14 DAY TRIAL // There are two massive knights, clad mostly in black, doing their best to murder me. And there are arrows landing all around, delivered by some pink skeletal archers. I’m unsure of whether they are aiming at my character and simply sometimes hitting my armored foes or if they are part of two opposing factions and I stumbled in the middle of an already ongoing fight.
My momentary befuddlement doesn’t impair my ability to see who’s the biggest threat. I roll away a few times, take a look at the battlefield, and deliver a few ranged attacks at the closest knight. I then wade in with my legendary sword, delivering strikes and avoiding incoming damage. I happen to move close to one of the archers and slash him as well.
The two big enemies finally fall and I only had to chug one health potion during the whole fight. There are some big castle doors up ahead, apparently locked from the inside. So I will have to backtrack a little and find a way to open them, presumably to get out of this frozen wasteland and make a little progress toward my final destination.
Holomento is developed by Sean Weech, with publishing in the hands of Deck13. It is currently on Steam in Early Access. The title is a third-person action title with some role-playing game ideas.
Players will have to explore a fantasy world called Eventide Hollow, affected by the curse from the game’s title. It’s a purplish book that links itself to all who seek to pass through the region, consuming their souls if they fail before choosing another avatar.
More details and lore are revealed as players reach new areas, discover camps, and get artifacts. But Holomento’s main draw lies in its gameplay. Gamers see the character from a third-person perspective and engage in a classic mix of exploration and combat.
The Hollow features plenty of winding paths and shortcuts that need to be opened up. But this is not an open-world game. Looking everywhere will give players access to extra resources and better gear but there’s no way to avoid the big boss battles.
There are a lot of creatures who want to kill the player, starting with pink skeletons and green slimes and quickly escalating in power and number. A good melee weapon mixed with solid use of the dodge roll means they don’t pose much of a threat. Don’t forget to deliver some long-range strikes before enemies close in.
The biggest issue I have with Holomento is the boss battles, which spike the difficulty and require gamers to die repeatedly to understand patterns and then die some more while they perfect their combat approach.
Holomento looks pretty good considering that this entire world is created by just one man. There’s a dreamy quality to the various areas and some majestic combinations of buildings and terrain. There’s less to love when it comes to enemies and the textures of the world but there’s no impact on the gameplay. Combat sounds underwhelming and the soundtrack needs a lot more variety.
Conclusion
I think the title nails the exploration element and should expand it with multiple paths through an area and even ways to avoid some of the big boss fights. The combat system is decent but lacks weight and impact. Holomento is a one-developer project and certainly punches above its weight in terms of both world-building and mechanics.
A preview key was provided by the publisher
