Gal Guardians: Demon Purge

71%
Game Brain Score Based on 544 reviews
  • gameplay
  • story
  • music
Gal Guardians: Demon Purge Game Cover
Grim Guardians has a few issues, but ultimately is a fantastic retro style platformer that fills the Castlevania shaped hole in my heart.
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In "Gal Guardians: Demon Purge," players join forces with a team of magical girls to defend against demon invasions in a modern-day city. Customize your character, develop skills and bonds with teammates, and engage in strategic combat with various demonic enemies. Save the world from destruction and uncover the truth behind the demonic threats in this captivating action RPG.

  • Nintendo Switch
  • PC
  • Play​station 4
  • Play​station 5
  • Steam Deck
  • Windows
  • Xbox One
  • Xbox Series X|S
  • Play​Station
  • Xbox
Genres & TagsPlay Modes

Reviews

71%
Audience ScoreBased on 544 reviews
gameplay44 positive mentions
grinding12 negative mentions
  • The game features beautiful pixel art and charming visuals that enhance the overall experience.
  • Gameplay is fun and engaging, with a solid character swap mechanic that allows for varied playstyles.
  • Boss battles are enjoyable and provide a satisfying challenge without being overly punishing.
  • The game lacks a proper map system, making navigation and tracking collectibles frustrating.
  • Voice acting can be overly repetitive and annoying, detracting from the overall enjoyment.
  • The game is not a true Metroidvania, which may disappoint players expecting that style of gameplay.
  • gameplay154 mentions

    The gameplay is a blend of classic Castlevania mechanics with modern elements, featuring a level-based structure that allows for character swapping and cooperative play. Players can explore stages multiple times to unlock new subweapons and pathways, enhancing replayability, though some reviewers noted a lack of enemy variety and depth in mechanics. Overall, the gameplay is praised for its solid controls, enjoyable movement, and nostalgic feel, appealing particularly to fans of the Castlevania series and similar action-platformers.

    • “While the gameplay is level-based, new subweapons are unlocked with each stage, which opens alternate pathways within each stage upon replaying it.”
    • “But it does what it aims to well, and once you learn the mechanics, the strategies, the ledge endpoints, and the boss tells and patterns, it's a tight, solid platformer.”
    • “Top-notch visuals and sound accompanied by some of the best gameplay in any classic Castlevania-style game or even just 2D platformers in general; it's also very balanced difficulty-wise and there's an insane amount of replay value.”
    • “The enemy variety is incredibly poor and there are loads of mechanics that are not very well fleshed out.”
    • “And really, even if I could skip all the boss fights, most of the gameplay has a tedious feeling.”
    • “It felt designed against the player, not designed around mechanics.”
  • story92 mentions

    The story of the game is a quirky and humorous journey that takes a significant turn after the initial playthrough of its eight levels, heavily influenced by the galgun universe. While it offers entertaining moments and vibrant character interactions, the narrative can be confusing for newcomers unfamiliar with the galgun series, and some players may find its cheeky themes off-putting. Overall, the story serves more as a backdrop for gameplay rather than a focal point, appealing primarily to fans of the franchise.

    • “The story is an interesting one, more serious in tone than the Galgun series in general, but not without some of its humorous roots at points. The serious tone can be felt in the fantastic enemy designs too, as enemies are nice and intimidating for sure!”
    • “Beautiful pixel art, great voice acting, and a witty story with average gameplay mechanics.”
    • “It stays vibrant, fresh, and revolutionizes the art of storytelling and filmmaking while making a strong statement on what it means to be human.”
    • “The game has a total of eight levels, and to progress through the story, you must play through these levels multiple times.”
    • “I probably wouldn't recommend it to someone who isn't already a Gal Gun fan, as it's a bit too easy to buy for the gameplay alone, and the story won't make any sense. But for Gal Gun appreciators, it's definitely worth checking out.”
    • “There is a story, but it's more of an excuse to introduce you to the characters and the game; nothing to die for, but it's not a slog.”
  • music72 mentions

    The music in the game, led by Ippo Yamada, effectively captures a spooky, gothic atmosphere reminiscent of Castlevania, though many players find it overshadowed by excessive voice acting and battle chatter, making it hard to appreciate fully. While some praise the soundtrack as fitting and atmospheric, others describe it as forgettable and not particularly memorable compared to other titles in the genre. Overall, the music contributes positively to the game's aesthetic, but its impact is diminished by competing audio elements.

    • “The music is fitting, with Ippo Yamada heading it up and making appropriate spooky gothic themes befitting a Castlevania-inspired game.”
    • “The flavor, music, and everything can be heard, tasted, seen, and felt from a screen.”
    • “Music creates that spooky Castlevania-ish atmosphere.”
    • “Their constant battle-prattle is incredibly obnoxious, to the point I can't even hear the background music.”
    • “It's gonna be a long time before I finish this game most likely. What little of it I played I enjoyed, but my biggest complaint is that the voices get annoying real fast, with Japanese and English dubbing, to the point where I don't even really remember what the soundtrack sounds like.”
    • “Also, this is probably the most forgettable OST of just about any platformer I've played.”
  • graphics63 mentions

    The graphics of the game receive mixed reviews, with many praising the fluid animation and gothic horror aesthetic, while others criticize the pixel art as generic and uninspired. The transition from an "8-bit" to a "16/early 32-bit" aesthetic is noted positively, and the art style is often described as excellent, reminiscent of classic titles like Castlevania. Overall, while some players find the visuals charming and well-executed, others feel they lack the depth and creativity seen in more iconic games.

