The plot of the game can be simply summarized as a young boy trying to save his Sister and restore balance to their world. Despite that the game has a nice narrative that shows some interesting concepts and ideas. We follow the story of Zirian, a young enthousiastic boy who lives in
Tic town. Zirian has a sister name Allira and used to live with their recently departed grandfather Tristan. Since his passing, Alira shut herself in the room and Zirian tried his best to get his sister put of her room and hang out with him. Unfortunatelly Allira's solution on how to deal with her loss was
to devote herself in a mysterious project and push away her brother. One day, Zirian
tried to reach his sister again, this time using her favorite snack BUT it was another effort gone to waste as she imidietly shuts him down. He reveals that she has been locked in for weeks and he is seriusly worrying about her.
A weird explotion occurs inside his sister room and Zirian is knocked out. When he regains cautiosness he hears a voice screaming for help. Next to him, there was Minutero, a clockpointer like shaped sword(resembeling a keyblade)
which he uses to defeat some weird dark creatures known as Inkys on his way to the voice. There he discovers Cuckoo, a mechanical clock bird which seems to be Allira's unfinished creation, and wishes to reunite with her.
The two tried to make their way to Allira's room, but their path crashes down as a mysterious dark tower arises knocking them out. Zirian wokes up in Tic town inhabited by the Cloudies. They confirm that the town is in shock as the risen tower seems to have not only brought eternal night but also
time seems to have been frozen. They also confirm that the duo were the only ones found, no signs of his sister. The tower seems to have chains coming out of it and landing in different locations. Zirian breaks the one stuck in Toc town which seems to have brough back some day time and also removed a seal
from the Towers lock. Witnessing this, Zirian and Cuckoo decide to follow each chain, find out where it leads and break the bonds in hopes of reuniting with Allira. Whilst on their adventure, a shadow jester looking being known as Despair makes her appearance and confirms that the tower belong to her.
Furthermore she seems to be aware of the two's identities and confirms she wants them to fail. More importantly, when she tries to touch Minutero, she seems to burned her. She then confirms that her plan is not yet finished and traps the heroes who tried to attacked her.
Who is Despair?
What is Cuckoo missing?
Will the siblings successfully Reunite?
Despite the colorfull presentation, the game's narrative has a decent plot around the concepts of responsebility, grieve, loss and maturing. We see two simblings losing their "father figure" and having to deal with it, each on their own way. We see their regrets and their actions. We also see how our MC
matures the more he is this adventure through his interactions with Cuckoo, what began as antagonistic turns into empathy. He seems to regret his behavior in past and recent events, showing he is growing the more he goes. He accepts his mistakes and tries to correct his wrong doings. Cuckoo also seems to not be interested in
Zirian but the more time they spent together the closer the duo gets.
Keep in mind, this is still a simple platformer and even though it has these concepts, its still a game aim for young and teen audience. The narrative is delivered through spoken dialogue, both mandatory and optional. It does contain a few cinematics here and there. The cutscenes are well made and re fully voice acted whereas some
of the in game dialogues have only a few "Key" words spoken.
The gameplay is very nostalgic and yet very fresh. In an era full of soulslike, cinemaric AAA titles, Life service games and FPS, Duskfade came out of nowhere to remind you of the good old times. It is heavily inspired by the
PS2 classics with gameplay elements resembeling games like Ratchet and Clank, Jack and Daxter and Kingdom Hearts. This means the game is focussing on a combination of platforming challenges first and has a combat as a
second. In Duskfade we get control of Zirian, a young enthusiastic boy who lives in Tock Town with his sister Alira. The two are seperated duo to an explotion occuring at Alira's room and the rose of a mysterious tower in the
middle of the town. Scared and dedicated to save his Sister, Zirian picks up the Minutero blade and rushes in action.
By default, Zirian has the standard platforming abilities of Jump, double Jumb, dodge and airdodge. These abilites can not only be used in platforming but also in combat. In platforming Zirians mobility allows him to reach high areas
and distant areas. These abilities can also be combined allowing you more freedom. For example, if you start with a dodge and then go into a jumb, Zirian will leap further than before. When that combo is combined with the second jumb
and the airstep, Zirian goes further than ever. Certain platforms allow Zirian to wall bounce or temporarily stuck on a wall/platform in order for the platform to either spin or move towards a certain direction. Similar to combat, the
platforming evolves as Zirian progresses through the story.
Zirian's Minutero can be used in a couple of ways beginning with switch/lever activations and platform breaking. Not necessarilly a skill, but using an air attack will stop the momentum allowing you to land safely on a platform giving you
a better control on the air and even stalling on air for a platform to get closer or a trap to be deactivated. Attached to the Minutero there are chains. Zirian can direct the chain onto hooks that he can use to swing from allowing him to
reach further areas. The chains can only be used on the hooks when they have a lock on symbol. With the addition of the heavy attacks, Zirian can break the Red crystals that block the path and can trigger certain springs. Moreover,
Zirian unlocks a gadget that will allow him to surf on rails. Whilst on the rails he can use the Minutero to change his directions and break obstacles.
