Ender Lilies: Quietus of the Knights

Ender Lilies is a fantasy-themed 2D adventure-platformer with moderate elements of horror and a moderate level of difficulty. Unlike many modern Metroidvania games, there is nothing retro about the graphics. The backgrounds are gorgeous works of HD digital art filled with stunning details, and the characters and enemies are all beautifully animated. Both the combat and exploration are a lot of fun, and it’s a joy to move through this ruined world.

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It’s easy to dismiss Ender Lilies as “2D anime Dark Souls for casuals” at a glance, but I ended up being genuinely moved by the story and characters. The visual imagery isn’t anywhere near as gory and explicit as Blasphemous, but the horror themes are expressed with creativity and style, and Ender Lilies is nothing if not atmospheric. In terms of gameplay, I think Ender Lilies may be a perfect Metroidvania. The game features various ease-of-life concessions that help make it more accessible without diminishing the thrill or challenge of the gameplay, and I think this intentional cleanness of design is an innovation to the genre in and of itself.

And finally, I appreciate how the spirits you currently have equipped hang out with you at save points. There’s really nothing I love more than the image of a cute girl sitting amongst weathered ruins surrounded by grotesque monsters as rain falls in the background. That’s the good stuff right there.

Re: Ender Lilies: Quietus of the Knights

There are two additional things I appreciate about Ender Lilies that might be more specific to me.

The first is that the Umbral Knight is nonbinary. No one ever comments on this; it's just an aspect of the character. I love nonbinary knights in general tbh. It's nice when a character's gender is "murder, but also a little sad," and I tend to be a fan of characters whose faces are never seen.

The second is that the game explores one of my favorite themes using one of my favorite tropes. The rest of this post contains spoilers for Ender Lilies, a Breath of the Wild fic I wrote called Malice, and also Final Fantasy VII I guess.

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And like I said, that's the good shit right there.