Apotheon

I picked up Apotheon mostly because the art looked cool, but I ended up liking how it actually plays. Combat feels heavy and kind of unforgiving at first. You cannot just swing nonstop. Stamina runs out fast and enemies hit hard, so fights take some patience.
Exploring Olympus is fun, though I definitely got lost more than once since a lot of areas look similar. The boss fights were the best part for me. Each god felt different and beating them felt like I earned it, not like the game handed it to me.
The story is pretty light and stays in the background, which worked for me. Overall it is a tough but satisfying game with a really unique look, especially if you like slower, more thoughtful action games.

Though I have a small play time on steam, I have hundreds of hours on the PS4. This is my favorite Metroidvania and nothing even comes close to the art direction and combat in this game. Just peak

Play it. It's just perfect.

The artstyle, the music, and most importantly - combat are all top-notch.

I've played on the Olympian difficulty, which adds some combat tweaks to make it more difficult, such as incoming damage cancelling your current attack. Since the game gives you a roll ability plus the fact that all attacks need to be timed equals that it's just basically Dark Soul's combat, but in 2d, and surprisingly, that works quite well.

Now, for the thing that surprised me the most: all, and I mean, ALL characters are voiced. The voice acting is very good and it genuenly feels like theese are characters and not people just reading the lines.

Now, the gameplay: you will be slaying bosses like it's Cuphead, and they're all actually pretty great: each has a unique style of fighting, unique attacks (duh), and most importantly, new mechanics. For example,
a fight with SPOILER ALERT! Artemis involves her turning you into a deer to hunt you down, and you must dodge her arrows to activate 5 altars, after which the roles flip and then you must hunt her down instead, while she tries to activate the altars, and it's super fun. And every fight is unique like that, add this to the fact that every area you visit introduces a new gimmic, and you get a unique and fun gameplay that I do not think I've encountered in other metroidvanias.

So, if you like greek mythology and dark souls combat or just looking to have something to play on evenings, this is the game for you.

I had this game in my Steam library for many years and finally decided to check it out. It is a fun game, with some good mechanics. Nothing that feels like it hasn't been done before but this game does it all well with a very unique art style. I enjoyed playing it and I am sure others would too.

Proof that videogames can be art. Superb voice acting, impactful sound effects, beautiful artistry all around, a fun gameplay look, smart level design, an interesting take on Greek mythology with a thoughtful ending...

Mind you, it's sort of unstable. I had 3-4 crashes, and a major boss got stuck in an unnaccessible section while flying around. The game is also hard.

You can use cheats for the annoying parts though. On the start screen, press ~ button (US International keyboard) and use 'god' (makes you invencible) and 'noclip' (fly around and through obstacles) to tackle some of the more annoying levels if you need.

All in all, a brilliant experience unlike anything out there.

Definitely one of the most unique games on Steam. The story is interesting enough, but what sets the game apart is its level design, combat system, and art style. The game is a really solid metroidvania, with a range of interesting, diverse, and well-designed levels, offering plenty of side quests and secrets (rewarding players who like to explore), as well as a completely unique vibe throughout. The combat system reminds me of old Flash 2D shooters, which is a really nice association. The boss fights are also worth mentioning, as most of them are unique and different from what you might expect. Finally, the visuals are stunning and one of a kind, using old ceramic vases as inspiration. Even if you don't like this type of game, the art style alone makes it worth trying out. Wholeheartedly recommended.

Apotheon is a mixed bag. The art direction and soundtrack are perfect. The story is good, and the way they integrate the story into the gameplay is, for the most part, very creative.
The problem with the game is that the combat is not very interesting. There's so much healing that you can tank any fight, hitboxes are not precise at all, and the enemy variety is extremely low. Platforming isn't that great either, since there are barely any movement mechanics or upgrades. There are MANY bugs and the game crashes every 20-30 minutes when transitioning an area. This is not a big deal since there are autosaves, but it is very annoying.
Overall, I enjoyed my time with Apotheon, but I wish it was more polished & refined.