Sundered

Sundered is chaotic, beautiful, and addictive. The passion and dedication that developer Thunder Lotus put into this game is shown in every second of gameplay. I’m sure there are some that feel like the Metroidvania genre is overrated or overused, but Sundered is so much more and their approach is truly refreshing.

Quotation forthcoming.

Sundered is a remarkable game. With a well-developed metroidvania style, alongside a great amount of content, fun combat, beautiful aesthetics, singular design, moral choices involved in gameplay and unforgettables boss fights, it carves its own path to become one of the best indies of 2017

If you’re looking for a Metroidvania-style slash-fest that won’t make your eyes weary, you’ve gotta check out Sundered.

Except for the minor problems encountered, if you want a metroidvania with innovative solutions, head into the distorted world of Sundered, thus supporting a software house that we'll hear about for a long time.

Yes, the Metroidvania space is becoming crowded with great games, but Sundered fits in with the best of them.

Even though it has its flaws, with progression tied to many upon many upgrades, the experience unfortunately becomes less about the bosses and cool new areas as it is the repetition. But, you’ll keep coming back. Restarting after dying mid-battle, picking up the pieces and heading back out. Doing the same thing again and again. But, somehow different this time. Slightly more health, a new skill, more damage output, a better understanding of enemy patterns. Sundered, from Thunder Lotus Games, is a Rogue Legacy meets Super Metroid experience that is well worth checking out.

Sundered is a great metroid-vania. It doesn´t innovate a classic gameplay formula, but with its visual, atmosphere and technical quality, it can catch and hold you. [Issue#277]

Repetitiveness can sink in the long periods of playing and if anything - besides obvious skills - Sundered demands time. Difficulty spikes can be punishing as the more you play in a one go, the enemies will mount in ever-increasing numbers and toughness. But again, what does kill you, makes you only better. Sundered is a hardcore game, not some casual fun which can be completed in a matter of few hours. The game rewards the time spent on it, and the more you put into it, the more awesome it gets. Just like Eshe, who in the beginning is a mere shadow of the lean, mean killing machine she’s to become. To me, she is the Starkiller that never was and the caverns are her proving grounds.

Without doubt, Sundered is a game that will please the fans of the Metroidvania genre.

A beautiful and challenging game that gives some extra years to your age. You will hate every group of enemies and love every victory you will reach through blood, tears and sweat.

Despite some difficulty spikes and being a little bit repetitive, Sundered is a big step forward for Thunder Lotus Games. A game that will please the fans of the Metroidvania genre, as well as everyone looking for a challenging and robust title.

Sundered is an enjoyable journey that iterates upon the Metroidvania style in ways that are both satisfying and substantial. Its progression systems are constantly fulfilling and combat is complex and exhilarating. While rare moments of unfair circumstances hold it back, Sundered remains a compelling and rewarding experience that you’ll be eager to play again, if only to seek out its other endings or to simply to wipe out another swarm of grotesque creatures.

A gem of a Metroidvania title, with addictive and more-than-a-little challenging gameplay. Mix that in with a neat repetition and level up system and – best of all – the game’s absolutely incredible graphical style, and it’s fair to say that Sundered is the kind of game that will live long in the memory.

Sundered is a metrodvania with roguelike elements and inspiration from Lovecraft. What can go wrong?

Beautiful and dangerous, the world of Sundered is one worth exploring if you don't mind certain repetition. You are going to die a lot, and run around ever-changing caves over and over. But every time you do it, you'll get better, and the combat will also get more fun with every new ability.

Sundered isn't the only roguelike Metroidvania; the indie space is full of them. This is one that stands out though. The art alone is worth the price of admission. While I feel the combat and movement in Dead Cells is a little tighter, Sundered doesn't let you down at all; sometimes I'd just hit that flow of movement, jumping, dashing, and pulling myself from place to place. Especially when I was running from a Horde.

An unforgettable world, an indefatigable enemy, a somewhat meaningless protagonist, a really good time.

