Solar Ash Review (XBOX/PS5/PC)

Hyper Sunset of the Colossus.

It’s indescribable how different Solar Ash is from Heart Machine’s debut title, Hyper Light Drifter, yet how similar it is. On the inside, Solar Ash shares a lot of the same dystopian, isolated and emotional themes with yet another breathtaking score and crisp gameplay, but on the outside the game is a great departure from Hyper Light Drifter that mostly works. Initially released as a PS5 exclusive, Solar Ash finally comes to PC on December 6 and Xbox Game Pass this winter.

Solar Ash feels like a blend between Hyper Light Drifter, Shadow of the Colossus and Sunset Overdrive and when you use those words to describe Heart Machines second title, those are great elements to throw in a blender.

As Rei, you find yourself, air gliding across oceans of clouds and through destroyed lands while trying to reignite the starseed which can close the black hole and save your planet as one of the last void runners. You will need to traverse to different biomes, awaken a colossal beast and then defeat the beast. The biomes are visually distinct but in terms of mechanics remain mostly similar with some puzzle complexities become more prevalent towards the end.

In terms of visuals and gameplay, Solar Ash is a very big departure from Hyper Light Drifter, a game that put Heart Machine on the map and was largely regarded by many as one of the best Indies of recent years. Using music as an analogy, Solar Ash isn’t a safe follow up album but a much more riskier sophomore effort. Heart Machine could have done another 16 bit entry, but showed their developmental courage with some impressive visuals and gameplay.

Solar Ash is a game that could have come off the rails very easily If the game play wasn’t tuned properly because there are lots of events and challenges in the game that have you string together jumps, rail grinds, speed boosts and combat. If these mechanics were handled with less expertise, the game would have fallen apart.

Solar Crash

Solar Ash isn’t without flaws, the semi open world can sometimes be hard to figure out how to get to your next objective despite the in game navigation system. The frustration is also slightly alleviated by some excellent environmental cues.

My biggest issue with Solar Ash is that there isn’t an upgrade path on your abilities of weapons. What you start with is what you end up with. Adding in some new abilities and weapons could have went a long way in keeping the game constantly feeling fresh but it also might have deviated from the clear intended focus on traversal and story.

Verdict

As the saying goes “when you aim for the moon you will land in the stars” Heart Machine could’ve taken the easy way out and made Hyper Light Drifter 2 after the success of the original from 2016, that is one of the best indies of the past decade. Instead, Heart Machine switched engines, switched art styles and switched dimensions when they created Solar Ash.

Solar Ash might not reach the same heart wrenching emotional highs or have such an addictive gameplay loop as their debut title but in the long run, not only will Heart Machine benefit from having stretched so far outside of their comfort zone, but gamers will also be able to reap the rewards with what Heart Machine is capable of in the future. Bringing it back to the album analogy, at around 7 hours, Solar Ash is a fantastic sophomore effort from Heart Machine that not only displays their control to keep the title sharp and refined but also their ability to move outside of their comfort zone with relative ease.

8.5