Astor: Blade of the Monolith Review—Astor’s Awakening

Platforms: PlayStation 5, Nintendo Switch, PlayStation 4, Xbox One, MORE

Developer: C2 Game Studio

Initial release date: 2024

Genres: Role-playing video game, Adventure game, Indie game, Fighting game, Casual game, Adventure

Publishers: Versus Evil, tinyBuild

Engine: Unreal Engine 4

Action RPGs are widely available. For every Breath of the Wild, there is an Oceanhorn that may look similar but is not the same. I do not wish to start this review poorly, however this is common in many platform storefronts. What you have to do is attract someone’s attention for a good cause, and when I saw a teaser for Astor: Blade of the Monolith at IGN’s ID@Xbox Showcase last month, I was intrigued by what C2 Game Studio was working on. After playing it, you’ll see it’s not a plain clone, despite the fact that it incorporates many elements from previous games.

The story opens with the main guy, Astor, and his pal exploring some ruins. After exploring an unusual device, Astor is bestowed with a sword and extraordinary skills, which he utilizes to repel evil beings known as the Hiltsik, who pursue them during their mission. When our hero enters the world, he discovers that his life has changed, and he learns about his and his people’s history thanks to an ancient prophecy.

This is a story with some very interesting twists and turns, but I found it a little shallow. While we learn a lot about the Diokek, the doll-like creatures that have gained awareness through wooden masks, and the Makers who came before them, we never get much information about the contemporary world and characters. The emphasis on the past is appropriate, but I would have liked to learn more about the Diokek who had helped me throughout the story. Having said that, it is an exciting and original concept, something we don’t see enough of in the genre.

Because of the lack of emphasis, most characters other than Astor feel underdeveloped. You don’t spend much time with them, and when they do appear, it’s just because they’re important to advance the plot, either narratively or to bring you to the next location. There’s a time where I believe the writer believed they’d made a stronger connection with a certain character, but it feels empty since we never get to know that character well enough to elicit that emotional reaction. I felt it more in the second way they handled the character, but it was too late.

I have to tip my hat to one of the story’s presentation methods: a narrator. A woman with a pleasant voice recounts legend and the current situation as you go, and I actually wanted more of it. This game is ideal for that type of storyline; yet, there was an opportunity to lean even more heavily in a path that worked well.

While the story takes a backseat, it’s only because there are so many places to explore. This is a highlight of Astor: Blade of the Monolith, featuring various unique biomes that look stunning in this art style. That’s a lot of what I liked about the trailer, and it doesn’t disappoint. The frigid and snowy mountain, the grassy lowlands, and the rocky caves of the Crystal Haven, which serves as your hub, are all excellent examples of someone delving into the design and putting forth a lot of effort. I could need a bit more detail when it comes to asset work, such as when there are a few tufts of grass that either need friends or should not be there at all, but the overall beauty of the planet is a great bonus in Astor: Blade of the Monolith. C2 Game Studio also makes fantastic use of biomes by altering them up throughout the game.

Of course, having a fantastic setting to explore is useless if the gameplay isn’t terrific, which it is in big part. With a subtitle like Blade of the Monolith, you’d expect to see some kind of blade or dagger, and you’d be correct. Astor begins with a sword and swift hack-and-slash action, and I enjoy the combinations and powers offered. Fighting the various adversaries is a lot of fun (there’s a lot of variety between grunts, mini-bosses, and bosses), and Astor is entertaining to control, hopping around, dodging, parrying, and kicking buttocks all over the place. It can be a little repetitive, but overall it’s enjoyable.

What I didn’t expect was a plethora of runic skills on the side, as well as a long-range blast and three extra weapons that you unlock as you progress through the game. Two of these are tied to entering specific locations in a Zelda-like method, and they eventually become useful weapons. I say this because you acquire these late in the game, and by that point, you’ve invested so much in the sword that it’s difficult to walk away from it, especially with the extra damage upgrades I’d dropped my tokens into. I finally did, but only for the second weapon (a pair of rock gauntlets), which hit hard. The other two, the hammer and spear, felt a touch slow in comparison; I’m guessing my faster-paced, “dodge over parry” style of play had an impact.

I’m not sure why you acquire two powers later in the game: double jumping and sprinting. To some extent, I understand the sprint, especially since the mount provides something to work with early on, but the double jump is irritating. The platforming in Astor isn’t great, and the lack of this skill makes it worse. Even after you obtain it, I’d rate platforming as below average, although it helps.

The runic talents were something I overlooked at first, but I had a great time after I discovered them. These are essentially “magic” assaults that are diversified in a fun way. You unlock them by completing global challenges, such as dropping a large block on someone’s head, summoning a robot golem to assist you, or causing a whirlwind. They also have a fair recharge time and are rather powerful.

While these side challenges provide decent rewards, I don’t think the remainder of the side missions are that intriguing. Astor: Blade of the Monolith is a semi-open environment with some quite huge sections and some strictly linear quests. In the open world, you can look for stamina and health upgrades, upgrade tokens, and do little jobs for Diokek people. The open world feels slightly inflated because there isn’t much to do other than gather stuff and clear out Hiltsik. You even get a mount halfway through, which I overlooked because it’s worthless unless you’re spending the time to search beneath every rock.

On the performance front, everything has gone smoothly. I haven’t seen any stuttering in frame rate, and it’s running at a solid 60fps. Having saying that, this is unquestionably an indie game. Some of the audio is really low quality, and there was one point in an underground temple where the sound of a cavern collapsing would not stop, and it was so loud that the rest of that level (about half of it) became rough. The UX design is likewise fairly rudimentary, with unattractive menus and upgrade trees. This has no influence on the experience, but it could be improved.

Review Overview

Gameplay – 70%

Controls – 75%

Aesthetics – 78%

Content – 70%

Accessibility – 72%

Value – 75%

Overall Rating – 73%

GOOD

Summary: While Astor: Blade of the Monolith does not rewrite gaming history, it is a strong debut for C2 Game Studio. The mix of a terrific battle loop and amazing visuals works well, and while the story lacks substance, it is still fun. This is undoubtedly a game that the developers can expand upon, with potential shining through.