Sundered PlayStation 4 Review: Death Comes Quickly, And With Reward

Sundered strikes that strange little chord that seems to work so well with today’s games – it comes with an utmost challenge that’s comparable with Dark Souls and Bloodborne, where death will come swiftly with the overwhelming of enemies if you aren’t too careful; but it also brings back the classic Metroidvania open world design, one in which exploration pays off in dividends as you explore a strange underworld with your female heroine, Eshe. It’s the way that the developers Thunder Lotus strikes that chord with such elegance that makes Sundered something else – even though it probably won’t be best suited for newbie players.

The game tasks you with exploring a vast underworld filled with all sorts of dangerous creatures, which you’ll have to deal with before eventually being pulled under. But while you will die often in Sundered, it’s never to the point of frustration – well, not too much, anyway. The reason for that is you have an opportunity to expand upon a large skill tree for your character, opening up new abilities and making her even more swift in battle. That doesn’t mean you should want to die, by any means, but when you do, at least you have something to come back for.

You’ll need said skills to survive, too. In Sundered, enemies come quite often, either crawling on the ground, darting from the sky or maybe even a mixture of both, attempting to chip away at Eshe’s life force. There’s a neat dodge tactic that can help you along, but, obviously, the goal here is to use your weapon of choice and lay waste to them – if you’re not laid waste to first, obviously.

Yeah…You’ve Had It

The new abilities are rather cool as well, notably the double jump, which allows you access to areas you couldn’t reach before. It’s unlocking small, subtle little things like these that keep you going in Sundered, even after you swear to yourself after a boss has laid waste to you the tenth time through. This game is all about persistence, and it’s hardly impossible. That said, you might want to make sure your skills are in good shape, lest you become sucked under by dark forces. (The death animation in this game is really something.)

There are some randomized room designs in Sundered to keep you on your toes. Some places are the same, like the main core area where you can level up, as well as the boss stages. But otherwise, you’ll pretty much have to figure out new routes to get around as you start up a new game. This may throw off those that are used to memorizing maps (as you probably did in Super Metroid), but it’s a neat aspect that adds on to the overall vibrant level design.

Sundered is an absolute beauty when it comes to design. The level layout is ideal, the animations are fluid and remind me so much of old-school gaming goodness, and the coloring as a whole is beautiful. You’ve never seen an underworld look as tranquil as this. That said, the game does have minor performance issues, with occasional skips in frame rate and small glitches here and there. I’m sure Thunder Lotus is working on it, though, and will eventually smooth the whole thing over with a patch so it looks even better. I also liked the atmospheric sound, though the game’s musical score isn’t quite as engrossing as I would’ve preferred. That doesn’t mean it’s bad, though – just don’t expect Castlevania: Symphony of the Night-level tunage.

An Adventure Worth Partaking, Despite Flaws

Finally, be prepared to wait a bit for Sundered to start up. For some reason, the game’s loading times can take quite a while. Granted, with everything that the game has to offer, it could be understood that putting everything in place can take a bit. But, again, I hope Thunder Lotus is working on a patch that’ll tidy it up a bit, so we can get back to plundering and less waiting.

As it stands, Sundered isn’t the ultimate Metroidvania style experience, as its small technical setbacks and lack of booming music score keep it from joining the ranks of Symphony. But Thunder Lotus still deserves commendation, because it’s an enthralling thrill ride all the same. There’s actually value here in making progress, and you’ll soon be able to transform Eshe into an underworld-dominating bad-ass, if you stick with it. The controls are responsive and the game looks absolutely stunning at times, even with its hiccups.

If you’re a fan of the Metroidvania variety of games – and maybe even a little bit of Dark Souls for good measure – it certainly wouldn’t hurt to get a little Sundered.

RATING: Four out of five stars.

Disclaimer: A review code was provided by the publisher.