Ender Lilies: Quietus of the Knights first grabbed my attention with its art style. I liked how the game looked, it looked pretty yet dark. This was enough to convince me to give the game a try, but is the game itself more than its art style? Or is it just all looks with no substance?
The story follows Lily, the last of the white priestesses who can cleanse the corruption/blight that has overtaken the land. She awakens with no recollection of recent events in a church, and your adventure begins from there.
Ender Lilies story is very much like a Souls game, where it is not simply spelt out for you. The story is given in bits and pieces that you must piece together yourself if you want the full story. You must also find secrets to get extra story if you wish. This fits the amnesia Lily has upon awakening in the church.
The story is interesting to me. The bits you are given can grab your attention when they are given. I personally don’t mind the souls-like approach to the story as it rewards you for being curious, but if you don’t mind missing parts of the story, it doesn’t force it upon you. You can enjoy Ender Lilies purely for the gameplay and have a basic knowledge of what is going on if you wish.
Ender Lilies is a metroidvania RPG. You must travel from room to room while exploring maps and defeating enemies to collect various powers/resources to upgrade your powers. There is backtracking as you progress through the game. New paths that were previously blocked are opened up as you acquire new powers. The game can be difficult at times with the enemies and combat, and every so often you will fight bosses that take strategy to defeat.
The game’s art style distracted me from the metroidvania style gameplay of the game. In it you explore areas full of rooms that have various puzzles and paths, some of which are blocked until you progress. I personally do not like this because I find it cumbersome to leave an area and then have to return to it to solve a puzzle with a power I receive later, however this game will be right up the alley of metroidvania enjoyers.
The Ender Lilies: Quietus of the Knights map.
The map sprawls in a spider-web like manner and contains areas with items placed in order to encourage exploration for upgrades, and backtracking is rewarded through new areas and paths being open with powers attained. This game can be a joy to 100% and explore if you enjoy this kind of gameplay, for example finally figuring out how to reach that shiny up on a ledge that you could not reach the first time you visited an area.
Combat in this game is fast-paced, consisting of using powers attained during your journey in order to damage enemies, as well as dodge using a dodge button in order to avoid damage. You have a health bar as well as a level, and up to 3 charges of Prayers to use in order to heal your health if you do take damage. These can be replenished at a rest stop or with flowers found in the areas.
Combat against Guardian Siegrid.
Powers are attained from bosses and mini-bosses that are defeated during your exploration, after which Lily purifies them and attains a new ability. These can range from summoning a giant knight with a hammer to performing an attack for her to giving her the ability to move freely underwater. There are many powers that can be obtained during gameplay and used for combat and exploration, and you get to have two load outs that assist with expanding the customization and possibilities you can have.
Spirits – the powers of the game.
The ability to customize your load outs in order to fight your battles the way you would like to fight them is definitely a positive of this game, as it helps you to find a style of your own to deal with enemies as well as some of the harder challenges within the game. The combat sometimes felt souls-like to me, especially during the boss fights, and that is also a positive for me as I find this combat fun. This may not be for everyone though as it can be difficult at times.
Ender Lilies’s art style is what attracted me to try the game. It has a hand-drawn look that is pleasing to me, and the world is dark and dreary which is befitting a land plagued by corruption. The graphics are smooth, with no notable bugs or oddities, and the style is appealing especially to those who enjoy the dark souls vibes. The game is beautiful.
Lily at a rest spot.
Audio wise, there is no voice acting, and the game relies on text to convey speech among other things. However there is background music that sets the mood for the various areas in the game.
The background music fits the game well, being soothing and generally fitting the area that it is in. I found myself at times stopping to simply listen to the music as I enjoyed the soundtrack. I do listen to the soundtrack outside of playing the game, as it is something nice to have in the background as I do chores or play other games.
In conclusion, Ender Lilies: Quietus of the Knights was not for me. I strongly dislike the metroidvania gameplay, and I found the game to be rather difficult for me to sit down and play. This is not a knock on the game itself though, as the art, soundtrack, and systems it has going for it were good and I would recommend this game to anyone who does enjoy metroidvanias as a game to add to their library. If you do not enjoy metroidvanias and what they bring to the table, this game will not be for you. It has considerable back tracking to fully explore areas. The combat can also be difficult depending on your skill at times and bosses may take a few tries.
Ender Lilies: Quietus of the Knights gets a 7/10.
