[Note: An update tweaked some gameplay mechanics but came after I finished the game. This may make some criticisms/views obsolete. If I return to the game, I'll update this review.]
Link to Steam store page: https://store.steampowered.com/app/2190590/Valkie_64/
Steam review version here: https://steamcommunity.com/id/dinoracha/recommended/2190590?snr=1_5_9__402
Throwback games straddle the line between being faithful homages to games of previous generations while injecting modern design, like mechanics and better performance compared to those older platforms. Valkie 64 does a fine job eliciting memories of Nintendo 64 action-adventure classics but stumbles over its own feet in delivering a polished, well-executed homage to said classics. It absolutely looks the part, but playing its part is another story.
The narrative of Valkie 64 is thin enough that it barely exists, but that's not the game's main draw: There are four main worlds to traverse with optional exploration/side quests to net heart pieces for greater survivability. As I finished the game in over four hours, each world can take around an hour to clear out the optional content, poke around and tackle the respective dungeons. Thanks to this the game proceeds steadily, even with some side quests requiring you to start in one world and then complete it elsewhere. Unfortunately, even though they're optional and there's an achievement for completing the game without getting heart pieces, they are practically mandatory to obtain due to the game's combat and its less-than-stellar hitboxes.
The game likes to provide some variety to its combat by having attack buttons for horizontal and vertical sword swings, with the ability to chain them together for lengthier combos or if you're against one or multiple enemies. All of that's great, but it boils down to getting in two or three swings and then dodging to avoid enemy attacks, or annoyingly, just by touching them as most enemies continuously move towards you. Sure, contact damage in a throwback game does make sense, but it looks silly to have a lizard bump their elbow against Valkie and she takes damage for it. Since health restoration when out exploring is limited to dropped/found hearts or a purchasable revive usable on defeat, leaving a dungeon to top up can be a time sink.
This makes one boss fight incredibly irritating as it teleports away upon being hit. You'll land a hit and the boss will blink away, but because the arena is primarily on a sheet of ice, Valkie will slide into the boss' hurt box the moment before blinking away, resulting in cheap damage being taken. An optional mini-boss and even the final boss plainly showcase how hit-and-run the combat can be and practically encourages cheesing fights, as standing your ground leads to your health being shredded. At the same time, the amount you deal is only a portion by comparison. Heck, the final dungeon is a string of glorified gauntlets with enemies and hazards seemingly smattered around haphazardly, and using every cheesy strategy to deal with the horde is necessary to survive.
Eventually, this makes fighting enemies you encounter needless unless they're tied to unlocking progress - Except the economy of Valkie 64 is very tight, meaning that getting money for items and upgrades is a process that takes time. Saphil (the in-game currency) drops in small increments, and with some purchases requiring multiple hundreds of saphil and no (as far as I found) ways of finding saphil in more significant amounts or as rewards, grinding for cash in a game like this is drab. Yes, most of these purchases are optional so grinding is self-inflicted, but as stated above, not getting them leads to more time spent running to and fro healing or missing out on combat upgrades. If these time sinks were streamlined for better efficiency, the game's playtime would've been shortened drastically. I don't think this was an intentional design choice, but one to keep players from finishing the game too quickly.
Let's be honest: The DNA from the Nintendo 64 Legend of Zelda games is all over Valkie 64, especially in its dungeon designs and polygonal graphics. Although the level of depth in the progression and puzzles isn't as involved in Valkie 64, the dungeons are still passable in being a contained level to explore - The lava dungeon being most memorable, as you climb up high walkways and can see how far you've travelled from ground level. Outside of dungeons, each world has its own flavour and NPCs that populate it: A plains world, an ice world, etc. These sprinkles of life and personality help to fill in the gaps left by the straightforward narrative, and make meeting inhabitants of the next world something to look forward to.
It's hard to recommend Valkie 64 both in terms of a throwback game and a third-person action game as it's fine in both regards, except that's all it is - Fine. Ultimately the combat and how that works mechanically are its most significant drawbacks, exemplified by its boss fights that devolve into hit-and-run tactics. At the time of writing, Valkie 64 is $7.99 (CAD) finishing it in just around four hours, and that's with pursuing most side quests and some saphil farming. I don't regret my time with it, but it left me wishing that the combat, traversal and world-building had a bit more to it. If you enjoy adventures that you can complete in an evening, absolutely, Valkie 64 will provide a nice enough time, but I can't recommend it past that.
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