Bastion Reviews
Bastion is the epitome of why XBLA alone is worth owning an Xbox 360 for. The game defines what passionate developers can accomplish on the platform, and if you appreciate old-school design with a modern twist, not playing this game could be considered a crime. It has so much to love and is one of the few games I was not ready to be over when the credits rolled. The Summer of Arcade starts off with a massive bang, and I suggest everyone give this one a go when it lands this week.
A fascinating journey into a mysterious world has all the hallmarks of a future classic
It's not always about the adventure you go on, but sometimes it's the way the story is told. Bastion weaves an incredible story that goes places I wasn't expecting. The game's narrations are unlike anything I've experienced before; improving what could have been an otherwise mediocre dungeon crawler. With some clever twists and turns, Bastion stays interesting from beginning to end!
Bastion's only visible flaw is that it takes a little while to show its true colours. While it's not at all slow or plodding in its opening stages, its most powerful assets - the many imaginative and useful array of weapons, its challenging side activities, and a story far more interesting and thought-provoking than what first appears - aren't obvious from the outset. A demo might not reveal these strengths, but give Bastion a chance - it's a whip smart action title that's satisfying through and through, and gets the Summer of Arcade off to an absolutely rollicking start.
Bastion is bluntly a real masterpiece. Its only defects, if we can call them that, can be found in a chronic lack of real novelty and non-stellar longevity, however sufficient for such standards. For the rest, the Supergiant Games product leaves no room for doubt. With a fascinating storyline, solid gameplay, and a cheering graphic-sound compartment, Bastion is a virtually unmissable game and highly recommended for any gamer. If we at Everyeye were wrong not to initially give him the notoriety he deserved, you don't make the same mistake: hurry up and buy it.
Review in Italian | Read full review
Bastion is a wonderfully diverse game that offers up a great deal of flexibility in how you approach its many challenges.
Is the game worth playing? Certainly. It's a decent little adventure that will provide enough solid gameplay to be worth the money. Just make sure one expects no more than that, and it'll be a most worthy purchase. Bastion is fun enough for what it is, but it does not transcend to the levels that it would like you to believe it does.
Bastion is a solid action-RPG that is put over the edge by its unique and entrancing concept. It's a fun game, but it would've had trouble standing apart from the crowd, even with its unique features. When you add in the awesome use of narration, the game becomes much more than the sum of its parts. Bastion manages to be engrossing from beginning to end. It's well paced, well executed and fun to play, and it's hard not to get more curious about what comes next. The lack of replay value, even with a NewGame+ and multiple endings, may hurt it a little, but if you're a fan of atmospheric and unique action-RPGs, then Bastion is well worth the 1,200 Microsoft points ($15).
Bastion is the perfect game to kick off Microsoft's Summer of Arcade, capturing that certain something that Limbo and Braid had in previous years.
Bastion is a fun and engrossing ride, and I highly recommend grabbing the demo to see if it's your kind of thing. Allow the soothing (well, gravelly) voice of the narrator to wash over you, and go find out just what happened to this destroyed, understated, beautiful world.
As long as you're not expecting a profoundly original artistic vision, Bastion delivers on its gameplay. Bastion's main strengths are twofold – the combat is satisfying and varied, and the customization options are robust. Our only major complaints are fairly nitpicky – it's easy to fall of ledges (especially if you're using the shotgun weapon, which causes significant kickback and often kicks thekid off the edge of the world), and when you find a new weapon you're forced to equip it until you can get to a nearby armory to swap it out, which can be particularly annoying if it de-equips your favorite weapon. These are small issues in the larger picture though, and Bastion is still overwhelmingly well-executed.
Dive-roll into it today.
With diverse, interesting gameplay, excellent production, and a world that sucks the player in, Bastion is a downloadable experience that's not to be missed. It's a game that every gamer should pick up, as it hits the core of why we all love our gaming hobby. Bastion celebrates experimentation, rewards exploration, allows room for growth and challenge, and never condescends. In the end, it leaves The Kid's motivations as an open issue. Are you a hero working toward a new golden age, a villain working out some major anger issues, or just a kid doing his best to muddle out of a bad situation? The Bastion ain't gonna tell you, son. That's gotta be up to you to decide.
Bastion is good, but not perfect. The suboptimal target capture is sometimes frustrating, often you accidentally stumble over the edge of the floating islands and lose valuable life energy and the landscape sometimes obscures the character. Nevertheless, Bastion is a great start to the Summer of Arcade.
Review in German | Read full review
Bastion advances video games as art. In the same breath, it can challenge your thumbs and make you wonder about the possibilities of its world. It feels like a retail game; it feels like a straight shot to the summer gaming drag; it feels like the beginning of something bigger. If Limbo is any sign of things to come, you'll probably be hearing a lot of positive things about Bastion over the next few weeks.
Classic in its gameplay, Bastion cultivates its difference when it comes to evoking its narration... in real time. Thus, throughout this action/RPG all classic (but devilishly rich and effective), a voice will romanticize your actions. Your victories, like your defeats, every situation. Add to that a shimmering 2D progression and achievement, and you'll have the indized game of this summer 2011 in front of you. Failing to be as striking as the previous ambassadors of the Summer of Arcade, Braid and Limbo ...
Review in French | Read full review
Quite simply, Bastion is a game with lots of character and precious few flaws. Any fan of old-school action RPGs would be remiss not to play this game. If every title released had Bastion’s sense of newness and adventure, the gaming world would be even better than it already is.
Bastion is a wonderful way to kick off the Summer Of Arcade and one that will be very hard to match from the other four titles. A mix of wonderful art, sumptuous sounds and deep involving gameplay make this one of the best XBLA games of the year.
Bastion is an arcade game with RPG elements, which is managed by a medium-complexity mechanic, but it is undoubtedly one of the titles having its own soul. It is charming and colorful, making it very fun to look like. The Supergiant Games team conjured up an extraordinary game, another step in the evolution of electronic entertainment towards a rich narrative, not limited only to reading the notes found along the way and dry conversations with the characters encountered.
Review in Polish | Read full review
Bastion is an intriguing and eclectic action-heavy RPG with great audio and visuals, and it mixes some interesting mechanics with tried and true gameplay. $15 might be a little steep for some gamers given its length, but this is a game you ought to play, particularly if you care about replayability.