Garadain’s Game Reviews: Astral Chain
On August 30th, 2019, PlatinumGames (of Bayonetta and NieR: Automata fame) released Astral Chain, published by Nintendo as a Switch exclusive. When I first saw the announcement for it during the Nintendo Direct at E3, admittedly I wasn’t all that excited for it. It looked alright, but I was more concerned with finding out what the latest news concerning Smash Bros. Ultimate was at the time, so Astral Chain got little more than a, “Huh. That looks kind of neat, I guess.” At first glance, it didn’t look all that different from your typical action game, but this time around you had a robot on a string you could send out to fight things for you and yank it back if you wanted. I’ve never been so happy to be so completely and utterly wrong.
If you’ve read my previous Mordhau review, you’re likely already familiar with the format I follow, but I’ll lay it out again for posterity. In this review, I’ll briefly discuss the storyline of the game (don’t worry, I’ll avoid any major spoilers), how the game plays in general, the things I loved about it, and some things I thought could have been improved before giving it my final rating at the end. If you’re going to grab a beer, now’s the time to do so.
The story so far…
When the game begins, you’re prompted to select one of a set of twins as your main protagonist: a male and a female, who you immediately enter a name for before the name “Akira” is assigned to whichever one you didn’t choose. From there, you’re thrust into the setting of Astral Chain as part of the police force that governs mankind’s last stronghold in a world hellbent on our destruction. Welcome to the ARK. Starting you out right off the bat with a high-speed motorcycle chase scene like something out of Mad Max: Fury Road, it isn’t long before you find yourself on foot, huffing it in the direction of an unseen danger. Upon arrival you’re confronted by chimeras, interdimensional beings from the astral plane that have slaughtered humans in droves to the point where we’re facing extinction. Initially you’re unable to do much other than watch as this unseen terror wreaks havoc on you and your twin sibling, but shortly thereafter you’re given a device called a Legatus that contains a chimera conveniently collared and ready to fight at your side, which also happens to grant you the ability to actually SEE these previously invisible enemies. With your newly acquired chimera at your side (or “Legion” as they call it, once it’s been collared and chained to your Legatus), you set off to right wrongs and ensure the continued survival of mankind in an otherwise hostile world that has long wanted to see us wiped clean from the face of the earth.
Admittedly, you aren’t going to get a particularly deep or meaningful story with this one. Some games are all about the narrative, and the journey that takes place there within. Final Fantasy VII is a good example of this, being one of the most captivating and intriguing stories I’ve ever experienced in a video game. In Astral Chain, the story serves more as a delivery vessel, getting you from event to event, and in that regard it does a remarkable job. It isn’t uninteresting, by any means, but at times it can be a bit predictable (I was able to identify the two villains of the story within the first few minutes of the game). With its own twists and turns, the game moves along at a decent pace…for the most part. As much as I enjoyed this game, it would be dishonest of me if I didn’t bring up the fact that there are going to be a slew of side missions, not all of which are all that terribly intriguing. Don’t get me wrong, some of them are a lot of fun, and I particularly liked the way the game incorporates the different powers of your Legion while assisting citizens on the streets, be it through detective work, chasing down a mugger, or something as simple as finding their cat. But at one point I found myself literally moving cars around in a grid pattern to complete what boiled down to a block sliding puzzle, and while it technically worked within the context of where the story was going at the time, I found myself wondering how a game centered around dazzling, spectacular-looking combat sequences had come to a grinding halt to slide cars around on a grid pattern. I’m all for immersing myself in the world, but it just felt a bit out of place is all I’m saying. Still, the story elements and memorable characters all serve to create a living, breathing world, and despite how much I stressed that it was more of a vessel than anything else up above, you’re still going to find yourself growing attached to certain characters like I did.
