Everhood

I don't want to harp too much on this game as it is obviously made with love, but even the best intentions in the world cannot save it in my eye. A rhythm-game with RPG elements is an alluring concept on paper, but Everhood fails in the crucial parts of each of these genres: The RPG part is barebones, and the story feels like someone played Undertale far too much and decided that it wasn't meta enough. As a rhythm game, it demands to avoid, jump over or parry the enemies' beats. An interesting concept for sure, but a stark departure from the standard formula that requires to match the beats of the song, causing a whiplash between music and visuals. Everhood may have its fans, but it sure isn't for me.

I want to preface this with, I do not think Everhood is a bad game necessarily for the right person. But it is very much not a game for me, and despite me trying to give it a chance all the way to the end, I truly did not enjoy this game. If this game is your favorite thing of all time, you're probably better off just skipping this review. This game is about 5% good, and 95% "fine." Not bad. Not good. Just fine. The story? Eh fine. The characters? Eh fine. The combat? Eh fine. The music? Eh fine. The visuals? Eh fine. Let's go through each one. If you love rhythm games, you'll be disappointed by this game. There really isn't any translation of rhythm game skill to this type of game. This is more of a stiff, clunky bullet-hell type experience. The combat isn't tight enough to feel satisfying in that sense, and the game very quickly divulges into a mess of neon colors and warped perspectives that make this experience much more frustrating over anything else. I understand psychedelic vi...

I really, legitimately wanted to like this game. Firstly, I'd like to address the elephant in the room: Undertale. Whether or not this game does enough to distance itself from the material it is so clearly derived from/inspired by is possibly the greatest source of debate surrounding this game, and for good reason. Me, personally? I think this game puts more time into trying to convince the player that it ISN'T Undertale than it ever does trying to find its footing as its own identity; this is especially apparent in the game's (twist) ending, which practically ruins the entire game in a half-hearted attempt to subvert your expectations that this game be like Undertale (which I'll discuss more later.) This leads me to my next point: All of the ways that the game tries to distance itself from Undertale are the ways in which it fails. It is important to note that this game tries very hard. It is an indie game, after all; it's practically incapable of NOT being a passion project when s...

absolute cinema

Really, really good game. gets extremely hard in some late game elements depending on your difficulty but it never feels overbearing or cruel, story is really good.

pretty good game, a lot of fun

Everhood marks the completion of my unofficial trilogy of games (difficult games with a unique and amazing OST that I played in 2022 and then left for 3 years, only to come back and grab all the remaining achievements I hadn't unlocked - with the other two games being Furi and Neon White). It's also fitting that Everhood is my 100th review! It's such an interesting game both mechanically and narratively. It's not really a rhythm game, but more so an adventure game with rhythmic battles (bullet-hell-esque) where instead of moving with the beat, you are actively avoiding it (at least until you reach a certain part, after which you can literally throw the beat back at them). It also helps that the OST is a banger! The story really surprised me too. When I first played, I was just expecting a silly game with wacky characters, but the tone switch, writing, and design of the second half really had me contemplating for a bit. A lot of people draw comparisons to Undertale (I mean, lo...

This game really evers my hood

It's pretty good! Music is nice and the presentation is really creative (though sometimes overbearing). It's another earthbound/Undertale-like, but it goes beyond having some quirky characters and some meta moments, and brings across a cool vibe and an interesting ethos. Not the most polished game, but makes up for it in its combination of ambition and simplicity.

Words cannot express how amazing this game is. It brought tears to my eyes. I thought it was an Undertale-inspired game at first, but then it took a full 180. It felt like a black male bent me over and started giving me backshots while I was high off my ass. Every scene felt like I was somehow taking in another inch, as if I wasn't being given the full thing. It built its own unique structure. It was absolutely life-changing, and I'd recommend it to anyone who's played games like Just Shapes and beats or Undertale.