Arashi Gaiden

About

Arashi Gaiden is a single player puzzle game with a violence theme. It was developed by Statera Studio and was released on July 14, 2025. It received overwhelmingly positive reviews from players.

Arashi Gaiden is a turn-based action game, with frantic combat, in the dash-and-slash style. Arashi is a Ronin from the Pocket Bravery universe, he was hired by his former master, Lobo, receiving the mission of defeating Ninjas and Matilha soldiers to recover 3 powerful relics from Japan.

Genres & Tags

Play Modes

Single-Player

+10

Skip User Reviews

100%

Audience ScoreBased on 10 reviews

gameplay5 positive mentions

story3 negative mentions

The game features stunning pixel art, fluid animations, and a captivating soundtrack that enhances the overall experience.
Gameplay combines tactical RPG mechanics with action, making every move feel decisive and engaging.
The game offers a unique blend of challenging puzzles and combat, with a strong emphasis on strategy and skillful execution.

Some boss fights can feel unfair and random, leading to frustration during gameplay.
The inability to return to the dojo once an act has started can be inconvenient and disrupts the flow of the game.
The game lacks cloud saving, which can be a significant drawback for players who upgrade their hardware or switch devices.

gameplay
12 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
42%
33%
25%
The gameplay is fluid and engaging, featuring a unique combat system that combines tactical RPG mechanics with action, allowing players to strategically navigate and attack enemies based on their positioning. The introduction of upgrades and a combo mechanic enhances depth, while intuitive features like path indicators assist players in making tactical decisions. Overall, the game successfully blends challenging puzzles with a vibrant aesthetic, appealing to fans of the genre.
- “Essentially, in the combat phase, you swap puzzles for a combat system filled with gore and action, bringing a frantic vibe — especially because hits (successful attacks) happen whenever you have the initiative, which results in a very interesting mechanic: the enemy must be within your movement line for you to strike; if they're close or beside you, then you will get hit, because they move and attack exactly like you do.”
- “Additionally, there’s a mechanic I found brilliant: if you stay still too long analyzing your routes, the game itself highlights possible paths with purple indicators after a short delay — as if it understands what the player is doing and helps with the logical leap in an intuitive way.”
- “The game features a combo mechanic that rewards mental agility in identifying the ideal route — and more importantly, it rewards your understanding of the scrolls (tracked in the stage progress, marking each mission's milestones), where different executions are performed in levels of gore that would make Tarantino proud!”
- “When upgrades are introduced — especially the immobilization one and the warp arrows — the gameplay gains even more depth in what it sets out to do.”
- “It combines tactical RPG mechanics with action.”
story
6 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
33%
17%
50%
The game's story, while not its primary focus, offers a compelling exploration of themes like the law of talion and wergild through the characters of Shinji Arashi and Wataru, enhanced by optional scrolls that provide context. The narrative is presented as a concept, intertwining with gameplay elements in the dojo and combat mechanics, which reward players for engaging with the story's deeper themes and character interactions. Overall, the storytelling enriches the experience, despite being secondary to the gameplay.
- “Without getting into major spoilers, the plot offers an interesting discussion on the application of the law of talion — that old 'eye for an eye, tooth for a tooth' — contrasted with wergild, the principle by which life, like sin, carries a monetary value, and paying that price is equivalent to any physical punishment.”
- “It’s really fascinating how the story handles the sensibilities of both Arashi and Wataru — not only in their direct appearances but also in how their allies are arranged and interact with them.”
- “It's worth noting that the story is, above all, a concept from start to finish.”
- “Starting with the story, this is a game whose core doesn’t exactly lie in the narrative — and yet, it’s very cool how Shinji Arashi is portrayed, as well as each boss, through the optional scrolls contextualized both within each stage and in the dojo.”
- “The game has two central phases: one is the mission hub (the dojo), which holds the social aspect (though not really the focus), with stage select for replays and the combat grid, which is a strong throwback to the sokoban style — those games where you push boxes or blocks to a marked target on the ground.”
music
4 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
75%
25%
The music in the game is highly praised for its epic and captivating quality, complementing the beautiful pixel art and fluid animations. The oriental-themed soundtrack features incredible loops that enhance the overall experience, while the sound effects add a layer of intensity to the gameplay.
- “Beautiful pixel art and music all around.”
- “High-quality pixel art, fluid animations, and oriental-themed music with incredible loops—Arashi Gaiden is definitely a sensational experience!”
- “The soundtrack is epic and captivating, and the sound effects are spot on, adding a precise layer of heaviness to the slashing of skin, flesh, and bones of enemies.”
graphics
3 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
100%
The game features a strong art style complemented by impressive animations and a fitting soundtrack, contributing to an overall visually appealing experience.
- “The game features a solid art style, impressive animation, and a captivating soundtrack.”
- “The graphics are stunning, with vibrant colors and intricate details that bring the world to life.”
- “The visual design is breathtaking, showcasing a unique aesthetic that enhances the overall experience.”
atmosphere
3 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
33%
100%
The game's atmosphere is richly crafted, featuring stunning visuals and fluid movement that highlight intricate details, such as dynamic shadows and lively environments filled with graffiti and organic animations. As players progress through the chapters, the atmosphere evolves, reflecting changes in the narrative and setting, from power outages in the early acts to refreshing spring breezes in later stages, enhancing the overall immersive experience.
- “Visually, the game's art is gorgeous, movement is fluid, and there’s a remarkable attention to detail — for example, the shadows of Master Lobo (wolf) during upgrades or his manifestation in the dojo during screen transitions. The way the environments are brought to life with graffiti, small scenic compositions, and organic animations (such as elevators, obstacles, and doors) builds, chapter by chapter, an evolving atmosphere: from the occasional power cuts in Act 1 (making it clear that there's structural damage as you progress) to the spring breezes in Act 5, which perfectly match the theme of both the boss and the mini-boss in that chapter.”
- “The atmosphere feels disjointed and lacks cohesion, making it hard to immerse myself in the game world.”
- “While the visuals are stunning, the overall atmosphere feels flat and uninspired, failing to evoke any real emotion.”
- “The sound design is underwhelming, which detracts from the immersive atmosphere that the game seems to aim for.”
emotional
1 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
100%
Players find that the game fosters a compelling emotional rhythm, similar to chess, where anticipating future moves enhances engagement and deepens the emotional experience.
- “And this creates, quite intuitively, a really engaging emotional rhythm, akin to chess, where the third and fourth upcoming moves are just as crucial as the next one.”
optimization
1 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
100%
Players find that the cat-faced ninja's unpredictable jumps can disrupt their optimized strategies, often forcing them to take damage if they run out of mana and haven't planned their moves carefully.
- “The cat-faced ninja with her jumps is the trickiest for me — she tends to leap right onto your optimized path, and if you're out of mana, you'll have to take the hit unless your third move is well calculated.”