Mists of Noyah (PS5) – A Review

Many games promise more than they deliver, leaving players with unmet expectations. Sure, you shouldn’t judge a book by its cover, but in gaming, when a game doesn’t live up to its promises, it can lead to disappointment. No Man’s Sky is a great example. It’s a fantastic game now, but initially, when it launched amidst massive hype, it failed to impress many, including myself on day one. Nonetheless, Hello Games deserves recognition for turning things around spectacularly. This story serves as a warning for other developers to ensure they deliver on their promises. This brings us to Mists of Noyah on the PS5. At first glance, it seems like it could revolutionize gaming, but sadly, it falls short.

Imagine a game combining crafting, like Terraria, with a roguelike Metroidvania style, where every playthrough offers something new. Sounds exciting, right? Yet, Mists of Noyah feels like it was left half-developed, squandering its potential.

When I first booted up Mists of Noyah and went through character selection, I was eager to dive in. The premise is captivating: defend your village from nocturnal threats, use daylight to gather and fortify. The thought of timing my explorations to ensure survival added a thrilling edge, or so I hoped. But instead, I found myself plopped into a forest without much guidance.

A glaring omission is the lack of a tutorial. Dropped right into the action, I was expected to figure everything out myself. A simple guide or overview of basic controls and objectives could have made a world of difference. The goal of creating mystery and intrigue backfired when it seemed more like neglect.

Haphazard menu-navigating became my way forward. I managed to hack down trees and craft basic items like wooden armor by trial and error. But this haphazard gameplay is not what you expect from a finished game. The frustration doubled when I died, only to start over without any real understanding of what went wrong.

As night fell, the enemies grew stronger, turning my attempts at combat into mere evasion exercises. Finding the village I was meant to protect became a convoluted quest in itself, full of repeated deaths and confusion.

The village itself didn’t clear things up. Vendors stood silently, offering items with unclear purposes that made spending in-game gold as frustrating as progress was elusive. A fairy offered dungeon runs, suggesting new adventures, but what began with intrigue ended swiftly as an enemy dispatched me in one blow.

Exploring various biomes, I realized they were merely re-skinned versions of the familiar woodland, lacking uniqueness. The changes in setting, like shifting from a forest to an icy tundra in a few steps, felt jarring and illogical. Combat was passable, yet without a clear purpose, motivation waned. Day-night cycles enhanced difficulty without clarity on objectives, leaving me puzzled over my role.

An ever-ticking clock on the screen, tracking the time until a night raid, signaled urgency but lacked pause functionality. This oversight became infuriating when reading a story scroll halted progress yet left time ticking, putting me at unnecessary risk. This feels more like an oversight than intentional design.

Ultimately, Mists of Noyah resembles a shell of a potentially engaging game. A narrative lacking substance and a world that feels empty make me suspect it was pushed to release prematurely, prioritizing something else over completion. It’s concerning to find this on sale, especially when the Steam version has been available—and seemingly unfinished—for years. The console ports feel like a cash grab, charging £8.00 for something still incomplete, with the Steam version priced even higher.

In conclusion, Mists of Noyah might be best left on the shelf for now. It promises much but under-delivers, leaving players in a confusing experience that feels more like an early access game. Consider spending your money elsewhere for more value and enjoyment.

Verdict: Mists of Noyah had all the elements for greatness but failed to deliver a complete experience, resulting in superficial visuals without depth. It would be wise to look elsewhere for a satisfying gaming experience.