Gestalt: Steam & Cinder Reviews
Gestalt: Steam and Cinder is a rock-solid retro metroidvania that borrows some of the best aspects of its main inspirations.
Despite a few odd design choices, Gestalt: Steam & Cinder is an enjoyable Metroidvania with an intriguing world, and exhilarating combat.
The narrative facet and its lack of ambition distance it from the best of the genre, but in the rest of the sections the gears of Gestalt: Steam & Cinder are perfectly placed and give rise to a metroidvania as solid as it is recommended.
Review in Spanish | Read full review
A fantastically polished Metroidvania, with some of the best 16-bit style graphics ever seen and impressively deep combat and role-playing elements.
Overall, I really enjoyed my time with Gestalt: Steam & Cinder! It has a story that left me a little frustrated by the end, but the way there was full of good mechanical writing, solid character development, and a healthy amount of proper noun-led mystery world-building. The top-shelf visual quality cannot be understated, with incredibly detailed and well-animated 2D art that can hang with the classics easily. And while combat was the messiest part, there was still fun to be had running around the world, fighting weird enemies, and using skills and combos powered by cool animations. I would definitely keep paying attention to Metamorphosis Games, especially if there are more stories to come from this world in particular.
Gestalt: Steam & Cinder is a charming metroidvania with a unique world that's ultimately undone by its overstuffed and underwhelming storytelling.
Ultimately, Gestalt: Steam & Cinder is a game that will likely appeal to fans of the genre, especially those who appreciate strong art direction and well-designed worlds. If you can accept that this game is short and far from perfect, chances are you'll love it.
Gestalt: Steam and Cinder is a good metroidvania that lacks any significant flaws, but at the same time has a hard time excelling at anything beyond its gorgeous pixel art. A solid choice if you're a fan of the genre, just don't expect it to make you forget about Silksong.
Review in Italian | Read full review
It turns out I’m an absolute sucker for a well-crafted metroidvania. Crunchy combat, smooth progression, and gorgeous aesthetics all keep me locked in place for a complete playthrough. It took ages to get a grip on that bloody dodge-roll, but I eventually got there. Also, the bosses too often felt either padded out or pointlessly dense. It never felt like they hit that balance. But the rest of the experience was so compelling, I didn’t mind that much. If you’re in the market for a pretty excellent metroidvania, Gestalt: Steam & Cinder has got your number.
Aletheia also gradually attains a suite of powers that allow you to reach previously inaccessible areas, but backtracking grows tedious due to the barebones map and the limitations of fast travel. You can only teleport to and from a handful of locations, meaning that you often need to embark on odysseys to use warp spots to get elsewhere. This tedium leads the game’s Metroidvania elements to feel shoehorned in rather than integral to its design. Though it has the bones of a winning action platformer, Gestalt: Steam & Cinder contorts them in submission to generic norms and expectations. The adventure becomes a chore, the fire stamped out.
Despite Gestalt: Steam & Cinder's gameplay and story pitfalls, it remains an enjoyable romp.
Gestalt: Steam & Cinder looks and plays the part of a competent action game. However, its heart lies more in its narrative. While I admire the ambition, Gestalt left me asking, both as a game and as a story, one simple question: "so what?".
All in all, if you like action platformers, you’ll love Gestalt: Steam and Cinder. It’s a shorter affair, to be sure, but it explodes with love for the genre, and the developers have put a lot of heart and soul into crafting a world and story that is both equal parts fun and tense to explore. My nitpicks with the game aside, Gestalt was an extremely enjoyable experience and is definitely on a list of games I’ll replay from time-to-time. I’m excited to see where Metamorphosis Games takes the series in the future, and hope for plenty more adventures of Aletheia to come.
Gestalt: Steam & Cinder is a good metroidvania for those wanting a middle-of-the-road metroidvania. Its steampunk aesthetic makes for a gorgeous and audibly delightful tale, its combat is as fluid as it they come, but my biggest concern is that it doesn't take a big swing in innovation or set itself apart from other metroidvanias in a big way.
Although it falters in the storytelling department, it is a short but enjoyable steampunk adventure with its exquisite graphics and successful use of the essentials of the metroidvania genre.
Review in Turkish | Read full review
Gestalt: Steam & Cinder is a gorgeous-looking metroidvania title with smooth controls and a deep story. It's a bit short to play through, but it is an enjoyable experience.
Gestalt: Steam & Cinder has all the things that make a good metroidvania; even though it doesn't take many risks, it has a solid floor and a well balanced gameplay. The story stops the flow of the game a few times, but the great combat, exploration and progression compensates it.
Review in Spanish | Read full review
I went into Gestalt: Steam & Cinder with some hope despite the delays. I came out feeling like I’ve played one of the more forgettable metroidvanias in recent years. It’s far from the worst I’ve ever played (the short runtime actually helps it out in a way). I just can’t see myself recommending this unless you’ve absolutely exhausted the best this genre has to offer already.
Gestalt: Steam & Cinder could be just another metroidvania, but it goes much further than that. It manages to maintain solid gameplay tied to an intriguing story. Highly recommended.
Review in Portuguese | Read full review
A typical Metroidvania, with an emphasis on storytelling and pixel-art graphics, Gestalt: Steam & Cinder quenches the insatiable thirst of fans of the genre, but it doesn't impress anywhere.