Video games have only improved in quality and scope over the past few decades, introducing new peaks of fidelity and storytelling. Games like The Last of Us, God of War (2018), and The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild all broke the mold for video game capability. While these games are inarguably masterpieces, sometimes it can be nice to just sink into one of those comforting, simple experiences that made up the bulk of previous console generations.

Ravenlok is just such an experience: a brief, quirky adventure that does enough right to be enjoyed across its short runtime. It doesn’t deliver anything industry-shattering, but what is here makes for a fun video game that doesn’t overstay its welcome.

Story

Ravenlok follows a young girl who is whisked away to a strange, magical land hidden behind a mirror. The residents of this realm believe her to be the hero they refer to as Ravenlok, and they task her with finding a way to defeat the evil queen that rules their home with an iron fist. To do so, Ravenlok will need to find three hearts hidden across the kingdom, unlock the door to the queen’s castle, and defeat her in pitched combat.

The story may not be all that original, but its breathless pacing keeps things from slowing down enough for that to really matter. It’s a clear homage to Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland, with mushroom forests, talking rabbits, and even a fun twist on classic characters like the Mad Hatter and the Queen of Hearts. While there’s no voice acting in the game, the dialog for each character is distinct enough that they all have unique personalities that color every interaction.

There are your typical heartwarming messages of found family and making the right choice even if it makes things more difficult, but they never feel heavy-handed. Cococucumber navigates these motifs with a lightheartedness that feels genuine, creating an honest depiction of these choices rather than something that feels canned.

At the end of the day, the story isn’t going to change the world, but it’s a heartfelt tale that manages to add enough novelty to be enjoyable from start to finish. It’s helped out by the fact that the entire game can be experienced in a single sitting, which makes it feel more like an animated movie than a large-scale video game.

Gameplay

Gameplay in Ravenlok is simple: hack at enemies with a sword to deal damage, block or dodge to avoid taking damage, and utilize your special skills as much as possible. It bears a strong resemblance to action-platformers from the PlayStation 2 generation, and I hadn’t realized how much I missed those types of games until I was playing this.

There aren’t any frills to the combat: every battle plays out pretty much the same. There are elemental bombs you can throw to dish out massive damage, but I made it through the entire game without throwing a single one past the tutorial. Your sword and special abilities are more than enough to take out any foe, and the simple level-up system makes it easy to ramp up the damage.

Ravenlok’s quests are entertaining little moments that interconnect across each region. I found one quest within the first 30 minutes of playing that I wasn’t able to resolve until more than an hour later. These little interactions between disparate characters and areas of the map made it feel like I was connecting clues with a red string on a bulletin board.

It all comes together to create an experience that wholly feels like something I would have played when I was in middle school. Not to say the game is childish, but its mechanics remind me of a bygone era of game development. This style of game would today be compared to a Souls title but reminds me more of something like Darksiders. The simplicity of its combat is what makes it fun, and it never really needs to be anything more involved.

Audio and Visual

Ravenlok’s true crowning achievement is its art design. Its aesthetic is striking, blending a pixelated approach with 3D models and bright, colorful environments. Characters are bursting with visual personality, and each boss fight has impressive cinematic introductions and death scenes. The final boss even has a gruesome transformation that does feel inspired by FromSoft’s work.

The music is also quite impressive, evoking both the fantasy and horror elements that inspired it. Enemies make unsettling noises when they noticed your character, and certain areas are just terrifying in their design. There’s even a clear reference to The Little Mermaid that was particularly striking both in the visuals and audio design.

What Could Be Better

There’s a kernel of something bigger here, and I’d be very interested to see Cococucumber expand on their ideas. The combat, while fun, was extremely simple, and if the game were longer I would almost certainly have grown bored with it. Adding in even the option of a different weapon or abilities would have added just a dash of additional customization.

The semi-fixed camera also caused a bit of pain throughout my journey, especially during some of the more stressful boss fights. Not being able to see a large bull as it prepares to charge makes an already tense situation downright frustrating. Even just more camera control during those specific sequences would have been a huge plus.

Verdict

Ravenlok is a short, satisfying adventure that a seasoned gamer could easily finish in a single sitting. It’s colorful, compelling, and easy enough to glide through that I could recommend it to anyone looking for something to play. Its presence on Xbox Game Pass is a huge plus, but Ravenlok is a solid enough game to stand on its own.

Ravenlok is available now for Xbox One, Xbox Series X|S, and PC via Epic Games Store.