Smelter Reviews
A satisfying combination of action platformer and strategy game. The former might be notably better here than the latter, but Smelter is a decently long game with great visuals and gameplay.
Smelter is a game that's a mix of platforming and real-time strategy, though it's the platforming that shines more. The controls are tight and the challenge is pretty fair though it can ramp up quite a bit later on. Plus the Trials are a great way to test your skills and help unlock new abilities. The RTS segments aren't bad but they feel a little too simplified with no major consequences.
If you want to platform one minute and build houses the next, then Smelter might just be the genre hybrid for you.
Smelter's opening cutscene got me very pumped for what was to follow, but what did follow left me despondent. I'd been set up and felt ready for an awesome 16-bit experience that, thanks to its promised smelting of genres, would feel genuinely fresh. The game that followed wasn't fresh, it was past its sell by date and starting to smell like feet.
The RTS layer is limited and repetitive, but the platforming levels are well-designed and challenging.