wizard with a gun
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pc - 2023 - galvanic games
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↓ written 16/12/2024 ↓
wizard with a gun is a stylish twin-stick shooter with a hearty side of survival.
↓ written 29/12/2024 ↓
the game's "soft" levelling system is a highlight. in order to effectively damage stronger enemies, the player must unlock and craft stronger bullets. as the player can have multiple research stations specialising in different forms of ammo (i dabbled with poison and fire, for example), they are not unduly punished for experimenting with their approach as is often the case with alternative mechanics, such as skill trees. if the player is willing to gather the required resources, they can deviate from their current bullet element without resetting its level progress to 0.
this design decision is built upon further to encourage the aforementioned experimentation, as the player frequently picks up discarded weapons loaded with bullets that they have yet to try. this, along with certain bullets interacting with the environment (fire ammo melts ice in the snow biome, for example), prompts further exploration of each type's potential to ease the player out of immediately locking in a favourite and never deviating.
↓ written 16/12/2024 ↓
combat can be exhilarating, particularly once the world goes into meltdown. there is nothing quite like facing down a gear holder or bounty enemy whilst more foes slime out of rifts to melt the floor beneath your feet. the perfect dodge in the midst of complete chaos is reward enough, but also managing to scamper back to the tower with precious treasures in tow made for a phenomenal bout of dopamine.
the game suffers from a number of performance issues; it hitches at inconsistent intervals and experiences slowdowns during particularly combat-laden apocalypses. the former problem may be related to asset loading, as it frequently occurs with rapid travel and is particularly noticable on first boot. in a game with smooth animation and responsive inputs, such issues stand out starkly.
an additional (personal) gripe: cosmetic objects scanned with the first edition appear as entries in both it and worldbuilder. this means that with each furniture scan the player must navigate through two items' menus to remove the "new" alerts that appear on both.
whilst fact-checking my thoughts, i was saddened to discover that galvanic games was a casualty of the industry's elongated rough patch. the studio announced its closure earlier this year - wizard with a gun's sales were not sufficient to keep it buoyant.
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