Astral Chain

 Switch
User Score
8.9

Generally favorable reviews- based on 3468 Ratings

User score distribution:
  1. Positive: 3,079 out of 3468
  2. Mixed: 143 out of 3468
  3. Negative: 246 out of 3468
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  1. ps3fan2
    Aug 30, 2019
    4
    Fantastic graphics but everything else is really mediocre or outright poor. Go buy Devil May Cry 5 or Bayonetta for a true action game experience. Gameplay is worse than NieR Automata's.
  2. NegativeFifteen
    Mar 2, 2020
    1
    There's a **** ton of reasons why this game is terrible, but the main issue is that the dodging and camera systems are absolute **** Targeting happens automatically, whether or not I want it to, even if I turn off the target marker. Switching between multiple targets makes me want to put my head through a **** wall with how absolutely terrible the function is.The hitboxes and dodging feelThere's a **** ton of reasons why this game is terrible, but the main issue is that the dodging and camera systems are absolute **** Targeting happens automatically, whether or not I want it to, even if I turn off the target marker. Switching between multiple targets makes me want to put my head through a **** wall with how absolutely terrible the function is.The hitboxes and dodging feel like they asked a toddler to draw a bunch of circles in crayon around the character and then they set the hitboxes to be identical to it. It feels like they TRIED to make the hitboxes bad. On top of all this, even if you manage to acclimate to a terrible camera and a god awful dodging system, even if you manage to get "good" at the game, it still gives you that sweet, sweet C ranking because you didn't use moves and abilities that they haven't even given to you yet. It's like ranking a 2nd grader based on their college algebra skills. So now if you want to make it so that your game file isn't riddled with Cs and Ds, you get to go back and play through each individual mission with your new abilities so that it's actually possible to get a better score. Why can't I just get a good score the first time through with what I have? It's like I progress through the game just so I can go backwards. All in all, ****ty combat, uninteresting dialogue and story, and unremarkable characters that I forget almost instantly, 1/10. Also the female character model looks like someone slapped the face of a crab onto a Hershey's Kiss.… Expand
  3. Yuke
    Jul 29, 2022
    4
    Spoiler-free.

    Most overrated game on Metacritic, probably.

    - Story gets only told via text documents and still many things won't get explained.

    - Silent protagonist ist super pointless in this scenario.

    - Camera movement is borderline broken.

    - Fight-System is okay and sometimes fun.

    - Graphics are very good for a Switch game.
  4. TempoTheMan
    Aug 12, 2021
    4
    cool gameplay at first, and after 6 hours just boring, story that didnt click with me and ended in an anticlimactic and very open way, and **** endgame, just grinding 50 boring missions with an already boring spammy combat to get to the true boss, which also was anticlimactic, I hope you listen to me and dont waste your money on this game unless you adore spamming moves
  5. dredpiratejaymo
    Apr 15, 2020
    3
    I thought it was mediocre at best. I couldn't get into it. The story was lame, the battle system was clunky, the art was unimpressive, and the levels were too linear. 3/10 is a charitable score.

