Lonely Mountains Review: Downhill, a cycling challenge on Nintendo Switch

It's only you against the mountains, let's discover the pleasure of challenging nature in this review of Lonely Mountains: Downhill for Nintendo Switch

You're going down a mountain, steering dangerously and feeling the wheels spinning on soft ground. You have lost control for a few seconds, but by accelerating you are able to recover and continue pedaling. As you run faster and faster you feel the breeze of the wind and the pleasant bleating of the grazing sheep, you do not see them, but this is enough to relax and continue more concentrated on the track.



Lonely Mountains: Downhill is the protagonist of today's review, an unexpected sensory experience, made up of small but great satisfactions. If with this introduction I have intrigued you, let's proceed to the heart of its analysis.

On top of your opponent

Lonely Mountains: Downhills is the third video game developed by Megagon Industries and is published by Thunderful Publishing. A team that has decided to focus its efforts on care of the little things, making them extremely large for the importance they hold. In fact, the only protagonists of this video game are just a cyclist and the mountain below him. The title was released on all modern gaming platforms and in this review of Lonely Mountains: Downhills we tried its version for Nintendo Switch.

Lonely Mountains Review: Downhill, a cycling challenge on Nintendo Switch

A Simple Structure - Lonely Mountains Review: Downhill for Nintendo Switch

We start from the top of one of the four available mountains and with our cyclist we will try to descend in one slalom of obstacles until you reach the finish line. In all there are sixteen tracks, four for each mountain with the addition of the night challenges. The actions available are few: we can steer, brake, accelerate and sprint briefly.


These are the only tools we will rely on during the descent, but it will also be necessary to hold quick reflexes to prevent our character from colliding on trees, rocks, cacti or simply not flying down a cliff. Fortunately, with each (frequent) encounter, we will go back to the last checkpoint. The view is not controllable by the player, but will follow the cyclist's actions from above, often helping other times to hinder him.


Lonely Mountains Review: Downhill, a cycling challenge on Nintendo Switch

There is no shortage of activities - Lonely Mountains Review: Downhill for Nintendo Switch

In short, this was the flow of play, made up of speed, thrusts and turns to the millimeter to avoid ending up in the water. Numerous challenges are also offered, mainly timed or with a limit of fights before reaching the finish line. Each of these allows you to unlock new colors for change the look of bicycle and cyclist or even get close when obtaining a new vehicle. The latter have very different characteristics that suit different playing styles.

La Javelin it is for those who prefer speed and acceleration to the detriment of maneuverability. There Geronimo, with a rather explicit name, it is perfect to withstand jumps at the expense of speed. There are other models, but also just the basic one Grasshopper it will be enough for any challenge.

Seen only for these bare characteristics, it would be understandable to confuse it with a common sports video game focused on mountain descents. Thinking like this makes us slightly distant from reality, because Lonely Mountains: Downhills leaves it to the player full freedom to leave the track and discover what nature hides.


Lonely Mountains Review: Downhill, a cycling challenge on Nintendo Switch

In mezzo alla natura – Review Lonely Mountains: Downhill per Nintendo Switch

As previously mentioned, each mountain has its own specific tracks, but the game allows you not to follow them. In addition to shortening the distance to the finish line, in this way we can fully explore the natural environments. Lonely Mountains is aware of this, there are in fact some hidden areas where we can, at the pressure of Y, sit and admire the view. Nothing that has a real effect on gameplay, other than to dilate our final times, but it shows how much the natural element is important in the game.


We are free to take a competitive approach, but it is undeniable that the game structure also encourages a slower pace for just immersion with the surrounding environment. As we go down it is of extreme pleasure to hear the noise of the wheels that slip on the ground and that of the nature that accompanies us. Depending on the place there will be a different audio, including birds, streams, falling pebbles and grazing animals.


Also there is no music or screaming spectators, the developers have indeed adopted a minimalist approach to audio, simulating what could be a real solitary descent into the mountains. We must admit that thanks to this for a few moments we really felt within those places.

Immersion that is not disturbed by the sharp and colorful graphic style, which indeed helps to stay focused. Although aesthetically minimal it is not exempt from some minor technical problems. In fact, moments of micro-stuttering and others where the game freezes for half a second, enough to make us skid against a tree. Drawbacks that mostly occurred during the sessions in However,, but fortunately nothing too frequent.

Lonely Mountains Review: Downhill, a cycling challenge on Nintendo Switch

An exceptional experience

The overall experience with the game was an absolute pleasure, so much so that the frequent clashes are not perceived too much. In fact, it is a difficult game and requires a minimum of effort to get used to the controls, always responsive from the moment you become familiar. In addition to personal competition or for the world rankings, we have found with particular satisfaction a audio compartment that perfectly frames its more Zen vein. Our advice is to get out of the prepared tracks and wear headphones for a better descent.


Lonely Mountains: Downhill is now available on Nintendo Switch, PlayStation 4, Xbox One and PC. To stay up to date on video games and technology, we recommend that you continue to follow us on the pages of techigames.
 
 

8.7 Really enjoyable

Points in favor

  • Responsive checks
  • Difficult but accessible challenges
  • Excellent audio
  • Great immersion in nature

Points against

  • Slight technical problems
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