BlazBlue Entropy Effect

My most favorite roguelike of all time, +++ A good amount of characters, each with their own playstyle ranging from technical to down right hilarious. There is a great depth with each character, where you slowly learn to utilize the full moveset. +++ It solves one of many roguelikes biggest problem in a great way: while getting tactics (the powers), which are simple like burn damage, you slowly unlock movesets of your character. Allowing for some different playstyles, and quite literally changing the way you play over the course of the run. And those movesets can become BIG. +++ The collabs are done incredibly. Just look at the Prisoner, like damn. ++ Bosses are great to fight (apart from the visual clarity of some moves...) + Extreme 100 with max mutations difficulty definitely has some hands. I love that while the game definitely gets harder, you are also allowed to be way stronger than you would be on other difficulties, which I always appreciate instead of "enemy has more hp and more damage". The bosses also change their behaviour in accordance of the chosen difficulty. 0 Music is okay. There are like four tracks I really love though. Music of main levels feel repetitive quite quickly. 0 Story is fine, I guess? I think if you are not familiar with the Blazblue universe (like I am), then you won't really take that much interest into the story. -- Runs feel identical. The levels repeat themselves every run, same with the enemies in each area. There is at least two bosses for each main area though, but those will also repeat after a few runs. -- The visual clutter of some bosses in the later changes is bonkers. Losing your character is quite easy if the whole screen is covered in effects. Even worse if your own character is doing the same amount of effects. Conclusion: despite the cons, each character feels very fun to play and learning to fight the bosses properly is also great. If it had more variety it would be one of my favorite games ever. But out of all the roguelikes and even hack and slash games, this one might be my favorite so far.

A great game with some points of friction. Good points: - Easy to pick up, hard to master; characters have so many options and mechanics, I am still discovering things. - Strategic engagements: While bosses are more of a reflex test or pattern memory, regular rooms reward good positioning and tackling the situation with the right tools. - Fantastic cast: The blazblue cast is a memorable bunch of weirdos and the gameplay captures their personality quite well. - Stylish combat: The game feels good to play, the controls are tight and there is ample room for player expression. - Devs: The devs keep updating the game and bettering the experience and delivered through early access. - Co-op: they didn't have to, but they did and that's cool. Bad points: - The glow: Everything has that bright neon glow, especially in some stages and rooms and ofc skills. - Uninspired enemies: The enemy cast is generic sci-fi uninspired stuff mostly. Here and there there are some amazing original designs like Reki, though. Enemy variety is enough too. - Uninspired story and setting: Same as the enemies, generic sci-fi stuff. Not bad, if only a bit tiresome. - The hub: For such an intense and fast paced game, the hub is brutally inefficient to navigate and adds very little. - The soundtrack: Blazblue has some amazing music. This game does not. Again, it is just okay, but don't expect some memorable tunes. - The elemental upgrades or "tactics": Pick your flavor of damage. Mediocre system that you won't pay attention to half of the time. Overall: A great game with some rough edges. At current price I consider it money well spent. Get it if you like stylish gameplay, 2d beat-em-ups, the Blazblue characters. Skip if you are looking for ground breaking innovation, story is your main drive or if neon glow is a bane to your retinas.

Honestly, the combat is good. Every character feels unique and has their own distinct playstyle. The music is hype, and the gameplay loop of just going stage to stage, experimenting with different builds, mastering your character, and fighting bosses. Definitely worth picking up.