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KATANA ZERO (PC)
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Publisher: Devolver Digital.
Developer: Askiisoft. Released: April 2019. Genre: Hack 'n' Slash. Other versions: SWI; XONE. Posted 5th September 2024. By Tom Clare © 2024 |
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A super-stylish, blisteringly addictive action game, Katana ZERO offers further, cast iron proof of the value of lone-developer video games. Under the guise of Askiisoft, KZ was a project that took programmer Justin Stander six years to realise. The result was an action-packed treat: a pixel hack ‘n’ slasher that mixed creative, free-flowing gameplay with a multilayered storyline, to stunning effect.
Marrying elements of neo-noir, Tarantino movies, Hotline Miami (or, if we stick strictly to the Stander’s experiences: Samurai GUNN) and Mark of the Ninja, Katana ZERO sees the player controlling the Samurai, a mysterious killer-for-hire who carries out hits for the Psychiatrist, who as well as helping dissect the central protagonist’s troubled past, acts as his handler. As the story unfolds, the Samurai must piece together a violent, recurring nightmare that plagues him, whilst unravelling an ever-more sinister subplot surrounding a mysterious, time-altering drug known as Chronos.
Each level adds more enemies, hazards and platforming than the last. The difficulty curve is brilliantly gauged.
The game comprises of quick-fire screens packed with action, as the player must dispatch all foes before moving to the next room. You’ll predominantly achieve this through swift katana kills, time-slowing bullet deflections, rolls, and a host of projectile weapons you’ll find within the levels. Every scene is superbly playable, thanks to Katana ZERO’s fast, tricky nature and well-conceived layouts, regularly encouraging the player to make complicated, acrobatic move combinations, lending it the exciting, reflexive feel of a samurai action film. You’ll die often, but quick restarts ward off frustration, whilst intuitive physics, precise controls and intelligent, evolving level designs ensure you’ll remain hooked.
The story has a big impact on proceedings and serves as the perfect means of drawing the player further into this sordid tale. Comparisons with Hotline Miami go beyond its pixel throwback visuals and enormous death count. There’s a similarly ominous undercurrent to the story, as well as a juxtaposition between its violent nature and its dark humour. The Samurai projects an increasingly desensitised, detached attitude to the bloodbaths he leaves in his wake, and this soon becomes a fabric of the experience. The maudlin ferocity of his job is soon drawn into self-reflection, however, by the appearance of a young girl outside his apartment. You’ll get to know her in between assassination missions, with routine tasks (finding her a Halloween treat, renting a movie) serving as a brilliant and sobering contrast. Gradually, missions begin to represent something more than mere hits, with unseen powers playing their hand. As the Samurai struggles to cope with the drug he’s been administered, cracks in his reality start to seep through, creeping into the gameplay in another aspect that’s handled with disarming aplomb.
The story has a big impact on proceedings and serves as the perfect means of drawing the player further into this sordid tale. Comparisons with Hotline Miami go beyond its pixel throwback visuals and enormous death count. There’s a similarly ominous undercurrent to the story, as well as a juxtaposition between its violent nature and its dark humour. The Samurai projects an increasingly desensitised, detached attitude to the bloodbaths he leaves in his wake, and this soon becomes a fabric of the experience. The maudlin ferocity of his job is soon drawn into self-reflection, however, by the appearance of a young girl outside his apartment. You’ll get to know her in between assassination missions, with routine tasks (finding her a Halloween treat, renting a movie) serving as a brilliant and sobering contrast. Gradually, missions begin to represent something more than mere hits, with unseen powers playing their hand. As the Samurai struggles to cope with the drug he’s been administered, cracks in his reality start to seep through, creeping into the gameplay in another aspect that’s handled with disarming aplomb.
