Following on from the amazing Hyper Light Drifter, indie studio Heart Machine is trying a whole new genre with their second game: Instead of a 2D declaration of love to Zelda, Solar Ash delivers lightning-fast platformer action in a breathtakingly beautiful sci-fi world. In the test plus video, the game captivated us with its great look and smooth movement, but there were also stumbling blocks in the way.
With the fantastic Hyper Light Drifter, the small studio Heart Machine managed to become an indie darling in one fell swoop in 2016. Five years later, the second neon-soaked space trip is about to start:
Solar Ash ditches the pixelated Zelda airs of its spiritual predecessor and instead focuses on high-speed platforming in a wicked 3D world.
In the test, we will explain why this works great on the one hand, but why the game falls a little short of its potential on the other!
You take on the role of voidrunner Rei, whose home planet is in danger of being swallowed up and crushed by a gigantic black hole called the Ultravoid.
And the key to saving your homeland is, how could it be otherwise, in the middle of this black hole: An artifact called Starseed is said to be able to turn back time and push your planet out of the Ultravoid’s gravity.
Smoothie from the game world blender
Because the black hole has already incorporated so many other planets before, a wonderfully surreal, varied and often breathtakingly beautiful world awaits you in Solar Ash, which is composed of different biomes, cultures and buildings. The whole thing is held together by a sea of stable clouds on which you can surf around elegantly.
Occasionally, Solar Ash will also use the twisted gravity of the Ultravoid to conjure up some really funky and awe-inspiring environments, but there could have been a lot more. Still, the game world is clearly the star of Solar Ash, and finding out what sci-fi feverish dream you’ll be transported to next is the biggest motivating factor in the game!
Rush of colors
The extremely stylish look of Solar Ash fits this setting like a glove. The game combines the deliberately simple, reduced graphic style of a Journey or The Pathless with the strong, surreal coloring of Hyper Light Drifter.
The developer remains true to its optical line and, like in the spiritual predecessor, sends you on an almost psychedelic journey through a fascinating game world. And while we’re on the subject of psychedelic: The excellent movement of the high-speed platformer also ensures that you move through the game over long distances as if in a trance.
Hyper Light Surfer
As a void runner, you have a few useful tools at your disposal with which you can master the sloping jump passages. The most important of these is on your feet: With your inline skates you can not only grind along edges, but also otherwise surf through the area at breakneck speed.
Combined with grappling hooks, double jump and boost, this results in a lightning-fast, great controllable and fluid movement, thanks to which you simply won’t want to stand still. Because of the generous lock-on for your melee attack, you even knock out the sparsely used opponents at full speed.
The tasks that you complete in the successively unlocked areas also play well into the cards of this movement: In each zone you have to defeat a fragment, a huge monster made of slime and bone, in order to activate a node on the starseed. But first you have to wipe out all the smaller anomalies in the area.
And they always turn out to be a temporary obstacle course: With breakneck maneuvers, you destroy the nerve endings of the slime formations almost as you fly by before they can build up their protective shield and throw you down. The time limits are so tight that you have to master the movement options of your character well.
How long Solar Ash is best?
Platforms: PC, PlayStation 4, PlayStation 5.
Genres: Action, Adventure.
Developer: Heart Machine.
NA: December 02, 2021.
EU: December 02, 2021.
Updated: 2.5 Hours Ago.
How long is Solar Ash game?
A full completionist playthrough of Solar Ash can last anywhere from 7 to 13 hours, depending on several factors. If a player is struggling with Solar Ash’s bosses or having trouble finding the game’s hidden caches’, then the playthrough will obviously be on the longer end of the spectrum.
What is the story of Solar Ash?
In Solar Ash, the player takes control of a female main character named Rei and journeys through the Ultravoid, a ravenous rift in space swallowing worlds. It is place of incredible danger and surreal spaces – a dream none can escape.
Is Solar Ash like Shadow of the Colossus?
‘Solar Ash’ Review: 2021’s Coolest Game Is A Sci-Fi ‘Shadow Of The Colossus’ Like the strange, ravenous rift upon which our hero Rei finds herself, Solar Ash is an ethereal and unexpected fusion of many different games and genres.
Is Solar Ash a good game?
Solar Ash has some big ideas, and while it’s not all smooth skating thanks to minor control quirks and a couple of design elements that don’t quite reach their full potential, it’s definitely a journey worth taking.
Is Solar Ash a timed exclusive?
After taking a look, it still says “Coming Soon.” So I can only assume once the game is actually released on Epic, they’ll start the timer for that annoying exclusive period. I actually confirmed with the games publisher that Solar Ash will remain a EGS exclusive game and will not see a Steam release.
Does Solar Ash have multiple endings?
Solar Ash has multiple endings, both good and bad. If you want to know how to get them and what’s in store, this guide has you covered. Though there are multiple endings in Solar Ash, much of the game follows a single critical path. You’ll enter an area, clear out anomalies, then kill the boss.
Is Solar Ash open world?
Both are open-world games on a budget, prioritizing platforming challenges and fast, smooth movement over combat and custom story missions. In Solar Ash, you slide around on futuristic roller skates, boosting and grinding in every direction; in The Pathless, you propel yourself forward using a magical bow and arrow.
How many worlds are in Solar Ash?
There’s a total of six worlds in Solar Ash, with a colossal boss encounter at the end of each world. In order to trigger a gigantic world boss, you must scan the world for focus points filled with black ooze.
