This is a rewrite of a previously positive review I wrote, mainly just because this game starts off with an incredible amount of potential off the bat but squanders it by keeping your combat options too simple for the very steep difficulty ramp-up.

You have a dodge button, a dash, a basic combo attack, a chargeable heavy attack, and a "panic" button that lets you eat your own combo meter to get health back (which is a pretty clever idea). Countering with the dodge will let you follow up with a light or heavy counter depending on which button you press.

The best way to describe this game's problem is, imagine if a game like Bayonetta never introduced Wicked Weaves, dodge-offsetting, or anything else beyond the basic set of mechanics, and your whole strategy has to revolve around abusing Witch Time so you can lead up with button mash combo spam. In order to make itself more difficult, it just throws more and more high-tier enemies onto the screen to the point of being a giant chaotic mess where you spend more time dodging the onslaught than actually attacking your enemies.

It's weird in that the skill ceiling is very low, but it's very difficult, just in a way that doesn't entirely feel fair. You're limited to the same process of spamming dodge and the combo button, with the occasional heavy attack for health sponge enemies. Because the difficulty curve becomes so unforgiving, it highlights how shallow the actual combat system is.

Also one of the 3 playable characters is flat-out more powerful than the other two to an absurd extent, like he's supposed to be a secret unlockable character but they just give you him at the start so there's little point in picking anyone else.

There's so, so much potential here and I'll occasionally load up the first stage just to be reminded of why I initially had hopes for the game, but by stage 3 or 4 it becomes a painful repetitive slog. It's a real shame.

This is a rewrite of a previously positive review I wrote, mainly just because this game starts off with an incredible amount of potential off the bat but squanders it by keeping your combat options too simple for the very steep difficulty ramp-up. You have a dodge button, a dash, a basic combo attack, a chargeable heavy attack, and a "panic" button that lets you eat your own combo meter to get health back (which is a pretty clever idea). Countering with the dodge will let you follow up with a light or heavy counter depending on which button you press. The best way to describe this game's problem is, imagine if a game like Bayonetta never introduced Wicked Weaves, dodge-offsetting, or anything else beyond the basic set of mechanics, and your whole strategy has to revolve around abusing Witch Time so you can lead up with button mash combo spam. In order to make itself more difficult, it just throws more and more high-tier enemies onto the screen to the point of being a giant chaotic mess where you spend more time dodging the onslaught than actually attacking your enemies. It's weird in that the skill ceiling is very low, but it's very difficult, just in a way that doesn't entirely feel fair. You're limited to the same process of spamming dodge and the combo button, with the occasional heavy attack for health sponge enemies. Because the difficulty curve becomes so unforgiving, it highlights how shallow the actual combat system is. Also one of the 3 playable characters is flat-out more powerful than the other two to an absurd extent, like he's supposed to be a secret unlockable character but they just give you him at the start so there's little point in picking anyone else. There's so, so much potential here and I'll occasionally load up the first stage just to be reminded of why I initially had hopes for the game, but by stage 3 or 4 it becomes a painful repetitive slog. It's a real shame.