Considering the amount of coverage we’ve given Press Start Studio’s Twin Blades: The Reaping Vanguard (which tackled the initial announcement of the Xbox Live Indie Game port, and later the interview with Philippe Rapin, co-founder of Press Start Studio), I believe it high time that I turn a critical eye toward the game itself.
Twin Blades puts you in the role of an insanely cute large-eyed, anime-inspired nun that has 31 days to rid the town of a zombie infestation. If you’re looking for a story, there is none. In fact, the only reason that I know that I had 31 days to eradicate the undead menace was due to a between-level blurb that asked if I could survive that length of time. Ultimately, the game is about slaying zombies and it does that quite well–but not without some polarizing faults.
You start Twin Blades armed with a scythe and a very basic pistol that is good enough to take down the very early waves of undead. The controls break down as such:
LT or X: Slash
RT or Y: Gun
LB or RB: Change gun
A: Jump
B: Push attacking zombie away
Your method of attack on the opening level is severely limited as the nun can only perform standing attacks; no jumping or ducking which initially feels very limiting. You can, however, purchase a jumping leaping attack (and others offensive moves) at the between level shop with the hearts that you acquire from the deadwalkers. A number of new weapons are in stock including a flamethrower, ice ray, and more, which produce lavish effects when used. These weapons can also be upgraded to dish more damage.
As you waste zombies with your melee attacks, the ammo meter fills. This keeps the gameplay balanced between attacking with your blade or your gun, so you don’t spam attack your more powerful distance weapons and breeze through the title. Switching between weapons is as simple as tapping the RB.
When it comes to graphics, Twin Blades may very well be the slickest title in the Indie Games marketplace. The animations of the nun when she’s in motion (running, shooting, jumping, and slashing) are top notch; you would expect such visuals to come from a much larger house. The backgrounds are well-drawn and detailed, but they lack diversity. As you hack and slash your way through the hordes, you’ll notice that the settings are being looped, and appear way too frequently. Moody music with big drum beats help fuel the zombie-slaying action.
In its current form, Twin Blades is a gorgeous game that sets a new visual quality standard amongst the games in the indie marketplace. The gameplay, however, is currently lacking; there isn’t nearly enough diversity in terms of enemies, there aren’t any bosses, and the repeating background adds to the monotony. Fortunately, Press Start Studio has announced that additional content is on the way (including a high-resolution Apple iPad version of the game) that aims to eliminate those gripes. When that DLC appears (scheduled for February for iPhone and iPod touch, March for the iPad), expect and update to this Twin Blades review.
Priced at just 240MSP it may be worth a download, but be forewarned: the gameplay in its current form is very, very basic.
