Aggelos 2 Nintendo Switch Review 7/10 "A great-looking and sounding game" ⚔️

Aggelos was one of those games that seemed to pass me by upon release, even though I’m a fan of Metroidvania games under the 15-hour mark (long live Shadow Complex!), and games in the Wonder Boy RPG vein are very much my chill-out thang. I was keen to dive into this sequel since hearing of its development, and whilst it is a solid title, with some great visuals and music  - there are some design choices that chip away at the fun a tad.

You are Aggelos,  a kind of warrior angel that has to travel the world of Lumen to thwart an army of darkness (not that one, although all of us here at GF send much love to Bruce Campbell). Not long after the start of the game, you’ll find yourself rattling through the enemies using both a bracelet – that shoots balls of energy – or your sword – which feels a bit superfluous for most of the game – and wings that allow short bursts of single-level flight, although you’ll be unlocking upgrades and new powers in short order.

Visually,  Aggelos 2 captures the colourful 2D Wonder Boy spirit perfectly. The enemies are bold, colourful, and cartoonish, and the animations help in making the controls and traversal feel tight and responsive. I would suggest remapping some of the controls from the start, however, as this is a game in which a single mistake can require you to make split-second decisions in some environmental traps or with some trickier enemies/bosses, and some of the abilities and equipment aren’t initially mapped as naturally as they should be to the controller. I look at YOU grappling hook! The audio also perfectly fits the 16-bit aesthetic and has a driving, heroic aspect that truly makes it feel like you are on an epic journey, and is a highlight that sits well with the graphics and style.

Aggelos 2 isn’t a super long game, but there are sections where there are so many side paths that look bland and forgettable that I had several moments in which I had to backtrack to find what I should be doing next. I dread to think how difficult it would be to bounce off Aggelos 2 and come back after a few days or weeks; you would be LOST.

The in-game guidance on what to do next is vague, and as some sections are quite large and the overworld map has no legend for the tiny symbols dotted around, it makes it a little miserable to try and focus on exactly what your next move should be, and often results in just looping around in the hope you’ll spot the entrance to an area that you previously missed.

Unfortunately some of these areas are bland gaps in forgettable screens, so it’s not a case of “ahh ok, I can do ‘x’ now, so I’ll head back to that clearly landmarked area that I remember” it’s more a case of looking at the map and just heading to the bits where you hit a dead end previously, and that approach removes pace and flow. It becomes even more of a chore when you unlock two aspects of your character and can move between realms.

SUMMARY

Aggelos 2 is a great-looking and sounding game that feels like it should have had a little more signposting. There’s a hard difference between exploring and discovering, or wandering around aimlessly trying to make progress and unfortunately Aggelos fell a tad on the wrong side of the fence for my tastes.

7/10

🆒COOL🆒

 (also available on Steam, PS4/5, 

Xbox Series X/s, Xbox One)

Developer – Wonderboy Bobi

Publisher – PQube