PREVIEW: Batora: Lost Haven on PC (Steam)

By Jon Donnis

I was asked to take a look at Batora: Lost Haven on PC (Steam), although not officially released, the version I played is something of a prologue, or demo.

"In Batora: Lost Haven, players will take on the role of Avril – an unlikely young hero and the last hope of a dying Earth, as she travels between planets, meets an eclectic cast of characters, and explores a range of colourful and diverse sci-fi fantasy environments. Along the way, players will be faced with an array of important decisions, the consequences of which can be far-reaching and shape Avril's personality for the rest of the game. For Avril to survive, players will have to fight, think on their feet, and master the 'Nature Switch' ability to balance their mental and physical fortitude while solving unique environmental puzzles."

Batora is an isometric type view, sci fi adventure game. Twin stick shooter meets hack and slash type gameplay.

The main gimmick of the game seems to be the ability to switch from physical (Sun powered) to mental (Moon powered) characteristics which in turn affects the way you play, from which enemies you can attack, to how you attack them. Physical (glows orange, power of the Sun) has you slashing at enemies with a weapon, and mental (glows purple, power of the Moon) as shooting from further away.

The enemies are also powered by the Sun and Moon, so you need to choose which state to attack them under, as each one will affect attacks depending on the state of the enemy.

You have two health bars, one for each state, and regardless of which state you are in, you can take damage to both, and if one goes to nil, you die.

But this can also affect how you might solve a puzzle or as the game calls them "environmental challenges". Sorry guys, its a puzzle.

The landscapes are very colourful, everything looks great. Which fits well with your character Avril, who has had bestowed upon her powers by two powerful aliens. She will play as their champion and save everyone.

As it is right now, the game has a long way to go. There are moments of greatness, but also moments of failure. No release date yet, so I assume they are seeing how people find the game, listen to their complaints and hopefully improve things.

The Good

Bright and colourful game, and fun to play if completely unoriginal in it's presentation, (outside of the switch between Sun and Moon mode)

The Bad

Quite a few bugs present in the version I played, but hopefully these will be fixed.

Some of the dialog is tiresome.

Overall

The game has potential, but there is a long way to go. I hope they do not release an unfinished version of this, as people might be disappointed.