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A tiny masterpiece!

A Canvas for Eternity is a small entry made for the Tim Tam Slam Jam of 2019. At the time played the game until the first half, then I lost it due to my hard disk breaking down, but now I was able to restart the game and complete it once for all. As I said this is a short game, but it's also a peculiar one: in this game we play as Francesco Melzi, Leonardo DaVinci's apprentice that meets his master for the last time during his final days of his life.

But this is not the end! It's just the beginning of a great adventure! Francesco is shocked when he learns that Leonardo intends to destroy all his works, and then he'll always be amazed when he will enter the realm of imagination together with his master...


I really dig the cute 8 bit mapping style of this game! I just wish it was even bigger and longer!

The game is an rpg in which we control a party of two characters, Francesco and Leonardo. The peculiar thing is that unlike other games in which the protagonists are wizards and warriors and they use staves and swords, here the heroes are painters so they fight using... colors!
Oh yeah, the two start with just two colors, Red and White, and then they will find the others during the adventure (but to equip them they have to visit the paint studios found in the villages of this strange land). Each equipped color gives one attack and one special ability (Red can make attacks stronger, White is used to heal), but sometimes two particular colors can also create a combination that gives also another attack and another special ability to choose from (for example Red + Yellow also equips Orange, White + Black equips Grey too...).
In the beginning (at level one) each character can equip just one color, then two and at the end three.

It's probably no surprise that there are enemies that have strength and weaknesses against particular colors/attacks. And this is extremely important especially against bosses (that possess some particular attacks that can cause negative effects)! Oh yes, there are bosses in these games and they are all based on the various paintings and works created by Leonardo DaVinci, of course!


Take this blue brush stroke! The Last Supper may be the final meal, but it is not the final opponent in this game!

But, as you can probably expect, this is not all! Our two painters can also buy consumables (that have the names of italian traditional dishes of course!), accessories and clothes (that works as armors) to equip themselves and get ready to explore dungeons in the land of imagination. Then there are also Inns where the two painters can rest and recover from the wounds, and these are totally free of charge. Anyway there is plenty of money and loot scattered around, so I am pretty sure you will have not trouble progressing in this game even if you must not underestimate some stronger opponents (as I did with the Vitruvian Man that defeated me more than once!), the final boss required me to use all healing items I had!.

Graphically the game use a 8 bit style that works very well. Mapping is good and in some cases even excellent, I especialli liked the three stories villa and the Vitruvian Man Dungeon that is shaped like the Vitruvian Man! Really clever indeed. I liked a lot the opponent spries, that look like dark/demonic versions of the works they represent.
Music is old style too and fits well the setting and adventure, the final result is a sort of "minimalistic" little game that is original and has a lot of character and details that make it stand out. It's not a particularly difficult game, but I didn't mind since the purpouse is to tell an original story, and this is where the game shines.


Selecting and equipping colors is an important part of the game!

Final Verdict
The size of the Mona Lisa is just 77 cm × 53 cm. So it's a small masterpiece and this game in my experience is not that different: it was fun to play (learning what the various color do and finding the most useful combinations was fun), even if short and not too challenging, but being this an entry for a Jam, it still shows lots of work and attention to the details, from the dialogues to the maps and combat encounters.

This is a good simple game with an original framework and an unusual story, and considering the short time in which it was realized is noteworthy. A good idea realized very well! 4/5!

Posts

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Look Corf, somebody likes our work!

Thanks for the review!
author=Illy
Look Corf, somebody likes our work!

Thanks for the review!


Well I admit that both concept and visual style made me play this game, Two years to write this review. And I played the game twice. Remember this. Not bad! Lol. ^_^
Corfaisus
"It's frustrating because - as much as Corf is otherwise an irredeemable person - his 2k/3 mapping is on point." ~ psy_wombats
7874
author=Illy
Look Corf, somebody likes our work!

Thanks for the review!

I needed a Francesco like you to remind me that these things should be preserved. It wouldn't be possible without you.
Pages: 1