Dandara: Trials of Fear+

Metroid Fusion is one of my favorite games within the 2D Metroidvania genre. I remember being sucked into that game on the Gameboy Advance back in the day. I don’t play a lot of games on my phone these days simply because I either A. Don’t have the time or B. Don’t really like the games. Games either feel like a massive time commitment or are too simplistic to enjoy long term. This game is the first game in ages that has actually caught my attention. The controls are intuitive and fun. The gameplay is challenging yet rewarding. You can play for a few minutes or a few hours. When Apple Arcade first launched the titles on there were pretty lacking. It’s genuinely nice to see games like this on the service. This is probably the best one I’ve played on here.

I’ve seen some other reviews on here complaining about “clunky” controls and no clear progression / story. I completely disagree. This game is one of THE best iOS games I’ve ever played, and I’m super picky with my iOS games. I loved this game so much I played through it twice. The controls are unique and take some time to get used to, but what makes them so brilliant, is they FEEL like they were made for a touch screen. This is what most games get wrong on mobile. Most developers just create a game for console and then port it over to mobile. This game feels like it was made for a touch screen and it’s genius. Quick finger movements is all it takes to maneuver through the entire game, and it feels super dynamic. In terms of confusing progression, it’s a Metroidvania, so that’s part of the intrigue and puzzle of playing the game. It doesn’t hold your hand, but it rewards you for your curiosity and skill. A fantastic Souls-like on mobile. I can’t recommend this game enough!!!

This game has clunky controls, a confusing layout, and a convoluted story that confuses “mysterious and deep” with “vague and ambiguous.” Dandara has you jumping around random locations in hopes of finding some new useful item, but in reality most of the power ups you receive actually just make the game HARDER! There’s no clear sense of progression, using the Dark Souls template of souls and bonfires (yawn), which is made worse by the fact that every new challenge you encounter is solved through trial and error. The gameplay loop is more or less progress to next room, die, get back to that room, collect your souls, go the next room, die, repeat. The learning curve, confusing controls, and lack of clear I-frames routinely leave you cornered by enemies, unable to heal, dodge, or fight back because you’re being pushed around from every angle. This game may have worked better with a controller or a console, but as a mobile experience this game just feels anti-player from the ground up. A terrible port that just punishes you for even picking it up.