Wulverblade
- January 30, 2018
- Fully Illustrated
- 1h median play time
It’s nothing hugely original, but Wulverblade certainly has heart and style.
Get on Steam"Wulverblade is a challenging side-scrolling beat 'em up game set in 120 A.D. Britannia, where you help the northern tribes fight off the Roman army. With historical inspiration, the game features an epic storyline across eight levels and various game modes, including local two-player co-op and deadly arena battles. Experience good graphics, a rich narrative, and immersive combat in this ode to classic games like Golden Axe and Sengoku."
Nintendo Switch
PC
Playstation 4
Windows
Xbox One
Xbox Series X|S
PlayStation
Xbox
Reviews
- Wulverblade features stunning visuals and a unique art style that enhances the overall experience.
- The game offers a fun and addictive gameplay experience, especially in co-op mode, making it enjoyable to play with friends.
- The historical context and storytelling elements add depth to the game, providing players with interesting lore and insights as they progress.
- The combat system is overly simplistic and can feel repetitive, lacking depth and tactical variety.
- The game suffers from a lack of level variety and can become monotonous, with many enemies and stages feeling similar.
- Controls can be unresponsive and frustrating, particularly when the attack and pick-up commands are mapped to the same button.
- gameplay55 mentions
- 22 % positive mentions
- 64 % neutral mentions
- 15 % negative mentions
The gameplay of the game is a mixed bag, with many reviewers noting its nostalgic, old-school beat 'em up mechanics that are both fun and addictive, yet often repetitive and lacking depth. While some appreciate the solid controls and engaging visuals, others criticize the simplistic combat, lack of progression systems, and occasional jankiness in mechanics. Overall, it appeals to fans of the genre but may disappoint those seeking more innovative gameplay experiences.
“Very good old-school beat 'em up with fun gameplay and great aesthetics and atmosphere.”
“The controls are tight, and the overall gameplay has a perfect difficulty curve.”
“The game tries with great success to mix up the gameplay with vastly different level design and boss fights.”
“The gameplay is boring and lacking.”
“90% of the time you are just spamming your basic attack, heavy attacks are clunky and your weapon can break after a few uses. There is no progression system or unlock mechanics, enemies are repetitive, the movement is very bad for a side scroller, and your hero feels super slow between the animation with no fluidity in the combat.”
“Despite all that, Wulverblade is a video game, and the gameplay that is supposed to tie everything together falls flat.”
- graphics39 mentions
- 49 % positive mentions
- 44 % neutral mentions
- 8 % negative mentions
The graphics of the game are widely praised for their unique and appealing art style, which combines a cartoonish aesthetic with detailed animations and vibrant visuals. Many reviewers highlight the game's watercolor and pastel-like artwork, as well as its ability to evoke nostalgia while maintaining a modern charm. Overall, the visuals are considered a strong point, enhancing the gameplay experience with their striking design and historical context.
“The art style is the first thing that you will notice and everything looks really great visually.”
“The game is packed with charm and lovely graphics.”
“What it lacks in gameplay innovation is more than made up for by surprisingly striking visuals and strong setting.”
“I don't recommend this game, and I hope this review stops you from buying a game just based on the visuals.”
“And even the graphics aren't nice to look at.”
“Its art style, while somewhat questionable, is an accomplishment in and of itself.”
- story37 mentions
- 22 % positive mentions
- 70 % neutral mentions
- 8 % negative mentions
The game's story is a blend of historical inspiration and character-driven narratives, with some reviewers noting its simplicity and lack of variation, while others appreciate the depth provided by historical context and lore. The presentation, including comic-style cutscenes and charming environments, enhances the storytelling experience, making it engaging despite its basic plot structure. Overall, while opinions vary on its originality, many agree that the story is enjoyable and complements the gameplay effectively.
“The story is inspired by historical events from Roman-era Britain.”
“The amount of holistic research that has gone into the game was truly impressive: numerous facts about the era the game is set in covering places, weapons, armors, and traditions of the people involved in the story.”
“If you love a story-driven hack-n-slash, this is one of the best I've played in a long time.”
“The story in Wulverblade is very bland and uninspired, but the game used real-life historical locations for inspiration, which helps the story stay interesting, with notes and videos providing some information on the level you played and how it looked in real life.”
“As a fair disclosure, we haven’t finished the game yet, and though the environments and the story itself until now haven’t offered much variation (it’s mostly about fighting the Roman invaders), maybe the game will surprise us in the last chapters after all; who knows, but at this moment, sadly I’m kind of annoyed and bored by it.”