Along his journey Zirian also obtain special abilities and gadgets to help him in battle. Similar to before these same abilities can be used in platforming to further discover secret locations and collectibles. One of this abilities is
the Landmines. The player can use the Landmines during exploration to use the explotion in order to launch them up in high places or to help you reach a tall platform when theres nothing else to jump from. Additionally the Slow time
ability allows Zirian to temporarily move on a small different time and space dimension. Whilst in that, the player can move through Crystal gates to enter a different dimension that will challenge the player to manuver in order to find the collectible.
A Wings gadget allows Zirian to hover through air and also go through rings that boost his speed and his elevations. The wings do have a stamina bar positioned down center when the wings re in used.
Duskfade's combat comes second to it's platforming but this doesnt make it bad by any means. Although i will admit that combat becomes more fun when the heavy attacks are unlocked. Zirian's combat is happening by swinging the Mineturo around. The enemies are Inkies,
dark figurines that appear out of nowhere. The Mineturo has a three hit combo both on land and on the air. The way you can defend the upcomming damage is by roll dodging the hit. A perfect dodge roll will temporarily reduce everyone speed around Zirian which will allow
him to get a few free hits. Dodge and attack will allow the hero to avoid the hit and use a direct stab. When perfect dodging, the attack will cause a powerfull blade spinning AoE which will turn Mineturo into two small blades. When an enemy is using projectiles, the
player can time their attack on the projectile to sent it back to the caster.
As mentioned, combat evolved the more the player proceeds with the story. The first major change comes with the introduction of the heavy attacks. The heavy attacks are slower but deal more damage than the quick attacks. The heavy attacks can be used in collaboration with
light attacks which expands the combat options and combos. Similar to the light attacks, the heavies can also be combined with jumb, which will cause a stomp like blast and with dodge which will lift the enemy up in the air. The Mineturo chain can also be used to Grapple on enemies.
An enemy trapped within the chains can still attack, however Zirian will close the distance allowing you to hit the enemy. By using the Energy bar, Zirian can use his special abilities which are gained through out the story. The player can use one each time, but he can swap them on the fly by tapping
the appropriate button. Chronoblast is the first ability unlocked and shoots a powerfull projectile which resembles a shotgun. Time Explosion is like a small domain where the player temporarily turns invisible and smacks the enemies. Once the time limit is reached, Zirian reappears
causing a small explotion. Landmiles re small bombs that the player can throw on the ground. When an enemy steps on them, it will cause an explotion. Last but not least Shooting Star causes a rain of projectiles which will lock on enemies and explode uppon impact. All abilities can be
upgraded at the store.
Zirian is not alone in this mission as Cuckoo is tagging alone. When out and exploring Cuckoo will be staying near the player however when a key location is near by, Cuckoo will make a powerfull whistle and fly towards that location. If you approach the location, an interaction can be triggered,
however if the player moves away Cuckoo will fly back to you skipping that interaction. When certain collectables are near by, Cuckoo will mention something like "Do you hear that" when a music box is near by. During combat, Cuckoo will fire projectiles towards the enemies. The enemy variety is also worth
commenting. In the beginning, the enemies re the gereric 1 hit attack, but more and more types re introduced. From heavy enemies who can tank damage, to musicians who grant buffs and reverse your controller buttons to even enemies wearing certain armors. The game keeps introducing newer types often to keep
things fresh and also recycle some of the older ones so that Zirian will be surrounded with different types of enemies and not just the newer ones. Last but not least, the game has some exciting Boss Battles that blends normal combat with platforming segments inbetween. These challenges are not hard
but they can drain your HP if you re late, forcing you to use your potions or even help the boss land a few hits whilst you re busy with the platforms.
First word that came to my mind? Satisfying. Every time i was landing a platforming trick or managed to reach a platform a couldn't reach by normal means, i was delighted. I would see a chest and try multiple ways to get there just to discover that a different route could ve taken me there easier, but it didnt matter. The game managed to make Platforming feeling very satisfying and also very rewarding with collectibles spread left and right. Ofcourse in the beginning it felt annoying as i would discover locations that i couldnt go through cause of red crystals and rails i didnt have access to. Despite that i do understand that if the devs gave all the abilities instantly the game would ve lost its spark and sense of progress. Same with Combat, originally, the combat was one dimensional and clunky but with the more abilities gained, the introduction of more enemy types and platforming traps, the game changed. The collectables and locations made me want to explore the land further and take my time with the game instead of just rushing to main story.
