DOOMBLADE (2023) [Steam] review

I didn’t know it back then, but ever since I played Super Metroid on the SNES I became a big fan of the Metroidvania genre. Fans of this genre are living in a golden age filled with a torrent of new Metroidvanias from both AAA and indie developers with DOOMBLADE being one such title from Muro Studios. Here you control Gloom Girl, a creature of a devastated underground world, who finds a sentient sword and both team up to avenge the lords that poisoned their home. DOOMBLADE is a 2D side-scrolling action title where you explore vast maze-like areas. In typical Metroidvania fashion, you may see paths that you can’t reach yet but you eventually will come across a new ability that will allow you to pull off new tricks.

What sets this game apart from other games in the genre is the combat. The titular DOOMBLADE allows you to zoom to any object or enemy on the screen, instantly dealing damage. You can dash all the way across the screen as long as you can see enemies with no limit to how often you can do it. If there are a lot of enemies on screen, you will be rapidly dashing back and forth creating a visual chaos that actually becomes pretty fun. This is your main mode of transportation. Your character can run and jump but there are things littered throughout, such as plants and indestructible creatures which allow faster travel through the biomes. I instantly loved the fast-paced nature of the combat which quickly ramped up in difficulty while still feeling fair.

On the main menu, you’re told that the game works best on keyboard and mouse. The reason why they suggest this is because your method of dashing is by moving a cursor over the object or enemy you want to attack and clicking the mouse. I started out with this control method but found it increasingly difficult to deal with larger amounts of enemies on screen. I sometimes would lose the cursor and had difficulty dashing where I wanted to. This was still early game though so I’m sure I could have gotten used to it had I stuck to it. Instead, I opted to try it out on the controller to see how it would feel.

Playing on the controller also took getting used to because instead of moving a cursor your right stick is for aiming the direction that you want to dash to. Enemies that you’re aiming at will have a marker letting you know that’s where you’ll be dashing to. Another thing that was difficult to get used to is the jump being mapped to the left trigger. This is necessary because you’ll need your thumbs for movement and aiming, making it pretty difficult to use any of the face buttons during combat. After a few combat encounters, it felt better and I was able to handle boss fights without a problem so I stuck to controller. It’s going to come down to personal preference, but I prefer to play first-person shooters on the controller so take this with a grain of salt.

The underground world of DOOMBLADE is dark and ominous. The hand-drawn style looks very striking and at times reminds me of games like Hollow Knight but it has its own unique identity. The world is ravaged by a poisonous gloom so there is a lot of darkness, but there are also areas of vibrant colors or machines mixed in to keep things visually interesting. There are fungal creatures living all over the caves who cheer you on to take down the Dread Lords. You might also run into some houses that you can enter and shops where you can buy items and upgrades. The game map is large so there is a lot of exploration but is separated into biomes that are pretty small compared to other games in the genre. This isn’t a bad thing though since it means you’ll be coming across a new area pretty often so I really enjoyed the pacing. I felt like I also came across new abilities often which was refreshing.

One of my favorite features is actually something very simple in using maps. As usual, I can bring up a full map with a press of a button and have the ability to set pins wherever I want. But there’s also an extra button for the map where I can hold it down and it shows a transparent overlay of it over the game screen so I can take a quick look at it. There’s no mini-map so this became my favorite way to quickly take a look at my surroundings so I can figure out where to head next without slowing down the action. I wish more games added a quick map button.

I’ve been having a great time with DOOMBLADE and I am genuinely excited to continue my playthrough and see what else I come across. My only minor complaint is how the initial load time is bafflingly long. Besides that, I really enjoy the art style, exploration, and gameplay mechanics. The music also added to the experience with its pounding beats and metal riffs. Zooming back and forth across the screen becomes fun and exhilarating, especially during the more challenging boss fights. I died a few times but every time I retried I was able to overcome the enemy or obstacle that bested me. For these reasons, I am giving this game an enthusiastic recommendation, especially if you’re also a Metroidvania fan like me.

Because of time constraints from the publisher’s campaign, I was not able to finish the game; this review is for my impressions and thoughts on what I’ve played so far. Thank you Iceberg Interactive for providing a code for review!

PIXEL PERFECT