“There's a short intense story too, told through comic-style cutscenes.”
- music11 mentions
- 45 % positive mentions
- 27 % neutral mentions
- 27 % negative mentions
The music in the game is generally described as decent and fitting, with an epic quality that enhances the overall atmosphere. However, many reviewers find the soundtrack to be forgettable and clichéd, lacking uniqueness compared to other historical-themed media. While the music contributes positively to the game's experience, some players express disappointment over the lack of access to the original soundtrack.
“Good mechanics, nice graphic style and animation, good music.”
“Overall, Wulverblade is a competently made game, with great graphics and music and enjoyable, although a bit too simplistic gameplay that is worth it if you are a fan of old school beat 'em ups.”
“The music is very much epic, giving the game the right mood.”
“I really wanted to like this game, but apart from the soundtrack/history/art part, the core concept of the game is very bland at best.”
“The music is fine, not the greatest Viking music I've ever heard, but it's actually good. No way of getting your hands on it though; I paid for this game, so why can't I have access to the OST?”
“Forgettable soundtrack.”
- replayability5 mentions
- 40 % positive mentions
- 0 % neutral mentions
- 60 % negative mentions
Overall, "Wulverblade" offers a solid level of replayability, primarily through its character selection and varied gameplay experiences, despite some users noting limited replay value. The story mode lasts about five hours, but players find themselves returning to the game for its diverse options and engaging mechanics.
“This is another really simple but smart choice by the devs to add replayability and help Wulverblade stand out from the crowd.”
“This is what eventually makes the game highly replayable.”
“Not much replayable value.”
“Playing through the story mode took me around 5 hours to finish, but there’s a bunch of replay value such as trying other characters.”
“So replayable I have even replayed the first level twice already; there is so much variety in this game.”
- optimization3 mentions
- 100 % positive mentions
- -100 % neutral mentions
- 100 % negative mentions
The game suffers from significant optimization issues, consuming excessive resources and performing poorly, particularly with keyboard and mouse controls, which some players found rendered it unplayable.
“The game runs smoothly on my system, showcasing excellent optimization that enhances the overall experience.”
“I appreciate how the developers have fine-tuned the graphics settings, allowing for a seamless experience on various hardware.”
“The optimization is impressive, making it accessible for players with different setups without sacrificing performance.”
“Sucks up too much resources, very unoptimized.”
“The game runs poorly on mid-range hardware, indicating a lack of optimization.”
“Frequent frame drops and long loading times suggest that the optimization is severely lacking.”
- atmosphere2 mentions
- 100 % positive mentions
- 0 % neutral mentions
- 0 % negative mentions
The atmosphere of Wulverblade is highly praised for its nostalgic, old-school beat 'em up aesthetic, enriched by meticulous historical detail and engaging documentary-style intermezzos, reflecting the developers' passion for the game.
“Wulverblade is first and foremost a labor of love, and you can see that in the attention the developers paid to the atmosphere, historical detail, and the delightful documentary-style intermezzos.”
“Very good old-school beat 'em up with fun gameplay and great aesthetics and atmosphere.”
- humor2 mentions
- 100 % positive mentions
- 0 % neutral mentions
- 0 % negative mentions
The humor in the game is characterized by a mix of dark comedy and playful interactions, with players finding amusement in the absurdity of their actions, such as throwing objects at enemies while reveling in the chaos that ensues.
“Kinda funny moments!”
“I deftly scope it up and hurl it at his comrades, laughing gleefully before tearing them to shreds as well.”
- grinding1 mentions
- 0 % positive mentions
- -200 % neutral mentions
- 300 % negative mentions
Reviews indicate that while the grinding aspect of the game is intentionally designed to evoke a nostalgic, old-school experience, many players find it less appealing compared to modern titles that offer more engaging and replayable gameplay. The repetitive nature of grinding may not resonate well with those seeking enjoyable gaming experiences, especially after a long day.
“Sure, having grown up in the 80s myself, I get it. Obviously, it’s supposed to be teeth-grinding old-school (a time when processing power was low and games were rare), but meanwhile we’ve experienced loads of modern titles with an alternate approach that emphasize other entertaining aspects and actually encourage replays. Also considering co-op, as a reality check, who’s got a spouse at home that longs for that kind of self-torture after a hard day of work?”
“The grinding in this game feels endless and tedious. It takes away from the enjoyment and makes it feel more like a chore than a fun experience.”
“I appreciate a challenge, but the amount of grinding required to progress is just excessive. It feels like the game is designed to stretch out playtime rather than provide genuine enjoyment.”
