Developer: LABS Works
Publisher: DANGEN Entertainment
3 stars out of 5
The game has players aiding Sir Solomon as he fights through the various rooms of Devil Lord's castle to save his beloved Princess Tsuna. Except Solomon has fired the rest of his crew and maybe Princess Tsuna doesn't really want to be saved?
Stages are short, usually taking only a minute or so to complete. Between stages, players are treated to a variety of cut-scenes and minigames. Players can collect coins to upgrade Sir Solomons jumps and attacks, opening even more of each room to explore. Its the usual mechanics of the genre and its all implemented very well. Controls are tight and acquiring upgrades is very satisfying.
The game is fairly short with a reasonable difficulty curve. Players seeking more of a challenge can collect special trophies for quickly clearing rooms or clearing rooms without attacks, earning later rewards. Each stage ends with a well-designed and satisfying boss battle.
The real hook here is the inversion of the usual knight-saves-princess storyline; Solomon isn't heroic at all but rather a kind of brainless incel. His Princess Tsuna wants little to do with him. And while that hook is clever, the story doesn't really interface with the gameplay in any meaningful way. It would be better for levels to subtly change the more Tsuna dislikes Solomon. Also, the cutscenes between levels (there are, I believe 200-some) quickly grow repetitive and the humor is not so sharp as it believes.
So yes, Lovish is a fun game. Its clearly a love letter to 8-bit titles. Some of its references strike with laugh-out-loud precision (a cutscene referencing Mega Man 2 stands out). The story tends to fall short, however, with an ending that (by design) flops limply across the screen. Genre and retro fans will enjoy, maybe even love, but Lovish feels like it falls just short of its goal.
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