Bastion (computer game)
| bastion | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Studio | Supergiant Games | ||
| Publisher | Warner Bros. Interactive | ||
| Senior Developer | Amir Rao, Gavin Simon, Jen Zee, Greg Kasavin , Andrew Wang | ||
| Erstveröffent- lichung |
July 20, 2011 | ||
| platform | Windows , Xbox 360 , PlayStation 4 macOS , Linux , iOS , iPadOS , web browser , PlayStation Vita | ||
| genre | Action game , hack and slay | ||
| Subject | Fantasy | ||
| Game mode | Single player | ||
| control | Gamepad , keyboard , mouse , touch screen | ||
| medium | Download | ||
| language | English voice output, on-screen text in German, French, Italian and Spanish | ||
| Age rating |
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Bastion is an action game developed by independent studio Supergiant Games and distributed by Warner Bros. Interactive . It was released on July 20, 2011 for the Xbox 360 via Xbox Live Arcade and on August 16, 2011 for Windows via Steam . In early December 2011 it was released as a browser game for Google Chrome. In April 2012 appeared bastion for the operating systems macOS and a short time later for Linux as part of the Humble Indie Bundle V . On August 30, 2012, a specially adapted version for the iPad was published in the App Store . Bastion was released for PlayStation 4 on April 8, 2015 . Bastion was released on PlayStation Vita on December 5, 2015 .
action
The world of Bastion was shattered into innumerable pieces by a major catastrophe called the Calamity . The silent protagonist , called The Kid , wakes up in the middle of the ruins and goes to the bastion - a meeting point for difficult times. Once there, he doesn't find much more than the old man Backpack , the narrator. Backpack sends Kid on his journey to reconstruct the world as it was.
Game mechanics
The game is partly based on classic hack and slay titles such as Diablo , but comes up with a significantly more restricted progression system and a manageable arsenal, in which each weapon has its clear advantages and disadvantages as well as special abilities. The fights take place in real time and thus above all require the skill and comprehension of the player.
In the course of the plot, the game figure can rise to a maximum level of character level 10, but it is hardly possible to achieve this in a single playthrough. However, the player has the option of playing the game again in the so-called "New Game Plus" after one round. Fundamentally different ways of playing are not possible, and there is practically no influence on the personality of the hero or the course of the story.
Scattered around the world of Bastion are close-range and long-range weapons such as hammers, machetes, muskets and mortars. The player can carry two of them with him and also has a spell available. The current weapon configuration can be changed after each trip in the bastion . In addition, it is possible to drink spirits in the distillery, which give the player certain advantages over his opponents (sometimes with other disadvantages). To increase the level of difficulty, there is also a sanctuary, the Pantheon, where various gods can be summoned. The player then receives appropriate handicaps, such as stronger opponents or fewer healing potions.
The developers placed particular emphasis on the fact that the player improves through experience, tactics and more skill, not through new armor or weapons. Supergiant Games officially advertise Bastion itself as an action role-playing game , but an actual role-playing component (apart from a few secondary elements such as the rudimentary progression system) is practically non-existent, despite superficial parallels to some of the corresponding genre representatives. All in all, Bastion primarily impresses with its dynamic battles and its special kind of narration.
Visual style
Building on the tradition of old action role-playing games, the game is shown from a two-dimensional, isometric perspective .
While the player wanders through the world, it only forms in front of his feet, as individual parts of the ground rise from the abyss shortly before the appearance.
In order to give the game a unique look, the developers decided to digitally paint all of the game's backgrounds and cards by hand . The characters were first computer animated and then converted into sprites so that the game retains its hand-drawn look. This step was necessary because the developers did not have the human resources to draw so many sprites by hand.
Narrative style
An important feature is the way it is narrated. The narrator describes many details of the events from his point of view, without addressing Kid directly (with the exception of a few scenes in the bastion). Backpack is also very well informed about the canon of the game world as well as kids' current emotional state, so he also acts like an omniscient narrator.
The interactivity with which the narrator deals with the actions of the player is also particularly noticeable. If this destroys junk lying around, for example, comments Backpack, the kid has to let off steam first.
The entire voice output is in English - also in the European version. This is justified with the effort that the developers put into the quality and timing of the speech output to give the game its atmosphere. The spokesman Logan Cunningham imitates the way the cowboys speak from old westerns .
music
The music was composed by Darren Korb, which he himself describes as Acoustic Frontier Trip-Hop. Mainly acoustic instruments such as guitars and strings, some of them heavily digitally processed , appear together with rhythm structures typical for dub and trip-hop . The soundtrack was released in August 2011 on Steam and Bandcamp , as well as on CD.
reception
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The game received consistently positive reviews and currently has an average rating of 86 (XBox 360) and 86 (PC) out of 100 points on Metacritic . IGN was particularly positive about the combat and upgrade system, while EDGE Magazine highlighted the narrative style that ended up bringing the player closer to the game than expected.
Web links
- Bastion at MobyGames (English)
- Official website
Individual evidence
- ↑ Bastion - Xbox.com. Retrieved September 21, 2013 .
- ↑ Bastion on Steam. Retrieved September 21, 2013 .
- ↑ Play Bastion in your Chrome browser right now. Retrieved September 21, 2013 .
- ↑ Bastion in the Humble Indie Bundle V, Supergiant Games Blog (en)
- ↑ "Bastion" for iPhone, iPod touch and iPad in the iTunes App Store
- ↑ Bastion is now available on PS4. Retrieved on May 13, 2015 (German).
- ^ Bastion for Vita. Retrieved December 18, 2015 .
- ↑ a b c FAQ of the developer for the game
- ↑ To Interview with Bastion's Composer, Darren Korb - Piki Geek. Retrieved September 21, 2013 .
- ↑ Meta evaluation Bastion (Xbox 360). In: Metacritic . CBS Corporation , accessed April 23, 2015 .
- ↑ Meta-evaluation Bastion (Windows). In: Metacritic . CBS Corporation , accessed April 23, 2015 .
- ↑ Bastion for PC. Retrieved September 21, 2013 .
- ↑ IGN test report ( Memento of the original from February 10, 2012 on WebCite ) Info: The archive link was automatically inserted and not yet checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice.
- ↑ Bastion review - Page 2 of 2 - Edge Online. Archived from the original on May 23, 2012 ; accessed on September 21, 2013 .
