Salt and Sacrifice Reviews
Salt and sacrifice brought me nothing but suffering, but I can't stop playing. Once I figured it out, I became unstoppable.
Salt and Sacrifice can be a lot of fun, and I do think that fans of Salt and Sanctuary have a lot to look forward to. But I cannot ignore its flaws, and I cannot help but recommend it only to those players who are really big fans already.
Every death feels fair, and the design philosophy is fine-tuned in such a way that feels intentional and deliberate. Salt and Sacrifice, on the other hand, achieves difficulty with clunky design, which completely misses the point of what makes a good challenge worth the time. Instead, the sacrifice of wasted time here is more than enough to make you salty.
The Salt games are in an awkward spot now, having mish-mashed several wildly successful ideas from other titles, but being unable to make them fit together into an identity of their own. Hopefully, if we get a third entry, Ska Studios will be able to make it all coalesce.
Even though Salt and Sacrifice is a good game, many adjustments have been made that take away from the game's unique character while favoring more formulaic gameplay. It's a game that, in general, is enjoyable and entertaining, but its accomplishments are weighed down by several innovations that stay instead of contributing, giving the feeling that it has gone a step backward.
Salt & Sacrifice has the potential to be a great game, but it badly needs balancing fixes to allow it to live up to its potential, especially in regard to its battle system. A few tweaks to the stamina meter, the dodge roll & blocking mechanics, and the enemy attack patterns would do wonders for the game, as would a way to skip the chasing sequences and jump straight to the Mage bosses. As it stands, Salt & Sacrifice is a game full of frustrating moments that bog down the rest of the experience.
Salt and Sacrifice is a Souls-like that would've made a killing a decade ago. Failing to learn from its contemporaries, it struggles to feel enjoyable in today's saturated market.
If Salt and Sacrifice is not inherently bad, it is not very exciting. Neophytes will certainly find their account, but we would still tend to advise them to go to Salt and Sanctuary, much better, even if the game is 6 years old now.
Review in French | Read full review
Salt and Sacrifice is a greatly ambitious title, melding a number of gameplay elements from other popular series but it comes at the cost of overall polish and focus, leaving a frustrating experience that feels like a step back from its predecessor.
It's a shame, because so much of what's here is still so enjoyable. The combat is intense, challenging and varied, with a huge number of enemy types to battle against. You've got a ton of weapon options to tailor your build, and the capacity to level up seemingly hundreds of different stats in order to bring the fight to the Mages. It's just that those fights can be so unfair and one-sided due to the more random elements that can throw a spanner in the works. A brave attempt at something new, yes, but ultimately misguided.
Another impressive attempt at a 2D Soulsborne but a less entertaining game than Salt And Sanctuary, with some frustrating combat that doesn't always feel entirely fair.
Sharing much in common with its predecessor, this challenging Metroidvania has style but can be tough to love
Salt and Sacrifice makes a number of changes to its general design and structure that are absolutely not worth the cost, and while the game is still enjoyable, it ultimately feels like a step backwards from the charming 2016 original.
Rough, sometimes intriguing, sometimes frustrating: Salt and Sacrifice does its job, but it doesn't always go smoothly. The Mage hunting sequences are clever, but the pieces of the puzzle sometimes simply don't fit together.
Review in Italian | Read full review
Unfortunately, Salt and Sacrifice discarded way too much to place the focus on multiplayer. The aspects I do like, the exploration and combat, are carried over from the original game. The core Mage Hunt gameplay loop is tedious, and the lack of fast travel made me sick of seeing the same scenery repeatedly. You’ll probably find something to love here if you have a friend to place this game with and enjoy the original. However, as a solo adventure, it’s severely lacking.
Salt and Sacrifice is a bad combination of Souls like, Metroidvania and Monster Hunter, making it feel chaotic.
Review in Chinese | Read full review
While it may clock in a bit below its predecessor in terms of overall package, main gameplay staples like combat and exploration continue to be of enjoyably high quality, and make this series’ second outing a worthwhile entry.
Salt and Sacrifice is still a very worthwhile sequel to the original. While some of the elements don’t work as well as others, the game’s combat and build variety offer players a great sandbox to play around in.
While certain bosses’ attack combos are troublesome to avoid given your character’s recovery time, the journey of Salt and Sacrifice is thoroughly enjoyable for anyone who enjoys soulslike games.
Salt and Sanctuary checks all the boxes for what a 2D Soulslike should have but doesn't do much beyond that, delivering a worthy, albeit conventional addition to the sub-genre.