Therein lies another problem, since there’s not much of a progression system for Ary, or any interesting way to develop her throughout the game. Currency in the game is used to buy cosmetics and upgrades, though the only way to get more money is through chests, as enemies don’t drop anything in this game.
Ary and the secret of seasons metacritic how to#
Players just need to figure how to reach and obtain them. There are chests and collectibles strewn around, but they are often marked on the map. There is a certain degree of exploration, but there’s not much incentive to do so. Unfortunately, the different regions of Valdi are bland and not terribly interesting to explore, but the best part of the gameplay in the game revolves around the four dungeons, which are varied in design, from a jungle look to a steampunk one. The game introduces that and ignores it, never mentioning it ever again. It was weirdly dark and at odds with the game’s overall happy-go-lucky tone of fighting anthromorphic laughing hyenas and vegetable monsters. At one point, you learn that a major character is abducting children and forced them into child labour. Certain stuff happens and then are never spoken of again. All of that is thrown out the window amidst an oddly-paced narrative and an ill-defined antagonist. It’s a great narrative setup, but the game squanders all its potential later on. In the very beginning before she sets out on her adventure, Ary even cuts her hair shorter and dresses more like her father to look like more Guardian apprentice-material, just like the legendary Mulan. There’s definitely a Mulan vibe to it all, as Ary is trying to adopt the burden of her father and brother.
However, once a catastrophic event occurs that shakes up the balance of the seasons, it’s up to Ary to defy tradition and help save the world in place of both her father and brother. The game begins in the wake of a tragedy that sees Flynn presumed dead, leaving their father a broken, catatonic shell. Protagonist Ary is the daughter of the winter Guardian, while her older brother, Flynn, serves as apprentice and successor. The world of Valdi is divided into four quadrants, each of which is permanently locked into one of four seasons (Spring, Summer, Autumn, Winter), with each having a Guardian and apprentice to keep watch over their domain. But after one too many glitches, her dazzling personality will fail to keep gamers plugged in.Here’s the gist of the plot in Ary And The Secret Of Seasons, which sounds like a cute little story that belongs in a Disney, Pixar, or Dreamworks movie. This is a shame as Ary is the kind of character you want to root for. The glitches alone will put off seasoned gamers, and given this game's young demographic, it is hard to imagine kids suffering through the slips.
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The only thing that keeps players from experiencing the world in full is the game's half-done execution. Not even Ary's dogged personality could make me feel better.Īt the heart of Ary and the Secret of Seasons rests a good story and a delightful world ripe for exploring. These cosmetic issues are certainly annoying, but the game-breaking glitches made me want to rage-quit at several points. Enemies would glitch in battle, at times forcing me to reload, and the game itself would blur or stretch in crowded areas. Ary would regularly fall through the map, glitch into places she should not be in, and that is just the start.
I encountered more bugs than I could count while playing this game on the PlayStation 4.
Ary and the Secret of Seasons has a bigger problem, and that is its unfinished pitfalls. While the game's combat system is lackluster, it does work.