Disclaimer
I was sent the Altheia: The Wrath of Aferi demo for free to review for my blog. While I am very grateful for the opportunity, I won’t let it sway my opinions. This will be my honest review. I understand this game is still in development and will try to be a bit more lenient with my criticism.
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What is Altheia: The Wrath of Aferi?
Altheia: The Wrath of Aferi is a 3D puzzle adventure coming to Steam in August 21. You can request access to playtest as of the writing of this article.
Lili and Sadi must learn to work together to traverse across the fantastical world of Atarassia. The world is a dangerous place, but our heroes have the skills to survive it. Fight off monsters, destroy the darkness that corrupts the land, and solve a few puzzles in between. Can they push back the void’s corruption and save the world?
Gameplay
Players control a sword wielding guardian who can tap into her monk friends powers to traverse across the map, fight monsters, and solve puzzles. This is your typical 3D puzzle adventure, but it does very little hand holding. There is no markers on the maps. Players must explore to find clues and solve the puzzles on their own (or with a guide). The combat system is simple and reminiscent of games like Breath of the Wilds. Players have access to a melee attack, bow and arrow, and skills like a bomb ability.
Impressions
Altheia: The Wrath of Aferi is fine, but it feels like a Breath of the Wild clone, and that will really hurt it. The biggest issue I have with this demo is with the performance. Combat feels too clunky, and the abilities don’t feel impactful. The bow and arrow ability feels useless. This might be a skill issue, but it was more trouble than it is worth. I like that they make you aim the bow, but making it more stable is the move here. I know the game isn’t finished yet, so I can only hope the full version will have smoother combat.
Another issue with this demo is the tutorial. Some of the tips disappeared before I had a chance to read them, and there was no way of looking up the mechanic that I needed to progress through the game. Button mashing does nothing when the mechanic requires players to hold down a certain combination. Other tips are easily missed and if you don’t read them, you won’t pick up important mechanics. This game would benefit from having a section where players can look up tutorials.
The puzzles were also kind of boring, at least for the tutorial bits. If there aren’t engaging puzzles in the tutorial, this game is going to lose its player base before it can start unraveling its lore and world building. The world also feels empty. There was no reason for exploring because even though everything looked cool, there was nothing to do but follow the path to the next puzzle. Maybe the full game will have secrets and unlockables to promote exploration.
The game has a decent artstyle and concept, it just needs to run smoother for the launch. With launch date creeping up, I don’t think it will be possible. Unfortunately, Altheia: The Wrath of Aferi didn’t do enough to grab my attention. I am going to have to pass on it for now.