Have you ever been in an argument with someone and thought, yep, wearing their skull as a headpiece would be a great look right now? Well, we have just the game for you! Releasing today on Xbox, Switch and Playstation is Zapling Bygone, and skull-wearing is its jam.Â
Zapling Bygone may not be in your radar right now, but it probably should be. We are in the midst of writing up our review, but we can reveal that we loved its mix of Metroidvania thrills and Carrion-like gruesomeness, as you slice open enemies, grab their skulls and communicate with their souls as you peep through their eyeholes. It’s dark, but oh so fun.
Structurally, it’s a rather simple take on the Metroidvania, as you are given reasonably free reign of a large and sprawling map – but you have precious few abilities for traversing that map. So, you explore, killing enemies and eventually reaching bosses, taking them out in return for abilities such as wall climbs and laser beams.
The difference is the sheer violence and gleeful morbidness of it all. You don’t only kill bosses, but you claim their skulls, and you can converse with them ‘Alas Poor Yorick’ style. Your adventure is soundtracked by the skulls that you haul about in your gelatinous body, and they even have some wonderful side-effects like causing their followers to stop attacking you. Got a Rat King skull? Yeah, rats are cool with you now.
This is all soundtracked by one of the banging-est scores in recent memory. The graphics are obviously retro, so you have to be okay with a pixel aesthetic, but it’s perfectly capable of delivering wondrous and terrible sights that will linger with you. All round, well worth a play, if you ask us.
The key features of Zapling Bygone on Xbox, Playstation, Switch and PC (previously available) include:
- Kill your foes and steal their abilities by wearing their skulls.
- Find game-changing mutations that modify and enhance your abilities.
- Explore and conquer 6 biomes, each with their own enemies, bosses and backstory.
- Collect skull fragments that shine light on long dead civilizations.
- Collect the history of the planet in comic fragments.
Zapling Bygone is getting a review incredibly soon. For now, head to the Xbox Store and pick up an Xbox One or Xbox Series X|S version of the game. It’s also on Playstation, Switch and PC through Steam.
Game Description:
Play as an alien hive-mind who murders bosses, steals their abilities and wears their skulls.
Zapling Bygone is a twisted metroidvania where you murder your foes and steal their abilities by wearing their skulls. Make every inch of the alien planet your playground as you learn its secrets and use them to your advantage. Take advantage of Zaplings sticky tentacles to fluidly jump and climb around the world.
