Astalon: Tears of the Earth Review - Teamwork Makes The Dream Work?

Today on I Dream of Indie Ole Gamer Joe is reviewing Astalon: Tears of the Earth on the Playstation 4. This action platformer is also available on the Nintendo Switch, Xbox, and PC. Using a 3 character system similar to classic puzzle game The Lost Vikings, Astalon features some light RPG mechanics. Find out what we think in our full review of Astalon: Tears of the Earth!
A review code was provided for the purpose of this review.
#Astalon #indiegames
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"Astalon: Tears Of The Earth is an action-platformer set in a dying world where life is cruel, but death can be a stepping stone to victory! Use the unique skills and weapons of Arias the fighter, Kyuli the rogue, and Algus the wizard, to surmount the mysterious tower and find the answers to their survival. Slay terrible monsters, discover powerful artifacts, and solve fiendish puzzles, reaching new heights in the tower with the aid of a Titan. Follow a story about friendship and sacrifice, building up the courage to take down giants to protect the weak and powerless. Strengthen your party and change their fate by embracing death. Discover the countless secrets of the Tower of Serpents!"
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[@sofaking1180]

I saw in another review an item you eventually can find which lets you freely choose between the 3 characters at any given point in time instead of the slower process you described in this review.

[@IDreamofIndie]

*SPOILER* You do get a bell item much later in the game that will allow you to do this, but this is around the 6/7 hour mark depending on skill level. If you haven't seen our content before we try not to spoil late game for players. Still, the main grind of this game is going to have you using the swap mechanic as described.

[@adriannaamato9833]

This looks really cool! Going on my wishlist immediately. Also I really enjoyed watching you explain the game while also showing footage. Hope this continues! Feels a bit more personal.

[@IDreamofIndie]

Awesome really glad you enjoyed that added touch!

[@Kevilow]

This looks great and I loved Lost Vikings on the SNES, going to add it to my wishlist. Thanks for the review

[@IDreamofIndie]

You are most welcome fellow Lost Vikings fan!

[@RewindingsForLosers]

I had so much fun playing the demo. I put this one on my wishlist right away. Great game! Can't wait to get the complete version. Great review!

[@IDreamofIndie]

Really glad you enjoyed the game!!

[@bearwillow6108]

I was so skeptical about this game. I thought I would either think it was mediocre or just plain uninspired and awful...welp...I was wrong. This is my favorite game of the year so far. It’s so much fun in so many ways.

[@IDreamofIndie]

That's awesome really glad you are enjoying the game!!

[@rangoononline]

These retro-style games are like crack to me. Gonna pick this up ASAP. Awesome review!

[@IDreamofIndie]

Let's hope the end results aren't the same as crack!

[@lordmetroid1]

Great review Joe, this one slipped up my radar, I be bugging

[@christianvega12341]

I wanna play it. I use to play the nes back in the day. And those game were hard. No save point, you die and you have to start from the begining. But they were awesome. The good old days.

[@IDreamofIndie]

Haha yeah those were the days!

[@Noumakara]

One of my goty candidates. Anyway there’s an item that let you switch hero on the fly. You didn’t like the game design decision? For me i loved it! It felt fresh in every run. Challenging but not overly difficult. Each run is a lesson learned. So i can watched out what can hit me in the next run.

[@IDreamofIndie]

Yeah I liked the game overall but the bell item you are referring to comes really late and for me that made the first 5 or 6 hours of the game a real slog. I wish you had the ability to switch from the start personally.

[@EsThirt33n]

I like 2d sprites and love platforming/metroid-vania type of games, I will definitely be checking out this game! Thanks for the reviews you guys do, they are always fun, informative, and enjoyable to watch!!!

[@IDreamofIndie]

Well thank you so much we couldn't make them without you watching :)

[@Mac_Omegaly]

