Treasures of the Aegean

[h2]Off-brand Tomb Raider with a bloated world and meaningless time loop[/h2] [b]Look, this is not a bad game, in fact, it is [i]almost[/i] good, and I enjoyed parts of it. Take this as a mixed review, there is both good and bad here. [/b] Overall a pretty respectable 2D platformer attempt at capturing the Tomb Raider vibe. The story is good. Not great, but good. The map is absolutely enormous and almost every part of it is immediately accessible to you right out of the gate, you can go wherever you want. So don't let the tag fool you, this is not a metroidvania, there are no ability/item/skill gates, only some very light puzzling here and there. The world, while big (maybe too big for its own good imo), is ripe for exploration, which is mainly driven by hunting collectible treasures and various lore scattered around, so if you like doing that a lot in an antique setting, you might enjoy this game. [b]So what's wrong with the game?[/b] First off, the way items work. The game doesn't tell you, but you [b]MUST[/b] know before you play, that there are two kinds of items in this game: collectibles and Key items. Collectibles are just slightly extending your time loop duration and …

The game lost me. I wasn't interested in the story and the loops didn't have any gameplay effect other than removing your puzzles progress, and showing the story and characters. The other aspects of the game were good, but nothing that makes me stay after getting bored of it.

This is a really neat little game. I wouldn't call it a metroidvania; it's really more a platformer puzzler with a time loop mechanic. You run through a massive, open environment within a time limit, solving small puzzles and navigation challenges. Any items you collect either permanently add to your time limit, or add to some of the game's lore. You're working towards solving some of the game's biggest puzzles, and the final challenge is to unlock them all in the same run. Graphics-wise the game is modest, but the environment design is pleasant. The character portraits are clearly hand-drawn and nice, though they aren't very consistent. Your main character, Marie, can look like a different person from panel to panel. The only other criticism I have is the game's English translation has some occasional issues. Nothing that would stop you from playing through it though. Overall just a really neat idea for a game that is well-executed and doesn't last longer than it feels like it should. I beat it in about 6 hours with only a few optional collectibles missed.

Treasures of the Aegean is a stylish and thoughtfully designed 2D action-adventure that combines fluid parkour movement, open-ended exploration, and a narrative built around mystery and repetition. Developed and published by Undercoders, the game places players on a remote volcanic island inspired by ancient Greek and Minoan history, where time itself is unstable. You take control of Marie Taylor, an agile explorer skilled in free-running, alongside her partner James Andrew, whose role as a researcher and narrator helps frame the unfolding mystery. Together, they seek to uncover the truth behind a lost civilization and the strange temporal anomaly trapping the island in an endless cycle. The game’s structure revolves around a time loop that resets the island after a limited period, encouraging players to treat each run as a scouting expedition rather than a complete journey. At first, this constraint can feel restrictive, but it quickly becomes clear that repetition is part of the design rather than a punishment. Each loop allows you to explore further, uncover new relics, and piece together fragments of the island’s past. Discovering treasures permanently extends future runs, cre…

A time loop game in a 2D exploration platformer shell. The movement feels good, allowing you to build momentum when you find the right line, and you're rewarded for navigating the environment swiftly by being able to get more out of each loop. I liked bringing everything together in the end. A pleasant surprise.

Writing this as the credits roll, after 100% and letting the game idle for a couple hours by accident. This is a weird game to evaluate, but without burying the lede, I really enjoyed this one. I 100% would not describe this as a metroidvania, and I think the game would be more interesting and easier to pitch if it wasn't marketed as one. I might be more inclined to refer to it as a metroidbrania, though. (I know a lot of people find that genre name obnoxious. Whatever, lol) The base price on this one is kind of crazy, too. I try not to harp too much on nebulous value debates in my Steam reviews, but 20 euros for this game is rough. The game is only generously 6 hours long to 100% without a guide, and there isn't actually even 6 hours worth of unique, quality content. The game loop, which I'll get to, kind of intentionally causes a bunch of backtracking. And that's fine! But if you take away a lot of the random meandering through areas you've already cleared out, the game is probably closer to 4 hours, and of those 4 hours, maybe 30 minutes are a story that doesn't really go anywhere or have anything interesting to say. For 5 euros though, it's still easily worth it. I also did…