Unsighted review: a Zelda-like in which time is always running out

At the center of Arcadia lies the city’s wounded heart. Although consciousness was given to humans by a great meteor which crashed into Arcadia some time back, it is now under control of humankind. Without access to its precious resources, the majority of the city’s robots have become “unsighted” — mindless killers, robbed of their sensory control. It won’t be long before those that remain join them.

This top-down adventure game features slick and plucky pixels art that occasionally frustrates. UnsightedIt all begins in the familiar, dark underground lab. In a kind of Metroid reversal, you play the specimen Alma, an experimental robot and Arcadia’s last hope. From here, you’ll travel to various corners of a large, labyrinthine map, in search of five meteor shards. They are located at the very top of or near the bottom of various sprawling dungeons.

For every generic cave or industrial area, there’s another, more interesting locale: an old museum or derelict aquarium, hinting at life before the human-made apocalypse. Verticality allows you to drop down in rooms below. Another dungeon uses switches to change the light or dark. Every dungeon comes with its own piece of equipment, which unlocks new mechanics. You can also loop back into previous areas to discover shortcuts or secrets. In a familiar format for anyone who’s played a 2D Zelda before, you’ll collect the usual boomerang, hookshot, and bomb equivalents. Despite being well-worn territory, UnsightedThere is enough complexity in the puzzles to keep it fresh.

Image: Studio Pixel Punk/Humble Games

Combat is another common subject: Stamina gauge and devastating parries are just a few of the many dash-and roll options. It is the boss, who can be seen at the very end of every dungeon, that presents the greatest challenge. Complex sequences of attacks and a host of small enemies can be a challenge. Bosses can fill your screen with projectiles or lasers. You’ll need to locate safe spots in order to avoid being bombarded. Or, you could push forward to stop the fire by using perfectly-timed parries. And these are generous, satisfying counterattacks, letting you quickly blitz through the toughest of bosses once you’ve familiarized yourself with the patterns.

There are so many interlocking system that it is amazing UnsightedA flashy form of maximalism is subscribed to. Three refillable health potions are available very early. Crafting blueprints can be used to make temporary buffs. You also have the ability to stack upgrade chips that provide various effects such as increased invulnerability frames and life leeching. There are many mechanics to consider, including a Soulslike spawn and corpse system, Minecraft-style crafting, combo systems and even a night/day cycle. It was difficult to believe that half the items in this game were necessary. As you hit the late game, both environments and related puzzle formulae feel as though they’re being stretched to their limits, with things like slippery ice floors and shifting wind direction making platforming needlessly finicky.

It is important to remember that Arcadia is rapidly running out of time. Although many games use similar expressions in their games, very few actually adhere to this concept. Unsighted does. Every townsperson found in the game’s hub area, every NPC met in the rain-drenched, toxic-gooped streets and highways, comes with a personal timer. You have a limited amount of time. Arcadia’s in-game hours begin to slip, and the people start to lose their luster. Legend of Zelda: Majora’s Mask, where an apocalyptic moon looms ever large, there’s no winding the clock back in Unsighted.

Image: Studio Pixel Punk/Humble Games

There are moments in the game, several hours in, where you’ll be struck with genuine fear. An hour deep into a dungeon, while you’re searching for the final MacGuffin, the game will suddenly let you know that somebody is about to expire. This game has real consequences. The town is void of shopkeepers. Important NPCs vanish. Your ability to unlock or upgrade additional chips is affected by the death of your fairy-like companion. It will be too late. UnsightedIt becomes an intricate game of risk management where you have to decide which people are worth saving. You begin to see those around you as instruments — and you spend your limited resources to keep those souls you deem most important, of most value, around for just a little longer.

UnsightedThis mode of time-induced panic takes quite a while. Only in the last stages did I feel the clock ticking above me. The game builds up these moments. I hadn’t been playing long when I was abandoned by my extremely helpful dog companion after refusing it naptime — a hint of the losses to come. This was where I realized, and it’s not like a lot other games. Unsighted isn’t bluffing: time waits for no one.

Some people will find these time limits to be stressful and anxious. The game makes it easy for them to be turned on or off whenever they are convenient. The aggressive marching of time adds an element of finitude and a sense of loss to my post-apocalyptic narrative. This extra dimension is missing. Unsighted becomes a duller and more quantifiable thing — just another Zelda-like or Metroidvania that time is likely to forget.

UnsightedWhen its mechanics align with its style, it is the best. It is about survival and daring defiance. Its breezy story, much of it told through flashbacks, rarely overloads you with info — like everything here, it all ticks along relentlessly. It’s hard not to appreciate Unsighted’s scrappy, melodramatic nature, as well as its interest in the differing perspective of automatons. This is not a game where you are the human hero but rather as an experimental robot. Things are tough and you’ll be tested, but change doesn’t happen overnight.

Unsighted It was launched on September 30, on Nintendo Switch and PlayStation 4. Humble Games gave the game a Steam download code. Vox Media is an affiliate partner. Although these partnerships do not impact editorial content, Vox Media could earn commissions for products sold via affiliate links. Here are some links to help you find. additional information about Polygon’s ethics policy here.