There’s a peculiar trend in the gaming industry these days—games with concepts that sound groundbreaking, yet fall flat upon release. It feels a bit like judging a game by its trailer, only to find the full experience doesn’t match the promise. In our gaming community, we’ve seen this happen way too often. Remember the rollercoaster ride with No Man’s Sky? I certainly do. I jumped on the hype train from day one and honestly, it was a letdown then. Although, credit where it’s due—Hello Games turned things around spectacularly, earning every bit of redemption. Their journey stands as a lesson for all developers out there. It’s this context that brings us to our current playthrough on the PS5: Mists of Noyah. A game that, on paper, should redefine genres but, as you’ll see, delivers more fizzle than sizzle.
Who wouldn’t be eager to dive into a game blending the crafting charm of Terraria with the challenge of a roguelike Metroidvania? The idea of an ever-evolving exploration quest, complete with multifaceted crafting elements, sounds like the kind of thing we enthusiasts would rush to engage in. However, Mists of Noyah feels like a work in progress that’s been prematurely unveiled.
From the outset, launching Mists of Noyah and selecting my character had me eagerly anticipating the adventure. This game promises an engaging journey to safeguard your village from nocturnal monstrosities, demanding strategic building and foraging by day. I imagined a constant race against time, balancing exploration and survival as I shielded defenseless villagers. Imagine my surprise when I found myself aimlessly wandering a forest.
Interestingly, Mists of Noyah skips any formal introduction or tutorial, expecting players to dive headfirst into the mechanics. Normally, such a setup doesn’t deter me—I’m all for unraveling controls and plot bits as I proceed. It’s a storytelling technique that can spark curiosity and provide depth. Unfortunately, here, it comes across as a glaring omission rather than an intentional feature.
Navigating through the game, I figured out the basic controls quickly enough, leaping and battling foes while collecting resources. Crafting wooden armor came next, but I found myself navigating menus blindly, pressing buttons in a desperate hope for clarity. Then, night fell, and with it, much stronger adversaries. My initial strategy involved fleeing rather than fighting—a way to find the village I assumed was my destined starting point. Only after repeated efforts did I locate it, leading to further bemusement.
The village experience mirrored the game’s beginning—an incomplete picture. Vendors offered wares, yet lacked interactive dialogue, leaving me guessing at their inventory’s purpose. I found myself hesitantly spending my virtual currency, uncertain of its utility. Accepting a dungeon run challenge from a fairy was an intriguing prospect—promptly quashed by a near-instant defeat.
Exploring the biomes revealed a disappointing sameness; reskinned variations of the initial forest, altered merely by climate. Transitioning from tundra to desert within mere screens felt disconnected, leaving me confused about my objectives. With no real sense of purpose, even combat and traversal couldn’t maintain my interest. The day-night cycle, theoretically intriguing, only added to my bewilderment.
Mists of Noyah includes a persistently ticking clock as a gameplay feature, but instead of heightening suspense, it becomes a hindrance. The expectation to gather knowledge and context from the environment—be it through a lengthy scroll or discovering narrative cues—is constantly undercut by time pressure. The fact that important story elements could be missed due to real-time threats points more to oversight than deliberate challenge.
In essence, Mists of Noyah feels like a prototype, a glimpse into what might have been. Its narrative is sparse and lacks the compelling draw needed to keep players invested, leaving one to wonder if it wasn’t pushed out before reaching its full potential. Visually appealing it may be, but like the saying goes in Britain, it’s “all fur coat and no knickers.” Had the developers focused on core aspects and followed through, this review could’ve had a different tone.
If Mists of Noyah had taken the Early Access approach, we might view it differently—a project under active development with room to grow. Instead, asking for £8.00 for something half-baked feels somewhat disheartening, especially considering the steeper pricing on Steam and the lengthy gap between releases. This makes it feel less like a polished port, more like a rushed monetization effort.
Ultimately, Mists of Noyah is a title that could easily be overlooked. It showcases potential untapped, leaving players with an empty shell of what could’ve been a captivating game. It’s not yet ready to hold the stage as a completed work, whether on console or ported from earlier PC efforts. My advice? Save your cash and invest in a more rewarding gaming experience.