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There’s great satisfaction (and reward) to tackling levels in alternative ways. You’ll be tasked with sneaking through a nightclub unseen, using dancers to shield you from bodyguards, whilst a prison sequence may require you to kill or spare guards depending on whether you accepted a dose of the drug. You can avoid a dialogue with one antagonist altogether, by lobbing a projectile his way before reaching him, or skip major combat sequences by cutting/dodging camera feeds to avoid waking an antagonist. This is exactly the kind of sneakiness we appreciate. For ‘The Dragon’ level, you get to relive an earlier event from the perspective of another hitman, with a slightly different skillset. Environments regularly allow the player to manipulate lethal hazards to their own ends, such as by flicking switches to turn on laser fields, operating conveyor belts to position enemies under a crusher and, of course, throwing a Molotov cocktail into a line of barrels and enjoying the mayhem that ensues. Sometimes the old ways are the best.
The story is reasonably brief, likely taking skilled players between three and five hours to finish. However, there’s plenty of incentive to return. The ultra-stylish story not only holds a raft of different dialogue choices and a couple of different endings, but a particular set of decisions will reward the player with an additional (and completely bonkers) final boss. It’s worth returning for Easter eggs: the Pyramid Head appearance on the “Quiet Hills” film set is a personal favourite, whilst deflecting bullets and dodging lasers during a mine cart sequence proves another highlight. There are a host of neat unlockable swords that encourage the player to tackle scenes in unusual ways. Additionally, there’s an excellent speed-run mode that strips out the cinematics and leaves a lean selection of action sequences that are a joy to blast through, factoring in your overall time and death count on a high-score board.
The story is reasonably brief, likely taking skilled players between three and five hours to finish. However, there’s plenty of incentive to return. The ultra-stylish story not only holds a raft of different dialogue choices and a couple of different endings, but a particular set of decisions will reward the player with an additional (and completely bonkers) final boss. It’s worth returning for Easter eggs: the Pyramid Head appearance on the “Quiet Hills” film set is a personal favourite, whilst deflecting bullets and dodging lasers during a mine cart sequence proves another highlight. There are a host of neat unlockable swords that encourage the player to tackle scenes in unusual ways. Additionally, there’s an excellent speed-run mode that strips out the cinematics and leaves a lean selection of action sequences that are a joy to blast through, factoring in your overall time and death count on a high-score board.
Katana ZERO allows you to interrupt dialogues, if you're not happy being lectured
Katana ZERO features 12 attractive pixel-art levels, with settings such as Club Neon, Studio 51 and Chinatown showing a particular penchant for cinematic flair. This is true also of the smooth, economical animations and stylish combat. The game’s music, the work of Thijs Lodewijk and Bill Kiley, is outstanding, not only complimenting the action but heightening the atmosphere or the excitement levels where necessary.
There isn’t an ounce of fat on Katana ZERO. Every level is a thrilling ride that builds on what has gone before and adds something new to the mix. Superb controls, exciting gameplay, a fantastic atmosphere cultivated by excellent music, and a tortuous but magnetic plot will have samurai fans and all-round cinephiles purring. Chronos’s time loops may be torture to those subjected to it, but for the player, repeat runs of KZ form a far more positive addiction.
There isn’t an ounce of fat on Katana ZERO. Every level is a thrilling ride that builds on what has gone before and adds something new to the mix. Superb controls, exciting gameplay, a fantastic atmosphere cultivated by excellent music, and a tortuous but magnetic plot will have samurai fans and all-round cinephiles purring. Chronos’s time loops may be torture to those subjected to it, but for the player, repeat runs of KZ form a far more positive addiction.
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VERDICT
"A stunning action game that's quality from start to finish. Katana ZERO's murky storyline will have you hooked, but its precise, magnetically addictive gameplay is what will keep you coming back for more." OVERALL: 9/10 |
OTHER HD-ERA 2D NINJA & ASSASSIN GAMES REVIEWED
Mark of the Ninja (2012, Xbox 360)
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Assassin's Creed Chronicles (2016, PlayStation Vita)
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