Solar Ash Reviews

Solar Ash is ranked in the 67th percentile of games scored on OpenCritic.
PC Gamer
Top Critic
70 / 100
Dec 6, 2021

Despite its strengths, Solar Ash fails to skate free from the gravity of its influences.

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IGN
Top Critic
7 / 10.0
Dec 1, 2021

Solar Ash may not get everything right, but its kinetic platforming and incredibly stylish presentation make its world a lot of fun to explore.

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Recommended
Dec 1, 2021

This glorious game about movement and adventure also feels like a rumination on something deeper and more personal.

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Metro GameCentral
GameCentral
Top Critic
9 / 10
Dec 2, 2021

An excellent sci-fi platformer with exquisite art design and sublime traversal mechanics, which finds distinctive ground among its obvious inspirations.

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Dec 1, 2021

Solar Ash is a platforming playground that never loses steam, and it hides a memorable story of unfathomable tragedy.

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8 / 10.0
Dec 1, 2021
Solar Ash - Easy Allies Review - YouTube video thumbnail
8.8 / 10.0
Dec 2, 2021

Solar Ash plays as well as it looks with a strong story at the heart

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GameSpot
Top Critic
8 / 10
Dec 1, 2021

Solar Ash is an exhilarating action-adventure game with strong puzzles and flashy boss fights.

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6 / 10.0
Dec 1, 2021

Solar Ash offers a collection of promising concepts that don’t quite hit realization. While undoubtedly a visually striking experience, Rei’s journey into the Ultravoid suffers due to a disengaging narrative and repetitious gameplay. Solar Ash’s attractive world struggles to provide the player with captivating experiences. The elements do occasionally come together, however, ensuring that while Solar Ash isn’t quite the adventure it might have been, it successfully retains unmistakable Heart Machine charm.

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9 / 10
Dec 7, 2021

Solar Ash is one of the best games of the year. It looks gorgeous, its story is pretty unique and surprising, and its set-piece moments get really intense, as you might expect from skating along the back of a black goo and bone dragon. It's a nice surprise to end the year with that any "skating combined with combat and gigantic monsters" enthusiasts, which is definitely already a thing.

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85 / 100
Dec 2, 2021

‎Solar Ash has the audiovisual style of Hyper Light Drifter, the clashes against titans of Shadow of the Colossus, the scrolling mechanics of Jet Set Radio and the level design of Super Mario Galaxy. Is there really more to say?‎

Review in Spanish | Read full review

TJ Denzer
Top Critic
8 / 10
Dec 9, 2021

Solar Ash is another hugely stylish venture from Heart Machine, though it’s not terribly long. Exploring any area to its fullest ran me about two to four hours and the whole thing ran about 11 hours for me when it was all said and done. Nonetheless, the graceful feel of movement, platforming, and combat in this game can’t be denied, and it’s accompanied by a lush and interesting mix of neon, natural, and industrial landscapes caught up in Solar Ash’s Voidspace. There’s a little jank in the controls here at here, but generally, for such a quick game, Solar Ash glides like a cosmic dream.

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7.8 / 10.0
Dec 7, 2021

A compelling game, which loses a few shots due to a narrative that is not quite up to par.

Review in Italian | Read full review

IGN Spain
Top Critic
7 / 10.0
Dec 1, 2021

‎Solar Ash does not hide his influences, moreover, he becomes strong in them. Do not expect an indie of those who seek to revolutionize classic proposals, rather it is the opposite. It is a title that knows how to mix with success some of the most interesting ingredients of the video games that serve as inspiration. But most of all, it's a remarkable three-dimensional platformer, and that's always good news.‎

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VG247
Top Critic
Dec 1, 2021

It's not far from being a bit special, the kind of indie gem that everyone has to play, but it's unfortunately just not quite there.

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9 / 10.0
Sep 17, 2023

Solar Ash offers sublime movement and an interesting story, with some fantastic mechanics that make you want to explore every facet of it.

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Dec 1, 2021

Solar Ash is a contemplative experience, visual feast, and faced-paced thrill ride expertly wrapped up into one exhilarating adventure. Without a doubt, this game is one of the best indie games of 2021, if not the best.

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VideoGamer
Top Critic
8 / 10
Dec 10, 2021

Where Solar Ash goes from an intriguing ambient platformer to one of the year’s most fascinating releases is in its fixation on living as an act of being stuck.

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Unscored
Dec 1, 2021

An action-adventure that sees you topple big monsters with your rollerblades. It's stylish and oh-so-smooth when it gets in the flow, but is hampered by repetition.

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Dec 7, 2021

Solar Ash is repetitive and short, but that doesn't take away from how fun the core gameplay is. The developers have nailed Solar Ash's traversal system, making it genuinely fun to explore and complete the various platforming challenges. The art style is striking, the bosses are impressive, and while it may not have the same lasting impact Hyper Light Drifter did, Solar Ash is still worth checking out for fans of Heart Machine's work and the 3D platformer genre in general.

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