Occasionally you’ll be faced with some larger-than-life boss encounters and snippets of plot advancement (more often than not preceded by the running of majestic, adorable deer) but for the most part your journey through this Elysian Tail is comprised of hacking and slashing your way to the next level.

Residents located throughout the world can be approached to give various quests, most of which involve scuttling back and forth between areas available on the world map, collecting items, or recovering lost characters. As Dust you traipse through different areas fighting off multiple enemies who spawn in, discover treasure chests, and the keys required to open them, and unravel an engaging story that’s well-paced and exciting. Gameplay consists of exploration via side-scrolling segments, separated on the on-screen map into smaller quadrants.