Bastion -- All-In-One.

I've completed Bastion for Xbox Live Arcade earning the full two hundred points. Bastion is the first release in the 2011 version of Summer of Arcade. Bastion was developed by Supergiant Games and published by Warner Bros. Interactive Entertainment. Bastion is an action RPG with a gimmick. Yes, I'm using the word gimmick here as it didn't really work for me. The game has a narrator going throughout the entire game. An overly slick voice is commenting on everything you do and provides the story as you go. The voice is very mismatched to the in-game character it's supposed to be which also works against it. I found the narration to be mildly annoying. Especially where it tries to be smart and provide you with a little fourth wall breaking goose. They never really worked for me and I found myself saying I wasn't thinking that. I believe I probably would have had more tolerance for the narration had the story been more than it was. I wasn't impressed with the story. It didn't give me any sort of epiphany that it seemingly so wants to do. The biggest complaint I have against the story is that it just comes off as trying way too hard. The gameplay is solid and fun but not exactly deep. They do offer up eleven weapons to use so you can come up with a pair that let you play the game the way you want to play it. You're able to level up the weapons adding new power and abilities. The game also features passive skills tied to your levels to mix and match as well as numerous sidequests. Graphically the game is gorgeous. Hand drawn art abounds. It all animates rather well. But it does lead to some collision detection issues and being hung up on edges here and there. Musically the game is a mixed bag. The soundtrack is rather good. There are two songs in the game however and again I came away with the impression of the game just trying too hard. Especially with the ending song. Bastion is an all around solid game, but ultimately nothing special. I'm giving Bastion a 7.