Strayed Lights Image
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76

Generally favorable reviews - based on 12 Critic Reviews What's this?

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  • Summary: Strayed Lights is an atmospheric action-adventure with fluid combat and an intricate world imbued with mystery. You are a tiny, growing light seeking transcendence. Explore a land of otherworldly ruins and glowing trees, where entities of flickering lights and luminescent shadows reside.Strayed Lights is an atmospheric action-adventure with fluid combat and an intricate world imbued with mystery. You are a tiny, growing light seeking transcendence. Explore a land of otherworldly ruins and glowing trees, where entities of flickering lights and luminescent shadows reside.

    Challenge rogue shadow creatures in fast-paced, rewarding combat. Use a fluid mix of parries and dodges to absorb their energy levels until you can unleash an ultra energy attack. Shift your light from blue to orange in sync with enemies using timed parries, then push energy back at them in vivid finishers.
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Strayed Lights | Reveal Trailer
Score distribution:
  1. Positive: 6 out of 12
  2. Negative: 0 out of 12
  1. Apr 28, 2023
    90
    Strayed Lights is a visually stunning game, displaying a highly polished aesthetic paired with a serene soundtrack. The interpretive story, while only a few hours long, resonated with me; exploring the darkness, defeating demons, growing stronger and wiser with each win. However, the narrative wouldn't work as well if it wasn't for the compact combat, which is the shining light of the game. Responsive, fluid, and tightly packed together, the face-on parry system pushes you forward through the dark.
  2. Apr 25, 2023
    90
    A short but sweet experiential title, Strayed Lights shines bright above its station to deliver an atmospheric tale of self-discovery, rewarding combat and a fantastic graphical and audio treat. This light may not burn long, but it’ll leave quite the impression despite the odd minor issue.
  3. Apr 25, 2023
    90
    Strayed Lights is a strongly designed action adventure bursting with a melancholic atmosphere that is easy to get wrapped within. Additionally, the terrific boss battles, gorgeous presentation, and interpretive yet emotional narrative showcase how lovingly crafted this whole experience is. Even when considering potential issues one may have, like the low difficulty level, you’ll likely find yourself having a good deal of fun regardless. Strayed Lights is exceptional for a debut outing, and I’m eager to see what Embers works on in the future.
  4. Apr 25, 2023
    70
    Embers' debut game is beautifully presented, with an interesting but flawed combat system. Lovely music (thanks to Journey composer Austin Wintory) and exciting boss battles make it worth your time.
  5. May 4, 2023
    70
    Strayed Lights is a wonderful game similar to an arthouse film in its presentation. It is an interesting addition to the rhythm genre with its color-matching parry system, which makes the game unique. You can complete the whole game without attacking even once!
  6. 65
    There's a great deal of cool traits to Strayed Lights, including thoughtful enemy design, strong premise, and charming visuals. However, pacing suffers greatly, and combat forces its way into the forefront with memorization and inconsistent parry windows. It's short and can be sweet, but there's an overarching bitterness that's hard to ignore.
  7. 50
    I might be an outlier on this but Strayed Lights didn't raise the needle for me. As stylish as the visuals can be, the gameplay feels far more ordinary. I did occasionally enjoy the spectacle of boss fights but the rank-and-file enemies offered little in the way of challenge. It's clear where the game's influences lie but I don't think Strayed Lights comes close to those lofty ambitions. Even with the narrative, I don't think the journey holds that much weight. This just hasn't clicked with me.

See all 12 Critic Reviews

Score distribution:
  1. Positive: 0 out of 1
  2. Negative: 0 out of 1
  1. May 23, 2023
    6
    Good-
    The combat system based around parries is a unique idea; the atmosphere looks fantastic with good use of colors and post-processing
    Good-
    The combat system based around parries is a unique idea; the atmosphere looks fantastic with good use of colors and post-processing effects to depict an ethereal world brimming with mystery.

    Bad-
    Undercooked gameplay mechanics lead to repetition; the narrative is excessively vague and fails to give players any reason to get invested in it; linear levels with no interesting objectives or side paths.
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