Okay, I realise that I’m talking to a pretty niche audience here, but you know what? My site, my rules. If you have clicked through to this page, well, then pat yourself on the back for having impeccable taste (if your creaking limbs will allow it.) Oh, and you’re also my new best friend. But don’t come round my house; I won’t let you in. 

Anyway, Angeline Era is the next game from indie studio Analgesic Productions, who have been quietly releasing minor masterpieces since 2013’s surrealist Zelda-like Anodyne. Like Anodyne, the studio’s other games can all be characterised by taking a fresh, sometimes subversive approach to an old format, often with a mysterious or dreamlike atmosphere, and are elevated by intelligent writing and genuine narrative depth. This latest title is similarly interested in excavating gaming history to mine for gold, but they’ve struck a particularly rich vein this time around, and one that remains fairly untapped.

Games that riff on classic top-down action-adventures (Zelda, basically) are ten a penny these days, but Angeline Era feels like a mash-up of two very particular things: The bump-combat style of Falcom’s early Ys titles, and a hyper-specific niche that I can only describe as top-down (or isometric) Japanese action-RPGs from the mid-90s… with a jump button. Look, if you know, you know. And if you do know, chances are that you have the same near-thirty-year itch that needs a good scratch as I do. If you don’t know what I’m banging on about, then scroll down to the bottom of this page for a little introduction. It’s okay, I’ll wait… 

For the rest of you then (while the kids are away), the focus here is very much on action rather than puzzle solving, with an expansive, secret-filled overworld map (housing some lovely first-person dungeon crawler micro-challenges) connecting snappy, tightly designed action stages. Like Falcom’s classic titles, there is no attack button, so you’ll be charging around, bonking into enemies to deal damage, and leaping about to avoid enemy attacks and projectiles (you also have a gun and sub-weapons like grenades for dealing damage at range. Because it’s fun, and why not?) The action is beautifully simple and streamlined, but doesn’t feel shallow. In fact, perhaps due to the controls being so straightforward, the game can amp up the challenge and complexity of its encounter design without causing too much friction, landing right in the sweet spot of being a smooth playing experience, but one where you’re brain is constantly engaged.

Stages are mostly comprised of single-screen combat and platforming challenges connected by flick-screen transitions (though some do have scrolling), with each screen having a bespoke set piece for you to overcome. It gives each one a very focused feel – your goal is always obvious – and lends the game a pacy, staccato rhythm, making progression enjoyably snackable and moreish. 

The game is also beautifully presented with 90s-era-appropriate music and artful low-poly visuals with a good eye for colour (and appropriately framed in a 4:3 aspect ratio). It’s all pleasantly nostalgic while being wonderfully evocative in its own right. I haven’t seen enough of the story to form an opinion, but the setup already has my brain cogs whirring and I was happy to find Analgesic’s typically characterful and poetic prose present and correct. It all makes for a very cohesive package with a laser-targeted appeal, which, when combined with its easy-to-pick-up-and-play, almost arcade-like feel, makes me confident that for a certain type of player (read: old) with a certain kind of taste (see below), this is going to be very special indeed.

Angeline Era is part of LudoNarraCon 2024 and is aiming for a 2025 release. A demo is available on Steam. Check out Analgesic’s other games too while you’re there. They’re all excellent.

Three all-time classics to play while you wait