Blade Chimera Invites Comparisons To Symphony Of The Night--And It Excels
Team Ladybug's stylish metroidvania shines with gorgeous pixel art, crunchy combat, and a rich world that slowly draws you into its web
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That premise gives you lots of reason to fight through monsters, and the cyberpunk Osaka, Japan setting means most of the demons are modeled after yokai--though there are some other inspirations, like one named Lucifer or even the comical Mr. President. Shin is a specialist at taking down demons, and the combat feels appropriately crunchy to empower you as a veteran demon hunter. You gain an array of melee weapons--primarily swords, greatswords, and whips--and have the ability to strike diagonally and upwards with each of them. But since this is the near future, you also have access to firearms with their own properties. Plasma rifles can't be used underwater, for example, and some demons are immune to gunfire altogether. You can mix and match your weapon slots to include two melee weapons, two firearms, or one of each.
This all blends to feel like an evolution of Symphony of the Night as a specific reference point. The look of the game seems unabashedly SotN-inspired, too. Shin even has long silver hair and a flowing dark cloak, not unlike a certain Castlevania protagonist. The character and enemy designs across the board seem tailored to look cool as hell, and they're beautifully rendered with detailed pixel art to boot.
On top of your weapons, you also have Lux, who floats behind you disguised as a high-tech greatsword. She has her own dedicated button that functions as both a weapon and traversal tool. You can use her to strike enemies, which restores some of your health, but you need to use your regular weapons to charge the MP required to use this ability. Meanwhile, you can also just stick the Lux sword into a wall to create your own platforms to climb. As the ability tree unfolds, you unlock more abilities for Lux, from traditional double- or high-jumps to planting the sword in the ground to create a barrier or a screen-clearing massive explosion.
All of these parts harmonize together and create an immense sense of freedom. Exploring the world is a joy because Shin is so fleet-footed and nimble, and it's very satisfying to level up and carve your way through demons that had previously given you trouble. I had either forgotten or overlooked fast-travel until very late in the game, but backtracking was only a mild bother because I was enjoying my time in the game so much. When I did discover fast-travel, I was pleased to find it's one of the most generous fast-travel systems I've ever seen--you can immediately warp to almost any square on the map grid that you've visited, instantaneously.
In addition to the roughly Shin-sized demons, Blade Chimera boasts several boss fights against so-called Titan demons. These almost always come in two phases: first against a massive beast and then against its more humanoid counterpart. Each one has some new creative wrinkle or mechanic to test your skills or act as combat puzzles.
As you might suspect from its premise involving a paramilitary cult, the situation is not as simple as it seems. As Shin unpeels the mysteries behind the church, the demons, and himself, the story goes to some surprising places. But to its credit, it also doesn't always spell out its developments too explicitly. By the time I reached the boss fight for the hidden true ending, I had come to an understanding about the world, and the game respected my intelligence enough to know what I had already concluded and didn't treat it as a grand reveal. Instead, it treated that as a given, and simply skipped straight to exploring its implications.
Blade Chimera wears its influences on its sleeve, but it doesn't feel bound by them. It's a metroidvania that is very clearly and directly inspired by one particular Castlevania--and it happens to be one of the most revered of all time. It's bold to invite such a comparison, but Blade Chimera carries it off with aplomb. I hope this original franchise from Ladybug is a glimpse of things to come, because I want to spend more time with Shin and Lux.
Blade Chimera is now available on PC and Nintendo Switch. A demo is available on Steam.
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Blade Chimera PC Nintendo SwitchThis story originally appeared on: GameSpot - Author:UK GAG
