Alwa’s Legacy – Re-explore and Save the World of Alwa

Introduction

Alwa’s Legacy is a Metroidvania game set in the world of Alwa, and the 32-bit sequel to Alwa’s Awakening. Beginning right after the previous game’s ending, gamer girl turned adept magician Zoe finds herself in the boots of the hero again, even getting a rude reunion with Vicar!

With all the gemstones and items she previously had gone, and even her staff knocked right out of her hands, will Zoe be able to fight off a much stronger Vicar? And restore order and peace to the land of Alwa once more? One thing is certain, however. She has to help the people by defeating the four Fiends dominating the world’s fortresses!

Are we going to Alwa again?

Alwa’s Legacy follows the same metroidvania formula from the prequel and also includes a lot of its mechanics, such as Zoe’s magic staff that can cast green blocks, floating blue bubbles, or dangerous yellow thunder by using elemental gemstones. By gathering orbs scattered around Alwa, you can also upgrade Zoe’s staff (specifically her gemstones) as you need, further enhancing her three magic abilities whenever needed at Wizard¹‘s shop. The game further expands on Zoe with new passive and active items, letting her breathe longer underwater (water =/= bottomless pits anymore!), briefly walk on spikes, and take more damage, to just name a few.

This is then combined with an all-new Alwa, with new dungeons, locations, and even quests. When you’re not trying to wrap your head around the Water Palace, you’re chilling in the massive Town of Westwood, or exploring the wilderness of Central Alwa – and you can teleport between any of these locations easily thanks to save points also acting as teleporters when using teardrops with them.

Zoe starts the game controlling much better than she did previously, but as you grab more upgrades, just moving her around is enjoyable in of itself, as she can explore both inaccessible locations and go through accessible ones faster. The only letdown is that the bosses aren’t that much of a challenge to a well-equipped Zoe, often going down easily by sticking to one attack – where Zoe hits a green block and sends it flying towards the enemy and crashing in an explosion.

Okay, fine we’re going to Alwa. But it’s different?

Because Alwa’s Legacy is a departure from its prequel’s NES direction, the game couldn’t be more alive with its detailed scenery, immersive sounds, and vast, varied world map. There’s nothing quite like hearing the chirping of birds or the rustling trees as you go through the world or having any sounds you make echo deep underground, for one. Or like seeing fish swimming in the waters. This makes the game feel more of a hand-crafted experience, as almost every screen has something to offer.

Of course, the soundtrack (by RushJet1) is a big selling point of the game. No longer limited to the NES’s chiptune restrictions, the music shines no matter the tone, moody, grand, cheerful, or foreboding. You can tell how much of an upgrade it is compared to the previous game by listening to the remixed version of Central Alwa’s theme. It’s almost like you could revisit previous locations just to listen to the music – and you have the opportunity to do so in the game’s Pacifist Mode where you can’t kill anything!

And though they don’t necessarily offer a lot, the game has a lot of non-playable characters you could interact and talk with and learn more about Alwa and Zoe. Some of them will provide helpful rewards like orbs, while some are just funny or interesting characters you’d like to see more of.

In Conclusion

If you liked Alwa’s Awakening, you’ll more than like Alwa’s Legacy not just for how much better it is on all fronts, but also because it’s a great game in its own right. It has the essence of everything that makes the Metroidvania genre unique; exploration, variety, expanding moveset, and more, plus its touches like the world of Alwa. Plus, endgame Zoe with nearly all of her moveset is just a pleasure to control. If you want a platformer game you could get lost in for hours, why not Alwa’s Legacy?

Craving more Metroidvania games? We got em’ right here!
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