Katana Zero: Do Ronin Dream of Synthwave Sheep?

FAIR WARNING! THIS GAME IS NOT FOR KIDS, AS SUCH THIS REVIEW WILL LOGICALLY AND REALISTICALLY CONTAIN SCREENSHOTS DEPICTING VIOLENCE AND BLOOD! Viewer discretion is advised.

Tell me again about the men in the masks…

Katana Zero was a title that, all things being honest I wasn’t entirely certain I wanted to purchase from the trailer alone. When I initially saw it I thought to myself “Fluid visuals, interesting soundtrack” but admittedly I weighed it against so many others in the genre, Mark of the Ninja, Shadowblade, to a lesser extent even Flint Hook and though the comparison may seem strange, Phantom Trigger. On the Nintendo Switch I own a lot of stylish, high-speed, slash/shoot them before they slash/shoot you limited health and resources titles.

Katana Zero’s trailer looked interesting, but I thought to myself “Do I need another one of these games?”

Another matter, I’m thoroughly soured on the “What happened? WHO KNOWS?! Debate amongst yourselves” and “Everything is darkness and misery and despair and there is no hope nor light and we’re all just monsters inside” manner of indie that is so thoroughly prevalent across the majority of offerings on tap. So, when I saw Katana Zero’s gameplay and a narrative that promised to be confusing and likely depressing from the trailer, I decided “I’ll wait for it to go on sale”.

Then I made the second best decision I could’ve made regarding the game. I watched a half hour of story on youtube and was hooked. Then I made the best decision; I bought the game. And let me tell you, I did not regret that decision in the slightest.

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