Finding Light is a traditional RPG, in the vein of the GameBoy Final Fantasy titles.  This goes deeper than just the feel of the combat, and the visual styles, as most of the game seems to be custom tailored to bring the specific sense of nostalgia of those games.  What seems to be missing, though, is the attention to detail, nuance, and any amount of depth that could be found there. The question then becomes, what is left of the game.

From the start the game is a weird mix of retro Final Fantasy games, almost as if it is trying to make as many nods to any many of the obscure titles as it can.  There were hints of Mystic Quest, with the main character starting in a tree village, to the black and white visual that feel like they were lifted—albeit poorly – from the Legend series.  What this results in is an almost feverish run from one trope to another, where the game never really seems to do anything well enough to stand on its own feet without almost directly referencing something else in the past.

Check out our stream of Finding Light right here:

The allusions to the past would be fine if the game managed to saw almost anything well.  Most characters don’t speak normally, most plot is given in odd commands instead of suggestions, and the story just progresses seemingly at random.  The plot is a mess, and non-sensical, but that is before any of the dungeon designs are brought up. None of them seem to be very long, or complicated, or interesting.  Worst of all, some areas have random encounters that are more difficult that the bosses that follow them. They are also rather frequent.

For a game that feels like it was designed in RPG Maker, the title is perfectly fine.  There are even sites out there where people can post these games so people can download them free of charge.  The problem is that this is where Finding Light belongs, not on Steam for 10 dollars. It isn’t that the game doesn’t feel complete, as this is probably what the creator was going for.  It also isn’t that the game shouldn’t have been made, as everyone has that right, the problem is that they are charging 10 dollars for a title that most people would be happy to give away for free.