@Questionable:

Have you read any reviews? They'll explain why everyone is excited about the game.

Being that the game is indie and made on a modest budget, I get why people like it. The story is really touching and the game play is solid. 
I get why people like it, although I do not share in the high praise. I did find it good but not as good as Giantbomb dudes say it is. 
 
That's just my opinion on it. It's not a bad game, like you said. Just not as superb as Giantbomb's editors (and people that mimic their opinions) say- for me. 
I'm pretty sure a lot of the praise around these parts is also because Greg worked on it and Greg is awesome. Just a guess though haha

Everyone on this thread says to "just finish it". Problem is I have no interest in finishing it even after finding every shard and getting attacked by the Ura. I'm definitely missing something here, I don't think it's just a slow starter...

Nevertheless, if you people claim it to be that amazing I will take your word for it and continue....

I feel exactly the same way. The game is just good but nothing special in my eyes. The narrator means nothing to me, and he only improves the game in the smallest bit if even at all. Yes, the art style is kinda cool, but it's still not something that is going to make me enjoy the game that much more because of it. The story is "eh" at best and does nothing to draw you in and make you care other than being fairly vague so that crazy people go "oooo this is interesting". Finally, the gameplay is perfectly fine but nothing else. Playing the game is extremely easy and boring. The weapon variety is utterly pointless because there is no reason to switch weapons other than for the simple act of switching weapons. To me its just a well executed game that doesnt have anything special to make me stick around and finish it. I dont really blame these guys for liking it because of their relationship with Greg, but i think anyone else who thinks this game is amazing is either crazy, just saying it because the GB guys said it, or has a low standard for what an awesome game is.

Also, anyone who says "you just dont get it man" and "its just not clicking for you" is the worst. It's not like the game has some magical quality that you have to "get" or understand. I think the real reason why people like it is because there are some that will put up with uninteresting design, gameplay, and narrative as long as there is some original music, art and maybe another simple unique flourish that makes the game "feel" different, and thats what they value in a game more than anything. I think those people are insane, but that's just me.

The art is absolutely beautiful, the music is phenomenal.

The story is incredibly well done. The ways in which the game delivers a lot of details of the world and motives of the characters is impressive due to the impact of the revelations and subtle approach in revealing them.

The combat is tight and responsive. You have a large amount of weapons and skills. The Shrine Idols allowed you to increase the game difficulty to bring even more fun out of the combat.

I love Bastion because it is the only video game experience this year that I found to be absolute perfection.

I think the over coverage of the game by giantbomb ruined it for me because besides the voice narration and a little bit of the music, I don't really enjoy it.

It's the kind of game I want to play on my phone truthfully, which isn't really a compliment.

Or maybe I am just not into that type of game. meh.

I saw a few people in this thread that said "don't think, just play" and "you don't get it, you need to play more". Fuck off.

I don't think it's all that special either. Bastion is a game dripping with pretension. It's so confident in its stylishness. So cocksure of its own awesomeness that it forgets to actually be awesome.

I said before when the game first came out that if the narrator and art weren't so cool, I never would have finished the game. And I definitely stand by that. After a couple of hours, I found the game incredibly boring to play. For the most part I thought the music was dull. The storytelling is great, I'll happily give it that, but the actual story is pretty forgettable. Mostly because of how unnecessarily vague it is. They throw around words like "The Calamity" and "Caelondia" and "Ura" with such gravitas that you would think they might be important. But they don't even bother fully explaining what any of those things actually mean and they expect you to give a shit. I didn't.

But hey, the narrator is kind of cool! So it's obviously game of the year material, right?

It looks pretty, the narration is awesome and the music is great.

Then they took all the most annoying enemy types from other games without taking a single good one and asked you to fight them. At this point I'll think "I should finish Bastion", load it up, fight one enemy, go "Ughhhhhhhh" and quit.

