Heidelberg 1693

I never really thought I would go back to my roots. A dark basement with a 12 pack of Tab soda and a copy of Ghost n Goblins that my cousin rented for me from the store because my parents said I couldn't get it. But god damnit this game got pretty close. The game managed to keep a solid difficulty throughout my playthrough with only a few times where things were either too hard or too easy. Enemies tend to bullet hell you with a lot of projectiles but the dev added in friendly fire and that will add a new layer to gameplay where instead of just trying to find the right moment to dodge and attack there are also a lot of opportunities to line up a situation where one enemy will kill another allowing you to progress with less hassle. Some of the maps you will be going through will simply be walking from one side to the other without a whole lot of challenge but when there is a challenge there is A LOT of challenge. I was pretty disappointed by the map where you could fly a renaissance fl...

I'm going to preface this with a disclaimer: while I am giving the game a negative review, I do not DISLIKE the game. In fact I like it quite a bit, and think it has a lot of good things going for it. However, at the end of the day, I feel the flaws significantly interfere with my making an honest recommendation for the game to others. With that said, to go into detail: This game styles itself off the old-school, pre-Symphony of the Night Castlevanias, specifically Super Castlevania 4. The creators have said so as much. Both in terms of gameplay and aesthetic, this is a game about tight platforming, difficult enemy encounters and a gothic horror locale. Or at least, it tries to be. Aesthetics wise I'll voice no complaint, save perhaps for the fact the music is pretty forgettable droning synth stuff, but visually the game is a gorgeous pixel art display of grotesque horrors set in the European Enlightenment. Mechanically though, I have problems. First is the controls - which I will p...

Pretty fucking neat. First and foremost, I don't understand why there's not more games with black powder weapons; they can be presented as potent as all hell and punishing if your aim is absolute garbage. The gameplay with that concept alone writes itself. Secondly, why isn't there more period horror? The aesthetic for this game is simply outstanding and I love, love, LOVE the mood the game presents--it's dark and bleak but it doesn't take itself too seriously and isn't afraid to have a little fun ala gallows humor in the enemy animations and types. And the soundtrack--I wasn't expecting to really enjoy that so much, more often than not a soundtrack becomes back ground noise for me the but dark synth and hints of harpsichord elevate the whole experience. That was seriously a hell of a surprise. Gameplay wise, it's basically a very good Castlevania clone--though we're talking pre Symphony of the Night here so it's not about back tracking though there's plenty to explore in each l...

I really wanted to like this game, but the amount of frustration I've gone through trying to beat this makes it seriously not worth it. Look, I know: There are old platformers that are quite hard. However, I'd like to imagine that those games don't have controls that seem to go against you. I've gotten quite frustrated over hard games before, but Heidelberg 1693 is one of the few to actually make me stop playing. Having insanely crowded encounters and, in some cases, an overpowered floating head with a ton of health moving unpredictably around the level while surrounded by blades, meaning it's an incredibly likely insta-death for you, just isn't a fun kind of challenge if you ask me. I do love the setting this game takes place in, as well as the overall presentation. So Heidelberg 1693 is a game with awesome presentation, but also constant difficulty coupled with slippery controls. If you have a lot of patience, I do suggest getting this game. Otherwise, I think you'll be fine.

Style is pretty cool and the story seems fascinating, but the game is super clunky. Enemies are extremely erratic with their behaviors to the point where I can either fight them on even footing or just get hit immediately on spawn. Speaking of which, you only start with one health which means the moment I do get hit at my spawn point I then have the luxury of spawning back with the off chance that I will once again die two steps from spawn. So when all this happens and the game page says "Timing your actions is critical to success in this game, as a correctly timed jump or attack can be the difference between glorious victory and shameful defeat. Furthermore, studying and understanding your enemies will be of utter importance" then these words start to feel empty and meaningless. When I bought this game I fully expected a challenge but not one that felt like it was it was going to be up to a coin toss each run. I truly wanted to like this game but with how controls tie together and ...

Very fun game, quick respawns, works on the Steam deck. One minor dislike, the checkpoints are sometimes surrounded by enemies where if you respawn you'll have 1 heart and 9 enemies around you trapping you in five respawns before breaking out. Actually having finished the game screw that Moonman stupid resurrecting the enemies and flying across from offscene. Nothing way cooler than getting killed and respawning because an non-dodgeable attack

I am sincerely disgusted by the gameplay and what the game offers in combat, weird patters for bosses, bad game design, weird movement, STARTING WITH ONE HP! Why is that a thing!? I hope some updates will be added, and by updates i mean SERIOUS updates! I understand the feeling of making a game but making a game with a good lore is interesting, but put all the efforts in the lore is making abandon ship for the gameplay. Unity isn't nice for a game like this, i really like the concept of this game but i hope some changes will make me change my review. Please devs, do something for your game.

A traditional everyday German children's lullaby folk tale.

This game really makes you feel like you're in Europe

Did you ever play Ghouls 'n Goblins? Do you wish that game wasn't a quarter-crunchering masterpiece of misery? This game is Ghouls n' Goblins without the quarter-crunching misery. And therefore plausible to actually finish. For those unfamiliar with Ghouls n' Goblins, this means it's a very hard side-scrolling run-and-gun platformer with tons of unlockables, secret areas, shortcuts, and ridiculous enemies. Fortunately, a checkpoint system means that trial and error is possible and no lives system means that you can brute force your way through the game. There is an arcade scoring system for those who want to finesse their way through. I couldn't. Maybe you can.