Azure Striker GUNVOLT

“Gunvolt's story is surprisingly solid for a 2D action game, blending anime-style dialogue and banter with gameplay.”

“Completing all requirements unlocks the true ending, where Joule survives in a new form and her connection to Gunvolt is solidified, setting up the foundation for sequels while resolving the first game's story neatly.”

“The story's emotional beats, combined with the expressive presentation, help ground the high-speed action in a world that feels inhabited and purposeful, even if not every narrative thread receives equal depth.”

“The soundtrack is energetic and melodic, reinforcing the game’s sense of urgency and heroism while adapting naturally to different stages and encounters.”

“Amazing soundtrack which is important; every vocal track in the game is a banger, and I could listen to them the whole day without feeling any repetition.”

“As per Inti Creates tradition, the sound design in this game is absolutely fantastic, especially the vocal songs that play when you reach 1000 kudos or under other special conditions.”

“Azure Striker Gunvolt by Inti Creates returns to what they’re best at: 2D action platformers with tight controls, flashy visuals, and a heavy emphasis on mechanical mastery.”

“The game’s pixel-art style is sharp and colorful, leaning into anime-inspired character designs and vibrant stage environments.”

“The game's presentation feels somewhat like Inti's past works on the Mega Man Zero series in terms of tone and aesthetics, featuring nice 32-bit styled sprite work with good details and lots of flashy visuals.”

“For players who enjoy optimization and replayability, these mechanics provide additional incentives to revisit stages and experiment with different approaches.”

“Unlike Mega Man games, this franchise heavily focuses on scores and clear times, which is a fun gimmick to create extra replayability; they even reward you with some really nice vocal tracks whenever you reach 1000+ kudos, which makes the game just feel great to play.”

“This is the part where the game shines the most: duration and replayability. I have completed the game 2 times and spent 10 hours in it, but I've only seen a fraction of all the secrets. Seriously, you will be spending many hours finding all the secrets.”

“You'll need a second life for grinding.”

“Now that I'm playing this again I can tell you, the changes made are massive. Not only does it no longer have the double screen, but it also has way better optimization and the framerate is greatly improved. Definitely worth picking up now, this is a really good game.”

“A lot of the negative reviews here are based on the original release as seen in the trailer, but since then it's been patched to double the framerate and is far more optimized in general.”

“The updates have been fixing optimization issues, and it feels like a spiritual successor to the Mega Man Zero games.”

“The concept of the vocal tracks kicking in as you do well, the character designs/transformation designs, the game being fast paced, the game having that confidence in being for teenagers and trying to appeal to them.”

“As expected from a game of this kind, pretty straightforward, clear-cut heroes, clear-cut bad guys. While the game's lore is pretty lukewarm, there exist some CDs that can feed you some character development and motivation. I'd rather have something simple and fun than a convoluted mess.”

“Without spoiling the plotline, I'd have to say that it was far more enjoyable, and actually allows you to see the relations and character development through the story.”

“Voice lines and narrative cues further reinforce character identities, adding emotional texture to what could otherwise be a purely mechanical experience.”

“The story’s emotional beats, combined with the expressive presentation, help ground the high-speed action in a world that feels inhabited and purposeful, even if not every narrative thread receives equal depth.”

“Oh, and there is a scoreboard system called kudos which increases based on how well you play, but one hit and it's back to zero. For newcomers, this can be frustrating, but trying to get your kudos all the way to 2990 only to get shot by a random enemy (this happened to me, I cried for 10 minutes ;~;).”

“Gunvolt is a fresh take on your classic 2D action but with a focus on speed, aggressive pushing, hilariously edgelord story-line, and high scoring with insane moves.”

“Again, there is a problem with the screen resolution where there isn't enough room in the boss area to do any acrobatics, mixed in with hilariously almost unavoidable attack sequences, while trying to remember to maintain GV's EP meter is a match made in hell.”

“(This review is meant to be funny, not exactly all that helpful..) <-- this is helpful..”

“Gameplay might not be Megaman blue bomber-like, but the atmosphere and construction are quite similar, with well-constructed levels primarily using blocky design and a certain action pace that adapts to your skill, ranked and rewarded based on your efficiency.”

“I'm a sucker for anime graphics and yes the graphics of the game is a bit outdated but it makes up with colourful atmosphere and pretty neat artworks for storyline sequences.”

“Theme and atmosphere: definitely felt a Megaman Zero vibe, but at the same time, Gunvolt has its own originality and charm.”