@Questionable: I didnt understand what was so great about the game either, which is a surprise because I'm rarely in the gaming minority. I found the story to be absolutely bare bones and almost non-existent; and cant rap my mind around why everyone thinks its so great. The game does have VERY strong production values, and is definitely a well made game, but I cant rap my mind around why it is passed around as game of the year worthy.

There are only two games that I purchased this year that I never finished. One is Bastion and the other is L.A Noire for much the same reasons. There was nothing compelling to either of them.

@Questionable said:

So what is making Bastion so special that everyone has been raving over it since its inception? Just that a former colleague of the GB team made it happen? I have played about 10 of the levels so far since it went on sale yesterday and while i definitely dont find it a bad game i also can not recognize anything (yet) that makes this a 2011 gem. Will the story totally fuck up my mind after a certain key event? am i under-valueing the narrator? what is it that you guys see and i dont get?

I always thought of myself as a pretty refined gamer being able to value the ICO series, visual novels and even able to distil the great story of NIER trough all the horrendous gameplay.

When i pick apart my current experience of the game i fail to encounter anything significant. Should i just keep playing and expect it to fall into my lap as i round the next corner or am i missing something vital?

(The combat is very basic, it is certainly functional but not something that would make me want to boot up the game like a real action/adventure game. The presentation reminds me of a well made flash game, again nothing special but functional for a tight budget project. The OST is well GREAT, really good music definitely top 5 list material as far as game soundtracks go.)

You'll never "get it"

@Soapy86 said:

I don't think it's all that special either. Bastion is a game dripping with pretension. It's so confident in its stylishness. So cocksure of its own awesomeness that it forgets to actually be awesome.

I said before when the game first came out that if the narrator and art weren't so cool, I never would have finished the game. And I definitely stand by that. After a couple of hours, I found the game incredibly boring to play. For the most part I thought the music was dull. The storytelling is great, I'll happily give it that, but the actual story is pretty forgettable. Mostly because of how unnecessarily vague it is. They throw around words like "The Calamity" and "Caelondia" and "Ura" with such gravitas that you would think they might be important. But they don't even bother fully explaining what any of those things actually mean and they expect you to give a shit. I didn't.

But hey, the narrator is kind of cool! So it's obviously game of the year material, right?

This exactly. I'll get around to completing it soon enough, but it's more of a chore at this point just so I can get it out of the way. I've heard that the ending is meant to be pretty great, but that still won't matter too much in the long run if the journey there was so tedious and dull--even though the narration and the art style are still spectacular.

It's a shame because Bastion through every facet looks like a game I should enjoy quite a bit. Action/RPG with a a HUB world that progressively gets bigger, more advanced and also gets littered with all kinds of cool trinkets from your travels (which is one aspect I particularly appreciated - especially the thing that let me listen to the game's soothing soundtrack), with a solid array of weapons and customisation options. Yet at the same time I just didn't enjoy playing it for whatever reason; the combat didn't feel very satisfying for me, and I'm not very enthusiastic about the design of ''The Kid'' either.

The art is neat, but not particularly fantastic. The narrator conceit is 'meh'. Music is quite fitting for the gameplay- though there were some points where it bored me. That being said, I really enjoyed the combat in that it was very flexible to how I wanted to play it. The combination of weapon choices, secret skills, liquors, and deities combined with the jump pads and dodging kept me excited and interested. Really, I think the only thing I want to do in that game is the "Who Knows Where" sections over and over with different combinations.

Finish the game then post as to why you don't like it.

It's a great game. The art is gorgeous, the soundtrack is great, the tone and atmosphere is sublime, and the combat is incredibly responsive and tight.

The combat is "boring"? Take the initiative, challenge yourself, and turn on some idols. I couldn't imagine playing the game without most of them turned on at this point. Also note that there's a great variety of weapons, each one different and completely BALANCED. That, I think, is one of the most amazing things about this game; you can go on any forum and ask what combination of weapons people used, and you'll always get a ton of different, but valid, answers. It's incredible that such a small team could create such a refined system where multi-million dollar studios often fail.

