9 Souls

« Nine Sols is truly the revolutionary Metroidvania we were waiting for. Even though it doesn't do anything groundbreakingly new, it is a truly masterful creation. From its elaborate taopunk world, gorgeous art and design, challenging Sekiro-like combat, and remarkable enemy diversity and originality, it is a game that any fan of the genre must experience. »

« A masterful metroidvania that builds on Sekiro-style combat and tells a great sci-fi story too. Unmissable. »

« Nine Sols is a masterfully crafted 2D Sekiro-like Metroidvania that explores a lore-rich Taoism fantasy setting through science fiction elements. »

« Nine Sols is a Metroidvania that does what many have failed to do within the genre and actually creates an experience that feels like an authentic, grueling, atmospheric and unique 2D Souls game. Artistically, it's hard to find any fault with it as the blend of Tao Tradition and Cyberpunk dystopia is captivating. The narrative is gritty, mature and uncompromising, which leads to an engaging story from start to end, and the gameplay is a refined showcase of combat, platforming and puzzle-solving. The difficulty settings may be a little askew, and some may feel that the central themes are too graphic and unsettling at times. But all in all, Nine Sols, in a stacked year, as far as Metroidvanias are concerned, does more than enough to force itself into the conversation, as it could be a contender for indie game of the year. »

« A delightful 2D Metroidvania action game for parry and furry lovers, brought to you by a developer specializing in horror games. »

« In any other universe, I would balk at Nine Sols’ difficulty. Yet, I gave it a chance, and it more than rewarded me for giving it a moment of my time. Over 20 hours later, I came out of it bruised, battered, and wanting more Taopunk goodness. »

« Nine Sols offers a nearly perfect blend of challenging "Soulslike" combat with a unique, vibrant world. The game stands out with its fluid mechanics and captivating art style, making each encounter both difficult and rewarding. While it might not appeal to those unfamiliar with the genre’s difficulty, fans of challenging action games will find it an almost purrrfect experience. »

« Despite a few minor issues, Nine Sols has a compelling, addictive and highly explorable world, and a slick, responsive combat system. »

« 1. Spielmechanik / Gameplay Wie gut steuern sich die Figuren? Ist das Gameplay abwechslungsreich und motivierend? 10/10 2. Story & Charaktere Wie interessant und glaubwürdig ist die Handlung? Gibt es Charakterentwicklung? 9/10 3. Atmosphäre & Immersion Wie gut taucht man in die Spielwelt ein? Stimmen Stimmung, Musik, Sound und Design zusammen? 10/10 4. Grafik & Design Wie gut ist die visuelle Gestaltung? Ist der Stil stimmig (auch bei älteren Spielen)? 10/10 5. Schwierigkeit & Balancing Ist das Spiel fordernd, aber fair? Gibt es Frust oder Langeweile durch schlechte Balance? 9/10 6. Innovation & Ideenreichtum Bringt das Spiel neue Mechaniken oder originelle Konzepte mit? 8/10 7. Spielwelt & Leveldesign Wie gut sind die Welt(en) oder Level aufgebaut? Gibt es clevere Strukturen, Geheimnisse, sinnvolle Erkundung? 8/10 8. Langzeitmotivation & Wiederspielwert Macht es auch nach dem Durchspielen noch Spaß? Gibt es Entscheidungsfreiheit, alternative Enden, Nebenquests o. Ä.? 9/10 9. Spielspaß Macht das Spiel über den gesamten Spielzeitraum Spaß? Füllt das Spiel die Spieldauer sinnvoll? 8/10 Gesamtwertung: 9/10 Besonders gut wahnsinnig stimmiges Zusammenspiel aus - saucoolem Artdesign - kernigen Animationen - wuchtigem Trefferfeedback - gut abgetimmter Musik und Soundeffekten - abwechslungsreichen, höllisch schweren, aber nie unfairen Gegnern - ultramotivierendem, superspaßigem Gameplay - und einer interessanten, toll inszenierten Story Besonders schlecht - etwas zu lang - manchmal unklar, wohin man als nächstes muss - gegen Ende für mich einfach zu schwer - was aber durch "Story Mode" ausgeglichen wird »

« really well made metroidvania with some of the most fun boss fights in any game I've ever played. some things I dislike about progression but absolutely doesn't take away from the incredible experience this game is »

