Given how much I loved Chilled Mouse’s musical take on a classic game with Chime Sharp, I looked forward to playing AereA: a Diablo-esque dungeon game with a musical twist. However, not only is the game poorly made and full of glitches, it is deeply derivative with little new or noteworthy content to offer the player.
You are first given a choice of four characters: a tank type and three ranged types (for my playthrough, I played as the archer). Not only was it disappointing that I was offered four blandly designed characters who all looked vaguely the same with no personalization or diverse traits, it was foreshadowing the rest of the game’s bland style. As you progress through the dungeons of the game, you can level your character in addition to upgrading your weapon. However, given that most of the bonuses offered are repetitive and boring, I found it difficult to motivate myself to continue button mashing to take down irritating enemies. Not only are the dungeons aggravating, but the quests offer little to no variety and fall into the trap of overwhelming the player with item retrieval or “fetch” quests, which seriously inhibits any attempt at storytelling.
The game is quite easy as well, though it’s plagued by numerous glitches that only add to the frustration of playing it. I had to restart the game many times because my character would get permanently stuck in a corner or attacking the air. Add glitches with enemy respawns and walking through walls, and this game seems rushed to development, not to mention sloppily designed. The mazes that form the game’s levels get aggravating not because they challenge the player’s puzzle solving ability, but because they just make you waste time running back and forth to turn switches to open various gates.
Summary
I have heard that the co-op at least offers the fun of another player, but I can’t imagine anyone would find this game entertaining for more than a single session. Between the repetitive quests, boring gameplay, and numerous glitches, I’d recommend skipping AereA entirely. The thing is – music-themed games with retro inspiration can be done well; this just isn’t one of them.
Jess contributed 16 articles to ICXM in 2017, covering game reviews, and Xbox news with a focus on hands-on impressions and verified-source reporting. Their bylines on the site span the Xbox One X launch year and Microsoft’s wider Play Anywhere / UWP gaming initiative. They post on X as @Enceladosaurus.