Bo: Path of the Teal Lotusis a metroidvania with distinct Japanese and yokai influences. The world is colorful and hand-drawn, bringing a unique flair that can be difficult to find. In this game, you play Bo, a small and brand-new tentaihana who is seeking out the mysteries of their origins.

Unlike some other metroidvanias, the path you take in Bo: Path of the Teal Lotus is relatively straight forward and, with a single ending, there isn’t much room to wander off the beaten path. Even still, it’s filled with challenging fights, interesting enemy design, and plenty of platforming and puzzle-solving.

Bo Path of the Teal Lotus Ashai watching as Bo blossoms from a lotus.

Review

OurExecutive Editor, Rebecca Phillips reviewed Bo: Path of the Teal Lotusand she wasinstantly taken with the game’s aesthetics. She notes that the environment is reminiscent of traditional Japanese art, and the environment is filled withinteresting creatures and friendly yokai and animal spirits.

Where Bo definitely succeeds is in creating a vibrant world filled to the brim with charismatic yokai.

Bo Path of the Teal Lotus bo standing in the foreground with a massive skeleton yokai in the background

Well… the characters and creatures you encounter are mostly friendly until you get outside the city. After that, it becomes much more dangerous and you need to keep on your toes withfast-paced platforming and careful strikes of your staff.

Rebecca notes that she regularly had issues with nailing the second jump, always off by just a hair, which made the platforming and fighting elements just a tad frustrating. However, central mechanic aside,the game does an excellent job with its ambiance and atmosphere, conveying just how small Bo really is and how grand of a task he is taking on.

Bo Path of the Teal Lotus Bo standing in front of a weeping statue

So long as you canget into the flow of the combat and the platforming, however, you should have a fairly easy time making your way through the map and through each boss. And when all is said and done, you canrevel in the beauty and details of the world.

Time Expenditure

If you check in withHow Long To Beat,Bo: Path of the Teal Lotus’s main story is about nine hourslong, which is surprisingly short. However, if you find yourself really enthralled with the world and you want to takea completionist routeand see everything that the game has to offer, then you’re probably going to be taking closer tojust under 21 hours.

This, of course, is all dependent on you not taking forever to get through various stages and bosses and having half-decent skills in a metroidvania. Like any good title in the genre, there is a fair amount of replayability, too, given that you’ll only do better the next time you speed through the game.

However, there really isn’t much you can do to change the outcome of the game. Bo: Path of the Teal Lotus only has one ending, which might be a downside for some of you prospective players.

Cost

Bo: Path of the Teal Lotus is available on the Nintendo Switch, PlayStation 5, MacOS, Xbox Series X|S, Windows, and Linux. Across this wide array of platforms,the game is $19.99 pre-tax.

If you want to purchase Bo: Path of the Teal Lotus on PC, you can purchase it directly from the Humble Games website, or you can buy it from Steam. As it stands now there isn’t any additional content or DLC for the game, so there are no additional charges.

What Players Are Saying

A Gorgeous 2D World - Rebecca Phillips

Bo: Path of the Teal Lotus has great bosses and challenging platforming, but where it truly shines is its yokai-filled world and beautiful graphics. The 2D animation is stunning and makes the world a joy to explore, and the world is made all the more lively with its yokai, which both borrow from Japanese myths and bring something new. If you enjoyed the likes of Hollow Knight and Ori, you should give Bo a try.

Challenging And Beautiful - Tallis Spalding

It’s undeniable that the game is challenging, demanding you to get good or suffer, but it feels so rewarding when you finally succeed. The game’s beautiful visuals and alluring characters and story make it all the more enjoyable to play. If you’ve played Hollow Knight before, you might often find yourself cheering as you progress - I know I was, constantly saying that Hollow Knight had trained me well.