“Saga of Sins” is published by Just For Games and developed by Bonus Level Entertainment, the creators of the 2018 game “Fox n Forests.” If you haven’t heard of that before, that’s okay, because neither have I. It seems on this second outing, they’re swinging for the fences by attempting a special look to the action side-scrolling action platformer. The game has a very unique and visually striking aesthetic that is meant to resemble a stained-glass window from a church, but it’s moving. The art style is simply beautiful and always enjoyable to look at. The game’s story revolves around a warrior named Cecil who returns from battling in the crusades only to find his village, “Sinwell,” plagued with evil and sin. The seven deadly sins have a grip on the village, and Cecil must purge his town of evil. The twist is that Cecil can enter the minds of the townspeople and transform into four different demonic creatures: a werewolf, a gargoyle, a griffin, and one more that I won’t spoil. Each of these creatures has different abilities that can help you fight your enemies more effectively and progress through the game.
While the game’s overall story is a bit ridiculous, the game takes it very seriously, which sometimes works for the better in games, but here feels more awkward than anything. The cutscenes at the beginning and end of each chapter are fully voice-acted, which is a nice touch. However, the writing, itself, is not noteworthy. The cutscenes in-between levels also feel overly long and drag down the game’s pace. The game’s movement is stiff, and the jumping never quite feels right. There is always a clunkiness to it that you can never quite get used to, making combat feel more cumbersome than enjoyable. As you play, you collect money that can be used to help you use your power-up attacks.
One of the game’s highlights is Cecil’s powerful dash attack, which requires you to kill four enemies before fully charging it. The game has seven deadly sins, and each has two base levels and a boss fight. While the game is not overly difficult, some of the time, it can quickly become frustrating in certain areas. The Greed levels, in particular, are mind-numbingly difficult, to the point where the game stops being fun, and you might have to take a break from it, at least that’s what I had to do.
The checkpoint system is also rather annoying, with checkpoints few and far between, and you often have to repeat several minutes of a stage if you die. I feel like we have moved past this issue in video games, where we don’t like to have our time wasted when playing a game, it detracts from the overall enjoyment of the game. Despite its flaws, the game’s stained-glass window art style is undoubtedly its redeeming quality. If you’re a fan of arcade-like side scrolling action games and don’t mind a challenge, then you might find “Saga of Sins” enjoyable. However, it’s hard to recommend this game to anyone else unless you’re just a glutton for punishment.
5/10
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Related: Nick Navarro Reviews
Gaming since I was given an original Nintendo as a kid. I love great storytelling and unique ingenuity. When both collide in a single game, I'm a happy gamer. Twitter/IG @NickNavarro87
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