What score did this Duskfade review give?

7 out of 10. Stylish and tightly crafted, with a clockpunk identity and combat that feels good — more vibe than a story you will keep thinking about.

How long is Duskfade?

Short enough to finish in a weekend, dense enough to feel complete. Collectibles add flavour, not a second campaign.

Does Duskfade run well on PC?

Mostly. Effects-heavy areas, zone transitions and cutscene in/out can stutter and pop in — even on a high-end PC. A few patches would help mid-range hardware most.

Duskfade Review: A Compact Clockwork PS2-Inspired Adventure

7.0

Score / 10

Covered on

Pros

Clockpunk look, ticking motifs, and a soundtrack that can swing from mechanical beats into Doom-like boss intensity
Weekend-length campaign that stays dense: new ideas, no bloated side quests
Combat lands clean; last-second dodges slow time for a riposte or a projectile return
Collectibles (Echoes, upgrade currency, NPC pickups) reward a peek off the path without padding runtime

Cons

Intended difficulty is too easy: dodge spam, potions and checkpoints take the sting out
Linear mid-game, repeating enemies, NPCs who joke but rarely give you something to do
PC hitches on zone transitions and cutscenes even on a 5070 Ti-class rig; cutscenes lock to 30 FPS

This page is a condensed take on Duskfade Review - A Compact Clockwork PS2-Inspired Adventure — not a scene-by-scene recap. Other takes: the launch review, the Switch 2 review, and the eye-candy first look.

What this review is going for

Weird Beluga is a small Spanish team (best known for Clid the Snail) making a compact action-adventure with platforming and a light Metroidvania loop. The world is clockpunk: fractured memories, rusted machines, rhythmic traversal. Zirian goes after his sister after her invention blows the world into eternal night. Break the chains, bring the day back. The video is the PC / Steam version.

The pitch is weekend-sized: short, dense, stylish, and unwilling to stretch itself thin.

Clockpunk, Minutero, and the score

Presentation is the first high. Rusted machines, ticking architecture, a world that feels eerie and still inviting. Minutero is a clock-hand blade — a clear Keyblade nod. The grapple reads as grandfather-clock weights; Cuckoo is a mechanical bird that came to life.

The soundtrack does a lot of the lifting: pulsing synths, metallic ticks as you move. Boss cues can slam into something closer to Doom Eternal and still fit. Music sometimes jumps genres without warning; the review treats that as intensity, not a bug.

Pacing and collectibles

Linear levels, clear objectives, a new idea every zone — traversal, enemy types, or just a thematic twist. That is the other high. You can finish it in a weekend without it feeling empty.

Collectibles keep the density honest: upgrade materials, currency, audio-log Echoes, NPC pickups. Some sit behind a nasty platforming detour. Later abilities add a little backtracking. There are no bloated side quests. Quiet stretches are treated as breathers, not filler.

Combat and platforming

Swings land; dodges snap. Enemy patterns are fast and readable if you stay in the air instead of mashing. A last-second dodge can slow time for a stab flurry, or send a projectile back — the review compares that tennis-return to a Zelda Ganon fight.

The complaint: intended difficulty is too cheesy. Dodge spam can shrug off damage. Health potions and healing checkpoints sit before and after most fights.

Platforming breaks the fights up. Jump can feel a little floaty. Segments stay short. Double jump, air dash, grapple, and a dodge-into-jump for wide gaps (the review’s Warframe “bullet jump” comparison) keep the clockwork identity in the movement, not just the art.

Where it thins out

Linearity has a cost. Zones look distinct; the loop does not grow much. Enemies repeat. Side content is thin. Funny NPCs (some meta, some meme-y) rarely hand you a job or a reward. The world looks like it could hold more optional rooms than it actually gives you.

On PC, the game usually runs, then a transition or an effects-heavy arena does not. Zone loads can stutter hard. Textures pop. The reviewer was on a Ryzen 9 9800 / RTX 5070 Ti class machine and still heard the GPU spin up; capture software started warning. Cutscenes lock to 30 FPS, and the joins in and out of them can freeze. It did not ruin the weekend. It is the kind of hitch a patch should own, especially on mid-range PCs, because this game sells atmosphere.

Story aims for memory, trauma, and a loved-one rescue. Presentation is stylish; plot beats are familiar. Voice work is solid. The script is what keeps it from landing. You will not check out. You will also probably care more about the next grapple than the next cutscene.

The 7/10

Stylish, tightly made, sure of its clockpunk identity. A lost mid-budget PS2 experiment you finish over a weekend and remember for the vibe. Combat feels good. Platforming keeps momentum. At $29.99 (and a launch sale), the price is easy if you want a focused aesthetic adventure. If you want a bigger, deeper indie, you may bounce.

If that is you, start with the beginner guide or the full walkthrough.