    I feel like some of these 10/10 reviews may not be legit...
  6. AKtee
    Sep 16, 2019
    0
    i fell for the hype surrounding this game. Combat boring and repetitive. Music cheesy and not suitable to environments. Acting is garbage. Story predictable.
  7. Superman_94
    Dec 7, 2019
    0
    Switch devs need to do better. I know the hardware isn’t great to be working with and god knows how much it limits them, but this title is unacceptable.
  8. s2ada
    Sep 8, 2019
    1
    Franchement l'un des pires jeux de chez Platinium Games, tout dedans est très mauvais voir nul.
  9. 1011tas
    Sep 20, 2019
    0
    1.畫面太複雜，根本看不到敵人和攻擊，連主角自己的狀態都看不到
    2.背景會擋住主角視線
    3.操作雷基恩移動就不能調視角，失敗 4.按鍵之間有優先順序，動作之間的切換沒有很流暢，常常因為前一個動作沒執行完錯過回避的時機 5.劇情背景很多沒交代，玩完還是一頭霧水 6.錯過小型事件要整節重打 7.一些按鍵設計要按下類比搖桿，但是又沒有很精準 8.對敵人的視角沒有很好調整的機制，打不到想打的敵人，從遊戲很前期就有這個缺陷 9.鎖鍊跳的位置在邊緣的判定有問題，很難完全判斷能不能跳到不會摔落的位置    1.畫面太複雜，根本看不到敵人和攻擊，連主角自己的狀態都看不到
    2.背景會擋住主角視線
    3.操作雷基恩移動就不能調視角，失敗
    4.按鍵之間有優先順序，動作之間的切換沒有很流暢，常常因為前一個動作沒執行完錯過回避的時機
    5.劇情背景很多沒交代，玩完還是一頭霧水
    6.錯過小型事件要整節重打
    7.一些按鍵設計要按下類比搖桿，但是又沒有很精準
    8.對敵人的視角沒有很好調整的機制，打不到想打的敵人，從遊戲很前期就有這個缺陷
    9.鎖鍊跳的位置在邊緣的判定有問題，很難完全判斷能不能跳到不會摔落的位置
  10. DanielNS87
    Apr 21, 2020
    1
    Awfull game, like all games of platinum, this Japanesse games like a manga or anime are boreed and so fuc...and annoying, the music make a headache, the gameplay its simply bad and the palet of colors are sooooo fu... ugly, this colors have can to provoke a epiletical attack.
  11. Phaidros
    Sep 3, 2019
    4
    I am stunned, how the well known sites and reviewers are hyping this game.
    For me it plays like a 10$ game, unpolished and uninspired. Graphics are nice, but that is all.
    Pro:
    - graphics
    Cons:
    - sloppy programmed acting of the characters
    - uninspired story
    - no reason to play it, basically. Predecessors (Bajonetta, Nier Automata) are way better
  12. FranchuteKikito
    Sep 4, 2019
    3
    This is such a meh game, I can not understand the hype around it, It does not excels in anything, is pretty but no different from many other arts I've seen in other Japanese games, and that this level of graphics are running in 30 fps is just a shame.
  13. rpacoc
    Sep 4, 2019
    0
    Una falta de respeto por borrar las notas. El juego es uno del montón. No destaca en historia haciendola muy predecible. El sistema de combate nada innovador.
  14. Skyward_Hearts
    Sep 3, 2019
    2
    Let me start by saying, no, this isn't a fake review by a Sony fanboy like a lot are claiming all negative reviews are. I am more likely to be a Nintendo fanboy, my favourite games of all time are Nintendo exclusive, the Switch is my favourite console ever, I pretty much only play Switch and PC these days. Not only that, but I am a huge fan of Platinum Games, who I believe are responsibleLet me start by saying, no, this isn't a fake review by a Sony fanboy like a lot are claiming all negative reviews are. I am more likely to be a Nintendo fanboy, my favourite games of all time are Nintendo exclusive, the Switch is my favourite console ever, I pretty much only play Switch and PC these days. Not only that, but I am a huge fan of Platinum Games, who I believe are responsible for some of the best action games ever.

    With that out of the way, let me express how I think this game is utter garbage. First I will list off the positives, as it will be quite quick to get through them all:

    Pros:
    -Interesting world building full of interesting ideas. This is one of the first Platinum Games original IPs that has an intricate and well thought out world design, that doesn't exist solely as an excuse for bombastic action set pieces.

    -Lots of unique and great ideas with combat and exploration using the game's centric gimmick.

    -A distinct visual style with popping colour design.

    Ok, now that's out of the way, let's talk about the negatives, which, in my opinion, is basically everything else:

    -The combat system. Right, so the opening of the game shows you what the combat system is like without the legion gimmick, and I think anyone who would argue this is in any way good is lying. You have one button for attacks and you can dodge out the way. That's essentially as deep as the core combat of your character is, instead of having a super powerful, quick and stylish playable character that feels constantly fun and rewarding, you have a slow, weak and simple human that can't really do a whole lot. Luckily, you are given a legion near the end of the opening, where combat opens up slightly more. Now you have the ability to summon in an assistant who is chained to you, and control where they move. But that is it for now. You get to tell what looks like a fun character where to attack, while you're still stuck being boring. As the game goes on, you get given more and more abilities for your legion and the chain between you is used as a combat mechanic in various ways that are actually quite clever in concept, One of the most fun examples is the way you can make a chain line that acts as an elastic band to fling charging enemies back and stun them. The first time you use it, it feels pretty fun, but eventually, it just becomes a chore to keep doing. Imagine a significantly slower paced version of The Wonderful 101's mechanics. The other thing is you get legion attacks, which you can activate in certain situations or after your one button combos finish. This never seems to go beyond 'press the button' when you see a flash and only seems to add to the flashy visuals than it does to the gameplay. You can also learn parrying, which works similarly to Metal Gear Rising. The game continues like this, where instead of fleshing out your base combat, you're simply given more and more 'extras' to make it more complicated. There are a lot of clever ideas, but they felt more to me like tacked on gimmicks that got in the way of the fun, rather than enhancing it.The entire time I was playing, I was wishing that I would just play as the legion on its own, that actually looks fun. Why is the game getting to have all the fun while I have to deal with the busy work?

