Hands of Necromancy first full playthrough: The Evil Returns (Expansion Maps)
2I've completed Hands of Necromancy's 3 release episodes, but they also subsequently released a set of expansion maps (for free), so it's time to check those out.
As I suspected, these maps are purely linear with no hubs; in that way, perhaps this is somewhat of a preview of what's to come in HoN2 (which is purely linear episodes).
Regardless of the lack of hubs, a few of these maps certainly stand out. The ones that first introduce the forms often still do so in ways that provide interesting progression (with the exception of Hell Burner, which is introduced at the beginning of a level). With how gradually the forms are each introduced, I was beginning to think this was going to be a surprisingly long episode, but Wyvern form is saved for the final map, which I suppose shouldn't be too surprising given how game-breaking it could be otherwise. The final map also deserves mention for having a couple of unique gimmicks not even seen in the original three episodes.
I'm certainly looking forward to the second game, after how much entertainment I got out of this one. And this game is $5 USD now even when it's not on sale, which is an absolute steal.