Salt and Sanctuary
Top Critic
You could call Salt and Sanctuary a 2D mashup of Dark Souls and Castlevania, and you'd be right. But such a simple pronouncement would be a disservice to the tremendous amount of thought that's gone into Salt and Sanctuary, whether it's in the graphic style that evokes horror through the style of comic strips or in the intricate web of dungeons and castles serves as it map.
Top Critic
Salt and Sanctuary is a derivative Dark Souls clone - but it's a shockingly good one.
Top Critic
If you want a 2D Dark Souls it's hard to imagine From Software doing much better than this, even if it has too few original ideas of its own.
Top Critic
Mashing together the challenge of Dark Souls with the platforming and combat styling of Castlevania makes for a challenging but highly rewarding formula
Top Critic
This combat-intensive adventure manages to be more than the sum of its Dark Souls-influenced parts.
Top Critic
Salt and Sanctuary lovingly adapts the Souls games into 2D
Top Critic
Salt and Sanctuary is a quality platformer with well-implemented Metroidvania elements. It's brutal at times, but deeply satisfying to play. Is it thematically derivative of the Souls games? Yes, but not disgustingly so. Just get out there and give a few demons what for.
Top Critic
It's difficult to be disappointed by a great studio taking solid mechanics and narrative beats from one of the best studios around, especially when the result is something as well-crafted as Salt and Sanctuary. While I do wish Ska Studio's latest had more of its own identity, I can't deny that I enjoyed every minute of it. I already spent about 25 hours with it, and I'm salivating, eager to go through New Game +. Now be proud that I didn't make a "salty" joke like every other outlet will in their review.
Top Critic
Salt and Sanctuary is the result of a perfect combination of the metroidvania and "souls" elements in order to create a unique, hard and satisfying 2D adventure that knows how to reward players' skill. The Nintendo Switch version is indeed a great one.
Review in Spanish | Read full review
Top Critic
Salt and Sanctuary is about as far from original as you could possibly imagine. It apes the Souls series almost beat-for-beat, from its core design down to very minor things like the health and stamina bars in the HUD.
