Platform(s): PC (version reviewed), Nintendo Switch
Genre: 2D Metroidvania, Action, Scifi

Team Ladybug’s latest 2D search action game, Blade Chimera, hits all the right notes from the get-go. From the lush graphics and 2D pixel art style to its smooth controls, the game eases you in while also introducing some fresh game mechanics that all other future indie Metroidvanias should get inspired from.

Blade of Glory

For starters, the setting itself is really cool. You play as Shin, a demon hunter called a Venator who serves a Holy Order using guns and swords. As he kills a giant demon dragon invading a parking area in Osaka, he ends up being a host to a phantom sword who has the power to bring objects back from the past while also defending him with a shield. Oh, and also attack enemies on command. And also grapple swing onto specific points on the map so you can swing around to the other side like a Bionic Commando.

As you level up, you earn skill points you can allocate onto the skill menu to get new moves, like double jumps and air dashes as well as special phantom sword spells. If you’re like me and know your Metroidvanias, you’re better off just using the skill points to get the traversal moves so that you can gain access to hard-to-reach places for treasure and better equipment. You start off with a limited moveset, but once you kill enough enemies and earn enough cash and skill points, you’ll be coasting through the levels like a 2D action hero powerhouse in no time. You’ll be challenged by the games’ many demon bosses, each of them with their own unique gimmick that requires you to expertly use your phantom sword and its myriad of skills.

What’s even cool are the additions Blade Chimera brings that seem unique for the genre. Your ranged weapons auto-locks to the closest threat, meaning you can just hold the attack button to just fire your gun while moving around and dodging. You can warp to places you’ve already discovered, cutting down needless backtracking and even teleporting to any save point in the game to heal up when you’re low on health and mana. Side quests can also be taken and completed on the fly and are highlighted in purple; just head to a save point and choose a side mission closest to you.

Everything from the aesthetics to the progression to the gameplay is well-executed here, I can forgive Team Ladybug for some of its past sins making it onto Blade Chimera: there are too many enemy corridor sections here that feel like padding to artificially extend playtime. While they’re good for levelling up, most of these sections feel a bit too repetitive. That’s a shame, as most of Blade Chimera’s puzzles and level design are pretty good.

Unless you’re taking the completionist’s route (ie: finding all the Puzzle Pieces and finishing all the side quests), you’re looking at 5 hours or so playtime just to get to the final boss and its conclusion. True, you can spend a few extra hours to get the true final boss of the game, but that’s more for achievement’s sake than the main pathway you’ll conventionally take.

Way Of The Blade

While not the lengthiest of search action titles, Blade Chimera makes it up with everything else. New style of gameplay and combat, a fun phantom sword mechanic that ties in well with the narrative involving the dredging of the past, lovely 2D pixel artwork and music: this combination along with an original scifi plot makes this one of Ladybug’s finest.

If the team can resort to less enemy corridor sections as level design replacements, we could have a perfect Metroidvania on our hands.

Pros

• Great controls and action.
• Lovely art showcasing beautiful pixel animation.
• Fitting synth soundtrack.
• Demon powers and sword skills add new defensive & puzzle-solving mechanics.
• Fun boss fights.

Cons

• Too many enemy-and-corridor sections.
• Pretty short length.

Final Score: 80/100