@Silver17: The art style very intentionally harks back to that era. It's a good design choice and ties into the meta-narrative of the game. And a cursory glance at Gamespots recent reviews suggests neither of your last two sentences are true, so lets not be too conspiratorial.

Nonetheless, I certainly disagree with the reviewer on the quality of the narrative and writing, and did not think the combat system was interesting for more than a few encounters (and there are many).

I didn't think the story or its subversive gimmick were worth how boring the combat so quickly gets. The writing and the characters are okay, but I didn't find the whole idea that compelling, and it didn't make me think about, or consider, anything that someone who has thought critically about game design or tropes hasn't already. Combine that with the tedium of random encounters and dialogue that stop you in your track and you get a kinda annoying game to play (and I play plenty RPG's with random encounters, and this ones propensity to interrupt is huge, and over long periods of time). Multiple plays are also encouraged to fully see what the game has to offer. It does have a great aesthestic, and the artists/animators have a good understanding of pixel art, and how to get alot out of very little, as does the composer and his chiptune soundtrack. There is definitely something here for a certain audience, and for those on the fence or sceptical, I'd say for the right price (it is US$10 - so maybe a sale), it is worth checking to see if you're that audience.

@Rammone4: It's very rare. Look at the ages of most high level MOBA and RTS players.

@johncas89: If there is no physical component, why do pro atheletes train their body so much, and why do people find it so hard to compete over the age of 25 when they physically cannot act as quickly as younger people?

@elessarGObonzo: Being professional in any field requires dedication.

@sonypony4eva: Successful athletes in e-sport train all day to be as good as they are. They aren't lifting weights because those muscles aren't important. But their finger and wrist work is important, which is what they train. There is a physical reason that players over 25 are rare; they can't compete with the physicality of younger players. Their is very much the same level of physicality and mental acuity needed at a professional level as other sports.

If you don't think that e-sports are real sports, or you don't think they are physically demanding, I don't think you appreciate what it takes to game at a high level, and you don't understand sport.

@Rammone4: Yeah, there is a reason that players over the age of 24-25 just cannot physically compete with younger players in most e-sports.

@razorsedge: Do you mean Ico? The platformer? That's one of the four games I have in my all time top 5.