It’s one thing to make a game in a genre that is relatively oversaturated. It’s another thing entirely to make a game that feels like it’s trying to build its reputation off of a different title. The beloved title Hollow Knight succeeded, and success inherently begets copycats.
The game Voidwrought initially seems like an example of this, since its animation feels adjacent to Hollow Knight. However, this game takes a reasonable approach to the genre by mixing weird ideas and tried-and-true mechanics with a solid understanding of level design to create a surprisingly enjoyable yet challenging experience that distinguishes itself from other titles.
Just like Hollow Knight, Voidwrought features incredibly tough boss fights. However, the game’s more challenging encounters feel exponentially more vicious. Bosses in other games typically revolve around mastering specific mechanics or overcoming a fair challenge with skill. The enemies in Voidwrought are preoccupied with figuring out every way to annihilate one’s ankles. Surprisingly, this makes every tough encounter engaging, since the genuine difficulty of these fights makes victory feel extra sweet.
Unfortunately, the controls often pose more of a challenge than the fights themselves. The main character’s jump is quick and short, which prevents the player from adapting by adjusting how high they move. The basic attack also feels uncomfortable to use, as it’s more inaccurate than it should be. It’s unclear what causes this issue, but it inevitably results in the player taking unfair damage.
The abilities leave a lot to be desired as well. The best items in games like this are versatile, like something that allows for progress while expanding one’s moveset or arsenal. The only mandatory upgrade that meaningfully affects more than one aspect of gameplay is the slide, as everything else feels—or just is—too situational to realistically help in anything other than navigation. The game does feature a plethora of optional combat-focused abilities, but these metaphorical one-trick ponies don’t alleviate this issue and don’t add value to the upgrades one has to obtain throughout a playthrough.
However, the rough controls do not detract from the level design. A well-timed bounce off an enemy can grant one early access to new locations, and the game never blocks one from doing this. Additionally, it never feels like the player can reach locales horrifically out of sequence. The challenges faced in one area are just as tricky in other places, and most obstacles aren’t insurmountable because of a lack of upgrades. Voidwrought grants the player freedom on a level not typically seen from other games similar to it, since one can take on most areas with skill alone.
This works hand-in-hand with the game’s many surprises. For example, Voidwrought features random interdimensional tunnels that haphazardly teleport the player across the map. It will also often to suddenly catch the player off guard with one of its fiercer boss fights or give out an essential ability as a reward for doing nothing more than engaging with side content. It’s a pleasant surprise to see a game not only get creative with its rewards but also how those rewards get delivered to the player.
Voidwrought also respects the player’s time by opting to forgo explanation for its handful of game mechanics. For example, finding collectibles in the game will often present the player with nothing more than a phrase like “Devotees Summoned,” leaving them to wonder what exactly they just accomplished until they finally come across said devotees. None of the mechanics are so obtuse that they inherently require explanation, but some—like the devotees—are still obfuscated enough that figuring out what exactly they contribute feels immensely satisfying. Additionally, the lack of explanation adds a brilliant aura of mystery to the world.
All in all, I would give Voidwrought a 7/10!
