A Metroidvania to keep your eyes on!
It's that time again for a new episode of Chichuki Plays, the show where I go hands-on with upcoming games and show them off. Usually it's about an hour or so but I don't want to spoil too much of the game for you. Today, we're checking out Awaken-Astral Blade on Steam. I was able to play the Steam Next Fest demo I believe last year for this and loved it.
We play the role of Tania who has been sent on a mission to study Karpas energy. An interesting note is that our commanding officer who sent us on this mission is our father, Dr. Herveus. Our body has been modified with nanomaterials so we'll be able to upgrade our systems throughout. The base weapon, the Enginery Sword, is a nice weapon that can be used quickly. You'll have the option to change weapons but this sword is pretty good right off the bat.
As I mentioned in the playthrough, I felt the game looked better than the Next Fest Demo and I stand by that. It appears that it has gone through slight graphical improvements to look even better than before. Also, I'll save you the trouble, yes you can pet the kitties. You'll also be able to unlock different costumes for Tania and they look really cool. They also change things like attack damage and other skills so make sure you try and find one you like best.
The platforming feels really solid in Awaken-Astral Blade. There were times where you had to jump from tree branch to tree branch and I had no issue. There is also a skill tree system where you can unlock different moves and abilities. Think of it as like Dark Souls where you can collect souls to spend where in Awaken you collect Aether to spend on things. Spend aether near a rest area because you have to reset your systems to change things. I think it would have been nice to have something say that items you find in the world that upgrade health do that automatically. I was looking for items I found and took me a moment to realize that they upgrade automatically. The attack combo system felt great as well. I also love the fact that you get an air dash that's simple to use. Some games like this make you wait a while for those upgrades.
The attack system is quick and smooth. I didn't have an issue with attacking enemies. The special skills are really easy to use and make combat a little easier when fighting certain enemies. I think my favorite combo has to be when you start attacking in the air and then roll forward. I also like how you can find different ornaments/equipment strewn throughout the journey to add to your play style. I also like that the game tries to help you see which way you should be going. It appears that trails of aether show the way like Hansel and Gretel used breadcrumbs to find their way.
I also love the way the boss monsters have a cut scene and identity card that shows off how cool they are. Boss monsters have an easy to read health bar as well as a stun bar. Attack enemies in the proper location to drain their stun bar and then go in for the kill. I mentioned the cut scenes for the monsters but the scenes for Tania look great too like unlocking tree routes for more abilities. The platforming in the game is thought out very well. What I mean by that is it appears that everything has a purpose and with some skill, you should be able to get to the location. Speaking of the locations, each one looks cooler than the last and I'm looking forward to exploring all of them.
To recap, Awaken-Astral Blade is looking like on of my games of the year. From graphics to combat, this game has it all and cool boss fights to boot. Fans of action platformers and Metroidvanias will have to check this one out!
Make sure you check out the hands-on/thoughts video below.