12 hours in and nearly done... I really love this game so far. I am impressed just how good it is. Yes it's somewhat on the harder side, but it's no Momodora. (So it's somewhat easy to me, having just finished the brutally hard Minoria) The demo is where you can figure out if this game is for you. But even if you plan to buy the game hold onto the demo, and don't delete it. As it has many unique rooms and it's own secondary challenge mode that are not exactly like the main game. (As the demo was based on an early build of the game.) Yes... starting over at the start is a bummer to start with. But with the elevator, portals, and paths that you unlock as you grind your way through each section it quickly becomes less and less of a hassle until you unlock the red key doors. Oh yeah. Something not exactly covered in this review. There are three key colors, that open three different door types. Early on purple keys will mostly unlock power ups or abilities. But there are several "Zelda 1 like" ways to save the white progression keys for other areas. I found a particular door bypass on my first play through a bit easier. Another thing not noted in the review. The mage has short but rapid peiceing attacks. The archer is the easier character to explore with. As she has the best ranged attack, jumps the highest, and starts with a single wall kick. I barely use the blue knight, except for his puzzles. As most bosses are easiest with the archer. So if you want an easy time, upgrade her rapid fire and damage rate first. Each character gets at least one additinal attack quirk as the game progresses. These all have additinal puzzle types attached to them. And there are also items that increase navigation options. Some puzzles sadly can be brute forced by just taking a bit of damage. But most of the puzzles are very well thought out. Additional characters are well hidden and completely optional to finish the main game. But they are all vital to exploring and collecting everything. Overall I am sad that I waited until the cyber Monday e-shop sale to pick this game up. It's been a while since Wonderling that I have had a full game impress me more then what the demo had to offer. I give "ASTALON: Tears of the Earth" the highest praise and recommend checking at least the demo out. It's even better then that. 9.2 out of 10 "Fantastic"

[@catfishunter28]

I was really confused when I didn't get my health back at the campfire.

[@IDreamofIndie]

Haha

[@skeptism27]

What a beautiful game!!! Not my kind of game but it had a lot of love put into it

[@IDreamofIndie]

Agreed!

[@christophermonzon8883]

I love this game. It is so beautiful 😍

[@IDreamofIndie]

That is great to hear I am glad!

[@FlowerAngelRave]

I was really pleased with the demo but wanted to wait just in case the game went downhill after it. While having to start at the beginning of the tower when you die is a bit annoying, and having to change characters at campfires, I can probably let those slide. It looks really good otherwise, and that you can upgrade yourself as you play. It looks up my alley, it seems that there is more good than bad about it, and I’ll have to consider picking it up. Thanks for the review.

[@IDreamofIndie]

Definitely! Minor annoyances aside this is one tower worth climbing!

[@5had0wThi3f]

You get an item that allows you to swap characters at will.

[@bearwillow6108]

Starting at the beginning isn’t as bad as it sounds. It really makes every run count. Remind of that game “Minit” in a way

[@derek-64]

Good review. Personally i love the old school pixel graphic style be it 8-bit, 16-bit, etc and i think it looks great! I'm looking forward to playing this on Switch, however, i will be holding out for a physical release.

[@IDreamofIndie]

Nice! Will look great on your collectors shelf I am sure! Appreciate you watching!

[@derek-64]

@@IDreamofIndie i don't consider myself a collector. I buy physical because i like to have the actual product in my hand and not just download a file. And i don't care about showing off my games, i just want to be able to own them and not have to rely on these "services". Anyway, that aside i look forward to purchasing at some point. Also, i have a backlog of over 65 Switch games to get to playing while i wait. And like they say a little patience goes a long way.

[@IDreamofIndie]

Definitely! No shortage of games to play in the meantime!!

[@WaterMusic34]

GameboyColor-style metroidvania, nice!! Looks like a lot of fun, excellent use of unique party members abilities. And I for one love how you pick one, explore, then swap out at campfires. Would've been cool to have a few warp-able campfires, I agree. Art is phenomenal, especially those backgrounds and ost is a ton of fun. I do think the price is a bit steep, although if there's plenty of hours of gameplay/exploration and enough story I could see it being worth $20. Okay I have to mention, especially since this is a castle tower, that the main track that plays at the beginning when you start exploring reminds me of "Castles in the Sky" by Ian Van Dahl. It has the same chord progression at one part and the melody fits over it perfectly... I can't stop hearing the lyrics over that track lol. Anyway... Great video & great looking game!

[@WaterMusic34]

I should mention I am referring to the demo.. apparently it has a track that differs from the full game.

[@IDreamofIndie]

Glad that you enjoyed the video! Things do eventually open up more but it is quite the grind! Great call on the musical track!

[@aaronatkinson3050]

I'm pretty sure I'm gonna get this because of the shovel knight look

[@IDreamofIndie]

Enjoy!!

[@godgothamgame]

IT'S REALLY FUN

[@IDreamofIndie]

It is! Good to hear you like it!!

[@peach5327]

The game looks really cool!

[@IDreamofIndie]

I enjoyed it! Tough though!!

[@brandonkruse6412]

The combat, music, shop progression and movement all feel great. Honestly, I would save your money on this one. The game is far too punishing to enjoy it due to the spawn system. Also, is healing even a thing? I just don’t think that the Roguelight system works in Castlevania games. Especially one that is so punishing and difficult. I recommend passing on this one but give 8Doors a try! It’s a perfect game.

[@IDreamofIndie]

Healing is pretty rare sadly! You do come across a few statues that you can break and some of the camps allow you to gain some health back but it's few and far between.