En the genus of those colloquially called ‘metroidvania’, independent developers saw an opportunity to expand and prosper. That is why there are many exponents that circulate in the market, of which some stand out in popularity over the rest. In the case of Ultrosstudio Hadoque chose to use a psychedelic art style, Buddhist concepts such as karma, and touches of ‘roguelike’ to generate a different playable entity in itself.
Your distributor Kepler Interactive can rest easy, because they did it. Ultros It separates itself from other ‘metroidvania’ and that is enough to justify it. However, it seems really contradictory that what puts him in a different position than other colleagues of his genre is the same thing that can work against him within the expectations of the players. Let’s review it in parts.
Coloring mandalas
On the one hand we have what is obvious, and in what way. Ultros It is loaded with colors and those who are familiar with the work of Nikl as Åkerblad alias El Huervo
From the protagonist, whose helmet is somewhat reminiscent of Samus Aran’s, to the enemy alien creatures and the settings, the colors overflow to the point of oversaturation. Most players may not have a problem with this. For those who do, the game itself includes some practical accessibility options, including removing background saturation. This highlights the characters and interactive elements, leaving a grayish tone in the background as the fade-out occurs.
It is a viable and recommended option for players who cannot handle so many colors at the same time. Now, desaturate Ultros It takes away what is its greatest calling card compared to other ‘metroidvania’. The best thing is that players can experiment until they find just the right touch of what they can or want to endure. It’s easy to mistake enemies and interactive objects for the background, even if you don’t have problems with saturation.
cosmic horrors
The protagonist of Ultros It begins inside El Sarcófago, a kind of space station. This is a cosmic womb that contains the ancient demonic creature that gives the game its name. You wake up without items or weapons, until you gradually unlock some skills and the possibility of attacking enemies subtly or mercilessly. Depending on the way you eliminate them, this is the state of the organs that you can collect to consume and regain health or improve nutrition. Which in turn “feeds” the skill tree.
Exploration and combat skills are basic to other exponents of the genre. However, the combat is more attractive due to the need to dodge and counterattack. Repeating the same attack, although it defeats the enemy, does not leave good organs or alien parts to be recovered. Attacking in a varied and more elegant way is what divides any predator from a hunter in this wild world. Parts in pristine condition are more valuable, of course.
Karmavania
The surprise turning point in Ultros Its very inspiration lies in the concept of karma: action and consequence. At a certain point in the game, the resurgence of the ancient creature causes us to restart our journey and that is when we witness the nature of loops. The ‘metroidvania’ is added to the ‘roguelike’ but not in a radical way where everything starts from scratch. Instead, we retain elements from the previous life such as the explored map, but we will lose all items, nutrition and skills gained.
This “playable karma” set to meditative music composed by Oscar «Ratvader» Rydelius, reiterates the importance of sowing. Because Ultros It’s not just a cosmic ‘metroidvania’ that bursts with colors and creature organs, it’s also an alien gardening game in which we plant seeds to obtain different environmental benefits. A tree that we plant in a past loop will help us once it grows in a future life with platforms to access new places.
Loop Slaves
There are many secret paths to explore within The Sarcophagus and discovering them is a matter of restarting loops and sowing the right seeds. The cycle of death and rebirth is the central axis of Ultros
This ‘Groundhog Day’ perspective within Ultros, encourages the player to try different ways of interacting with the scenarios and characters that come across them. The changes in perspective are an incentive to want to discover the mystery of that cyclical nature. In short, it is not the greatest novelty in a video game, but it is one with the lucid and clear inspirations in Hollow Knight, Super Metroid y Castlevania: Symphony of the Night.
Each loop closure takes place when we defeat a Shaman or boss and access a main chamber or hub. It is possible to bypass said chamber and defeat other bestial shamans, but that would also mean sacrificing the experimentation of exploring new routes and discovering open paths. In honor of the truth and as a lover of the franchises that gave fruit to the genre, the ‘roguelike’ within a ‘metroidvania’ is a difficult pill to swallow. I admit that the way it surprises the player and changes the rules is valid, but in this type of game it generates a feeling of frustration losing the advancement of the skill tree, more than the items.
Do I encourage bajón?
It is true that in Ultros Unlocked skills cost less the second time than the first. However, recovering the double jump – the most basic of the basics – and others such as stealth, attack power and combos, is a task that always feels two steps behind. In a game of this genre you always want to feel like you’re moving forward, even if you understand the developers’ intentions. The skill tree has considerable combat and exploration branches. They all go away on every loop restart.
There is a way to lock certain abilities at will so you don’t have to relock them in another life. Although that requires more gathering of materials and you won’t be able to do it easily with all of them. The persistent element between loops and to which Ultros The most bet is on the seeds, which once sprouted alter the environment and are really useful in future cycles. For the rest and apart from the explorable map, there is not much plot motivation in losing everything during each loop to extend the game time, perhaps artificially.
Visually Ultros It has no complaints, as it promises a psychedelic trip of mystical spatial entities and that is what it delivers. A mix of science fiction, part ‘body horror’ and the excellent use of art it prides itself on based on Buddhism. That’s all good, its combat animations and miscellaneous are the perfect proof. It is the choice to add ‘roguelike’ elements that, although differential, can work against it by discouraging players who do not want to unlock the tree’s skills or collect materials again. Even if some seeds from the past are in a future loop the plants that open new paths. It depends a lot on the type of player who likes it.
Review made with a digital copy of Ultros for PlayStation 4 provided by Kepler Interactive. The game is also available on PS5 and PC (Steam).
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