It was running 2018 when the independent team Long Hat House he managed to finalize his project. A rather particular work, which has taken the name of Dandara. This had the task of positioning itself within the genre of metroidvania, at the time not yet particularly full as it is currently. Everything was funded by the publisher Raw Fury, rather known in the field of independent titles, which allowed the publication of the game on all platforms of the current generation, including mobile ones. Two years later, the developer has managed to give new life to his game, publishing the free update that takes the name of Dandara: Trials of Fear Edition.
The update brought several new features into play, such as bosses and further hints to the narrative sector. We then had the opportunity to play this version of the work, which can be defined as revised and corrected. Does the title still manage to have its say, after two years in which the metroidvania genre has grown exponentially? Let's find out in the next lines.
The heroine Dandara
Dandara: Trials of Fear Edition is not a title that focuses much on history, even after the arrival of the update that implements some excerpts. These are simple hints, designed to contextualize the heroine's adventure. A little explicit narrative, which is ultimately summarized in a handful of dialogues and mysterious phrases. However, the game setting is certainly well supported, as is the dark and sensational atmosphere. The protagonist who gives the work its name has not been patented by Long Hat House, but has been extrapolated and adapted from an ancient legend. We are dealing with a black woman with Afro-Brazilian origins, who in this game has the task of saving the mysterious territory of the Salt.
The peculiarity of Dandara: Trials of Fear Edition lies in the abilities of the aforementioned heroine, who has possibility of movement mind blowing. This is not a fast run or dodging, but various jumps that allow her to splash from platform to platform in a millisecond. In general, in fact, Dandara does not have the possibility to move independently and must rely on outlined surfaces, which allow it to move quickly.
Jumps and gravity
Moving around the game map is in fact quite fun, at least in the initial stages, and Dandara's speed will have to be managed in the best possible way to avoid encountering the various dangers that swarm the scenarios. However, today more than ever, the level design of the title turns out to be anything but painstaking, showing itself to be extremely incomplete on several fronts. While being well structured to allow for Dandara's movement, the scenarios are already very repetitive and monotonous within a few hours, and above all excessively extended. While the fights can be adrenaline-pumping, the same cannot be said for long walks.
On the one hand the first exploration is very pleasant, on the other hand the size of the map ends up being a great deficit. In case of death - when it is necessary to recover one's soul to gain access to the lost resources - it is necessary to spend several minutes, and the risk of the second death is easily transformed into certainty. Certainty often accompanied by frustration, given the extreme backtracking proposed within Dandara: Trials of Fear Edition. However, to avoid excessive problems with less accustomed players to the genre, the developer has taken care to integrate small cheats in the game present in the options menu, which allow a more peaceful progress with the addition of tricks or additional flags (the checkpoints of this universe).
In short, although it is a more than discreet work, this one fails to stand out compared to other metroidvania, at least nowadays. The evolution that characterizes the progenitors of the genre is usually sensational, and creates an ever thicker line between the phases of final uncertainty and the mastery of many skills when one approaches the last bars. In this case the game seems to devolve instead, given that the upgrades are anything but flattering and the level design continues to make water minute by minute, starting already at a disadvantage in the first hours.
Delight in pixel art
The graphic sector of Dandara: Trials of Fear Edition is positioned in the large family of pixel art, climbing a step above various productions. The on-screen models are in fact quite detailed and well made, while the game maps manage to present themselves as immersive and enjoyable. The protagonist, for her part, is very successful, and over the course of the various hours it will be possible to become increasingly familiar with her.
A sore point is unfortunately the game map, which due to the gravity of each single room tends to rotate. All this makes orientation very difficult, and adds a dose of chaos to events that would not need it, especially during the long and exhausting walks dedicated to backtracking or recovering the soul that contains the protagonist's resources.