    The other huge negative is the camera and lock on controls, which in tight spaces, are **** atrocious. Your view is constantly getting obscured by various objects, walls or other enemies. You can't move the camera manually without locking on to another enemy and changing your camera completely, so you're left relying on the auto lock on to focus on the right thing without getting blocked - which is rare. The developers seemed to know this, so they decided to make the vast majority of the games combat take place is barren, flat and open grey and red areas, sacrificing interesting and varied level design to make the camera more bearable. This ties in to the next criticism:

    The mission and area design. The structure of a mission starts with extremely slow paced, ancient-feeling investigative sections in small and samey urban areas. There is nothing interesting about these sections at all other than a few cool little secrets to find. Other than that, they just serve as a blockade preventing you from just getting to action gameplay at a reasonable pace. Which makes the term 'action-packed' for this game feel quite insulting. Once you finally reach the actual gameplay - the levels are all indistinguishable red and grey cubey areas with very basic and slow paced platforming that feels straight out of a bad PS2 era game, mixed with lite and uninteresting puzzle solving, with a few combat encounters here and there. I honestly feel anyone who describes this game as 'action-packed' is spitefully lying to you. It's slow, awkward, clumsy and altogether all these ideas come together in a poorly executed mess.

    Hugely disappointed.    … Expand
  15. gunk91
    Sep 4, 2019
    1
    No comprendo a la gente que está tan contenta con este juego. Va completamente a tirones y me ha crasheado varias veces, la historia no tiene ningún sentido, es completamente infumable.

    A ver si tengo suerte y no borran mi review por ser negativa, ya que gastarste 50€ en esto es tirar el dinero completamente.
  16. tygerjoe
    Sep 5, 2019
    0
    I traded it in after playing for several hours. Exploration is a bore and using the astral chain is clunky. Rumor is it gets better but I want willing to put any more time into this game. Traded in within the first week. Buyer beware. Rating game too low because others are rating it too high. Visuals are great but gameplay is most important to me.
  17. Neatqt
    Nov 10, 2019
    3
    Cast: 2/10
    Story: 2/10
    Fun: 2/10
    Gameplay: 4/10

    Not Recommended
    ----------------------
  18. BrapBrapPewPew
    Sep 2, 2019
    3
    This is a game about making circles... its aggressively mediocre. Boring and bland. What happened? How is this popular? It looks worse than some phone games. I'm disappointed I spent the money for it, was really excited actually. Love the bayonetta series, why did they waste their time on this.
  19. XB0
    Aug 30, 2019
    1
    ¿Qué se puede decir de Astral Chain?
    Antes de que uno lo probara puede decir muchas cosas ya que el desarrollador no es nadie más que Platinum Games.
    Comenzaré con los puntos buenos. El apartado artístico es bueno (No lo mejor que he visto, pero ahí está) Ahora los puntos malos (Si eres fanboy de Platinum o Nintendo mejor busque otra review que le haya puesto 10 sin haberlo jugado)    ¿Qué se puede decir de Astral Chain?
    Antes de que uno lo probara puede decir muchas cosas ya que el desarrollador no es nadie más que Platinum Games.
    Comenzaré con los puntos buenos.
    El apartado artístico es bueno (No lo mejor que he visto, pero ahí está)
    Ahora los puntos malos (Si eres fanboy de Platinum o Nintendo mejor busque otra review que le haya puesto 10 sin haberlo jugado)

    Prosigo
    Uno después de jugar NieR: Automata uno esperaba una historia sobresaliente, ya que al parecer se veia que cada título hecho por Platinum iba mejorando progresivamente. A mí parecer la historia peca de ser simplona y no te exige para nada el entenderla. (Para alguien casual supongo que la historia estará bien)
    Algo que hace por ejemplo muy amado a la saga Devil May Cry es el carisma de los personajes ya que estos te generan una empatía que te dan ganas de seguir jugando cosa que no pasa en Astral Chain, ya que muchos llegan a ser planos y monótonos cosa que no ayuda mucho a la rejugabilidad por espantarnos con ello.
    Los puzzles del juego tienden a ser repetitivos y muy poco interesantes. Este aspecto no contribuye mucho al gameplay, cosa que solo genera bajar la calidad del mismo.
    Siento mucho reciclaje en el uso de escenarios. Si bien reutilizar uno que otro escenario no está mal, aquí pudieron haberlo hecho mejor más que todo por el género.
    El diseño de personajes se me es muy genérico y eso es muy negativo ya que el juego no podrá ser muy memorable ni siquiera por ese apartado
    Algo muy importante en los hack & slash es la fluidez y que este juego vaya a 30fps es sin duda un gran handicap para la jugabilidad. Hay que ser muy necio para decir que los 60fps no son necesarios aquí y muy hater para decir que otros juegos (que no requieren 60fps) van a 30.