The story is "too vague"? Either you weren't paying attention or you weren't far enough in the game. Or you didn't care, which is fine. Bastion is not a game that shoves the story down your throat like most modern games do. If you want to know what's going on, you have to put a small amount of effort into it. I'll say that I wasn't confused at all about anything story-related by the end of that game. You guys must be doing something wrong.

@Soapy86: That is a good point. It is alright to use vague terms in a video game to create mystery and make you want to learn what actually happened. For me ... yea I really didn't care enough for some reason.

It's the only reason I watched so much of lost on tv. However, I don't like being jerked around anymore, I kinda just want answers

I was in the same boat as you then I bought it on sale on steam and while its not wowing me like it hs others I think the main appeal comes from it not so much reinventing the wheel but doing what it does in a very polished way. I've been having fun with it on my second attempt to play it.

@imsh_pl said:

I think there are many details which when combined elevate Bastion above the rest:

• The music is really, really good and combines different genres and instruments in unique ways
• While I didn't find the plot that exciting I must say there are a few good, unexpected twists
• The combat is great, you have to be on your toes the whole time, the game encourages experimenting and literally ever weapon and tonic is useful in certain situations
• The narrator is awesome and original
• The elevating battlefield is awesome and original
• The artstyle is beautiful
• It has great replayability and enough content even for a $40 game

Many of these (all of them, actually) are subjective of course but I think what makes Bastion click is how well all of the above traits are implemented

This, plus I really like how every mechanic is tied to the narrative. The idols, the vigils in the memorial, even new game+ is cleverly integrated into the fiction. Nothing in that game is purely a mechanic without some flavour or story ties.

I thought the game had surprising combat, in that it wasn't what I was expecting, and the narrator basically kept a sort of relaxing, almost puts you in that just about to sleep, mood. Though I did think while the visual style of things popping up was extremely interesting, I did find myself wanting a different visual style overall. In some ways the combat felt out of place in the world and seemed more fitting for a more mature game. I liked it though, but it's certainly odd enough that it isn't going to be for everyone. I didn't love it, but I did "get it".

It could just be because you're actively searching for what makes it special, and for me at least that destroys an experience unless it delivers very very well. I don't think it has anything incredible other than the narration and music, but it's fun and pretty, so being well made helped people talk it up so much.

@Questionable: I feel that since the GOTY stuff began on GB the site has become a giant Bastion advertisement.

I have four or five friends who were pretty glowing in their opinions of Bastion despite the fact that none of them frequent GB or watched Building the Bastion. It's not a phenomenon limited to this website. These are also all game designers, so odds are they have pretty high standards for games.

I like all the parts of Bastion but the story just didn't grab me and compel me to keep playing.

If people don't like the game, fine. Opinions differ.

But frankly, anyone claiming GB is biased or somehow their opinions on the game are invalid due to their friendship with the game's creator or their coverage of the game is an idiot. If you've that little faith in the integrity of the creators of this site, then you shouldn't be hanging out here.

edit: do .gifs not work here?

Didn't like the demo, didn't buy the game, almost bought it but then I tried the demo again and deleted it again, bought Bloodrayne Betrayal instead, I like that one. *shrugs* If you're enjoying the game then that's all that matters, if not then don't worry if everyone else is, everyone loves Ico but I hate it and once again, I shrug my shoulders and go about my gaming. Don't worry about it.

The story of Bastion may be the most overated story in videogames ever, i enjoyed the game but thats about it a good game but not a great one and certainly not on the same level as the GOTY awards are stating IMO.

Why aren't you feelin Bastion? Could have to do with when you started playing games or the type of games you're into. Bastion is definitely in my top 5 for all the reasons you're not enjoying. But I've been gaming since the c64. And have recently become fatigue from all Unreal engining, shoot dudes in the face with your fists, type stuff. So for a game to come out amidst of all that and just be different enough (granted, it's an action/rpg) is very refreshing. And that's part of the reason I like it so much. But hey, you don't have to like something because every else does.