Trek to Yomi Reviews
Even with a fantastic presentation, due to the issues with combat Trek to Yomi ends up amounting to a very middle-of-the-road action game. It’s disappointingly limited when it comes to truly challenging you, and outside of playing with 1-hit death – a feature that’s unlocked when you first beat the game – there’s not really a whole lot to the game to keep you coming back for more.
As an homage to Akira Kurosawa's contributions to Japanese cinema, Trek to Yomi is an unparalleled adventure to the shores of hell and back that meticulously encapsulates and delivers an experience through his lens. It's when you look behind its eyes that you discover the game's soul is missing in a disappointing case where a wellspring of style and authenticity is anchored by a sad lack of substance.
Short but ever-so-sweet, Trek to Yomi is a pretty linear affair that respects your time. The combat is nuanced, evolves over time and is entertaining to learn. Small bursts of exploration are rewarded with collectables and upgrades but your main path is never obscured. It's cinematically beautiful and what's done with perspective and setting up each scene is really unique. Trek to Yomi is unlike anything else I have played recently, it's not bloated, pure and I appreciate that a lot.
Featuring outstanding cinematic presentation, first-rate voice performances, and superb sound design, Trek to Yomi wraps Akira Kurosawa-like flair around its fun, side-scrolling samurai battles.
Aesthetically well-finished but not always effective in its gameplay, Trek to Yomi is an adventure on the whole interesting and worth playing.
Review in Italian | Read full review
A short but sweet adventure, you might replay Trek to Yomi to collect all of its collectibles and upgrades, perhaps even on a harder difficulty to test your skills. It has multiple endings to discover, too. And so for its modest price it’s easy to recommend to action adventure fans, especially if they also love samurai movies. Its stunning presentation is just the icing on the cake.
Small issues aside, Trek to Yomi is a lovingly crafted homage to the greats of Japanese cinema, taking the elements so loved by fans of the genre and stretching the limits of what was possible in it through the use of video games as a medium. It is one of the most visually striking games I have played in years, with a beautiful soundtrack and combat that becomes robust over time and is just challenging enough to stay fun and rewarding throughout. The feeling of realizing you’re capable of cutting your way through ten enemies on one screen when just an hour ago you were struggling against dealing with two-to-three at a time is both energizing and empowering, and the momentum from this propels you ever forward through to the game’s satisfying conclusion. Trek to Yomi is a great action game that weighs in at a near perfect length, and in my book it’s one of this year’s must plays.
Trek to Yomi is a beautiful homage to a specific genre of old Japanese cinema and the artists who created those films. While occasionally too rigid in its dedication to paying tribute, a combat system with enough depth to satisfy most people and scenery worthy of its own canvas at every turn makes it a journey worth taking.
Tight gameplay, beautiful cinematography, and the yells of my slain foes are only a few parts of what makes this game incredibly enthralling.
Menchiari and the Polish division of Flying Wild Hog manage to offer a very personal experience, a tribute to the samurai cinema of the last century that will delight all those who enjoyed films like Yojimbo at the time and that could well work as a sequel to Rashômon.
Review in Spanish | Read full review
In its visuals and audio, Trek to Yomi nails its brief to create an Akira Kurosawa-inspired samurai adventure. Its interactive elements, however, along with its story, are all too ordinary and rarely combine to heighten the atmosphere or create suspense. Worth a try for the sightseeing perhaps, but don't expect it to cut deep.
Trek to Yomi uses black and white graphic style and pure cold weapon combat to create a unique experience of sword and blade.
Review in Chinese | Read full review
Visually, TREK TO YOMI is a cinematic feast, using static camera angles with gorgeous placement and attention to detail to the max. There's a real focus on framing here, the camera shifting and adjusting in just the right ways to show you wide-landscapes when Hikori is outnumbered and isolated, and tight carefully framed snippets of pastoral village life and bustling marketplaces.
Trek to Yomi is a game with a voice and a vision. The title takes every liberty to adhere to its inspirations without ever feeling like a film masquerading as a game, and the reverence the development team has for that era of Japanese films can be felt in every aspect of the experience. The dynamic camera, the gorgeously realized environments, and the personal, character-driven narrative work in tandem to deliver a game that’s wholly unique. It might not be an easy recommendation based purely on gameplay alone, but it’s certainly easy to recommend for just about everything else.
Trek to Yomi’s gameplay woes — as well as the stunning lack of a chapter select feature — drag the experience down and mean that its swordplay is not nearly as sharp as its presentation.
It’s a fascinating game that has a little more of a brain compared to its peers, but it is admittedly missing a wow factor or compelling hook to really drive the experience home
The attempts to mirror the cinema of Akira Kurosawa work on a visual level but the story and gameplay are so empty and repetitive this barely works as a homage, let alone an engaging game in its own right.
Trek to Yomi is a solid and well-executed trip to a black-and-white tale of swords and souls, where a simple but satisfying gameplay is paired with a charming narrative that offers three different endings. Enemy and setting variety could be better, but overall this is a game worthy of your time.
Review in Italian | Read full review
Trek to Yomi is an amazing looking game that totally recreates the feeling of an Akira Kurosawa's samurai movie, but it lacks a little bit of gameplay depth and a more sophisticated level design.
Review in Spanish | Read full review