I've had my eye on a cyberpunk Metroidvania called Altered Alma for over a year now, so I was excited to give its demo a play in this week's Steam Next Fest. After clearing a few areas and getting some upgrades, I'm pleased to report that it is indeed good. I am also surprised to report that it's taken a page or two from Cyberpunk 2077, not just in its RPG elements, but also in some very sexy romance scenes that caught me off guard in the latest trailer.
A problem I often have with action game progression systems is how the early sections may suffer from limited gameplay options. You get tons of cool stuff later, but the opening minutes or hours – arguably the most important part of a game – are extremely one-dimensional because all the cool stuff is backloaded. Altered Alma has this problem, but only for about 10 minutes. If the game feels a little slow and difficult at the start, that's because it is, but stick with it and you'll soon find a fast and responsive platformer with delightfully violent combat.
