Bastion
As I was told that Bastion is a game which is brilliant because of its styling and story telling, I thought I would give it a try. Within minutes I was sucked in because of its simplicity and high quality production.
Gameplay
I think there was only one part in the entire storyline where I properly failed, and that was purely because I was distracted by something on Reddit. That doesn’t mean I didn’t enjoy Bastion, in fact the gameplay is nicely paced with good action in between the story sections. The abilities, weapons and range of enemies are nicely balanced and makes for some good fun.
Graphics
If you are a fan of old school computer games, hand painted art styling with attention to detail then this one will work for you. Everything in Bastion is done in a fixed isometric angled view which gives it a nice retro feel. The smooth animation and way that the world appears to build itself as you move around gives it a nice modern and almost organic touch. The use of nice backgrounds to give a slight parallax effect, along with enough clarity between scenery and active objects makes the whole thing very polished.
Extras
The narration in Bastion is unlike any other game I remember playing, though there are probably several I am not remembering right now it is very distinctive and really adds an awesome layer to the production. So much so that whenever playing Dota 2 I have used the Bastion announcer when available. When coupled with a really intriguing story this made for a very memorable experience and is enough to recommend this game alone. There are however some nice extra touches where you can change the game, giving yourself different challenges to mix it up a little, and some nice little skill challenges to break out of the storyline when you want it.
Replay value
There are additional modes available to replay the storyline with extra challenges both in terms of difficulty and side games along with a host of achievements. I can see myself coming back to this again to try and complete the story with the increased difficulty challenges, and just to have some fun getting the more obscure achievements.
Bastion – a firm favourite
The brilliantly written and performed narration, story telling, simple yet detailed graphics and addictive game play combined with plenty ways for it to be replayable make Bastion one of my favourite games of all time.
If you would like to get a copy it is currently available via the Humble Bundle site for just $1. You really can’t argue with that kind of value.
