Table of Contents
Information
Name: Minoria
Genre: Metroidvania
Platforms: PC, Xbox One, PlayStation 4, and Nintendo Switch
Platform Reviewed On: PS4
Price: 19.99$
Developer: Bombservice
Publisher: DANGEN Entertainment
Minoria is a typical Metroidvania type game that has you take control of a nun tasked to save a couple of princesses from evil witches. I won’t go into too much detail about the story for the sake of avoiding spoilers. Still, on the one hand, it seems like it’s trying to tell a more complex story that it’s capable of (perhaps a shortcoming of the Metroidvania type games in general) while being somewhat predictable at the same time. There’s plenty of lore to collect during your journey even though that fills in some of the information the story itself fails to relay.
Minoria uses simple anime-like character designs and backgrounds that look painted or drawn. While the game can be nice to look at times, the backgrounds are mostly rather dull and repetitive. Characters are a bit underwhelming in detail and design but serve their purpose. I would’ve liked some more enemy variety, but it’s a short game, so that I will leave it at that.
The gameplay is where Minoria stands out being quite satisfying while relying on melee combat, the effects of incense, and blocking/parry mechanics. Combat is simple but effective, while you rely on a limited amount of healing and projectile incense to get you through to the next safe point. Naturally, you’ll get new abilities as you progress, including those necessary to reach new areas (expect a lot of backtracking, especially if you’re the completionist type). Bosses offer a nice challenge (not too difficult though), in particular, if you want to beat them with no damage for additional rewards.
Notwithstanding a few exceptions, the music is relatively minimal and monotonous. Maybe it’s my Castlevania nostalgia speaking, but it could’ve used a few more standout pieces that really set the atmosphere and define the area you’re moving through
All fans of Momodora will be able to find similar aspects in the design and gameplay in Minoria. They will have to master the parries, dodges, and a variety of attack combos and spells. Minoria’s art style is of 2D Pixel Art, which tries to be similar to the aesthetic of Momodora. Minoria features high-resolution graphics. The creators of Momodora have mixed hand-painted backgrounds with cell-shaded characters and have added cinematic sequences to Minoria.
Conclusion and Score:
Overall, Minoria is a short, fun Metroidvania type game that’s certainly worth it if this is your jam, but don’t expect it to be a world-altering experience.
7/10
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