It will also let you dash into a roll to quickly pass under hazards, which never gets old.

You can use this to cover ground faster, obviously, or leap larger gaps with ease. The controls are largely traditional - move, jump and attack - but there's also an enjoyably challenging sprinting system, where you tap and hold ZL to begin running and have to release and tap again to keep your speed up when landing from a jump. That may sound a bit like a direct contradiction, but the more sedate, thoughtful pacing on offer here gives it a relaxed and cerebral feel that results in something truly important an identity.īased on a Newgrounds browser game, the adventures of young orphan Gale, on a quest to find out what happened to her home, take the form of a 2D action-adventure with a Zelda II-esque overworld map, a slick inventory system and plenty of secrets to find. But Phoenotopia: Awakening somehow manages to stand out, and it does so by being a little more. When your competition includes the likes of Hollow Knight and Iconoclasts, you know it's going to be a rough ride. It takes some going to stand out among the Switch's throng of superb Metroidvanias.

Phoenotopia awakening switch review