Momodora: Reverie Under the Moonlight

 Switch
Metascore
71

Mixed or average reviews - based on 4 Critic Reviews

Critic score distribution:
  1. Positive: 2 out of 4
  2. Mixed: 2 out of 4
  3. Negative: 0 out of 4
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  1. Cubed3
    Feb 13, 2019
    70
    Momodora: Reverie Under the Moonlight is a fine example of the metroidvania sub-genre. Depth-wise, it does not quite reach the heights of Hollow Knight, but it far surpasses the likes of Xeodrifter. It's strengths lie in the action, and its charm. This is a fairly bite-sized affair, when compared to the competition, but it is a bite worth trying. With all the basics set in place for such a polished and well crafted entry, hopefully this will get a successor that expands on such a strong foundation.
  2. NintendoWorldReport
    Jan 23, 2019
    65
    Momodora is incredible in many ways, and I feel like I can’t recommend it enough. It’s also disappointing in many ways, and I feel like I don’t want to recommend it at all. The act of moving around through the Kingdom of Karst is so well-tuned that I had a lot of fun running through hallways smacking monsters with a leaf. Unfortunately, at the end of the day Karst just wasn’t a very interesting place in which to spend time, and I felt myself wishing for a bit more substance. There is undoubtedly something special going on in Momodora, but sadly I never felt like I was playing anything more than an introduction to a larger game that doesn’t actually exist.

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User Score
7.7

Generally favorable reviews- based on 22 Ratings

User score distribution:
  1. Positive: 14 out of 22
  2. Mixed: 6 out of 22
  3. Negative: 2 out of 22
  1. MedusaMadman77
    Sep 19, 2019
    2
    One of the most poorly balanced platformers I've played recently. Maybe worth a dollar. It's really bad. Slow, cheap and ugly as hell.
  2. mbestvina
    Jan 22, 2019
    9
    Momodora simply blew me away! I've known about this game for a while but held off for the switch port and man, I should have played thisMomodora simply blew me away! I've known about this game for a while but held off for the switch port and man, I should have played this earlier. Put simply, it’s a MetroidVania with Mega Man Zero’s combat, Dark Souls’ health system and difficulty, and beautiful pixel art and music that took me back to Princess Mononoke and other similar anime. Specifically, if you enjoyed Hollow Knight, then Momodora should be a really easy sell for you. Momodora actually predates HK by a year but offers a very similar experience.

    The level design is a joy to explore. I always felt like I was finding cool new upgrades as I combed the map. Each area is distinct both visually and from a gameplay perspective. It's also quite open-ended! After the first two levels, you get to a hub area of sorts and then simply need to explore all the corners of the map. If I had one issue with the level design, there's a one-way door that I think should have been removed or altered. There's a fork in the road when you get to the hub area and one of those forks organically makes a circle around the entire map, while the other fork ultimately hits a dead end and you have to go all the way back to the fork and go the other way. This is a bit of a nitpick but the game is so open-ended except for this one instance that it feels like an oversight and a time-waster. This could have been alleviated by putting the fast travel upgrade in the dead-end fork to make the backtracking better but that upgrade (AND the lone exploration upgrade!) are both found on the superior fork. I'm just baffled at why this game presents you with a fork in the road, only to tell you an hour later that you should have gone the other direction. Ok I'm done rambling about level design.

    Anyway, the combat is also fantastic. You have a bow and a leaf that acts as a sword. If you’ve ever played Mega Man Zero (or zero in the X games), you’ll be right at home here. You have a 3-slash combo, a jump slash, and you can charge your bow while slashing for maximum damage. It’s also got Dark Souls rolling, i-frames and all but will cancel your bow-charge for some nice risk/reward strategy. You gain money as you kill enemies which can be used to buy new magic abilities. My only complaint here would be the lack of button-remapping. I don't know if the other versions had that but it's a disappointing exclusion. The default scheme is ok but I would have preferred to have dodge and shoot as my shoulder buttons like Mega Man Zero. There is an alternate scheme but do not use it! You absolutely need to have arrows on a shoulder button in order to charge while you melee. This scheme was clearly chosen by someone that isn't very good at the game.

    All considered, Momodora offers a challenging, immersive experience that I couldn’t put down. I beat it, then beat it on hard mode, and then beat it on 1-shot kill difficulty! It’s a bit short, with my initial running clocking at 7 hours (about 1 hour extra thanks to the fork shenanigan I mentioned) but I'd always prefer to be left wanting more than wanting less.    … Full Review »
  3. Ginger_Avenger
    Nov 16, 2022
    7
    I like Metroidvania games a lot these days, and this one was pretty good. I don't think I'm going to dazzle anybody with my gaming skills andI like Metroidvania games a lot these days, and this one was pretty good. I don't think I'm going to dazzle anybody with my gaming skills and intuition, so it took me a little bit to get into a groove with this game. Once I did, I happily powered through the rest of the game. Good games in this genre always have a sweet spot in design where, at a certain point, the game really starts to open up and exploring becomes more engaging and rewarding. I think Momodora does a pretty good job in this respect, and I also liked the anime-inspired characters. The story? I'm sorry, was there one? The game is short enough that you don't need a detailed narrative to pull you forward.… Full Review »
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