Gameplay in general
At this point you might find yourself wondering exactly how you control your main character and your Legion at the same time. Well…it’s fairly clever the way they designed the control schematics in Astral Chain. Your left analog stick is for movement (fairly standard), and your right operates your camera (again, nothing new here). When things can get interesting (read: challenging) is when you hold in the ZR button on your controller, and the right analog stick switches from camera control to moving your Legion about freely. If you’ve ever played Brothers: A Tale of Two Sons, you’re familiar with the pros and cons of simultaneously trying to track two targets on screen that you are in direct control of at once. Your Legion can only move as far away from you as the length of the chain that binds it, which in itself becomes a formidable weapon. Enemies can be wrapped up in it, anchoring them to the ground and rendering them helpless as you unleash a string of successive hits alongside your Legion. Charging enemies can be caught in the chain and launched back in the direction they came from, sending them sprawling to the ground and leaving them open for an immediate counter attack. Flicking the left analog stick in specific directions before pulling on ZL activates Legion commands, in which they perform specialized attacks specific to their type. They can also be upgraded and learn new abilities, one of which even lets them off the chain temporarily as they unleash a barrage of attacks on a foe.
Early on things are going to be clumsy, and there was a brief adjustment period as I got used to watching enemy positioning carefully while maneuvering myself and my Legion around the battlefield. But as the game progresses and you become more proficient, you’ll find yourself pulling off some truly remarkable feats, your Legion no longer a clumsy sidekick that you have to order around all the time but rather an invaluable ally and the ultimate weapon against the chimeras. The ability to customize your Legion’s appearance, abilities, and general stats like Attack and Defense lets you tailor them to your preferred fighting style and personal tastes. Things like extending the length of their chain, auto-completing perfect dodge attacks, and even healing you when certain actions are performed within combat. Bringing down large groups of chimeras, each with different fighting styles and presenting unique challenges of their own, becomes tremendously satisfying in both execution and spectacle. Astral Chain makes sure that whenever you pull off a gorgeous series of maneuvers, you are treated to the full visual effect as you do so.
Things I loved/Things that could have been improved
Running around, solving crimes alongside your Chimera while slaughtering chimeras in droves is immensely satisfying. I make a point to play the hero in all the games I play when given the choice to do so, and in that regard this game delivers in spectacular fashion. Saving random citizens that have been pulled through interdimensional gates by monstrous chimeras feels just enough like “part of the job” while at the same time retaining its sense of awe and wonder. Exploring those pocket dimensions, cleaning out the chimeras, and engaging in the platforming elements of the game by sending your Legion out before yanking on its chain and hurtling towards its location gives you a sense of freedom not afforded to the average Joes that populate the ARK. The Legions themselves are artfully rendered, and have a distinct Gundam-esque aesthetic that lends well to the setting of the game. That being said…
The story could use a little fine-tuning, and some of the side missions can get a little frustrating, especially when you’re still learning how the menus work and the layout of the maps. They’re minor gripes that resolve themselves as you play, but in the spirit of objectivity, they were enough for me to take note of so I thought them worth mentioning. They don’t ruin the experience in the slightest, but there may be some frustration early on which…if we’re being honest here, isn’t uncommon in games utilizing new concepts. Some of the missions can be a drag on the pacing of the game, as mentioned earlier, and there were a few times I found myself confused as to exactly where I was supposed to go or what I should be doing. Looking around and talking to people was the easy resolution, and I certainly don’t expect the game to hold my hand through everything (exploration is part of the game, after all), but if I’m digging for nitpicks here (which is what these really are, because there isn’t anything really wrong with this game), those would be it.
Final Score
I give Astral Chain a glowing 9 out of 10. Coming into this game not expecting much, I found myself more than pleasantly surprised; I was absolutely blown away by the fast-paced action, endearing NPC’s, vividly created world of ARK, and the creative vision of Platinum Games. Most people aren’t likely to buy a Switch just for this game (even though Breath of the Wild alone is worth the price of admission…), but if you were on the fence or already own one, I highly recommend picking this game up at your earliest opportunity to do so.
As always, I’d love to hear from you. Did you love Astral Chain as much as I did? Do you agree or disagree with one (or several) of the points I made? Would you have rated it higher or lower than a 9 out of 10? Thanks again for reading, be sure to hit me up in the comment section, and check back soon for the next edition of Garadain’s Game Reviews!