« This game was one of great first impressions, lingering disappointments in the form of particular design choices, punctuated by an engaging, emotional, and satisfying conclusion both in terms of gameplay and story, that made overlooking the few shortcomings this game has practically effortless. Nine Sols is a gem **** with beautiful art, a fascinating world with interesting lore and secrets, great character and enemy designs, fantastic exploration, and the best combat of any 2D game. While its music may not be particularly memorable, it serves the setting well and there are a few standout tracks which are great. The squash and stretch style of animation leaves a bit to be desired, but overall the presentation was great, and the comic book cutscenes add a lot of personality to the game. The exploration is a bit less freeing than contemporaries, but that's because this is a story-driven action platformer first, and a metroidvania second. The story and the action, which are the focus, are both impeccable. Much like Metroid Dread, this game lacks in the interconnected and mazelike level design, but it places its bets on the combat, which in both cases ends up paying off. The combat in this game is closely inspired by Sekiro, which is a very good thing. It has a satisfying parry, and interesting and innovative internal damage system, a satisfying chaining of moves with the talisman and the parry, alternative options for deflecting and avoiding damage that the player is rewarded for using like the unbounded counter and tai chi kick, and more. The core combat is fantastic. The only criticisms I would make are these minor ones: the hitboxes needed more work, as some enemies and even bosses have problems, and the lack **** period after getting hit makes it very easy to get stunlocked, which is never fun. But the great story which creeps up on you and hits you with an emotionally impactful tale of accepting the flow of time and the truth beyond what you can measure, more than makes up for it. This is a fantastic game. »

« Simply said, "not a game for all men" or those with less than expert reflexes. Tends to be designed for punishment and overly difficult boss battles. A game that is amazing in many ways but makes it very difficult to enjoy despite a great story, art style and music. »

« Gráficamente es bonito, el resto es burdo, frustrante, con una curva de aprendizaje que se siente mala porque todo te mata de un golpe, mientras que tú tienes que darle mil golpes hasta al enemigo más pequeño. No se siente como una experiencia que te invite a mejorar, se siente como una experiencia que buscara que te dejen de gustar los videojuegos. »

« Nah game was good till you arrive to Eigong, WTF is that spike in dificulty ? have no sense, game have some balanced increasing dificullty like 6/10 and in the last boss bécame a 176/10 »

« Nine Sols is coming to Switch in the physical edition it finally deserves. Already available since November 2024 as a digital download, this title from Red Candle Games—best known for Detention and Devotion—moves away from psychological horror without ever quite shedding that sense of unease. The setting changes, the gameplay too, but the studio retains that very particular way of making you feel that a beautiful world can hide something sick.Here, the player takes on the role of Yi, a Solarian who wakes up in New Kunlun, a city suspended between Taoist myth, technological ruins and ancient vengeance. More than just a difficult Metroidvania, Nine Sols has a world, and that world bears **** true strength lies in the combat. The game doesn’t just ask you to strike, but to listen. To wait for the right moment. To turn the enemy’s attack into an opening. Parrying isn’t a bonus for skilled players, but the heart of the experience. You don’t get through Nine Sols by forcing your way through. You learn to breathe in time with your **** result is demanding, brutal, rarely forgiving. It remains to be seen whether this precision holds up on Switch, and whether the beauty of New Kunlun is enough to make players accept a game that never really seeks to give them the upper hand. Read the full article here: ****/jeux-video/nine-sols/ »

« This game, is just unfair, poorly balanced, and incredibly frustrating almost right from the start. The game has NO invincibility frames, bosses and mini-bosses have parry windows and move at speeds that are sometimes faster than in Sekiro, and bosses can always take you down in 2–3 hits. All fights last several minutes at a stretch and require a nearly perfect execution 95% of the time. There is almost 0 error tolerance. Every mini-boss has massive run-backs. This means that upon death, you have to traverse multiple platforms and/or floors filled with enemies and featuring numerous platforming sections and traps. If you die along the way, your resources are lost. Farming resources is tedious because enemies drop very few. There are areas that are completely dark where you can’t see a thing. Yet you’re still expected to platform and fight enemies while navigating them. Although it’s a parry-based game, you constantly have to fight 2–5 targets at once. The very first real boss in the game has a moveset you’d only expect in the late mid-game. Every boss is a damage sponge, while you barely deal any damage yourself and die extremely quickly. Every boss has 360-degree AOE attacks that hit even if you dash through them or stand behind them because the game has NO FCKNG invincibility frames. Bosses can even hit you if you lay stunned on the ground. Parries only land if you’re facing the boss directly. The parry system also feels inconsistent at times. You have to press the buttons on your controller so hard that you almost break your controller. It's also not possible to teleport freely in this game the way you can between bonfires in Souls games. The map is relatively difficult to navigate, and there isn't a single quest objective displayed on the map. This game is so poorly balanced and over-the-top that it’s no fun at all. The movesets of bosses have 0 time to learn, breathe think and often dont even to heal. This game is not hard its not rewarding its not good its just frustrating and plays like a fan mod with the difficulty slider set to 300%. Ive beat the first 3 major bosses and then gave up in the stealth area because of the massive runbacks to a mini boss. It was just tedious. I couldnt endure it. »