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When I first played Chasm in 2018, I got stuck somewhere in the Catacombs, and never came back to it. Now there's a limited Vita physical release (with PS4 and Switch boxed copies also available), I'm glad I supported the developers and gave Bit Kid's Metroid-style game another go.
Exploring a set of pixel-perfect mines, dungeons and catacombs full of secrets, inaccessible crannies and feisty foes, Chasm is a great little romp that was Kickstarted all the way back in 2013, but class never ages!
A newbie knight is sent to a rural village where things have taken a sinister turn for the worse. Plunged into a dark mine, each game is procedurally generated around a set of hand-crafted rooms, so while things look familiar, you can play a different route every time, with several difficulty levels. Also, published hints and tips, while helpful can't give you the answer on a plate, unless you use their seed world.
The nervous early going is helped by the gloomy atmosphere and his weak stats, as the knight stumbles around, poorly armed and armoured. Food and potions keep our hero's health up, while tonic can boost his mana. Chests, crates and defeating enemies provides some improved equipment and other goodies, as he sets out to understand the mystery that has befallen the village. There are journal entries to scroll through, and - the driving force behind Chasm - power-ups that help him access places that were too remote or dark to get to in the early going as the pace picks up and his levels slowly increase those stats to boost a player's bravery - or recklessness.
Careful jump sequences, well spaced but constant threat from enemy knights, insects, bugs and golems, plus environmental hazards like lava and spikes all hinder progress. But getting more familiar with the knight, it feels great to string together moves and attacks, to waltz through a level on the way to the next objective, helped by linking passages between areas and the central portals. The atmosphere builds with the string and piano based soundtrack that offers hints of hope and fear in its edges of melancholy.
The sum of Chasm is building the confidence to bounce around the levels, platforms and portals, finding what you need to advance, trying to remember where you can use it (handwritten notes definitely help), and keeping that experience ticking along to boost his stats. All with the focus of defeating the level bosses that have a simple but gratifying range of attacks for him to dodge, while trying to subdue them. But do take time to enjoy the gorgeous pixel design in every level, the parallax in the background and all the cute little effects that show much much love was pumped into the release.
While attacking is fun, the most vital part of battle is knowing when to dodge each of the enemy's particular offensive moves. Master that and you can skip around the levels with aplomb and not worry too much about losing health. Among the mines and a number of kidnapped villagers and when you rescue them, they'll help by selling you extra gear, upgrading your spells or kit, all paid for by the purses that the enemies drop.
For those who beat it once, or gave up on the game first-time around, like me, a recent patch added Arcade Mode that makes it more fun to play, along with new rooms, fixes and balancing to make Chasm more player-friendly, and in this form, it really bites in the one-more-go style when you get stuck in one area, or feel the need for a little grinding.
I do hate that you can rescue someone or find something useful, and then easily die on the trek back to a save point, but I guess that's part of the challenge (or by grinding for cash for teleport scrolls) and that you can't zoom in on the map. Also, that allies called in by a summon spell won't follow you or do much to help. And, yes, some people do complain that this is just another Metroidvania, but since I don't play every Metroidvania in existence, Chasm still feels fresh and fun to me.
Score 4/5
Price: £14.99 (PSN, LE physical £28, a few copies left)
Developer/publisher: Bit Kid Games
File size 122MB
Progress: Completed (normal)!
