When it comes to children’s stories, Alice in Wonderland is one of the best. So it makes sense for the media to be filled with unique takes on the story. Gaming is not that different. Ravenlok is a game that is heavily inspired by Lewis Carrol’s work and wears that distinction on its sleeve like a badge of honour. The game features hack-and-slash action and voxel-based graphics, which help it stand out enough. On the surface, it seems like a game aimed at a younger audience but might appeal to the adult demographic too. But is it any good? Well, let’s find out!
Story
The story of Ravenlok is plucked straight out of Alice in Wonderland. You play a girl who has just moved to a country farm with her parents. After partaking in some chores, you are sucked away into a magical world called ‘Dunia’ hidden behind a mirror. Once there you are greeted by a white rabbit who greets you and tells you that this world is controlled by the evil queen and you are the mythical ‘Ravenlok’ who was prophesied to save the work of Dunia by defeating said queen.
You are then given a range of missions to linear missions to complete. The first asks you to find a sword and a shield to continue. The game world is a giant interconnected map and features bits of Metroidvania with lots of backtracking to explore areas previously inaccessible. You also meet a host of different characters throughout your journey, all inspired by Alice in Wonderland.
There are also some RPG elements included, but these are pretty rudimentary. The main character levels up all her stats in one go. There are no specific attributes to level up. Instead, you pay a mouse with feathers to upgrade. We’ll get into this in detail later.
The overall story is fine, but it has enough inconsistencies and plot holes to make Swiss Cheese jealous. For starters, you are asked to name your character, but once you enter Dunia, everyone just calls you Ravenlok. Most characters you meet are one-dimensional and there is barely enough character growth for anyone, even the main character. Also, once you enter Dunia, you seem to forget about your parents completely. Suddenly, the characters (who were literally just introduced to you) are all you are supposed to worry about. Honestly, the best thing about the story is that it’s quite short. But having said that, the story should appeal to children as it is short and quickly punctuated with boss battles.
Graphics
Ravenlok is a very bright and colourful art that is enhanced with the choice of a voxel-based art direction. The visually captivating graphics make it a delight for both adults and children, ensuring an enjoyable experience for all. The game really does a great job of emphasising the vastness of the game world. Unfortunately, you can’t really explore all places as the game isn’t open-world. But that’s ok as not every game needs the open-world treatment.
I didn’t come across any issues during my experience with the game. However, I did find the mix of voxel and polygon graphics very weird. This is, of course, subjective and some might like it. One issue I did have is with the camera. Camera angles are extremely limited and make it very difficult to fully appreciate the graphics of the game. But more than that, it makes it very hard when it comes to playing the game. Speaking of which…
Gameplay
The gameplay is what really holds the game back in my opinion. I understand that the game is aimed at a younger audience, the nuances just justify things. Let’s start with the things I like. The controls are nice and simple. You get a button for attack, one for blocking, and another for dashing. The trigger and bumper buttons are used for various special attacks. It’s simple and straightforward enough.
Let me talk about the good bits first. The combat is simple and easy, which makes it ideal for children. Button mashing can deal with most enemies. The special movies are varied and each one is ideal for different scenarios.
Items are purchased via the shop by using coins. These coins are collected by breaking pots scattered across Dunia. Since these pots respawn when leaving and reentering a location, money is pretty much infinite. Speaking of locations, the world is easy to navigate and the use of mirrors as fast travel locations does help to speed things up when backtracking.
Let’s talk about the mildly infuriating things. Well, Ravenlok herself has an extremely slow walk speed that does not go up till you get the sword. But once you get the sword, you also unlock a dash, which is the fastest way to move around. It’s not a major issue, to be honest, it’s just one of those peeves.
You upgrade Ravenlock by collecting feathers by defeating enemies. You then talk to a mouse who proceeds to upgrade your stats. The problem is that the mouse is easily missable. I initially missed it myself and only realised something was wrong when the enemies started to ‘one-hit’ me. But this could very well be a case of my ignorance. But I feel that this character though be larger and not almost hidden inside a cart. It would have also helped if areas had a clear level limit.
Similarly, inventory management is not that smooth either. For starters, every time Ravenlock picks up something, there is a pop-up. Further, quick inventory isn’t really quick. You need to bring up the list, choose the category, and then select the item.
Another mildly annoying thing about the game was the lack of clarity when getting quests from NPCs. Most of the time, the relatively small map, coupled with the linear progression system made it easy to go around. However, if you take a break and play the game again it’s easy to forget where you have to go and what you needed to do.
Now let’s talk about the bits that were more annoying.
Combat is easy, but unfulfilling. You can button-mash your way through the game if you are patient enough. Most enemies get stun locked and those that don’t can be dispatched easily as long as you have enough healing items with you. This should not be a problem as money is essentially infinite in the game.
The worst issue I had with Ravenlok has to be the camera. The camera is locked to one side with limited movement to the left and right. This wouldn’t be an issue, but most maps and combat are on a full 3D plane. So there were moments when enemies and even bosses were behind the camera. This makes some boss battles especially tricky as you don’t know where they are.
Verdict
Ravenlok is short and colourful and easy to learn. This makes it a decent option for parents looking for a game to keep children entertained over a weekend. The fact that the story liberally takes up ideas from Alice in Wonderland helps it in this regard. However, the gameplay and RPG elements are too basic to engage adults, while issues such as a camera can be frustrating to all gamers.
Adults looking for a more engaging experience while sticking with the Alice in Wonderland theme might want to take a look at Alice: Madness Returns. Parents looking for a game for children would find Ravenlok a fine game in my opinion. However, a game like Minecraft: Dungeons does offer greater possibilities thanks to co-op gameplay, with the same voxel-inspired graphics.
Rating: 3 / 5
Pros
- Graphics
- Simple Controls
- Engaging Boss Battles
Cons
- Frustrating camera angles
- Gameplay is too basic
- Lacks depth
More info
Developer: Cococucumber
Publisher: Cococucumber
Platforms: Xbox Series X/S, Xbox One, and PC
Reviewed on: Xbox Series X
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