Olijacame out at the end of January in 2021. It received some small coverage with generally favorable reviews. However, the game was a little forgotten when Game of the Year discussions took place. One year later,Olijahas launched as a free game onXbox Game Pass.
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This service is generally pretty good about bringing hits from years prior into the limelight. Now is as good a time as any to jump in sinceOlija. It’s free, and it has received patches since its launch. That doesn’t mean it is a perfect game by any means now. This Metroidvania-like action platformer still deserves a second shot in the sun so let’s find out what it did and didn’t do right the first time. The shipwrecked explorer, Faraday, demands it.
8Best: Your Spear
It takes a little to get to it but Faraday will eventually stumble upon an epic spear. This thing is not only fast and has a long reach, but it also has warp capabilities. Players can throw the spear at certain enemies and warp towards them.
Alternatively throwing the spear into certain eyeballs in dungeons will let Faraday warp around as well. Players can even call it back just like the ax inGod of War. Both of these games have a lot in common besidesthe cool weaponry.
7Worst: What Does And Doesn’t Cut
Players will find a sword before they get the spear. The sword isn’tthe strongest weaponinOlija, but it gets the job done. Weirdly, both of these weapons have blades tips and yet the spear can’t cut everything the sword can. For example, players can find hanging cages in dungeons that contain imprisoned refugees. If players rescue them then they will return to the hub town of Oaktide.
However, throwing a spear at the dangling rope won’t cut it but using it as a melee weapon up close will. This inconsistency is just one example. It doesn’t damageOlijaon a grand scale, but it is odd enough to note.
6Best: The Art Style
Olijahas simple, abstract graphics that make it distinct even among otherretro indie games. It looks closest to something likeSuperbrothers: Sword & Sworcery EP. The pixels form shapes, but these figures aren’t intricately detailed.
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That’s part of the charm in a game like this. Not every indie title should adhere to the seemingly standard templates of 8-bit or 16-bit games. The intro cinematic also deserves some love as far as designs in the overall game go.
5Worst: Hats Look Kind Of Dumb
Some designs inOlijathat do not look great are the hats. There are two major ways to improve Faraday’s stats. Firstly, money can be given to the healer in Oaktide who will permanently upgrade his health. That’s what players should focus on usingtheir money on. Secondly, there is also a shop that sells hats as long as players gather the right materials.
While the boosts, like allowing players to suck health out of monsters, are nice, the hats look silly on Faraday. Compared to his normal black attire, the colorful hats just throw his whole ensemble off.
4Best: Short But Sweet
Playing an indie game is great because they are often short.Olijais no different. It shouldn’t take players more than around four hours to complete the adventure. Some estimates say two hours, but that is if players are cruising through the campaign.
While getting lengthygiant open-world gameswith AAA budgets is nice, it’s also good to have games likeOlijathat take up less time. People don’t have time machines to play everything. What this game does with its time is solid.
3Worst: Boat Rides
Load times aren’t the best inOlija. Going in and out of doorways takes longer than it should. It’s only about five to ten seconds at max, so it’s not a huge waste of time. The bigger problem is the boat rides that ferry Faraday between islands.
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Players choose an island and then the screen goes to black, loads, shows Faraday drifting on a boat, and then another screen appears of him riding up to the docks. It helps build ambiance as sometimes the ferryman will tell Faraday some interesting stories. However, the process still feels cumbersome. It might have been more interesting if players could sail themselves.
2Best: Boss Battles
There aren’t a lot of boss battles inOlija. What’s here is great, though, as they all stand out. They aren’t simple hack and slash encounters likea lot of boss fightsin other games. There is usually some sort of strategy involved.
For example, there is a creepy spider boss about halfway into the story that sends puppets after Faraday. To beat it, players must put enough damage into the puppets to expose the spider’s weak point aka its eye. While that may not sound like the most elaborate setup, overall, most boss encounters are riveting inOlija.
1Worst: Not Much For Options
Even after a year of being out, with numerous patches,Olijais lacking in options. There areno assist featuresto make the game easier or harder. There isn’t even a standardized difficulty mode.
Overall,Olijafalls on the easier side of indie games. That’s nice for some, but the more hardcore players out there might have wished for a more challenging option. The lack of manual saves is also a bit odd.
Olijais available on PlayStation 4, Xbox One, Nintendo Switch, and PC.
