BELOW Reviews
Some players will relish the challenge, but I just couldn't. Not in this game. Below puts its best foot forward in its early hours and then never stops losing steam. If the experience were somehow compressed into a tighter six- to eight-hour adventure, I'd confidently recommend it to a wide audience. As it stands, the game has a masterful command of ambience, but it comes with too many caveats.
The art style is so beautiful to enjoy, but the gameplay is too repetitive to bear.
Review in Chinese | Read full review
Capy's tough-love approach and well-worn survival systems makes it harder to appreciate Below's singular look and feel.
Below is a gorgeous, atmospheric dungeon crawler that is difficult to take in at the pace it deserves because of oppressive survival mechanics.
It’s not cutting edge. I mean “Souls-like” is a genre of its own now, not just an interesting experiment. So we wind up with Below, which is like one of those weird evolutionary offshoots that is never quite successful.
If you have Xbox Game Pass and are not scared away by the potential struggles ahead, then Below might be worth a try. At a somewhat high asking price of £19.99 though, you may wish to consider other, better options.
Below is a niche title if there ever was one. Beautiful, haunting, and downright demanding of the player, it's a game of little victories. Explore mode is only moderately easier, but it does make this a bit easier to grasp for those who aren't particularly adept at dungeon crawlers. However, the price of death feels too steep, and it's hard to recommend Below to anyone who isn't a diehard fan of the genre. It's very good, but definitely not a good first dungeon crawler.
After five years of waiting, though there are some frequently fantastic examples of sound used to further the tone and aesthetic, a similarly plentiful amount of contradictory design choices and unnecessarily tasking moments leaves BELOW with many rough edges.
Below is a good game, but it could have been something great with some more attention to things that were bound to frustrate gamers from the get-go. It's a solid adventure, and a wonderfully interesting mystery. But it's not always fun to play.
Below's maddening edge is an open rebellion to its quiet sophistication. It's loaded with intrigue but resistant to modern methods of approach, creating a Rorschach test where losing patience with its internal contradiction is as credible of a reaction as relishing its idiosyncratic isolation and adversity. Ultimately, Below is a curiosity in which gratification is dependent on personal resolve.
Below is a solid and well-designed game that will challenge every level of gamer. Steeped in mystery, fans of Roguelike dungeon exploring will feel right at home in this subterranean adventure.
Below is a roguelike that excels at making players truly feel like they’re a lone adventurer on a dangerous island filled with secrets. I liked its simple, colorful art style, its music, and atmosphere, but the gameplay pushed me away.
A maddening eschewing of basic exposition makes Below feel like something of an arrogant work - but ultimately it wields a tremendous audiovisual aesthetic and weaves an interesting, if not an always thrilling, take on the roguelike adventure template.
Below hhas a precise idea but transmits it reluctantly. Finally, not everyone who understands it might want to indulge it.
Review in Italian | Read full review
A frustrating mix of survival game and roguelike, that has absolutely no respect for your time and yet still hides an enthralling and rewarding action adventure within its murky depths.
Below is a dark-space opera with a strong imagery that revolves around the concepts of darkness and light, good and evil. It is a well built hardcore game with procedural dungeons and traps. It is not suitable for casual players.
Review in Italian | Read full review
Below is a long-awaited game that for the most part delivers on what it set out to do 6 years ago. The biggest hurdle awaiting players besides the difficulty will be finding that sweet spot of discovery and wonder that keeps pulling you on and making you want to find out more.
Exploration Mode adds replayability and a much needed respite to players who didn't feel right with the strict timing of the original game. Now is a good time to give Below a second chance.
Review in Italian | Read full review
Below is a dark, mysterious game that invites you to illuminate its secrets, then punishes you for trying. While it does a great job invoking a sense of wonder, thanks in part to its sparse, tense soundtrack, its genuinely great moments are spread far too thin. Below will certainly be a divisive game, but it offers a compelling experience for players willing to put up with a good amount of frustration and tedium.
Below is a beautiful, immersive experience that comes with extensive caveats. Survival can be frustrating for even the most seasoned adventurer