Arzette: The Jewel of Faramore Review (PS5)
A refined 2D platformer with the CD-i aesthetic
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Arzette: The Jewel of Faramore is heavily inspired by The Legend of Zelda CD-i games. Developed by Seedy Eye Software (see what they did there) who remade the Zelda CD-i classics on PC as a fan project. Arzette is a joint project with Limited Run Games as the publishers. They’ve been working on this game since late 2020 and finally released it last month.
Does it live up as a spiritual successor? Is it worth $20? I would say so
(I know I received free code but let me explain).
The story is about Arzette reclaiming the land of Faramore after demon lord, Daimur, has taken over. Once sealed in the Book of Oakurin but Daimur has escaped to wreak havoc on Faramore.
I honestly did not pay too much attention to the story. It’s the good ol’ good guy vs. bad guy approach and it works for Arzette. How we get to Daimur and the characters you interact with are fun and interesting.
The best part about Arzette is its wacky cast of characters. There’s so many you’ll meet along your journey, you never know who’s next. The visuals are ripped straight out of a CD-i era. They look ugly and crusty but I love it. The voice acting is also both good and bad in the best way possible.
While we’re on the presentation, the sprite work is awesome. Polished graphics and a soundtrack that keeps on delivering.
The levels are all different environments and it’s emphasized by the hand-painted backgrounds. Arzette keeps the CD-i aesthetic but modernizes it for the current generation.
The gameplay is not a traditional 2D platformer. You can’t go from point A to B and complete Arzette. Instead, there’s Metroidvania elements where you’re encouraged to re-explore older levels to unlock more collectibles and pathways.
Arzette can jump and slash enemies. Other abilities are later unlocked like a reflective ring, a smart gun, and a double jump. Most of them are tied to story completion while others are found through sidequests.
Her movement is smooth and I always feel in control. My only issue is when sometimes the precise platforming can be a little screwy. Like, you have to be exact or else Arzette will fall right through.
Also, when you get boots to increase Arzette’s overall speed, it made platforming a little more difficult. I was so used to the movement she had before but now that it’s increased, it makes tiny platforms harder to jump on.
Because of the Metroidvania elements, you really have to look around levels carefully or else you might be stuck. Cracks in the wall have glowing sparkles around them and I completely missed one early in the game.
I know, I’m blind.
Collect as many pink candles as possible to unlock more blocked areas to collect items or fight bosses.
At first, Arzette might give you a challenge if you play on Normal Mode. No health drops and standard difficulty but if you choose Casual Mode, health drops are enabled and enemies are weaker.
I was dying a lot in the beginning because you only have three hearts and very limited resources. After a while, you unlock more hearts and special abilities which makes playing through Arzette much easier.
Don’t worry about dying. You’ll restart at the beginning of the segment or your last checkpoint. As you move along, you’ll unlock more items like the bomb glove, the lantern, and the canteen. For the most part, the items are used for exploration purposes and assist in taking out enemies. The canteen is handy if you need to replenish your health and don’t want to respawn from the last checkpoint.
All of the items have a limited use and need to be refilled at the shop. You can buy ammo for items with rubies. They are found throughout the levels and drop upon enemy take downs. If you buy all the shopkeeper’s scrolls, the items will be half price for the rest of your playthrough.
Rubies are plentiful, so don’t be stingy with them and use them whenever you need more item ammo.
The gameplay of Arzette is rather solid. I was having so much fun during the later half because of how many upgrades I got. It felt very rewarding to re-explore levels to collect what was once inaccessible. The Metroidvania elements for this 2D platformer does slow down the beginning but once you’re an hour or so in and have a healthy amount of upgrades and items, Arzette becomes a ton of fun.
My only major complaint for the gameplay is the boss fights. They’re mostly a walk in the park with none of them ever giving me a challenge. Once you upgrade the ring to deflect projectiles, you don’t have to do anything against certain boss fights. I guess that’s my reward for exploring a lot but I do wish the bosses offer a little more challenge.
Arzette: The Jewel of Faramore is a fantastic 2D platformer inspired by the CD-i era of games. The presentation is flawless as it ran smoothly on my PS5. From the cutscenes to the voice-over work to the general art direction, it’s all top notch stuff. I was surprised by the gameplay being a 2D platformer with Metroidvania elements but it works well here. It makes the player be mindful of everything within a level and encourages them to explore levels carefully and replay them too.
$20 is the perfect price for Arzette and I am aware I received free code for this title. If a friend recommended this to me, I would gladly pay $20 for it. I might even pre-order a physical copy through Limited Run Games. If you’re a fan of platformers or interested in this weird spiritual successor to Zelda’s adventure on the CD-i, check out Arzette.
Travis “tvsonic” Vuong
Business e-mail: travisvuong56@gmail.com
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