Astral Chain Review

“Ten-four officers, we have reports of an Astral Chain in progress on Switch Ave., come in sirens loud and controllers hot.” Developed by Platinum Games, the masters of the character action genre, Astral Chain offers a new take on the formula. The player guides a self-controlled demon (known as a Legion) connected to their character by the titular astral chain. As an officer in a special police force, the player uses their Legion to fight crime, solve mysteries, and beat up criminals.

Combat

The meat of Astral Chain lies in the intense and free-flowing combat. Platinum Games fans will recognize the influences of their earlier titles like Bayonetta. This time around, Astral Chain does a great job of recruiting new players as well as satisfying old. No longer relying on sprawling movelists and button combinations, your Legions do most of the fighting for you. There’s still depth and challenge to deploying your Legion, but Platinum mercifully brings the skill floor down. For those looking to enjoy the story with no pressure, Astral Chain even offers lower difficulty levels with unlimited lives to accommodate everyone.

If ease doesn’t interest you, the Platinum Standard mode will test your performance in combat. Much like other character action games, Astral Chain gives you a letter grade from D- to S+ based on points earned while fighting. This mode isn’t necessarily harder, but chasing ranks pushes you to play better, not get hit, and in turn look much cooler.

It takes a while to get used to the controls, but the depth of options available makes every encounter interesting. Because of this, winning in Astral Chain is about style, efficiency, and perfection, not just surviving to the end. Learning the combat feels like learning an instrument. Sure, playing “Hot Crossed Buns” will pass a level, but achieving that S+ requires some real fancy fingerwork.