It is interesting to see how controversial today’s difficulty is. Something that was once our daily bread – dying and improving until you play a game – can now spark intense debate about the state of the industry. Yes, FromSoftware has its style of doing things, but we also find a lot of small independent titles that will make us die over and over again. Katana Zero, from AkiisoftIt will also kill us many times, without reaching those limits of complexity.
Katana Zero: A Samurai game with today’s weapons
Katana Zero is a two-dimensional action game in which we control a samurai in the present day, unlike Samurai Warriors 4, whose events occur in the old times of the Samurai. This means that all the enemies we will face have 21st-century weapons, including pistols, riot shields, and sometimes. The reasons why we find ourselves in this situation are gradually revealed, and we are surprised by the narrative burden we find in this title.
Gameplay
Akiisoft’s game puts a lot of emphasis on story and, although we wouldn’t deny that at first something heavy was done to us -here we had come to strike the sword- in the end, it caught up with us and encouraged us to play to the end to find out what was going on. The narrative component allows us to make certain decisions, although the vast majority of them only alter the dialogue and carry no weight in the game.
For reasons we won’t reveal being able to make those little decisions in the end ends up making sense sometimes so it doesn’t make us feel useless. In addition, it allows us to interrupt our interlocutor if we don’t want him to register, which also serves, to some extent, so that we can define the personality of our protagonist.
Game movements
In simple playability, it’s a pretty straightforward title. We can jump, strike with our sword, and throw objects, as well as roll and slow down time. We will find short levels that we must complete before time runs out by combining all these skills and taking advantage of good scenario design to be as efficient as possible.
Our protagonist is only able to resist one attack, so we have to complete each level literally without being hit. It’s a concept that reminded us a little of Hotline Miami. We need to half-learn the enemies’ scenarios and routines and define an optimal route to finish them all without having the possibility of reaching us.
In-Game Items
Strategy is very important, as we will often have to plot our route with certain items in mind, such as obtaining a Molotov cocktail to tap into gasoline barrels. We will have to use, outside of all our skills. We’ll have to roll to dodge bullets or get behind protected enemies, and we’ll have to use our katana to deflect bullets firing at us. There can be some very intense moments, but bullet time is there to help.
Game difficulty
The game indeed starts a little slow and simple in playability, but we assure you that you’ll eventually find notable challenges, which will force us to give it our all and take on rivals with head and precision. The second half of the game, in which the difficulty increases and the story reaches its climax, delighted us. It was one of those games that we would have liked to have lasted longer, but we preferred something concise and quality to something artificially stretched.
Graphics
We like pixel art, but we like the elaborate kind, not the kind made to work less. In this case, Akiisoft did an excellent job. While not the most complex, it is very careful, with a multitude of animations and small details that make it very beautiful.
In fact, we want to highlight the work done in the visual section to support the narrative. The sandwiches are very elaborate, using different colors and animations, and even sounds, to convey what the characters are saying and how they are saying it. You have to applaud the work of the developers here, who allow even the voiceless to imagine how the character speaks.
Sound
In sound, we have a very good soundtrack that accompanies us during the missions. There is a very nice detail, and that is that at the beginning of each mission, our character puts on his headphones and chooses a theme to serve as music during the action.
Game levels
We also find a good variety of levels in the art. We moved from recreation rooms to laboratories, discos, or Asian streets making it not repetitive at all in the five hours it lasted. We lacked more options to invite us to play it again, but it is also true that the main adventure left us very satisfied.
Is it worth it?
we really enjoyed it. It takes a while to get started, but once it starts there’s no one to stop it. It’s a title that allows us to do some really crazy things, which forces us to improve, weigh quickly, and pull strategy to complete levels. Audiovisually, in its simplicity, it does a lot of things well and has a lot of charm, and thanks to the interesting story that -tells and how well it is told, -grabs us right to the end.
If you want a fast-paced, frenetic action title, in which you not only have to dispense katanazos but also think Katana Zero is an excellent option. In addition, it has a good narrative, an unusual thing in the genre. We lack more options for replaying it, but it still seems to be a highly recommended title.