Bloody Spell

A triple threat of martial arts, role-playing gameplay, and lovely ladies, Bloody Spell is a next-gen action game that appeals to fans of the character action genre. Featuring some of the most visually impressive scenarios for a game of its kind, there’s much to see in Bloody Spell, and, surprisingly, not all of it is scantily dressed women.

With combat that looks and plays almost as if it came from a AAA character action game, Bloody Spell seems to be well on its way to becoming a modern classic. That said, the insane difficulty levels and predatory DLC practices might not be to everyone’s liking.

Finesse and Combat

Set in a mystical world of Chinese legends and heroes, Bloody Spell might immediately elicit some Dynasty Warriors vibes from the get-go. However, the gameplay is not as reliant on button mashing as in Koei Tecmo’s franchise, even though the level design seems to be pulled straight out of that series.

Before you begin fighting, you have to create a customized character. There are lots of cosmetic options for your game avatar, including some very questionable DLC content, considering this is still an early access game. Including downloadable content this early into the game’s development is problematic at best and downright unethical at worst.

That aside, creating characters in this game can be even more fun than the combat gameplay itself. You can also create both male and female characters, so don’t think that this is going to be your standard Senran Kagura kind of affair.

The best way to describe the combat in Bloody Spell is to think of it as a mix between Devil May Cry and God of War. At the same time, some inspiration from FromSoftware titles like Sekiro: Shadows Die Twice can be clearly seen here. That’s to say that the game is tough as nails, even on the easier difficulties.

Gorgeous Vistas

While the main event is definitely the richly detailed character models, there’s no denying that Bloody Spell is quite the looker. Environments look great, with robust lightning that makes every shadow and terrain object pop with an otherworldly aura.

These visuals, however, can vary wildly in terms of quality. Sometimes, you’d be looking at the sunrays flowing through a bamboo forest and marvel at how beautiful it looks, only to run into an unfinished low-res wall texture the next second.

As for character models, they look downright great. Animations might need some work, but the models themselves are amazing, and so is every cosmetic piece available in the game. Cloths flow naturally and with the correct weight, and there’s very little clipping to speak of.

Finding some Meaning

Something worth mentioning is that the developers of Bloody Spell are a small Chinese studio. As such, there seems to be something of a language barrier scattered throughout the game. If you’re an English speaker, be ready for one of the worst translations we’ve seen in a game so far.

There are some parts of Bloody Spell that aren’t translated at all, like the instructions in certain puzzles. This turns what should have been a pretty straightforward experience into a guessing game, and could potentially bring any enjoyment to a sudden halt.

Pros

• Mostly incredible visuals
• Fun and fast-paced gameplay
• Amazing character models

Cons

• Terrible English translation
• Awful level design
• Pointless stealth mechanics