Monster Sanctuary

Starting out in Early Access last August, Monster Sanctuary is a metroidvania and monster collecting hybrid that is wrapped in some gorgeous pixelated visuals. After receiving an 'Overwhelming Positive' response from users on Steam and receiving several updates over the past year, the title is now ready for a full release on Nintendo Switch PC, PS4, and Xbox One. The finished version comes with over 100 collectible creatures, 12 distinctive areas to explore, and more than 150 items, and I have to say it's pretty spectacular!

The overarching goal within Monster Sanctuary is to raise your Keeper Rank to earn the much-lauded title of Keeper Master. At the start of the game, you begin as a Keeper Aspirant and must increase your rank by defeating powerful creatures known as Champion Monsters. These creatures are the largest test of your skills, as they have vast pools of health and can attack multiple times during a turn. These encounters reminded me an awful lot of Max Raid battles from Pokémon Sword and Shield, but just minus the online play and giant holograms.

Typical battles in Monster Sanctuary are 3v3 and operate in a turn-based style similar to Pokémon. Unlike Pokémon though, battles feel much more team-focused, as you'll need to heal and buff your other creatures to be able to gain the upperhand. The order in which your creatures attack matters too, as there is a combo system which can reward you with damage bonuses. Something I really liked is that you are scored after each battle depending on your performance, and the better performance the more likely you are to receive rare loot. This adds to the replayability of the combat, as often you can't get the monster eggs or materials that you are seeking if you have scrapped your way through by the skin of your teeth.

Something I was blown away by was just how in depth the RPG mechanics are. Each monster has their own individual skill trees, and these can include as many as 60 different enhancements for you to invest in. These can range from simply more potent versions of your attacks to passive abilities such as having your health restored when inflicting status conditions. It can feel quite overwhelming knowing where to place your skills, but luckily these can be switched around using an item if you come to regret your choice.

On top of this abundance of skills there's also gear that you can equip your monsters with and food you can give them before tough fights. Each monster can be equipped with one weapon and three accessories which all boost certain stats. This equipment can be enhanced further too through crafting using the materials you find in the overworld and from defeating other creatures. You can also give your creatures food before battles to boost stats similar to gear, but these are only temporary and won't have a permanent impact.

Along with its creature collecting mechanics, Monster Sanctuary also features light platforming and metroidvania elements. The world is filled with many branching paths and you'll need to use creature-specific abilities to be able to traverse some parts of the environment. Some creatures can lift you up to higher platformers by flapping their wings, for example, and others you can mount to safely dash across crumbling ledges. The creature collecting blends with this style of gameplay really well, as in some instances, it's vital to go out and obtain certain monsters to be able to clear the path ahead.

I found the layout of each level to be well-crafted with many secrets present to find for inquisitive players. There are puzzles scattered through here too to keep players on their toes, and these break up the core loop of moving from one battle to the next. Many of these are just simple tasks such as triggering levers or activating lasers in the right order, but I still appreciated their existence, as without them traversal would be much more bland. What I did find bland, however, was the level themes themselves. The map featured motifs such as a snow area, a forest area, and a cave area, and these didn't feel the most imaginative in design.

Something that I also dislike about Monster Sanctuary is how hard it can be at times to avoid encounters with other wild monsters. To avoid battles, you need to look for an alternate path or try and jump over the monsters in your path, but it's all too easy to slip and land on top of them. Retreating from battle is only possible when you have a smoke bomb available and even when you use one it returns you to the moment before the encounter rather than skipping it entirely. This became an unwanted pain for me, and I would have been keen to explore the environment even further if I didn't have to worry about unavoidable battles.

Monster Sanctuary might just be my favourite take on the monster collecting formula that I have played outside the juggernaut that is Pokémon. It's blend of metroidvania and monster collecting mechanics feels distinct and tightly connected, and I loved how much depth it offers through its various skill trees and equippable items. I do think that avoiding enemy encounters can be a pain though, and the environmental themes are a little predictable for an RPG, but these are just minor flaws in what otherwise is a pretty special game.