Now, let’s be up front about this: Wonder Blade is a big, big fan of Castle Crashers. It liked its art style, bosses, over-the-top chase sequences, loot system, puerile humour, pets and love of hats sooooo much that it just had to honour it with a game that’s near-identical on every front. Wonder Blade is out now on Xbox One and Xbox Series X|S to join the previous drops on PS4, Switch and PC via Steam.
Don’t get us wrong: we absolutely loved Castle Crashers. It’s one of the best belt-action games out there (I think we’re calling them that now?), and it’s also one of the best multiplayer games. We’re just unsure whether we want to play an homage to it, when we could be playing – you know – Castle Crashers. Everything feels positioned a little too close for comfort.
Even more worrying is the lack of any mention of multiplayer. If there was a key to the charm of Castle Crashers, it was the feisty cooperative play, reluctantly helping each other out before downing the boss and duelling your mates for the reward. We’re not sure if Wonder Blade even has cooperative play, and that seems like crazy talk. Surely, if there’s one thing you don’t want to omit from Castle Crashers, it’s that.
But let’s ditch the C words for now, and imagine they never existed, because – on those terms – Wonder Blade looks like a cracking good time. Everything’s hyper-colourful and fun, the bosses look huge and daunting, and the humour is layered on thick. If the campaign takes its cues well, it could be well worth playing, bringing its own ideas to the table.
We hope so, as a sub-standard cover version of a classic is something that no one really wants. Perhaps debutants Puppet Demo Game Studio are well aware of this and have plans afoot. But honestly – no multiplayer? Come now.
Features do include:
- * A fascinating tale of butt-kicking, love and woe that doesn’t take itself too seriously.
- * Spectacular combos, flashy finishing moves and butter-smooth animation.
- * A variety of stages and experiences – more than just whacking bad guys with a sword.
- * Bosses, mini-bosses, big bad guys and little bad guys, oh my!
- * Ever rode a pig? A battlebot? A fire-breathing dragon!? Now you can!
- * Collectible outfits and weapons.
- * Unlock and upgrade badass skills as you level up.
- * And that’s just a taste! You’ll have to discover the rest for yourself. Good luck, adventurer.
Wonder Blade is out now on Xbox One and Xbox Series X|S and will cost you £12.49 from the Xbox Store. It’s also out on PS4, Switch and PC via Steam.
Game Description:
When the king says jump, you say “how high?”. When the king says fight, you fight. When the king says “save my princess from a villainous maniac and his castle-sized pet golem”, you say “what…?”. What are you waiting for? Grab that trusty weapon of yours, free the princess and save the world, all before breakfast! With all those sweet combos, killer finishing moves and devastating magic abilities the bad guys won’t know what hit them. Don’t forget to wear a costume to make you a one-of-a-kind adventurer. Will you be a sneaky ninja, smacking enemies with a frozen fish? Or a lightsaber-wielding raccoon with a score to settle? It’s all up to you! High-speed cart chases through the forest, a fishing competition in the ocean, zombie hordes and high-tech soldiers, we’ve got it all! This world is full of thrills, mystery and surprises the likes of which you’ve never had before. What do you get when you cross a whimsical adventure, humorous characters and combat to die for? Wonder Blade – an awesome experience you won’t soon forget. The question is… Are you ready?
