Bō: Path of the Teal Lotus Reviews
Bō: Path of the Teal Lotus is a beautifully crafted Metroidvania that captivates with its engaging gameplay, blending Japanese folklore with a heartwarming story. While there are moments where the game's pacing stumbles—particularly during some of the more punishing platforming sections—the overall experience is enriched by its charming characters, gorgeous art, and thoughtful themes.
Bo: Path of the Teal Lotus is a beautifully crafted Metroidvania with hand-drawn animation that pops with its vibrant colors, based heavily on Japanese folklore and culture. The game has a distinct focus on platforming which sets it apart from other games in the genre, and it brings good vibes with the carefree NPCs and sidequests.
Bō: Path of the Teal Lotus impresses with its richly detailed scenarios and an intriguing universe that continually surprises the player throughout the adventure. However, once stripped of its fantastic setting, there is a complicated and difficult-to-ignore lack of polish in crucial mechanics and also in the adaptation for Nintendo's console. Therefore, Bō's journey is still worth experiencing, but with reservations. We hope that the next updates promised by the developers will improve the game on the Switch. After all, as said, what we have here comes close to being memorable — it's a shame that it doesn't happen that often.
Review in Portuguese | Read full review
Bō: Path of the Teal Lotus is an enjoyable Metroidvania game, though it is marred by a lack of clear direction and frustrating platforming sections.
If you strip Bō: Path of the Teal Lotus of all its oriental makeup, what you're left with is a metroidvania on the edge of competence. It's a product that came to market with quite obvious flaws in its main mechanic (the pogo-jump) and in the design of the levels, which primarily depend on the full functioning of such a system. Of course, it's far from being truly bad, but it's a game that's a victim of its own pretensions, which makes the mistake of relying too much on its pretty shell to compensate for the lack of soul at its core.
Review in Portuguese | Read full review
While not a path best left untrodden, Bō: Path of the Teal Lotus is a title that struggles to find its way to its full potential.
Bo: Path of the Teal Lotus wears its inspirations boldly – Hollow Knight in particular – but makes its unique mark in a delightfully crowded modern Metroidvania market. The platforming is difficult but the level design is creative. The boss fights are too long but encourage you to use what you've learned. There are UI issues but they don't occur often enough to ruin the game. The bridge section is brutal but shows an impressive confidence in the level design that persists until the end. The writing, art, and music are sublime. You should play this if you're a genre fan with more patience than me.
Bō: Path of the Teal Lotus is a visual treat for fans of the Metroidvania genre. Though it may have a few rough edges, it definitely provides a challenging yet fun experience.
Review in German | Read full review
Bo: Path of the Teal Lotus is the most beautiful game you will play. The hand-drawn art is ethereal and whimsical and captures the beautiful mythology in which the game is grounded.
2024's incredible lineup of indie titles continues to grow, and Bō: Path of the Teal Lotus deserves to be right near the top. It's a picture-perfect Metroidvania, impeccably designed and gorgeous in motion. Do not miss this.
Bō: Path of the Teal Lotus is a must-play 2D platformer that shines with its sublime movement mechanics and excellent level design. Despite a few narrative and comedic missteps, the game offers fulfilling exploration, captivating combat, and stunning visuals, making it one of the standout titles of 2024.
Bō: Path of the Teal Lotus excels at its goal of delivering a commendable and exciting title. It is a unique title, one that I found to be charming and breathtakingly beautiful. It also wears its inspirations on its sleeve as it looks to replicate that same emotion from the player. Using Japanese folklore as a basis is clever, with the excellent levels and exploration worth a look at despite a few stumbles. In a summer when droughts were constantly occurring, the shift to game releases happening at all times of the day and months, Bō: Path of the Teal Lotus launches at a great time.
The presentation in Bo: Path of the Teal Lotus is immaculate and combat is satisfying, but inconsistent platforming sours the experience.
Some fresh ideas, such as the Daruma doll system, help make it a worthwhile time for any fans of Metroidvanias.
While incredibly gorgeous, and filled with small moments of greatness, Bō: Path of the Teal Lotus suffers from several rough edges in its combat, platforming, and level design. None of these make a bad game by themselves, but the frustrations mount over time, dragging down what could have been a special experience.
Bo: Path of the Teal Lotus is among the best games I’ve played and easily stands alongside the other greats in this genre. Have you been waiting to play Silksong for years and years? Well you’ll still be waiting, but this game is an absolute must play. And at a reported cost of only 20 USD, I recommend Bo: Path of the Teal Lotus to anyone and everyone even tangibly interested in metroidvanias. Move aside little Knight, it’s the Lotus’s turn in the spotlight.