Again without getting into spoilers, for me, this felt like the biggest shortcoming of The Wild at Heart. Even after completing the game, while Kirby’s story is fully explained, Wake’s just feels pushed to the side. And this is where the Wild at Heart loses me. But essentially, the Never is getting stronger and it’s up to Wake and Kirby to help the Greenshields.īut each night, if you decide to sleep through it, Wake and Kirby have dreams that seem like their subconscious trying to work through their struggles with their parents. We’re never really told how long exactly. This is not a new thing as the Greenshields, an organization tasked with keeping the Never under control, have been protecting the Deep Woods for a really long time. The Deep Woods and all its inhabitants are under attack by the Never. Without getting into spoilers, The Wild at Heart’s main story arc steals the spotlight, but not in a good way. The Wild at Heart seems confused about its own identity Using different resource combinations, they can create items that restore their health, deal damage to the Never, make the Spritelings hit harder, or even invincible for a short period of time. Wake and Kirby can also craft a large number of items while at any of the numerous camps spread throughout the Deep Woods. While this is terrifying, once you realize that Spritelings never really die (because you can simply respawn them back at camp given you have the right resources) the game now becomes one of resource management. These creatures of the dark will easily one-shot your Spritelings. Being aware of just how far away from camp you are, is vital to surviving in the Deep Woods. To make matters worse, when the sun goes down, these creatures called the Never come out. These same enemies will hurt Wake and Kirby as well, but it seems more like collateral damage than intentional.

There are plenty of enemies that will eat your Spritelings. The world of the Deep Woods is not a friendly one. What makes The Wild at Heart stand out from other metroidvania games is that not only do you have to contend with the puzzles, but you also have to be keenly aware of your surroundings. The puzzles in The Wild at Heart are no joke and will be a challenge even to veteran puzzle solvers. Kirby can also command the Spritelings just as Wake can, so things get rather complicated, and I found myself scratching my head on several occasions. As Kirby joins Wake, this also allows you to be in two places at once since you can switch between each character at will. There are five different types of Spritelings, each with its own sets of unique skills.Įventually, Wake runs into his best friend Kirby. Each new ability in The Wild at Heart comes from obtaining newer Spritelings. Wake uses these little guys as the main gameplay mechanic as he can gather swarms of Spritelings and use them to unlock all the different puzzles on the Deep Woods.Īs with any game worthy of the metroidvania title, the Deep Woods is seemingly fully accessible right at the start but with each area blocked off by a puzzle that can only be solved by gaining new abilities. Inside these Deep Woods, you meet all manner of creatures, but your main allies are the Spritelings. Instead, Wake gets lost in the woods surrounding his home and finds himself inside a mysterious hidden realm called the Deep Woods. While you are running away from home, Wake is supposed to meet up with his best friend Kirby as they have been planning this for months. Metroidvania meets SurvivalĪs mentioned earlier, you start off playing as the boy named Wake. And while the opening hour of The Wild at Heart feels like it’s going to be a deep, serious journey into Wake’s struggle for love, self-fulfillment, and reconciliation, that all falls away rather quickly as you get into the heart of this game. With trash bags, beer bottles, and past-due notices all around, the kid is clearly not living the life of luxury.

At the game’s opening, you play as Wake, a young boy who seems to be running away from a neglecting parent. The Wild at Heart is a game about two children running away from home only to find themselves on a wild adventure to save a magical realm from an encroaching darkness.

The wild at heart ps4