NETWORKING BATTLING AND MATCHING GAMES!
Chivalware will immediately catch the eye of fans of a certain GBA RPG series called Mega Man Battle Network as this game is clearly inspired by its action grid battles, but what impresses me most with Chivalware is how it changes the formula.
Unlike Battle Network Chivalware is not an RPG but an arcade inspired game that chops out that pesky dialog and exploration for pure combat action. The basic idea is that each playable character starts with three weapons and one extra piece of equipment (there’s two types of permanent upgrades that it could be) and to equip a weapon the player has to match three or more of the specific weapon on their side of the battlefield and the more matches done fills the battery which is how much the player can attack (dependent on what weapon is equipped). The entire battlefield is free to move on but in order to charge the battery or equip a new weapon the player has to retreat to their side of the battlefield. Certain abilities change this process, and certain panels are specific to certain areas and the basic mechanics of moving panel to panel and attacking stay the same.
MSRP: $9.99
Platforms: PC (reviewed), Switch
Price I’d Pay: $9.99
Between battles events can occur that offer new weapons or modifiers or healing items which means that different runs as the same character can feel very different with each weapon being unique as well as each upgrade offering drastically different ways to approach combat. There are permanent upgrades like being able to get an option of battle chips or a permanent boost to certain stats at the beginning of every run. The way these are presented are on combat free battlefields where NPCs or objects are found and can be interacted with. Most of these are labeled with a question mark including shops which I think should be the exclusion when choosing a path especially when combat encounters that drop specific loot and campfires are always listed. At the end of the area a boss is always fought before moving to the next and after the first defeat of an area’s boss a second boss will potentially take its place to keep runs interesting.
It’s hard not to simply spoil parts of Chivalware because there isn’t a deep narrative and exploring new weapons and upgrades is a big part of the joy I got. Every new weapon felt like a present and I wasn’t sure how much I would like that present until I used it, but presents are always nice. I think the big thing I need to drive home is how different every weapon feels. My closest comparison to combat would be the Battle Network games and in those games, weapons felt similar: there were three sword types, maybe a few melee weapons, thrown items, and guns for the most part. In Chivalware there’s a basic gun which feels very different from the revolver or the minigun or the bow which feels different from the powder keg which is thrown like the bomb but favors long play. There’re no healing or defensive items like Battle Network but it keeps all the weapons in play a lot longer than Battle Network did where cannons would be phased out for stronger cannons rather than cannons that fired faster or more times. It’s refreshing when trying a new weapon instantly becomes a new favorite, however that can backfire (looking at you powder keg).
That’s another aspect that is hard to define, but I never feel hurt by RNG. Unlike other roguelites where bad luck can mean the end of the run, I know who to blame. It’s me. It’s always me. Maybe I pressed the wrong button and found myself in oncoming fire. Maybe I chose a bad upgrade. MAYBE I CHOSE THE POWDER KEG AND WAS SEVERELY LET DOWN. It’s a multitude of factors but like old arcade games which this game clearly takes inspiration from (climbing up a fictional leaderboard and all) I can feel myself getting more competent with every run.
Speaking of runs after choosing your character you can choose a level which adds modifiers to your run. The best I can describe it is like Balatro where after you choose a deck you choose your difficulty level, but it tells you exactly why it’s harder. Other options before getting into the gameplay aspect that I didn’t cover (best segue I could make readers, sorry) is your standard gameplay stuff and an option to change the colors. Now because it is a match three game those panels are colored (which changes the color of the character you’re playing too) but the icons in them change with every weapon chosen so the devs allow players to choose their colors which to me is just a great customization but to colorblind folk is the difference between being able to play and not being able to play the game. Colorblindness is a spectrum (what a cruel word to use to describe this disability) where people have different types of colorblindness so being able to choose colors from a fairly diverse palette will make it so players can play comfortably which is awesome because most of the time this type of option would be under accessibility and in Chivalware it’s just a choice. I would love to know if the different hues would give enough range for someone who is fully colorblind to be able to play as most of all information is clearly defined in text form.
Honestly Chivalware is my new Balatro when my mind is able to do something faster paced. Even writing this review right now is upsetting because I rather be playing it than writing about it. It’s got space to be more, and I think a competitive multiplayer mode could take off like nothing else, but what it is, is great. If this game doesn’t sound or look appealing there isn’t a deeper part like say Balatro or Binding of Isaac where the game begins to click due to synergy between upgrades that deconstruct the game. It is what it is and it’s what I want from a game like this; runs are fast and action packed and it feels a bit like Battle Network which isn’t a bad thing.
Review copy of game provided by publisher.