Can an action RPG about cutting and blasting through waves of mutated enemies in a dilapidated world after an apocalypse be cozy and relaxing? Hyke: Northern Light(s) certainly makes it seem possible. It’s a beautiful road trip through a dilapidated, pixel art world with adorable witch characters who happen to have enough power to just annihilate anything in their path. It definitely feels unique, even if the actual combat can get a bit clumsy.
Hyke: Northern Light(s) begins with a peek at life before the war destroyed things. We see a woman, revealed to be Hyke’s mother, fighting against human enemies. She’s a witch, and she’s making a final push to reach the captain of the forces. Once she does, things fade away and we meet Hyke, her daughter who she loved and was fighting for. Now that Hyke’s grown, she’s headed out into the world in the car her father left her in search of her mother alongside Riko, another witch she met on her journey. The path they tread means they, as well as the player, will learn more about the current state of the world, the war, witches, and Hyke’s mom.
To start, I adore the character design in Hyke: Northern Light(s). Every ally and enemy looks incredible. Especially considering the size of the sprites for them. They actually match the elaborate character designs shown on the official site, which is amazing. They also tend to have some cute personalities, even if people aren’t always well fleshed out as I’d like. But then, the camp scenes do help with that a bit.
When Hyke: Northern Light(s) begins, we have access to Hyke and her friend Riko. However, as the two travel across the country, additional characters join our party. Each one plays in her own way and has different types of movesets and specialties. For example, Hyke has ranged attacks, as well as a special that circles around her, as the game starts. Riko is more of a close-range melee user who swaps between a glass cannon, faster approach that heals with each hit and a giant rabbit transformation that lumbers around and hits harder. We can switch between them, as well as other characters in the party, on the fly. When outside of stages, we can upgrade their abilities. Not to mention before heading into a location, we can cook a meal for a buff and choose one random buff to apply to that outing. People feel unique, which I appreciate.
I just wish Hyke: Northern Light(s) gameplay felt tighter. We have an option to manually control these heroines or tap a button to lock on to targets. However, neither feels competent enough to make the combat feel good. If you don’t bother with the locking on option, getting the positioning right to hit foes and close distances with attacks is imprecise. If the lock-on option is enabled, the game randomly picks who to attack and, while those hits land, I felt like more powerful hits were wasted.
Especially since enemies do get more powerful in what can feel like a satisfying way as we reach new areas. When Hyke first heads into the forest on her own for the very first stage, there are only small, squirrel or bug-size enemies and an occasional deer. But then we see larger opponents that can deal major ranged damage, have more unexpected movesets, or even look really cool like a mutated giant spider that makes a car into its exoskeleton.
Aside from both the character and enemy designs looking great, there’s honestly some fun and visually intriguing stage design at play here too. When we happen upon inhabited areas, they look like they’ve been through it. The camp ground customization involves some cute accessories. Food looks good. I appreciate there’s a journal we can look through to see the pixel art more closely. When we reach new areas, each new stage doesn’t always feel like a rehash or slightly different take on the previous one, as there’s a sense of progression involving a change to the environment, more hints about the war, and also areas affected by possible magic and otherworldly elements. I don’t want to spoil things, but there are also some environmental aspects that affect progression, with the first forested area involving some one-way “gates” and poisonous polluted spots.
I love the ambiance surrounding Hyke: Northern Light(s), as well as the witch character designs. It’s a beautiful game, for sure, and sometimes it can even feel cozy. I just wish it felt a bit more responsive when playing. The different movesets for each character are great! But sometimes, the execution doesn’t make it feel as tight and precise as it could be.
Hyke: Northern Light(s) is available for the Switch, PS5, and PC.
Hyke: Northern Light(s)
I love the ambiance surrounding Hyke: Northern Light(s), as well as the witch character designs, but wish combat felt better.