    • “I loved both the art style and how fluid everything felt.”
    • “The graphics, the animation, the music, so much thought was put into it.”
    • “Visually and aesthetically, the game is an absolute treat.”
    • “Generic and uninspired pixel art graphics that pale in comparison to the legacy of the great games this fails to emulate.”
    • “Graphically, the game is fine, but I keep fixating on the character sprites' faces.”
    • “The pixel art is great, although this might be the first problem this game has; the art style is not for everybody.”
  • humor28 mentions

    The humor in the game is a defining feature, heavily leaning on sexual and ecchi themes reminiscent of early 2000s anime culture, which some players find entertaining while others criticize for its insensitivity, particularly regarding certain dark jokes. Despite mixed reactions to specific gags, many appreciate the quirky humor, likable characters, and creative encounters that contribute to the game's overall charm. Overall, the humor is a blend of fun and controversy, appealing to fans of the genre while potentially alienating others.

    • “A fun metroidvania with humor laced throughout.”
    • “The humor, likable characters, and creative boss encounters add to the overall charm.”
    • “In short: fantastic vania with a wonderfully pervy sense of humor.”
  • replayability24 mentions

    The game boasts strong replayability, featuring multiple alternate routes, secrets, and challenges that encourage players to explore beyond their initial playthrough. Players appreciate the balance of difficulty and the rewarding design that enhances the experience, reminiscent of metroidvania elements. Overall, the replay value is considered high, with various unlocks and upgrades available on subsequent runs.

    • “Top-notch visuals and sound accompanied by some of the best gameplay in any classic Castlevania-style game or even just 2D platformers in general; it's also very balanced difficulty-wise and there's an insane amount of replay value (which I don't want to spoil).”
    • “That game used multiple routes that could be accessed by certain characters, sometimes only on certain playthroughs, as a means to make the game more replayable and also as a reward for keeping characters alive; the design was brilliant in both improving the game and adding some flavor, granting the levels an extra degree of mystique.”
    • “Stages are linear but are filled with various alternate routes and secrets to discover and explore, giving a ton of replay value to go and hunt for them after the first playthrough.”
    • “That game used multiple routes that could be accessed by certain characters, sometimes only on certain playthroughs, as a means to make the game more replayable and also as a reward for keeping characters alive; the design was brilliant in both improving the game and adding some flavour, granting the levels an extra degree of mystique.”
    • “It's fine by me, because I don't like metroidvania games in general, but the approach to replayability here feels as if it borrows something from metroidvania games as well as Curse of the Moon.”
  • emotional22 mentions

    The emotional aspect of the game is highlighted as a deeply moving experience, with specific moments evoking strong feelings and even tears from players. While the gameplay mechanics are intentionally limited, some reviewers feel that this design choice detracts from the overall experience, leaving them wishing for a more expansive format. Despite these limitations, the game is described as a transcendent emotional journey that may not be accessible to all.

    • “That part truly made me shed a tear.”
    • “And especially at 6:34, that part was just so truly heart-touching; words cannot describe the series of emotions I felt.”
    • “It is a tragedy that this, it can't be called a film, but a transcendent emotional experience, will be inaccessible for most.”
  • grinding12 mentions

    Players find the grinding aspect of the game to be excessively tedious, with backtracking and repeated boss fights contributing to a monotonous experience. The lack of a map or completion indicators makes it difficult to navigate and locate collectibles, further exacerbating the grind. Overall, the gameplay feels burdensome, leading to frustration rather than enjoyment.

    • “Either enemies become too tedious to fight or are a joke that you slowly and boringly turn to dust from a distance.”
    • “If you want to get the best ending and best equipment you have to run through each stage multiple times and fight the boss each time; this is just too tedious.”
    • “Other metroidvania games tell you a percentage of map completion and show minimaps, but this game is totally dark, making it tedious to achieve and know where you might have something missing.”
  • optimization8 mentions

    Overall, the game's optimization is praised for delivering excellent performance, particularly on the Steam Deck, with no noticeable stuttering or lag. However, there are concerns regarding the frame rates in previous titles from the same developer, indicating inconsistency in optimization across their games.

    • “Performance: excellent (played on Steam Deck)”
    • “This game has successfully wasted 16 hours of my life and I still have a handful of achievements and probably several hours of exploration to get my other 2 endings. It runs fine, no stuttering or lag.”
    • “This game has solid performance when it works properly.”
    • “This game has successfully wasted 16 hours of my life, and I still have a handful of achievements and probably several hours of exploration to get my other two endings. The optimization is lacking, especially considering the garbage frame rate on Curse of the Moon 1 & 2.”
  • atmosphere6 mentions

    The atmosphere is generally praised for its creepy, spooky music that evokes a Castlevania-like vibe. However, some users feel that the plot does not align well with this dark ambiance, suggesting a disconnect between the narrative and the atmospheric elements.

    • “I really like the atmosphere, the creepy music that can be heard at times.”
    • “Music creates that spooky Castlevania-esque atmosphere.”
    • “I think that the Galgun plot doesn't fit with the Castlevania-esque atmosphere.”
    • “I think that the Galgun plot doesn't fit with the Castlevania-ish atmosphere.”
    • “I think that the Galgun plot doesn't fit with the Castlevania-ish atmosphere.”
    • “Music creates that spooky Castlevania-ish atmosphere.”
  • stability4 mentions

    Overall, players report a high level of stability in the game, with very few glitches encountered, contributing to a smooth gaming experience.

Positive mentions (%)Positive
Neutral mentions (%)Neutral
Negative mentions (%)Negative

Critic Reviews

80% average critic score

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Play time

5hMedian play time
5hAverage play time
5-5hSpent by most gamers
*Based on 2 analyzed playthroughs

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