Published , by Lucas White
Published , by Lucas White
Team Ladybug has been making a name for itself with well-crafted Metroidvanias based on niche IP: Touhou Luna Nights and Record of Lodoss War: Deedlit in Wonder Labyrinth. These games are full of style, creative combat mechanics, strong storytelling vibes, and some of the most impressively detailed and fluid 2D animation in modern gaming. It only makes sense this studio would follow up its growing notoriety and genre expertise with an original story, where it can really go all out. Blade Chimera is the end result of that effort, and it’s everything I expected and then some.
In a world nearly destroyed by demons, Shin is a soldier of sorts working for the Holy Union, one of the few remaining organizations trying to keep humanity afloat. While fighting a demon the size of a building, Shin is saved by Lux, a demon that forms a pact with him and takes the form of a floating sword. In the process of just figuring out what the heck to do next, Shin ends up uncovering the truth behind the demon attack and its connections with his own forgotten past.
Anyone familiar with Team Ladybug’s previous work should have high expectations in the visual department, and Blade Chimera exceeds them. The depth of animation in Shin’s walk cycle alone is mesmerizing, and that level of quality extends throughout the entire game. Enemies are all creative and distinct takes on creatures from historical folklore, weapons and attacks are over the top, and the way this game shows off “lighting” is actually jaw-dropping. Huge bosses, absurdly detailed backgrounds, and other unnecessary details bring Blade Chimera’s world to life and are all the more impressive as showcases in 2D pixel art.
While Blade Chimera excels visually, it isn’t quite as ambitious when it comes to combat. There’s a lot going on though, so each piece feels simple out of necessity. Shin can attack with a gun, a melee weapon, and Lux. The former two are mostly about mashing their respective buttons and dodging out of the way when it’s time to not get hit. Standard stuff. Lux’s powers are a little more varied, and can vary even more depending on how you invest in a somewhat optional skill tree.
Lux is a kind of multi-tool who can be used to fight, defend, and interact with the environment. Everything you do with her costs meter that doesn’t recharge by itself, so if you overextend (even double jumping costs meter!) you aren’t just limiting your combat options, you might run into an obstacle you can’t get past until you pop an item or backtrack to a save point or occasional breakable refill gimmick. There are some novel uses for Lux in these moments, such as lodging her into a switch leaving you to dash for the door with one less survival tool, or swinging across gaps and manipulating time to make platforms appear or disappear. Fun stuff that’s well-animated and looks cool, but is more about polish than doing something you’ve never seen before.
All that said, because the tools are simple individually and there aren’t a lot of hard rules to follow, there’s a lot of room for expression in Blade Chimera’s combat. If you prefer one approach or weapon over another, there’s room for you to focus on that and not worry about the other stuff. Or you can figure out the ins and outs of everything and really maximize your experience. Frankly, there are likely things you find in the skill tree you won't even have time to use unless you go out of your way. Boss fights can be challenging, but nothing is too hard such that you can’t fumble your way to victory one way or another, which feels rewarding in its own way.
Storytelling is the weakest link, but considering a short run time and emphasis on experience over text, that comes as no surprise. Blade Chimera uses its simple story to its benefit though, and manages to make some moments hit harder than you’d expect. Team Ladybug is a master of dramatic and melancholic final moments for boss fights, and there’s a shamelessly cliched but appropriately melodramatic ending sequence that fires on all its cheesy cylinders. You may be rolling your eyes at first, but there are times this game tries to punch above its weight some, and those are moments I walked away still thinking about after the credits rolled.
Blade Chimera is short, sweet, and simple. It’s also visually enthralling and just… really dang cool. It’s the perfect kind of game to run into in January 2025, especially after so much of my time up until now has been eaten by multiple dozen-hour RPGs. I blazed through this game in two sittings and loved every minute, cliches and all. Seeing Team Ladybug come out swinging like this for its first fully-original metroidvania is a delight, and Blade Chimera has fully cemented this team as one to look out for going forward.
Blade Chimera is available on January 16, 2025 for the Nintendo Switch and PC. A Nintendo Switch code was provided by the publisher for review.