Dust: An Elysian Tail (PS4) Review

Dust to Dust.

 What I love about indie games is usually they're a breath of fresh air after dumping loads of hours into Triple-A games. One should excuse the simplistic nature of indies since they're often comprised by a small team that put much heart and effort into their projects. Sometimes you'll hear that some of the best indies such as Cave Story and the Touhou series were actually made by a single person! Dust: An Elysian Tail is another lovingly crafted indie gem made by Dean Dodrill, who designed and programmed the majority of the game. It's a stunning and beautiful game that had feel at ease many times, which is pretty odd when playing an action-RPG.



STORY- We follow the titular and amnesiac Dust, who under the guidance of the satinent sword the "Blade of Aurah" and its guardian Fidget, must stop a military attack by the ruthless General Gaius. During his journey, Dust will come across many characters and uncover many revelation regarding his past. The story was decent and kept me engaged during the game's eight-hour runtime. I ended up liking Dust, Fidget, and Aurah altogether and founded the villain to be actually alright. The ending was really touching and I hope we'll see more of Dust and his companions in the future soon.

A journey of loss and betrayal.

GAMEPLAY- Chances are if you've played Muramasa: Rebirth, then you'll instantly get aquanted with Dust: An Elysian Tail. If not, the game is a 2D action, hack-and-slash game with RPG and crafting elements. You control Dust as he travels the land of Falana from area to area killing hordes of enemies, collecting money to craft cool gear, and helping the townsfolk by completing side-quests. Defeating enemies and doing side-quests, you receive experience and level up and have the option of increasing either Dust's vitality, defense, or attack. You can also increase the potency of Fidget's attacks too. As the plot progresses, you'll unlock abilities for Dust such double-jumping, vine climbing, and so on, which will help you access areas you couldn't before. Such areas include a challenge area where you must defeat hordes enemies of enemies while avoiding many traps in order to reach the finish area under a time limit. You're often rewarded with a treasure, which often include either a some money or an item schematic.

The gameplay is fast and solid, though could

have used some depth in the RPG side of things.

PRESENTATION- There's no denying that Dust doesn't look beautiful for an indie game. Detailed background, slick lighting, and some decent character models blend well into the game's world. Visual effects such as smoke are pretty neat as well. The voicework, for an indie title, is very much impressive and makes the game feel alive, with well-done performances from all. The soundtrack, courtesy of HyperDuck SoundWorks, compliments the game's visual style well, with many great and calming tracks to listen to.

The presentation is crisp and stunning.

OVERALL- I enjoyed the time I poured in Dust: An Elysian Tail. The story was very engaging and so was the gameplay, killing hordes after hordes of enemies didn't get old. And there's the visuals and soundwork, both of which are neatly made. While the only downside I can think of is that the combat could've used a little bit of depth, but it isn't a deal breaker by any means. Dust is one of the great indies I've played this past while and certainly there among the best ever made as well.