Worldless Reviews
An inspired new take on the 2D Metroidvania concept, whose challenging combat and rewarding exploration is accompanied by some stunning audio and visual design.
Worldless is a fun and challenging action platformer that has a great minimalist style, and a battle system that is fun to master. However, there are bits that need tightening up to make it truly great.
In a year as saturated with great games as 2023, Worldless is presented as one of its latest surprises, a metroidvania that manages to conquer with its original combat system and a minimalist aesthetic that works like a charm. Without a doubt, a great presentation job for Noname Studios.
Review in Spanish | Read full review
Worldless seamlessly combines turn-based and real-time combat to create a challenging and very satisfying experience. A mix of genres where, although there is a star ingredient, everything feels really good.
Review in Spanish | Read full review
Worldless is a beautiful game that blends the joy of exploring a Metroidvania with seriously compelling timing-based combat.
Worldless is an excellent, intelligent and well-packaged video game, capable of both offering brilliant platforming phases and representing an extremely focused and addictive Metroidvania. Supported by a story to be discovered, it is a video game that focuses both on the visual impact and on its combat system, managing in an enveloping way to be incredibly in focus in both lights. That's a lot, a lot of stuff for a team on its first video game that arrives in such an aggressive and fierce market.
Review in Italian | Read full review
Worldless attempts to differentiate itself from its peers by adding satisfying turn-based combat to the usual Metroidvania loop. It largely succeeds, helped by an intoxicating art style and varied puzzle mechanics. Some difficulty spikes interrupt the flow and knock the dreamlike exploration off balance, but you'll feel compelled to overcome them.
Though its turn-based combat may end up doing most of the heavy-lifting, that Noname Studios have cleverly crafted something that's both fleshed out and as appealing as it is, means Worldless still winds up a delightful studio debut.
Worldless is not going to be for everyone. The harsh difficulty of the combat, and the thin plot can make it tough to move forward. However, there's satisfaction to be found in clearing the title's challenges. Combined with the splashy visuals, the adventure is worth undertaking if you're up for the task.
Worldless shines when players enter battle with a new opponent for the first time, discovering its moves and weaknesses. It’s fun to watch for patterns and create attack combos, with plenty of tension added when trying to perform the Absorption move. Platforming isn’t as complex as combat but adds variety.
Worldless stands out for its vibrant visual aesthetic and strategic challenges in turn-based battles. The abstract approach to the plot and the lack of detailed explanations can be frustrating, requiring discovery through trial and error. The experience offers intense moments, in which precise timing is crucial and which make the game challenging. Backtracking encourages exploration and solving challenges with new abilities, despite some frustrating elements regarding understanding the mechanics.
Review in Portuguese | Read full review
Worldless took a different route when it came to the combat mechanics that helped make it differ from other Metroidvania, but I enjoy the Hack n Slash form of combat that is in Hollow Knight and Dead Cell. Don’t get me wrong the turn-base fighting was fun, it just took a while to get my head around as the tutorial wasn’t the best. There was a frustrating difficulty spike when you hit certain enemies that would leave me stuck for ages and unable to progress.
Worldless captures the thrill of a good close fight.
I liked Worldless, but I wasn’t very good at it. Visually, the game looks great, and I had a lot of fun exploring the world and trying to make sense of the vague story while taking in the scenes and listening to the score. Combat, however, is tough. It’s not broken or glitchy. It just takes some fast fingers and careful attention to really master it. I liked it in principle, but it just didn’t click for me. I still give Worldless a solid recommendation. If you’re up for the challenge, you will discover a unique adventure that’s well worth taking the time to master.
There’s no doubt that in terms of presentation the game looks great, and has distinctive combat, but in terms of overall design it struggles a bit
Worldless has a great premise and presentation. But it's clear that it's a console-first game and that putting it on a PC is an afterthought. If you enjoy the exploration aspects of Metroid and Castlevania games, you will find a lot to enjoy. However, several combat balances need to be implemented, including an easy skill refund, additional skill points, and a design native to the PC platform.
Tight platforming puzzle challenges, an intriguing story and gorgeous visuals are held back by turned-based combat that feels not yet fully formed.
Worldless is visually stunning and enchanted me in its first few hours, but the sudden increase in complexity in the final third and the requirement for precise timing to advance in the main battles took away my desire to continue. When I consider the imprecise map, the lack of fast travel and the slow and empty crossings when revisiting certain sections, I think I can only recommend it to the patient or the skilled, as, unfortunately, frustration has several times taken me out of the spell in which the beautiful atmosphere enveloped me time after time.
Review in Portuguese | Read full review
While gameplay is certainly king and the meat of the game, the narrative of Worldless can be a mixed bag. The narrative component of the game can be somewhat inconsistent. The story takes a relatively long time to develop, and it lacks the seamless flow that some players may desire. Moreover, certain aspects of the story can be lost in translation, particularly the absence of audio dialogue and relying solely on text-based interactions. Nevertheless, if you're seeking to try something new that pushes your reflexes and traverses cosmic realms of wonder, this game is just right up your alley.