Blade Chimera review

In film, auteur theory contends that the director is the primary ‘author’ of a motion picture, responsible for overseeing and unifying a movie’s aural and visual elements. As such, a film embodies a creative and personal vision of its director, exhibiting recognizable, reoccurring themes, and potentially, visual tropes. If this framework can be applied to video games, Team Ladybug’s growing body of work exhibits a series of distinctive qualities.

Undoubtedly, a sensation of similarity might stem from the four-person team’s use of the Mogura Station engine. Sure, plenty of metroidvanias flaunt a sinuous sixty-frame-per-second output. But like Team Ladybug’s Touhou Luna Nights and Record of Lodoss War – Deedlit in Wonder Labyrinth, there’s an indulging feeling of responsiveness as you guide lead character Shin through Blade Chimera. Every jump, attack, and pivot are all lusciously lithe, allowing you to take quick action from enemies with extended ranges of attack.

One Eyed Umbrellas and Long-Necked Ladies

Another signature attribute is the game’s stunning spritework. Although Chimera shifts the action to a futuristic Osaka, Team Ladybug sustains their adoration of folklore, often with new twists. From tengu sumo, mystical frogs called bake kaeru, and little yamawaro who scamper and assault, there’s a rich collection of pixel-art yokai.

Likewise, backdrops are dense with details. Take a momentary break from exploration and combat, and you’ll spot takoyaki stalls, exhaustively drawn subway trains, and bosses that execute mighty ki blasts right out a shonen anime. The game’s lighting and shadowing is downright gorgeous.

A Demon-Hunting Armory

One of Ladybug’s other characteristic qualities is how satisfying the various elements of combat can feel. Here, your amnesiac warrior starts with a handgun and limitless ammo, before making a pact with a demon, who adopts the form of a floating sword. It’s enjoyable to plink away at foes on the other side of the screen, gradually wearing their health.

Yet, the real satisfaction is rooted in Lux’s abilities. You can plant the sword in a wall then recall it from several screens away, cleaving through a crowd of unfortunate foes. Another cool maneuver plants the blade into the ground, creating a protective dome that can cancel projectile and damage opponents who attempt to walk through it.

Familiar Sword or Sword Familiar?

Your basic ranged and melee attacks refill your magic points, while Lux’s powers revitalize your health, compelling players to vary their attack styles. The one downside is that enemies grow in numbers and resilience toward the end of the seven-hour campaign. Battling groupings of spongy adversaries dilutes the dominance of your mighty arsenal.

Structurally, Blade Chimera largely follows metroidvania formula, awarding players with new abilities that can provide access to new areas of the game’s expansive map. But mostly, these are used to secure noncompulsory collectables and restorative items, rather than gatekeeping progress. Instead, progression tends to follow a sequence of story events and boss battles, which is a change of pace from most genre entries.

Satisfyingly Succinct Storytelling

The game’s storyline centers around your efforts for The Holy Union, an organization tasked with saving what’s left of a dwindling humanity. Like their past efforts, Team Ladybug doesn’t force players to sit through long-winded lore dumps. Instead, the exhibition is doled out in manageably-sized pieces by NPCs. The result cultivates a sense of intrigue, as players connect the dots to unravel some of Chimera’s proceedings. Given how many contemporary games tend to overexplain every last detail, the approach is refreshing and helps to keep the pacing taut.

Thanks to instinctual controls, engaging combat, and fluid animation that oozes atmosphere, Blade Chimera is contender for one of the best metroidvanias since Deedlit in Wonder Labyrinth. Once again, Team Ladybug shows a mastery of the genre that no Symphony of the Night fans should overlook.

Blade Chimera was played on PC with review code provided by the publisher.