‘Titan Souls’ Is A Terrific Challenge
Welcome to Indie Spotlight!
With PAX East coming around in just three weeks, let’s start the hype by taking a look at one of the titles from the Indie Megabooth in 2015 — Titan Souls!
Created by Acid Nerve, Titan Souls puts you in charge of a solitary hero stuck between worlds. The ruins that lay before you house an array of titans, tasked with protecting this world. It’s up to you to explore the ruins, defeat the titans and uncover arcane secrets as you earn your way to the other side.
The gameplay is fundamentally simple. You can walk/run, roll and attack with your bow. You are equipped with an arrow. Yes, a single arrow. You’ll be unable to attack after firing until you get that arrow back. Luckily, you don’t have to run for it. Your hero is able to call it back to you telekinetically, harming enemies in the process. Not bad!
From there, the gloves are off. The entire story is comprised of a series of boss fights, much like the well-liked Shadow of the Colossus of the PS2 era. Everything in this world is a one-hit KO, including yourself. The titans, however, don’t leave their weak points blowing in the wind. These battles require speed, accuracy and coordination to get the job done.
The titans come in a wide variety of forms. Gol-iath, pictured above, is a totemic being with detached fists that tries to squash you like a bug while keeping his heart covered. Other members of the titan family include a brain in a giant ice cube, a massive electric eel dragon thing and an adorable Dragon Quest slime-like ball of magma, to name a few. Can you find them all?
The ruins are broken up into several zones, each with its own save point to make respawning more convenient (and time saving — the ruins are vast and full of hidden corners). Circular lights in the save point’s design serve as a checklist for how many titans you have found (or killed) in that zone. It’s up to you to find every area and collect their shards!
I had this game on my list ever since seeing it at PAX East 2015. The pixel art is simple yet intricate and really brings out the vibe of a lonely world. The battle music and ambience is on point, and the boss fights are very challenging and rewarding. This is a great title to test out your motor skills and strategy, but you have to stay patient. There will be MANY deaths on your journey, and it’s most important to reflect on each one, to find the patterns and thus discover the way to victory.
Titan Souls is available on Steam, PS4 and PS Vita.
