Review for foregone. Game for PC, PlayStation 4, Xbox One, Nintendo Switch and Steam, the video game was released on 13/10/2020 The version for PC is scheduled for the 01/03/2021(in 11 days).
2020 was a year that put us all in difficulty, disastrous in many ways but certainly not for the indie sector, which despite COVID-19 is riding an incredible wave of success. Among the pearls released this year we are pleased to announce an indie that mixes Platform and RPG dynamics in an action context with splashes of metroidvania and a pinch of souls: we are talking about Foregone, available - thanks to the work of the Big Blue Bubble team - for Nintendo Switch, PlayStation 4, PC, Steam and Xbox One.
Foregone is a very successful indie, fast, dynamic and engaging, which while taking both hands from a title like Dead Cells manages to be extremely different in content and in the approach to gameplay. The plot sees as the protagonist an extremely advanced city attacked by a population that, despite being technologically less advanced, turns out to be more aggressive and numerous. The inhabitants of the city of Calagan are therefore forced to use all their intellect and technology to create the judges, superior beings in charge of maintaining order. Too bad, however, that not everything goes as planned.
The Big Blue Bubble development team certainly does not hide its source of inspiration and the similarities with Dead Cells are nothing short of evident to everyone. But despite this at first glance can make you turn up your nose, you soon discover how deeply different Foregone is. First of all, the plot of the judge that we will impersonate flows in a fluid and linear way, without procedurally generated schemes but with an relevance that is closest to metroidvania. In fact, entire game sessions will have to be retraced later and even if this is not necessary in order to complete the title, it becomes almost imperative in terms of farming and gameplay.
Repeating sectors several times leads in fact to discover useful enhancements to evolve the skill tree and the skills connected to it, which helps not a little in the continuation of the story. In fact, as in any metroidvania - and marginally also as in Dead Cells - with the advancement of the levels, (here always the same not procedurally generated) our heroine will acquire skills that will allow her to be more combative and to access areas previously inaccessible.
As for the gameplay Foregone defends itself beautifully well. Our starting heroine already has the ability to double jump and a dash that allows her to get around enemies and, over time, will acquire other skills that will be useful in battle and which, as already mentioned, will allow her to advance in the plot. We will have a melee attack, a long-range attack and two skill slots. Although the skills are multiple, in fact, you can only equip two at a time, so be careful to upgrade the growth tree based on the type of style that best suits your attitude in the game.
Weapons also have their own skill tree which mainly includes two branches of variants, both of which are customizable. For the physical contrast you will have daggers, spears, swords, broadswords and nunchaku / pistols available: each of these weapons will have its own style and its own series of moves that will greatly vary your approach to battle, not only in terms of speed and power but also in terms of coverage. A spear reaches farther but does not cover the shoulders like daggers do, giving rise to a dance that also protects the rear as long as you are very close to the enemy.
The same goes for firearms: the pistol has more ammunition (the cartridges recharge themselves when attacking the white weapon), but it is less powerful; the rifle has a longer range but has less ammunition; to these weapons are added the bow and the triplet, also with their specific characteristics. Unfortunately, the weapons are all here and the comparison with Dead Cells returns to be inevitable: the Motion Twin title offers many more weapons and therefore many more fighting styles, which in Foregone would have been really appreciated. On the other hand Foregone allows, through the forge, to enhance each weapon: each will have slots (only two for common weapons, but up to five for epics) capable of offering damage and additional features once enhanced. Useful in terms of combat system, less useful in terms of variety.
Of course, to complete the RPG component we will have armor, rings and necklaces that will provide level up of the features, and even here the upgrade based on the rarity is a must. Unfortunately, as Foregone is developed, we inevitably end up choosing the weapon we prefer in the most powerful version and the armor or accessories that provide protection and greater life. A slight souls component also appears, since at death we will lose all the gold (necessary for the forge) and all the energy globes (necessary for the skill upgrades) that will form a vase that will wait for us at the point of our departure. After death, the heroine will return to the starting hub and will be able to decide whether to lose half of the loot and recover the remainder immediately or go back to the level to try to recover all the legacy.
From the artistic point of view we can say that Foregone is really pleasant to deal with. Like its cousin Dead Cells, this retro pixelated graphic is convincing and works especially when, as in this case, it is accompanied by fluid and articulate animations. Every movement is regular and every fight a dance, exactly as one would expect. In enemies there are really many and each with a precise and memorable attack pattern and, although some antagonists are only improved versions of themselves, even in the last levels we find new and convincing opponents. Honorable mention for the bosses, who are a joy to behold as much as a curse to the nerves when faced with them.
The soundtrack, which won Best Music at the Montreal International Game Summit, is enjoyable, experience-themed and never invasive. It does not shine, let's face it, but it is still appreciated. Also noteworthy is a total customization of the keys - which allows each player to decide how to fight - and a localization in Spanish (only in the subtitles) well done and without errors, which is rare in today's landscape. We hope for updates for the weapons sector and also in DLC that increase the longevity of a title that deserves to be faced and re-addressed for a long time.
Finally, two words should be spent as always for the version we examined, namely the one for Nintendo Switch. The porting is perfect, without smudges or slowdowns and once again we had the clear demonstration of how the Nintendo home console manages to enhance indies - and in particular this Foregone - like no other platform.
Foregone, the latest effort by the Canadian studio Big Blue Bubble, lands on consoles in a big way. The indie title combines action elements devoted to linear adventure in 2D pixel style, with RPG elements and Souls veins. Fast-paced gameplay, fluid graphics, and a story that reserves twists and turns combine in a title that convinces and stands out despite its similarities to the award-winning Dead Cells. Few flaws do not spoil the gaming experience that conquers and convinces.
► Foregone is an Adventure-indie-Platform-RPG-Metroidvania-type game developed and published by Big Blue Bubble for PC, PlayStation 4, Xbox One, Nintendo Switch and Steam, the video game was released on 13/10/2020 The version for PC is scheduled for the 01/03/2021(in 11 days).
