Afterimage has good pace, nice exploration, a huge map, lots of RPG features, and a pretty aesthetic. But it lacks substance—the story doesn't succeed in selling the world or the characters.

• The game is very RPG: level up, giant skill tree, consumables, different types of weapons (Blade, Scythe, Dual Blades, Whip, Greatsword, and Sword), among tons of loot dropped by enemies.
  
  
• Afterimage has a charmful and captivating aesthetic. It has this kind of dreamy atmosphere with vivid, clean, and colorful touches; it evokes an easygoing feeling (even in darker areas), almost like a fairy tale.
  
  
  • Now, I personally prefer the opposite of this; I like grimdark, desolate, and dreadful aesthetics, but I have to admit... Afterimage's aesthetics are quite pretty.
  
  
• The soundtrack doesn't stand out much, but it fits perfectly with the aesthetics. It's very fantasy-like; it matches the colouful aesthetics and makes the game feel pretty "calm."
  
  
• It has innumerous secrets. Fake walls and fake platforms are abundant. The map has lots of items, currency nodes, and chests; it rewards exploration. It's very nice.
  
  
• The map is HUGE. It might be—perhaps—the biggest Metroidvania map to this day (23/11/2024); there are lots of things to do. I finished the game in 42 hours; I collected most of the items/passive bonuses and fought all bosses I found (there are lots of them).
  
  
  • But the game offers even more length with the NG+ (I didn't play it) or if you decide to do absolutely everything available.
  
  
• The game's difficulty is balanced; it has a healthy challenge, generally speaking (I played in the advanced difficulty). Also, when an enemy is way higher level than you, the game provides a hint, as a dangerous "reddish" face above the enemy; it's something used in some RPGs and lots of MMORPGs. I think it's a cool feature.
  
  
• It features a beastiary—always a nice feature to have—with technical info, like level, HP, attack, and droplist.

• The voice acting is... complicated. It's always nice to have, but the protagonist's sidekick is pretty annoying (English audio), as are other characters. It really made me uninterested in the story or characters.
  
  
  • But in addition, in midway game, I changed the audio to Japanese, and it is so much better; at least the sidekick is not as annoying. The Chinese audio is okay too.
  
  
• I mentioned the story; perhaps it might be the major drawback in this game. The story is convoluted to the highest degree; to follow it, you need to start making notes to remember everything. And good luck trying to understand it; the map has countless texts containing lore, which is needed—if you are interested—to understand it in its entirety.
  
  
  • I can bear a complex story, but when the game doesn't feature good writing or good characters for me to care about, then I'm left with absolutely nothing.
  
  
• The lack of good characters and the story being so convoluted impacts the gameplay; the gameplay is really nice, it has a very good pace, and the game's world is graceful, but it has no substance nor relevance; it's good, but it feels... hollow; a mindless endeavor.

• The game features several quests: main and side ones. I completed some, but lots of them are basically getting loot and making food with it. I think it's nice, but honestly, I barely paid attention to it.
  
  
• It includes a few gauntlets in some areas. I neither like nor dislike them; I just think I can be informative sharing the information.
  
  
• It also includes the charm system, where you can add different passive bonuses into your playstyle. It's nice, but it's also pretty limited.

Afterimage contains good and solid gameplay; its huge map offers so much; exploring is really nice, as the world filled with charmful aesthetics, and the RPG aspects complement the gameplay. But the lack of a good narrative and characters diminishes the overall experience, making it insubstantial and rather forgettable. Afterimage isn't a bad Metroidvania at all, but it does not thrive as a meaningful experience either. Taking everything into account, the score is:

[h1][b]Review[/b][/h1] [b][i]Afterimage[/i][/b] has good pace, nice exploration, a huge map, lots of RPG features, and a pretty aesthetic. But it lacks substance—the story doesn't succeed in selling the world or the characters. [h3][b]The Highlights[/b][/h3] [list] [*]The game is very RPG: level up, giant skill tree, consumables, different types of weapons (Blade, Scythe, Dual Blades, Whip, Greatsword, and Sword), among tons of loot dropped by enemies. [*][b][i]Afterimage[/i][/b] has a charmful and captivating aesthetic. It has this kind of dreamy atmosphere with vivid, clean, and colorful touches; it evokes an easygoing feeling (even in darker areas), almost like a fairy tale. [list][*]Now, I personally prefer the opposite of this; I like grimdark, desolate, and dreadful aesthetics, but I have to admit... [b][i]Afterimage's[/i][/b] aesthetics are quite pretty.[/list] [*]The soundtrack doesn't stand out much, but it fits perfectly with the aesthetics. It's very fantasy-like; it matches the colouful aesthetics and makes the game feel pretty "calm." [*]It has innumerous secrets. Fake walls and fake platforms are abundant. The map has lots of items, currency nodes, and chests; it rewards exploration. It's very nice. [*]The map is [b]HUGE[/b]. It might be—perhaps—the biggest Metroidvania map to this day (23/11/2024); there are lots of things to do. I finished the game in [b]42 hours[/b]; I collected most of the items/passive bonuses and fought all bosses I found (there are lots of them). [list][*]But the game offers even more length with the [b]NG+[/b] (I didn't play it) or if you decide to do absolutely everything available.[/list] [*]The game's difficulty is balanced; it has a healthy challenge, generally speaking (I played in the advanced difficulty). Also, when an enemy is way higher level than you, the game provides a hint, as a dangerous "reddish" face above the enemy; it's something used in some RPGs and lots of MMORPGs. I think it's a cool feature. [*]It features a beastiary—always a nice feature to have—with technical info, like level, HP, attack, and droplist. [/list] [h3][b]The Drawbacks[/b][/h3] [list] [*]The voice acting is... complicated. It's always nice to have, but the protagonist's sidekick is pretty annoying (English audio), as are other characters. It really made me uninterested in the story or characters. [list][*]But in addition, in midway game, I changed the audio to Japanese, and it is so much better; at least the sidekick is not as annoying. The Chinese audio is okay too.[/list] [*]I mentioned the story; perhaps it might be the major drawback in this game. The story is convoluted to the highest degree; to follow it, you need to start making notes to remember everything. And good luck trying to understand it; the map has countless texts containing lore, which is needed—if you are interested—to understand it in its entirety. [list][*]I can bear a complex story, but when the game doesn't feature good writing or good characters for me to care about, then I'm left with absolutely nothing.[/list] [*]The lack of good characters and the story being so convoluted impacts the gameplay; the gameplay is really nice, it has a very good pace, and the game's world is graceful, but it has no substance nor relevance; it's good, but it feels... hollow; a mindless endeavor. [/list] [h3][b]The Neutral Ground[/b][/h3] [list] [*]The game features several quests: main and side ones. I completed some, but lots of them are basically getting loot and making food with it. I think it's nice, but honestly, I barely paid attention to it. [*]It includes a few gauntlets in some areas. I neither like nor dislike them; I just think I can be informative sharing the information. [*]It also includes the charm system, where you can add different passive bonuses into your playstyle. It's nice, but it's also pretty limited. [/list] [h3][b]Conclusion:[/b][/h3] [b][i]Afterimage[/i][/b] contains good and solid gameplay; its huge map offers so much; exploring is really nice, as the world filled with charmful aesthetics, and the RPG aspects complement the gameplay. But the lack of a good narrative and characters diminishes the overall experience, making it insubstantial and rather forgettable. [b][i]Afterimage[/i][/b] isn't a bad Metroidvania at all, but it does not thrive as a meaningful experience either. Taking everything into account, the score is: [h2][b]7/10[/b][/h2]