Slain: Back from Hell

 PlayStation 4
User Score
7.2

Mixed or average reviews- based on 26 Ratings

User score distribution:
  1. Positive: 16 out of 26
  2. Mixed: 4 out of 26
  3. Negative: 6 out of 26

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  1. Saneape
    May 21, 2017
    7
    It's not as detailed as symphony of the night, but more metal. typical platformer with unlimited lives, you die... a lot. Great atmosphere, needs more RPG elements to be an 8 for me, but it's very good for the side scrolling nostalgia.
  2. GoodnightCat
    Sep 30, 2019
    5
    Man I really wanted to like this game. I love old school platformers, I love Castlevania, I love metal, I love dark vanhelsing-esque environments. I don't mind dying a lot for the sake of getting better and the feeling of being rewarded at the end.

    Bunch of mechanics in Slain work very well but most of them don't. Sometimes it's pure heaven and sometimes it's just a frustrating    Man I really wanted to like this game. I love old school platformers, I love Castlevania, I love metal, I love dark vanhelsing-esque environments. I don't mind dying a lot for the sake of getting better and the feeling of being rewarded at the end.

    Bunch of mechanics in Slain work very well but most of them don't. Sometimes it's pure heaven and sometimes it's just a frustrating experience where random elements come into play and you just die a lot and don't progress at all. Take the controls as an example. By pressing attack for the second time your character dashes forward which often causes you to hit enemy with your body instead of just the weapon and it totally breaks the momentum and joy of the combat. I don't know any other game that does this and I don't think being original at this point adds any depth to the experience.

    Game is hard as hell in the sense it just spits hordes of enemies at you while you avoid traps that one-shot you instantly. When the enemies throw projectiles at you, there's only slight chance you will be able to predict the projectile's trajectory. If you get hit, you leap back and usually die falling into a pit. Enemies overwhelm you very quickly but it's the numbers, not their skill what kills you. Most of the time it doesn't feel like a challenge since even learning the enemy patterns doesn't really help. It's all a huge test of patience but it doesn't feel very rewarding when you finally overcome some obstacles since it's basically a matter of luck, not your great skills.

    On the other hand, the music is fantastic and the game looks gorgeous even on my Vita's lcd, even though I'd prefer it to be little brighter. Audio-visually there's not much you can really complain about.

    I look forward for the dev's next game. More polish and less "original mechanics" which just add frustration instead of depth might bring to the genre a true instant classic. Fingers crossed.    … Expand

Critic Reviews

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Metascore
68

Mixed or average reviews - based on 11 Critic Reviews

Critic score distribution:
  1. Positive: 2 out of 11
  2. Mixed: 8 out of 11
  3. Negative: 1 out of 11
  1. Areajugones
    Mar 12, 2017
    65
    Slain: Back From Hell features action and 2D platforms with a Castlevania like style and lots of potential. Even though it has a great artistic design, it has some issues with the gameplay mechanics and some bugs.
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  2. CD-Action
    Feb 13, 2017
    70
    The game’s title says a lot about its difficulty level. It is unfair and painful at times, but if you’re stubborn enough, Slain will captivate you and give you a lot of satisfaction despite its far-reaching simplicity and repetitiveness that goes with it. [02/2017, p.45]
  3. God is a Geek
    Jan 9, 2017
    80
    Slain: Back from Hell is a more metal and modern Castlevania that looks and plays great, but is held back by a few sections which feel unfairly difficulty.
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