With its smooth combat, rewarding exploration, and pulse-pounding battles, Sundered is worth a look from fans of Metroid and Castlevania. Though technical issues muddled my enjoyment and the punishing difficulty can lead to fits of frustration, Sundered brings an exciting and noteworthy experience to a crowded genre.

Sundered takes the 2D Metroidvania platforming formula augments it with some successful ideas that all but reward you for dying. Its procedurally generated levels are hit and miss, as the dynamic parts come off as bland in comparison to Sundered's impressive hand-drawn areas and epic boss fights. In addition, its randomly appearing enemy hordes sometimes lead it to devolve into mere button mashing and random deaths, but the knowledge that I’ll come back a little stronger each time makes it hurt less.

Ten enjoyable hours, great visuals, excellent combat system, too much repetitiveness. Sundered is no Ori and the Blind Forest, but metroidvania fans should enjoy it. [10/2017, p.70]

On the whole I did enjoy Sundered; it’s an incredible looking platformer, and certainly one the most intriguing in terms of its artistic influences. It also has excellent boss fights, each stranger and more varied than the last. Unfortunately, the sections of grinding in between are what you will spend the majority of your time doing.

Sundered is beautiful, tense, and frustrating enough to make you want to throw your controller. If you can make your way through it’s overwhelming combat encounters, you’ll find a platformer that’s well worth the madness.

Sundered is a good metroidvania with astonishing art design. The procedural generation of the enemies is a bit problematic and the difficulty is not well-balanced. Nonetheless, it represents a significant step forward for Thunder Lotus Games.

Gorgeous, but sometimes laborious. [Issue#191, p.81]

The core of Sundered is fundamentally flawed from the outset, and randomly generated levels are often a bugbear of mine. But layered on top of this is a fantastic, gorgeous action game with heaps to do. All told you’re looking at a good 15-hour run through, and those whose thirst is still not quenched as the credits will no doubt be pleased that each playthrough is different. If the thought of eating a beautiful crunchy red apple appeals to you, and you don’t mind the worms wriggling inside, Sundered might be worth a shot.

Solid mix of Metroidvania and roguelike with epic boss battles, but often very conservative and sometimes slow-moving.

The roguelike elements didn’t quite work out for me, but I’m sure Sundered will find its audience. Though I learned not to hate them, I would have preferred if the game stuck closer to tradition. It becomes a good game, but until you really become acquainted with how it works, it can be a frustrating and monotonous slog.

I do not want to imagine how good the game would have been with a fixed level layout. Hopefully Chasm and Deadcells - both Metroidvanias with random levels - will get better soon.

Beautiful but flawed, Sundered is too frustrating early on to be fully satisfying. [Issue#265, p.62]

Some especially beautifully designed environments and epic boss battles are not enough to overcome the repetitiveness of its level design and the especially frustrating hordes of minions which attacks from 360 degrees, while ignoring physical walls.

Sundered is a game with great graphics but uninspired and monotonous design. The unfair difficulty and the poor handling of enemy distribution make Sundered a missed opportunity.

Sundered is a metroidvania game half-backed. It lacks in variety and has some flaws tied to the combat system.

Sundered is a collection of ideas and genres that on paper blend together well but, in this case, made for uncomfortable bedfellows. Passion and talent are on display however, and I'm hopeful for what we see from Thunder Lotus in the future.

Sundered has the basic foundation for a metroidvania/roguelike hybrid down pat, but its poor handling of enemy distribution and the otherwise fine combat that comes with it sadly drags it down. If you’re willing to make it past several hours of brutal horde attacks, there’s a gorgeous and well-crafted action-platformer to enjoy, but those turned off by lengthy grinding or chases through barrages of enemies had best look somewhere else. There’s fun to be had, yes, but you may not have as much of it as you hope for from this cosmic horror.

Too bad. This could have been a really nice take on games like Metroid and Castlevania. But a beautiful art design simply isn’t enough. The fighting system is as superficial as it is unfair sometimes. But then dying seems to be a calculated gameplay element as well.

Sundered is another example of a good concept that was poorly realized. During the first five minutes the game is nice, but after that you have to force yourself to play it.