Chinese Friv2Online Studio has released an unexpectedly pleasant slasher platformer with a plot about a murder investigation in a time loop. We tell in the review about the hidden diamond of this summer - Loopmancer.
The protagonist of the friv game is a detective who is investigating the disappearance of a journalist. During the investigation, he dies... and wakes up in the morning of the same day in his bed. Yes, our protagonist found himself in a time loop, and with this circumstance, the developers beat the roguelite elements present in Loopmancer.
The plot is good, and the scenario turns out to be multifaceted, revealing to the player new and new plot layers, where the detective story, the detective's personal tragedy, and even the salvation of mankind are intertwined. Numerous cut scenes are rich in long dialogues, and if someone wants to find out more details of the game universe, tons of information can be found in the notes.
Finally, the environment also tells about the setting: the protagonist will visit the gloomy slums, an abandoned village, city streets, an expensive office building, and so on. Events unfold in a typical cyberpunk world with an oriental touch, and some locations are delightful, like a hotel, the halls of which are hung with banners: the hero and his opponents hide behind them, and the player has to navigate only by silhouettes.
Despite the efforts of the developers, the plot of Loopmancer bored me. Listening to the banal speeches of the villains, which are served here as a revelation, quickly gets boring, so soon the cut-scenes and dialogues began to rewind. Moreover, the production of commercials is often lame, and some scenario turns look ridiculous. Moreover, there is no Russian-language localization, which can contribute to the perception.
But I wanted to rush into battle every time I met opponents. The battles in Loopmancer are fast and aggressive, and the combat system motivates you to alternate attacks with melee and firearms, use gadgets and character skills. There are many types of weapons here: from a slipper and a dead fish to an adjustable wrench and a katana, from a pistol and a light machine gun to a laser gun and a grenade launcher. Grenades, mines and autonomous turrets are used as auxiliary means, as well as elemental attacks, such as a local earthquake or a fireball.
All this goodness is improved for the accumulated currency, and upgrades are transferred to the next run after the death of the hero. Also, the detective retains the acquired passive perks. At the same time, the list of tools for destroying enemies is re-generated at the beginning of the time loop, so you can drop both upgraded weapons and ones that you have not invested a single credit in developing.
Here one could talk about the depth of combat, but in fact, most of the battles take place according to the scenario "hit - dash behind the opponent's back - hit", nothing more is required. The more weapon damage, the better; the benefit of comparing guns can be visually by looking at their characteristics. It is not necessary to invent some cunning tactics, just choose what is more powerful and go into battle. If nothing worthy comes across - die and start a new wound.
This applies to ordinary opponents, but there are also bosses that pose a more serious threat. If simple bandits can be scattered in packs, then boss fights are forced to adapt to the behavior of the enemy. For example, one of them covers a large area on both sides of itself with a missile strike, so it is necessary to read the intention to attack in time and leave the affected area. On the other hand, some bosses can be easily caught with stopping attacks and dealt with quickly, leaving no chance.
To make ordinary skirmishes more interesting, additional tests are called upon, which periodically appear on the screen. The goals can be different: for example, to kill a certain number of enemies or to apply an elemental attack several times. The friv game rewards you with credits and cores for completing tasks: the former you invest in the purchase and improvement of weapons, the latter are used to upgrade passive perks and update the protagonist’s wardrobe (new clothes can be purchased in his apartment), and are also integrated into the terminals arranged across the levels, allowing you to restore health.
This motivates you to play more creatively, although most of the challenges are completed casually while you shred your opponents. The friv game also has a lot of hidden secrets, which encourages careful exploration of locations. Often the path to the cache is risky, but the reward will be pleasant: mainly a buff to the characteristics of the character, which remains with him until the time loop is restarted.
Weak staging and dubious voice acting in Loopmancer are compensated by peppy action and a beautiful picture. Recently, many games have been using cyberpunk style, but here it is combined with oriental style, and therefore looks quite fresh. Yes, it's a diamond, but not cut - a little more polish would be nice for the game.