The thing the game does best in my opinion is collectibles and post content. First of all uppon completing the game or during the game the player gains new abilities as Zirian becomes stronger. Certain weapons can be used outside of combat in order to proceed. For example the heavy attack can be used to break red crystals that hide chests and paths. The players will come
across the red crystals from the start of the game but only gain the ability after the 2 first chains are released. The option to revisit the earlier areas become available then. You can proceed with the story and revisit everything in the end or use the teleport checkpoints and go back right then and there. The game rewards exploration as treasures can be found
everywhere in the form of items or crystals currency (chest or crystal rock).
The "items" mentioned are things that improve the quality of game and enchance the abilities of the hero. For example, the shop Traveler, will exchange power ups with you if you give them crystals or crystals and rare gears. Colorful Potions can be exchanged with the Tailord once he is discovered. The colorful potions allow you to change the color pallete of Zirian's outfit.
Speaking of the Tailord, he ll mentioned he lost his kittens. Each Kitten took a ball of yarn with it. If you discover, chase and capture a kitten, return to the tailord and a brand new outfit will be unlocked which includes its own set of color alterations. Rainbow Ingots can be found and exchanged with the blacksmith. The result will be a change of color for the Minutero.
Furthermore, the player can hear and discover scattered music boxes. To collect the box, Zirian has to interact with it and play a small mini rythm game to collect it. The music boxes can be given to Arpeggio once he is unlocked and allow you to tune in to their music. Moreover, the players can come across Challenge rooms with a chest as the reward. The chest will either have a
heart piece or a time peice. A piece of its own doesnt do much but when three of a kind re gathered, the player will receive an HP upgrade for the heart piece set and Energy bar for the time piece. Additionally, rare coins can be collected and exchanged for trading Cards.
There are also hidden lore elements that can be found scattered around the level. All of these reveal stories and events that occured in the past.
On the visual department, the game uses a cartoonish art style that looks like a PS2 game in the PS5. A quick glance on the visuals screams kingdom hearts as the charaters outfit looks a lot Kingdom hearts-ish with the belts, zippers and over the top design options. Additionally the blade being a clockhand with chains is similar to a giant key with chain. The resemblance is also obvious from the fact that
the first unlockable look of the Minutero matches the Keyblades pattern with its gold and silver and the first alternative design of the base look is the color pallete of Sora from KH 3D and that of Valor form KH2. I would go as far as to mention that multiple outfits referene multiple gaming heroes when combined with an alternative color.
For example Hero of time is 100% a reference to Link from Legend of Zelda Hyrule Warriors. Other looks match chrono trigger, Dragon quest and others. The movement of the character is smooth and the locations beautiful. Different locations have unique looks, from making your way up the volcano, searching mysteries in old libraries and vaults and even going up to "heaven."
Audio wise the game does a good job. The melodies escorting the areas are very good and match the vibe of the area. Whether you re in a forest, an erupting volcano, an abandoned library or up in clouds the melodies do not dissapoint. The voice acting is good, nothing astonishing but at the same time not under performing. The problem is during spoken dialog the characters just mention certain names or keywords that were
mentioned in that sentence. For example if Zirian says, "We need to find Alira before its too late." the only spoken word will be "Alira." Sounds effects can also be heard from the weapon's mellee attacks, its special attacks and on certain platforms. Its worth mentioning the collectable music box that allows the player to listen to certain tunes.
Overall, Duskfade is a breath of fresh air build on the nostalgia of the Ps2 era. It's a complete package with an interesting narrative that will take players into a magical adventure as Zirian tries to save his sister Alira who was traped in mysterious tower that rose out of nowhere. Time and space seems to be affected by the tower and dark creatures known as Inkies also made their appearance. Zirian is equiped with a blade(clock hand) known as Mineturo which seems to be effective againts the creatures. Zirian is not alone, as Cuckoo a mechanical bird is teaming up with him, as Alira was its creator and it wants her to complete it by adding a missing piece. The gameplay combines action platforming with puzzle solving. The player has to make his way around the realm and defend himself againts the Inkies. The Platforming is rewarding as it grants multiple collectibles in various forms. The more abilities the player gets, the more the maps and levels open up. The same applies to the combat, as the more the player proceeds with the story the more abilities and enemies re introduced. The game has multiple collectibles that enchance the abilities, change the appearance and reveal more about the story and its lore. The collectables cannot be found within one go so the player will have to backtrack to collect the items missed or go through rooms that werent reachable prior. The game looks like a polish PS2 games with locations reminising that era but having the graphics of what it felt like in our heads back them. Unique color palletes re used for each realm and for each unique customizable outfir Zirian wear. It's worth mentioning that some outfits match unique heroes like Sora, Link, Roy and others. Audio wise the game has some good melodies to match the vibe of the adventure.
This is a video of me playing the game.