Hello there ladies, gentlemen and those of a non-binary nature, my name is Daibhi, this is the Gamerhub community. I have to say folks, that your classic games like Castlevania and Metroid really aren’t my kind of game, which is why I was surprised when told I had to review this game for you, as it has only recently come out onto Microsoft’s Xbox Game Pass. That being said, I guess it’s a bad idea to get stuck to a certain type of game, and we could all do to broaden our sometimes forbidden horizons. To that end, I have sank nearly 50 hours of gameplay into playing Forged In Shadow Torch (which, for the sake of keeping my word count down, I will refer to as FIST from here on out).

FIST, or Forged In Shadow Torch, is a action-adventure and platforming game hybrid, very much cut from the same cloth as Metroid and Castlevania. It was developed by Ti Games and published by Bilibili and released on general sale in 2021. It’s available to play on PC through either Microsoft’s cloud gaming services or Steam, as well as the Xbox Series consoles, the PlayStation consoles and Nintendo Switch. For the sake of clarity, I have reviewed this on my PC and Xbox Series X.

Plot

Forged In Shadow Torch, or FIST, is a game set in a very cyberpunk world, following an anthropomorphic rabbit called Rayton. He’s a former ace pilot and lives in a wonderfully imagined city called Torch City, where an absolute fuckton of robots have invaded and are now running it under martial law. Using a gigantic robotic fist, Rayton the anthropomorphic rabbit must fight to liberate his city from what are effectively so close to Ultron in concept that I’m surprised Disney’s lawyers aren’t trying to sue for copyright infringement. There is a twist, however. These robotic despots aren’t people, but dogs. Giant metal robot dogs who aren’t quite so good boys. It’s fair to say that the “furtizens” have had a rough ride.

Gameplay

This is where I can be really positive for once. This game is an absolute joy to play on the Xbox Series X, with very little lag between pressing a button and Rayton doing his best Danny Rand impression. (Side note, I’m keeping the Iron Fist references to a minimum as my first draft was littered with them. Also the Netflix version sucked harder than the release of Fallout 76). From a simple punch to get through an object or to take down Fido The Bad Robot Dog, you can start learning how to chain offenses and get new skills and parts for your robotic arm along the way. My personal favourite was the electrifying whip, which really does what it says on the tin. Watching enemies getting electrocuted while drilling a hole through them, Bioshock 2 style, didn’t really get old, and unfortunately only works for a while before Fido The Bad Robot Dog learns to play fetch.

Speaking of the not-so-good-boys, there’s a wide variety of them, and it is actually one of the best points of this game. Between aerial turrets that make you have to fight in the air, to some very infuriating ninja robotic frogs (because of course the frogs are the bad guys, just watch “flushed away” for proof of that) and the boss battles are suitably epic. There is quite a steep difficulty curve to master, but by the time you have, it’s ever so rewarding. Having to run through Torch City’s neon-soaked slums which are reminiscent of Blade Runner, avoiding giant saws, laser beams and avoiding a giant squid’s death ray vision, I found myself having really good fun while playing this game in a way that I haven’t for quite some time.

Graphics

Oh dear lord, the graphics in this game are brilliant. It’s a pity this game doesn’t come with a photo mode because every level, every route and every background could be put up in an art gallery and they wouldn’t look out of place. While they are all kind of linear to look at, that’s a trapping of the genre of video game, and the artwork is simply divine. Even the designs of the characters have been rendered to an almost fine art. I am however, well informed that the Nintendo Switch users are a bit out of luck on this front, but the backgrounds still look amazing. The backgrounds are jam-packed with detail in this diesel-meets-cyberpunk world, and nothing feels like it has just been added in to look cool. This game is effortlessly cool, which is a huge surprise given the premise of this game felt so childish.

Cost Point

PlayStation gamers are in a grand bit of luck here. The game is available for both consoles on PlayStation’s digital store for the price of £24.99, which is very reasonable for a game this good, and granted they’ve been able to play this game for nearly a full calendar year before everyone else. Nintendo gamers across the world have a similar price point at £26.99 but if I’m being honest, my Nintendo Switch playing partner doesn’t recommend paying full price for the performance she got out of the game. Xbox gamers pay the same as PlayStation gamers, as do Steam users, so at least for once we’ve nearly all got parity on the prices, and Xbox gamers can play this on Microsoft’s Game Pass.

Final Thoughts

Despite the immaturity of the game’s premise, this game is absolutely one you should play. The gameplay is solid, with three distinct combat styles and nigh-on infinite variations on manoeuvres. The soundtrack is okay, with hints of Chinese music and jazz, and the voice acting really works, even when you can tell the voice actors haven’t got much clue about the game itself. It’s a game you can easily lose yourself in, with some moments that feel like we’ve taken a solid platformer from the 1980’s and made it cool again.

Joystick Rating- 4 Joysticks Out Of 5

For the Gamerhub, I’ve been Daibhi and you are all legends