A look back at Bastion

Hoping that at some point this summer I'll get to play Transistor (most likely on the PS4 thanks to my budget), I figured that perhaps it might be a good idea to have a look back at Supergiant's debut: Bastion

Bastion; developed by Supergiant Games who've recently released their latest work Transistor.
Pictured here brooding with crest in hand is the main protagonist known only as the kid 

 In Bastion you play the character shown in the picture above known only as the kid as he wakes up to find that the calamity has occurred which has resulted in the world being blown apart. Platforms of earth form bridges under his feet as you explore the environment, coming across enemies such as gas fellas which are like blue ghosts, windbags which are like big blue blobs of goo, peckers which are bird -like creatures and many more varieties. The only characters other than the empty ashy husks of those who perished in the calamity are the Ura (a separate race from the kid who is Caelondian) Zulf, the Ura Zia and the Caelondian Rucks and it is this latter character that I want to draw particular attention to next because he also plays the role of narrator and it is this narration that is one of Bastion's most intriguing aspects.

Zulf - Note the pale skin indicating he's an Ura

Zia - Who is also an Ura

Rucks (the Narrator) - Like the kid is Caelondion

Yeah sure narration isn't anything new but let me tell you no-one has done narration like this. Logan Cunningham who is the Voice Actor for Rucks puts on the sexiest voice of all time and delivers absolutely everything....and I mean every single line perfectly in a Western drawl reminiscent of Sam Elliot. Considering that it's mostly Rucks that's doing the talking for all of the characters and almost every action you do, it's a damn good job he does so too. The Kid, Zulf and Zia are for the most part completely silent and I don't think I'll go too much into their story and motivations because I feel that it will spoil it for you. But I can safely say the story is in my opinion really heart wrenching and excellent, the main objective for the most part is to collect cores and shards to get the Bastion (a machine base that might help deal with the apocalyptic calamity) working again. It really helps that there are only four characters because it gives more structured pacing and meaning to each character, whom you can explore even further through back-story side-quests. We can really get this impression of being the last survivors of the apocalypse and it's quite an awesome take of the apocalypse story too. Yeah sure a Western ain't nothin' new for a post-apocalyptic world, but one presented like this sure is.

The Bastion where as you progress through the game you collect cores to build more buildings that can provide you with more gameplay options such as weapon upgrades, Spirits, Idols (get more XP at the cost of making the game more difficult) etc.

You can probably see from the screenshots, it has this gorgeous hand-painted, bright art style with deformed characters that give it a slightly cartoony...well perhaps it would be more accurate to say fairy tale look about it. The background environments look absolutely beautiful and really draw you into the world. Also they're not too difficult to navigate either which is an especially important factor to note in this game since the levels form under your feet and it may not be especially obvious straight away where you need to go. The level design though uses visual cues such as broken platforms to give hints to the player as to which direction to go but since it's a mainly linear game anyway it doesn't matter too much. Plus it's fun exploring every nook and cranny because of the art and also to experience every bit of narration by Rucks.

BUY THE SOUNDTRACK NOW

The Soundtrack is stellar too with really unique tracks by composer Darren Korb, using a variety of instruments and inspirations it's unforgettable and matches the action, visuals and tone so perfectly. You have to buy the soundtrack ASAP once you've finished the game of course, it's one of the best OSTs I've ever heard and that's taking film OSTs into consideration as well. 

The Kid with the War Machete and Carbine

Weapon select screen at the Arsenal building

The Kid and his trusty hammer against a windbag

But what about the gameplay? Well I would put mechanics mainly under the label of Hack and Slash, being able to choose from a variety of weapons enabling a fair variety of play-styles. Weapons include the starter Cael Hammer which swings a heavy blow to your foes, the fang repeater which is an automatic gun that fires bolts in rapid succession but can't be fired whilst moving, my favourites the war machete which is a fast chopping melee weapon and the duelling pistols which I like because A:They fire as fast as you can push the fire button and B (the most important reason): They look frikkin' awesome and rule of cool must be applied at all times. It's not the deepest combat system in the world but I feel that just hacking and shooting at the enemies as is is damn well satisfying and fluid enough. Oh and also just as a note I feel that it's a game that's definitely best used with a controller, the analogue controls give it a better and more responsive feel especially in regards to what direction you're facing.

The Forge: where you can use materials to upgrade your weapons

The Distillery where you can get spirits that give you special passive abilities, you can have more spirits active at once as you level up through the game. 

You can upgrade your weapons using materials you find or you can buy them using your fragments which you come across within levels and by defeating enemies. The system is fairly simple where you generally have two choices at each upgrade level to choose from. You gain experience, leveling up meaning you can unlock more slots for spirits at the distillery. Spirits are power ups for you to choose from and you gain more choice and more quantity of spirits as you level up. It's your typical progression from a mechanical point of view but I do love how they tied it in thematically to the story by using alcoholic beverages, it's an aspect that this game is great at doing overall which is something I can really appreciate and makes it all the more engrossing.

This game is a simple one, but the variety is still present to hopefully suit a greater number of people's play-styles. But hell there's no beating about the bush: it's worth playing it just for the art, music and narration alone, not that I have anything wrong with the gameplay in fact I praise it for it's versatility. The way that it draws you into the world is just superb and is basically for the most part unrivalled in this regard...seriously I can't get enough of it.

Bastion is a game who's uniqueness isn't exactly in the "how" it executes it's aspects, but rather in the quality to which it synergises and presents them. The narration perfectly works with the gameplay, the art-style works so well with the music and the story I might add which is a bit surprising considering how dark it is. It definitely gives it it's own sense of personality and with a voice constantly there in your ear it's as if the world personified is just communicating to you directly. Well perhaps not totally but it definitely gives it a real sense of atmosphere, helping with the story and immersion.

I can't recommend Bastion enough, it won't be the best game for everyone sure but you just have to experience that soundtrack and narration. And by the way it's really unfair that Logan Cunningham is so young yet has such an awesome voice like that:

Here's what I thought the Voice actor for the narrator Rucks looked like

Here's what the Voice Actor (logan Cunningham) for the narrator Rucks actually looks like......yeah I am crying with jealousy here