Soul Fjord Review (Ouya)

good
key review info
  • Game: Soul Fjord
  • Platform: Android
  • Show system requirements
  • Reviewed on:
Funky look

As the rhythm makes the game world alive, I once more fail to string more than 3 notes on my sword attack and an enemy troll manages to take a solid chunk out of my health even as I see the telltale signs of an incoming fireball forming around me.

I use my shield and my left stick to dash away and then manage to get in a few strikes against the enemy, which quickly moves to breathe fire in my face and I need to once again flee as two spiders crawl towards me.

My worst mistake is forgetting about the two leftover meats I have in my inventory, items that can restore health, and I finally succumb to a fireball that I was unable to dash away from.

This is just one of the many ways I have died in Soul Fjord, a game that can be humorous, ruthless, absorbing and frustrating, with some of these qualities present at the same time.

The first thing that everyone will notice in Soul Fjord is the way it uses music, specifically old-school funk, to great effect, pulling the player into a weird yet enchanting universe that mixes a great soundtrack with some solid combat mechanics and a core roguelike structure.

The game is currently only offered on the Ouya and was made by Airtight Games, the current company of Portal creator Kim Swift.

The story’s main character is Magnus Jones, a great warrior who clearly loves music and wants to get into the hallowed halls of Valhalla, which in this reality is a great funk-focused club, but is denied his chance.

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Troll move
Combat system
The player needs to take control and right this massive wrong by traveling through a number of levels, battling both normal and boss enemies in order to get the powerful combat tools needed so that he can defeat the Punk Giant and claim his place in the afterlife.

The world of Soul Fjord is infused with music and a constant beat flows underneath the main character, central to his survival and long-term success in battle.

Gamers need to time their button presses to the beat, using the face buttons for heavy and light attacks, trying to chain combos in order to take out the more powerful enemies while also using the shield, also funk driven, to protect themselves when outnumbered and power a dash that can get them out of sticky situations.

The core ideas of the combat system are easy to understand but tough to actually master and I often found myself frustrated by my inability to pull of the cool combos, which also alter the musical background.

As he travels towards Valhalla, Magnus Jones is also gathering loot, some of it very powerful, and leveling up, which improves his health and combat abilities.

The structure is that of a minimalist roguelike and as the game progresses, chests can be opened using old vinyl disks in order to get truly impressive pieces of loot.

Soul Fjord is easy to get into and fun for the first few hours, as new items are obtained and the cast of enemies is being revealed.

But the game suffers a little when it comes to replayability because the level design is rather basic and the combat never evolves in truly meaningful ways.

The team does try to solve the problem by adding records that can bind some items to a player permanently, but I’ve never felt that this was enough to keep me interested.

Soul Fjord has an interesting art style, but the quality of the graphics is nowhere near that offered by other indie titles on next-gen consoles like the Xbox One or the PlayStation 4.

The music and the dialogue, on the other hand, are pretty impressive and really manage to make the Soul Fjord game world seem cool in a retro and funky kind of way.

I enjoyed the time I spend with the Airtight Games created Ouya exclusive and I am confident that roguelike fans will also enjoy it, but I worry that it lacks the long-term appeal of true classics in the genre.

I also believe that the experience would find a larger audience if it were also launched on the Xbox Live Arcade and on the PlayStation Network.

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story 7
gameplay 7
concept 9
graphics 6
audio 9
multiplayer 0
final rating 7
Editor's review
good