room you last died in, so that gives you a boost. Right now the game doesn't have descriptions on items until you buy them, but there's a community guide for that now... I also had a bug three or four times where I would land on a moving platform, go invisible, then fall through the moving platform, usually into an enemy or pit of spikes, giving me some damage. Frustrating but didn't happen often enough to make me want to stop playing, and most of the platforming in this game is pretty easy. I also had another bug where I couldn't change characters with the bell or at the camp - this was before I got Zeek - but a game reboot fixed it and it never happened again.

    The soundtrack is pretty good, and it's worth checking out the Super Arrange version. Threads of Fate is my favorite track.

    Tips for new players: Get Orb Seeker right away, and pick a character you will play the most to focus on for upgrades. My favorite was the wizard.

    EDIT: They've made some adjustments to Ruins of Ash since this review, it may not be as rough anymore.    … Expand

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