There is definitely no shortage of 16 bit, 2D games at the moment. Occasionally, a few are able to rise up from the crowded marketplace and stand out. Some of the standout 16 bits from last year include Dead Cells, Celeste and their ability to elevate the genre. Celeste had a very deep and touching story about mental illness and Dead Cells had its near perfect mechanics mixed with procedurally generated dungeons and spiced with humor. Katana Zero is a action platformer that feels very similar to Dead Cells, Meat Boy, Hotline Miami, Spelunky mixed with Edge of Tomorrow and Memento.

Katana has a very eighties aesthetic with its soundtrack and VHS vibe. Upon the pause screen and every time you die it rewinds with the film grain you would associate with VCR, which was a cool feature at the start. However, by the end of the game I felt my self ejecting the tapes immediately. I feel like the game could’ve pushed into the style a little more as its just the music and the VHS that have a retro futuristic vibe as the rest of the game can become a little generic at times.

The start of this Neo Noir action game feel very similar to its 2D brethren one would confuse it with but you quickly learn this game has more to offer than just an attempt at the one of the hotter trends at the moment, the eighties vibe. You are a ninja warrior that starts off killing people for no reason other than you think its your job because you were given a file with a target. You assume you are an assassin and don’t ask questions. At the end of the mission you walk back to your place, have a cup of tea and go to bed. Once you start playing a little longer you start seeing sci fi elements with memento vibes as you are trying to piece your life together from fractured memories. Every morning you go see your therapist and then after having a small conversation, which you have some control over, you are given your next assignment and your “medication”. However, after every mission you quickly learn that not everything is what it seems. When you sleep now you have the nightmares where there is lots blacked out and you are left trying to piece things back together during your morning therapy session.

What once felt like a fun 2D action game has revealed a deeper story in the vein of Edge of Tomorrow as you relive your deaths over with memories of how to improve your next run was you are always on the hunt for the perfect playthrough as you are always one hit from death. You are also in the same boat as the main character as you are trying to piece together fragments of your memory that slowly come back to you as the game progresses. You eventually figure out that you are part of some Bourne Identity super soldier program. The program is based around the drug chronos, and the ability if gives you to slow down and rewind time as part of the null project. You figure out that this is the medication you are given at the end of your therapy sessions and learn that you need to keep taking the medication.

The game provides different avenues for dialogue with different outcomes. One mission I was very polite and had a nice conversation with the lady at the front desk who asked about my kimono and sword to which I responded was my bath robe and a family heirloom. She let me passthrough and on the way out as I was soaked in blood she tells security that I am ok to go and not a suspect. On a different playthrough as I was rude with the lady on the way out security attacked. I dont plan to play this game multiple times but I do wonder just how different playthroughs could be depending on choices made and dialogue chosen with all the NPC’s you interact with.

At one point when I was near the end but didn’t feel I was quite there I was given the choice to end my life peacefully and leave everyone I love safe. The first time I chose this option it ran credits and the game could have been over. I loaded a previous save and chose life with the hope to save everyone I love. Mainly, the only person you care about in this game is a little from the building who you think is neglected from her family and wants to always hang out with you. As you choose life your character keeps digging down the rabbit hole looking for answers and the people responsible for the project. The game goes on for a few hours after this fork in the road that couldn’t have ended if you chose death, but you keep pushing forward and you keep getting clues from an anonymous caller who keeps giving you tips and pointing you in the right direction.

Katana Negative Zero

The variety of the levels changes slightly but nothing that introduces a whole new gameplay mechanic. There are some stages that feature mine carts and motorcycles which can offer a nice change of pace from the same hack and slash levels the game focuses on but these are only the smallest fraction of the game and even these levels feel similar. Some levels even require stealth as you move from cover to cover in between glances from security or beams from the security spotlights. For the most part the variety of the game including everything from enemies to levels and combat it all wears out its welcome before you reach the ending, which doesn’t quite reach the payoff you would hope for based on how the story unfolded. The ending feels like It drags on just a little too long which could be a symptom of the repetitive combat. It could also be due to the frustration the game gives you from the punishing but slightly unfair system. Some levels can be a little long and looking for the perfect run can be hard, so when you are at the end door and an unfair person comes from off the screen or you were hit with a bullet that was fired off screen it feels a little cheap.

The game also features some boss stages which although challenging never push into anger territory as you are almost able to restart them instantly. This brings to mind part of the reason why I feel that Sekiro can push beyond challenging into unfair as the time it takes to load the game back up really takes you out of the rhythm and sometimes you have to start well before the boss.

Katana Zero feels right at home on the Switch as its nice to play this game in bite size chunks to break up the monotony. The grab and go ability of the Switch allows you smash out a level or two and then put it down when you beating your head against the wall. Katana Zero has an interesting story with a nice aesthetic that could have pushed a little deeper into commitment but it does end up falling a little short before the finish line and doesn’t reach the same heights that its peers have in recent memory.