Awaken - Astral Blade Review: A Promising Metroidvania That Falls Short (2024)

PlayStation’s China Hero Project, a support initiative for China-based developers, has helped produce some beloved titles, such as the cyberpunk action-adventure ANNO: Mutationem and the side-scroller F.I.S.T.: Forged in Shadow Torch. Several other games are in the works, like the highly anticipated Lost Soul Aside, yet the sci-fi action game Awaken- Astral Blade is an overshadowed one, just about to release. Having recently played through it myself, I find it a strange experience to assess, as its premise is conceptually enticing but ultimately not worthwhile.

A Sci-Fi Story with Lost Potential

Awaken- Astral Bladefollows a bionic girl named Tania, assigned by her creator, whom she calls her father, Dr. Herveus, to investigate the Horace Islands. In this dangerous locale, an investigation team has gone missing, and a phenomenon called Karpas energy has turned the local wildlife into mutants that attack on sight. Throughout her adventure here, Tania gradually unveils the area’s history, self-worth, and her place in the world.

To be entirely candid, I clocked out on the Awaken- Astral Blade narrative around halfway through its duration. In a way loosely reminiscent of the action-metroidvania Afterimage, which came across as borderline if not wholly incomprehensible when it was initially released, Awaken- Astral Blade doesn’t put its best foot forward in trying to make you feel a modicum of investment; at least not as significantly.

Combat: Simple, Yet Repetitive

The dialogue is stilted with a genuinely horrendous English dub that feels lifeless; I have no idea how this directing process could have gone. The only potentially gripping facet, the lore item descriptions you encounter, have remote semblances of parseable intrigue that don’t feel awkward. Yet, they are purely supplemental in the face of the bizarrely paced story that does a poor job of introducing the setting, the characters, and their relationships. Thankfully, there are Simplified Chinese and Russian language options for voice acting, potentially mitigating the story’s shortcomings more elegantly than the abysmal English dub.

In its most essential form, Tania’s plight in grappling with her identity may elicit interest, but the intrigue never goes beyond that stage. If anything, you’ll stick with Awaken- Astral Bladefor its gameplay, which has its fair share of ups and downs. At its core, the combat system here is pretty simple. Tania has a standard ground and air combo that can deviate into a handful of special attacks depending on timing. However, you only have less than a handful of these deviations. Still, this design choice is not poor by itself, especially since you gain other tools alongside the initial blades. These weapons have their own slew of special techniques and best contexts for utilization, such as the scythe being best for groups. Alas, one of the pressing issues is rooted in the enemy design.

Awaken- Astral Bladereuses enemy types a tad too often for its own good, resulting in encounters that feel practically identical, worsened by the sheer frequency of it all. You’ll be performing the same array of combos repeatedly, with the regular foes not putting up much of a fight. Granted, this collective problem could have been significantly lessened or even ignored outright if the combat feel was nailed, but that’s a mixed bag. Whenever you strike an enemy or object, there is always a highly brief, slightly perceptible pause inputted that I suppose is meant to establish a sense of impact. However, its placement is jarring and unnatural, to the point where even as I stomached it, I could never get used to it entirely. This feature is at odds with the rest of the gameplay experience, which boasts a relatively smoothly consistent framerate despite a few drops. Ideally, this brief pausing should’ve been solely relegated to when you finish off enemies.

Still, the bosses can be pretty enjoyable. While lacking in depth and the types of attacks they can unleash, they can put up a decent fight on your first few attempts, requiring at least a fundamental understanding of how they operate for you to achieve victory. The parry and dodge systems then amplify this gratification. Enhanced by the self-explanatory skill tree, these techniques are activated like your typical action game, providing an ample window of consequence-free attacks should you be successful. Awaken- Astral Bladedoesn’t bring anything new to the table in any of these areas, but in the handful of instances where the combat ideas reach realms of potential, the faults momentarily fall by the wayside. The soulslike facets of resting to respawn enemies and a healing item that recharges at these same rest points are also present, though that’s where the similarities end, really.

Exploration and Puzzles: A Missed Opportunity

Circling back to the skill tree, there is some meaningful player choice between which branch of active or passive techniques you want to improve, as well as enhancements outside of this menu. These upgrades are tied to the essential facets of exploration, providing the needed currency known as Aether and other materials. One of the most notable abilities you should prioritize from the outset is the passive one that increases the percentage of Aether you receive, further bolstered by an active skill that sucks up more Aether from defeated enemies if you time a specific button press. These synergies aren’t necessarily common, though where they take effect is appreciated. There are also several equipment types that improve select areas of interest, such as raw stats.

Regarding its exploration, Awaken – Astral Blade is far too straightforward. Despite having metroidvania components, you’ll rarely ever have to actually think about where you’re going or what you’re doing. Even though there is somewhat of an emphasis on platforming, it’s dull and never remotely inventive. The obstacles impeding your path come across as shallow and obligatory, just being there for the sake of it instead of enforcing creative problem-solving from what you acquire. The only morsels of satisfaction I derived were from the optional puzzles that, while not out-of-the-box in their solutions, required more thought than almost anything in the main story.

One of my admittedly peculiar and far-from-objective issues with Awaken – Astral Blade is its presentation. The vibrancy and character designs should be home runs on paper, but they feel hollow and empty for reasons I can’t precisely discern. Perhaps prospective players may feel differently. Yet, personally, everything presented feels vacant, especially the character models. On the other hand, the soundtrack fits the setting’s ominous elements well with a simultaneously unnerving, atmospheric tone.

Verdict: A Promising Game Undermined by Flaws

If you’re searching for a new action-metroidvania to sink your teeth into, Awaken – Astral Blade shouldn’t be dismissed immediately. Its combat mechanics, upgrading, and boss battles can be fulfilling. Unfortunately, the intricacies of these systems and those accompanying them flounder much too often, weakened further by a forgettable narrative that adds nothing to the experience. The replay value instilled by the multiple endings and unlockable difficulty isn’t particularly appealing. I tried to reach for the positives throughout my playtime, which this review probably reflects, but even those tend to have notable caveats. In all honesty, the China Hero Project has much more entertaining experiences that are worth your time.

Awaken - Astral Blade (PC)

5.5Mediocre

Awaken - Astral Blade delivers flashes of promise with its boss battles and combat mechanics but ultimately suffers from repetitive enemies, lackluster exploration, and a weak narrative. While the game has its moments, it fails to reach the heights of other China Hero Project titles.

The Good
  1. Enjoyable Boss Fights: Boss encounters provide a good challenge and require careful observation and timing.
  2. Skill Tree Customization: Players can choose between various upgrades that improve combat and exploration mechanics.
  3. Decent Combat Variety: Different weapons like scythes add strategic elements to the combat, even if they’re underutilized.
The Bad
  1. Repetitive Enemies: The lack of enemy variety leads to monotonous encounters throughout the game.
  2. Poor English Voice Acting: The lifeless English dub detracts from the narrative experience.
  3. Linear Exploration: Despite being a metroidvania, the exploration is too straightforward with little to discover.
  4. Jarring Combat Pauses: Brief pauses during attacks disrupt the fluidity of combat, reducing its impact.
  5. Hollow Visuals: Despite vibrant designs, the game’s presentation feels empty and lacks detail.
    Awaken - Astral Blade Review: A Promising Metroidvania That Falls Short (2024)
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