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Victor vran arpg3/28/2023 This is a big concern to me, increasingly with Switch games. "The menus here are downright clunky, overstuffed as they are with tiny text and unclear icons" It's clearly a result of this being a 3D world with a zoomed-out view, but console audiences are used to such things being handled far more smoothly. There's some brutally basic texture work on display, and large chunks of the world frequently pop into view as your view shifts a little. While this world certainly has some personality, the graphics are just a little ropey. Navigating them with the Joy-Con stick is a bit of a chore, to say the least, and simply looking to see how a new weapon compares to your current one - a core part of the gameplay, remember - feels way harder work than it needs to be. The menus here are downright clunky, overstuffed as they are with tiny text and unclear icons. Less palatable will be the game's many rough edges. But it makes the game lighter and more palatable to an audience less versed in this sort of thing, at least. It's a shame Victor himself is such a humourless stiff by contrast, and the jokey stuff often grates up against the portentous tone of the overarching plot. It might look grim and downbeat from the screenshots, but there's a strong line of cheeky humour running through everything - most clearly seen with the jokey disembodied narrator, who throws a constant stream of quips and insults your way. This accessibility is mostly aided by the tone of the game. It's uniquely appealing to a console crowd brought up on more direct fare. As a result, Victor Vran: Overkill Edition feels like a half-way point between a traditional ARPG and a mainstream action-adventure game. You even have a jump button (complete with a Mario-esque wall-bounce) for getting out of trouble and accessing hidden areas. There's a dodge-roll on the L button for nipping out of immediate danger. Here you have direct control of the titular demon hunter's movement and attacks via the left Joy-Con and fascia buttons respectively. Victor Vran: Overkill Edition is different. Most ARPGs tend to be designed with a mouse and keyboard in mind, deploying a semi-automated form of clicky combat that doesn't always translate too well to a control pad. It all feeds into Victor Vran: Overkill Edition's distinctly hands-on combat. You do get one-off demon powers that work in a more traditional way, but for the most part, it's all about the hardware. Where other ARPGs might give you completely separate magical moves that can be chopped and changed individually, here they're mostly tied to each weapon type. These weapons are even more specialised thanks to the fact that they are tied to special attacks. It's not much good against mobs of the regenerating undead, however, where a slow but wide-ranging and hard-hitting hammer might be of more use. The rapier, for example, can issue lighting-quick attacks and is particularly useful at getting through singular armoured foes. Each weapon class handles completely uniquely, and each has its use depending on the type and number of enemies that you're facing. There are scythes, rapiers, swords, hammers, shotguns and more. Victor Vran has a brilliant combat system, anchored by its clear and concise focus on weapon types rather than distinct character classes. That loot comes in the form of coins, ability-modifying cards, difficulty-altering hexes and completely new weapons.Īh, the weapons. Each defeated enemy yields experience points and, often, shiny loot. Waves and waves of supernatural enemies wade towards you as you roam through the open hubs and instanced dungeons of Zagoravia - a gothic city besieged by otherworldly forces. Hoovering up a near-constant stream of loot and experience points is the key driver behind the game. Victor Vran: Overkill Edition is an action role-playing game, which means that it eschews complex turn-based battle systems in favour of instant hack-and-slash action. But it does have an energetic spirit all of its own, as well as a few unique advantages that might better serve a broader, Nintendo-loving crowd. It isn't as slick, polished, or downright accomplished as Diablo III, but then few games of this sort are. Victor Vran: Overkill Edition is just such a game. Or, you could snap out of your stupor and get warming up those looting muscles with a highly creditable alternative. You could spend the next few months gawping into space, imagining how great it'll be to play Blizzard's seminal ARPG on the go. Diablo III is coming to Switch this December.
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