X-Blades Review

The hack-and-slash genre has seen many ups and downs. Some games, like Devil May Cry and God of War, redefine the genre and raise the bar on gaming. Unfortunately, X-Blades does next to nothing to improve or even match the quality achieved by those great titles.

X-Blades stars the scantily-clad Ayumi, a spunky treasure hunter who searches the world for lost artifacts. We catch up with her as she is hot on the heels of a mysterious treasure, said to be imbued with the powers of a god. While this premise seems like standard fare, its presentation and timing will leave most players confused about what is going on. The lack of clarity lingers for far too long in the narrative, and may cause many to lose interest in the story before it technically even begins.



At its core, X-Blades is all about combat. This is where the game simultaneously shines and grows dull, depending on how you choose to battle the hordes of enemies inexplicably after your blood. Basic attacks and combos are completed with the X button, which builds up your Rage Meter. Once you have some Rage stored up, you can unleash one of the many special attacks, which range from freezing enemies in their place to earthquakes that down all surrounding enemies. You can assign up to four special attacks to the controller once you've unlocked them, which makes the game feel a bit more personal because it's your choice which attacks you want to map. It all works well when mixed into the monotonous standard combo system, giving some variety to Ayumi's attacks. Unfortunately, the time spent slamming the X button to build up your meter serves to only bore the player until they can pull off a cool move. Her blades also function as pistols to take down aerial foes that otherwise may be too far away to hit. The only drawback to relying on them is that they don't build the Rage Meter, which can result in spending too much time blasting away at each individual enemy without actually getting anything out of it.

Controlling Ayumi takes some getting used to; she isn't as graceful as one would expect. Jumping feels too floaty and double jumps typically require the mashing of the jump button because simply hitting it twice rarely results in initiating a second jump. The running animation is too fast to easily control and doesn't seem to be affected by how much (or how little) the analog stick is nudged. Add in some awkward strafing and limited targeting (sword attacks aren't directed in the slightest to a targeted enemy), and you may be left wondering how none of this was addressed in the development process. While not game-breaking, these nuances do detract from the overall experience.



Visually, the game is a mixed bag. Its use of cel-shading and overbearing lighting effects can make some parts of the game look wonderful and other parts resemble mid-life PS2 games. The strong anime vibe manages to keep things from clashing aesthetically, but in the end the game simply isn't spectacular to look at. It definitely does not help that every level looks almost identical, and the creature design is forgettable at best. In more than a few levels, an odd red hue seemed to penetrate nearly everything you look at. Nope, your TV is not broken; it's an unfortunate artistic choice.

However, it's the level design itself that makes X-Blades fall flat on its face. The first level leads you to believe that you'll be traversing multi-tiered levels and exploring large maps, when you really don't. Each successive level is nothing more than a large arena that spits mindless foe after mindless foe at you until they all perish, which opens a doorway that leads to yet another arena.  This is all fine and dandy for a while, but it gets old fast. A few fights even go as far as to feature ONLY flying creatures, making the boring, time-consuming gunplay the predominant method of attack. Add repetitive structures and monsters, and you could potentially be in for one big snorefest.



The strongest point, in regards to the presentation of the game, is its audio. The soundtrack employs a strange mix of hip-hop and rock, mixed with varied types of cultural music to create something that doesn't fall under a specific category (unless you want to call Linkin Park-esque instrumentals a category). The voice acting does its job, though it's nothing to get excited about.

For what it's worth, X-Blades is best enjoyed if you simply have nothing else to play. For every one thing the game does well, there is at least one thing it does badly. Most people will ignore the game based on it unjustifiable $59.99 price point alone, and those that don't will likely give up on the game before completing it. Fans of Dynasty Warriors might get a bigger kick out of the repetition, but everyone else should reconsider purchasing this game, and instead give it a rental.

Fun Factor: Loads of special attacks to unlock, overall enjoyable soundtrack.

Game Length:  About seven to eight hours.

Difficulty: Relying on only one attack button for all the combos make the game easy, though your health bar will tend to deplete without you realizing it.

On the Negative Side: Unresponsive controls, mediocre graphics, convoluted story, and very, VERY repetitious.

Bang for your buck: The game is overpriced, so there is in fact very little bang to be had here.