[Read part one here]
I have now finished Bastion, and my opinion of the game has only improved. The second half did not disappoint and the ending is one of the best I’ve seen in a long time. I recommend it in the highest terms. After I finished the game I read some pieces that others had written about it and was surprised to find that many players are turned off by the graphical style. I personally think Bastion is gorgeous, but if you are not a fan of the visuals I strongly urge you to try the free demo available on Steam (you can also purchase the full game there). It seems that many players who did not think they would like the game based on its looks actually ended up loving it.
I’m going to spend some time discussing the game’s narrative design, which I will try to keep as spoiler-free as possible. But the main point is that if you haven’t played Bastion yet, you really should. Here’s that Steam link again. You can also play the game on Xbox Live Arcade.
OK, let’s talk about the narrative.