Ultros

To get the true ending you main goal is to connect every "boss" to the living thread, which leads them to be "reborn" (rebirth is a very big theme in the storyline which I didn't really explore much because it's very abstract), that said I got the ♥♥♥♥ "at least you tried" ending which was kind of a letdown.

The main gimmick of the game is a time loop that resets most living things up to a certain point while making the world progress a time cycle, this in gameplay terms essentially means that you get to "build the world" by interacting with it in different ways with changes that might not have immediate impact but unlock new ways to traverse the map in future cycles, this mechanic at first is extremely cool, the game respects your intelligence and holds your hand very little which in turn leads you to just explore and try things out to see how they affect future time loops.

Ultros, however, piqued my interest due to the visuals, the good reviews, and the rogueLITE element, which I thought could be a good middle-ground for someone like me who loves metroidvanias, but has never played a roguelike.

The soundtrack is subtle and atmospheric, giving each environment a distinct feel that ties into its mechanic / niche / gimmick, creating a more immersive experience.

At the time of this review I'm a little over 12 hours in and there has been some interesting shifts in gameplay (you'll see), interesting characters without having to read volumes of text, some cool bosses, a plethora of truly incredible 'blacklight poster' art, chill background music, unusual 'skills' that aren't annoying combos of the controller buttons, and a very expansive map still left to cover.

- The game ran extremely well on the Steam Deck