Blades of Fire REVIEW

After working on the successful Metroid games and Konami’s revival of the Castlevania series, developers MercurySteam are taking a chance on funding their next project. Blades of Fire is a chance for them to show off their skills in developing an original idea, and there’s a lot to love about this game’s dark fantasy/mythology fusion.

Blades of Fire follows an ancient race of giants known as the Smiths, who passed on to humanity the knowledge of how to forge weapons from steel. This power was seized by Queen Nerea, who cursed those who opposed her and turned steel into stone. Aran de Lira wields one of the ancient hammers needed to forge her own steel, and sets out on a quest with Asdo, the son of his fallen friend, to kill the queen.

The world of Blades of Fire is presented to us with an almost whimsical retro simplicity: Aran is a lonely figure with a troubled past that fuels his desire for a solitary existence, but he is more than willing to go to the aid of an old friend who he hears is in danger nearby. The child is eager to avenge his father’s death and, thanks to his knowledge of the Counterfeits, sets out on this adventure with Aran to overthrow the queen.

To bring the blacksmithing skills that are the core feature of the game to life, you must gather materials from around the world and forge new weapons. You have complete control over the type of steel you use, which determines weight, speed, strength, blocking, and more. Once you make your choice, you must physically shape the weapon into the desired form. The closer to the real form, the better the weapon and the more times you can repair it before it becomes unusable.

At first, it’s fun. After a while, it gets monotonous and time-consuming. If you craft a good enough weapon, you can automatically upgrade it to that level without having to replay the minigame, but if you want to improve that stat or create a new weapon, you’ll have to spend more than five minutes forging until the process stops.

But the game does have a fun combat system that, despite its quirks and complexities that take time to learn and its initially awkward and awkward control scheme, soon becomes enjoyable. To win, players must learn enemy attack patterns and the best weapons to counter each of them.

The most important thing to know about boss fights is not just when you strike, but where you strike. One of the early bosses, a troll, requires you to whittle down its health and then hack off a part of its body to weaken it further before it can recover. Whether you’re fighting larger bosses—one at the end of The Crimson Fort is particularly interesting because it forces you to learn both attack patterns and attack directions to defeat it most effectively—or smaller enemies, you’ll rarely tire even after dozens of hours of play.

While it takes some time to get used to, mastering this unusual control scheme and observing the attack patterns of a difficult boss to properly strike, dodge, and fight your way to victory creates a primal joy that motivates you to move on to the next area of ​​your adventure.

It may take some time to get used to the stamina system that’s required to land stronger and faster hits, and your hands may strain as you adjust to the unusual grip that maps blocks and dodges to the left bumper and trigger, but you’ll soon get used to the thrilling tension that comes with intense conflicts.

There’s something indescribable about this game, something from the forgotten PS3 and 360 games modernized with quality of life and graphical improvements that make it unlike many other modern games.
The gameplay is fun, but the key to victory is choosing the right steel from dozens of options, as well as customizing the handle and sheath of your weapon to suit your play style. Figuring out how to best craft a weapon takes patience.

The game is charming, even if its Souls-like eccentricity tends to get in the way of the characters and adventures that take place within. This combination of simplicity and modern style won’t be the best game you play in 2025, but it will likely be one of the most charming and, as a result, memorable.

Via Olga Gladkikh