    Otras pegas:
    - La cámara
    - Las investigaciones entorpecen el ritmo del juego
    - Clichés

    Conclusión: Astral Chain llega a ser un videojuego que al final de todo no está muy seguro de qué quiere lograr. El gameplay llega a ser desordenado para los casuals a lo que me parece que el juego está más enfocado por su historia y sus pausas con mecánicas simples y aburridas. Además de no lograr los 60fps que en este género si se requieren.
    Personajes planos que solo lograran que Astral Chain sea un juego olvidable a menos que se te venga a la mente el apartado artístico, aunque en el diseño de personajes y niveles no se llega a apreciar el mismo. Una decepción para lo que puede ofrecer el equipo de Platinum.
    Este es el peor trabajo de Platinum Games después del de las tortugas ninja, ya que en este tuvieron libertad en el desarrollo cosa que no se pudo en el juego de Activision, una pena.
    Si quieres jugar un buen hack & slash ahí tienes a Devil May Cry V, Bayonetta 2 o NieR que valen 1000 veces la pena más que este juego.    … Expand
  20. Fumiko
    Sep 3, 2019
    0
    Barely 30fps action game with a silent/bland protagonist, bad graphics, forgettable story and mediocore combat. Just bad.
  21. Alextreme80
    Sep 3, 2019
    0
    Un juego.mas del montón de switch en lo personal no me gustó.....eso sin contar a nivel gráfico deja mucho que desear...en fin
  22. SnakeLeon
    Sep 4, 2019
    2
    LLevo ya más de 20 horas de juego, la intención es buena, pero mal ejecutada, no se siente la misma sensación frenética de otros Hack and Slash, el gameplay al estar a 30fps se siente muy poco fluído, un hack and slash siempre debe ir a 60fps, es lo que han hecho todos los buenos referentes del género. En un RPG por turnos no afecta, o en juegos de aventura, pero en juegos de este géneroLLevo ya más de 20 horas de juego, la intención es buena, pero mal ejecutada, no se siente la misma sensación frenética de otros Hack and Slash, el gameplay al estar a 30fps se siente muy poco fluído, un hack and slash siempre debe ir a 60fps, es lo que han hecho todos los buenos referentes del género. En un RPG por turnos no afecta, o en juegos de aventura, pero en juegos de este género es indispensable.
    Otra queja es que tiene mucho input lag el juego, y aunque la historia es muy buena, el gameplay defrauda bastante, ojalá mejore después con un parche o algo. Yo lo venderé y jugaré algo más por el momento.    … Expand
  23. Romangelo
    Sep 2, 2019
    0
    I'm not giving it a zero because "Not on PS4" like some people, but the game literally crashed my Switch. It's unplayable to me.
  24. MrWonderful32
    Sep 1, 2019
    3
    In my 20 plus years of gaming I never seen such an overhyped and overrated game such as Astral Chain, the initial first hour of the game is so slow pace that almost made me stop playing, the framerate is God awful, theres framepacing issues all over the place, the pacing of the game has no direction as it seems to be fluffed up with meaningless busy work, the graphics are okay but theIn my 20 plus years of gaming I never seen such an overhyped and overrated game such as Astral Chain, the initial first hour of the game is so slow pace that almost made me stop playing, the framerate is God awful, theres framepacing issues all over the place, the pacing of the game has no direction as it seems to be fluffed up with meaningless busy work, the graphics are okay but the whole "Cell shaded " look is played out already and it's mostly used to Hide the switch's shortcomings, the whole Cell shaded look is pretty outdated by today's standards, ....yes it was great on zelda botw but now its just redundant and getting old, in conclusion...Astral Chain is just not worth the asking price as it plays more like a budget tittle than its AAA price suggests.… Expand
  25. Rochter
    Sep 2, 2019
    0
    Switch died during a Fight on Chapter 8.
    Started slowing down really hard and overheated. Looked nice at least... But a Dead switch...
  26. Xingshouaguai
    Sep 3, 2019
    1
    The gameplay is really bad in TV mode,gameplay is worse than NieR Automata's
  27. Klansterjander
    Sep 7, 2019
    1
    After finishing the game and giving it a chance, I can give an appropriate opinion with knowledge about this game. For my taste it has been long, heavy, boring and repetitive, I have not liked the graphics and the game mechanics very thick. With all this I do not recommend it at all and I give it a 1 of total note. Dont Buy this game people.
  28. Hyperbeam
    Aug 30, 2019
    0
    It’s a rare occasion that I have complete disdain for something while also heavy admiration for its creators. But here that only serves to heighten my dissatisfaction: astral chain is inadequate because, while not bad*, it has glaring, obvious faults:

    Unintelligible combat - with the acception of some bosses every combat sequence is too busy with enemies acting independently contrasting    It’s a rare occasion that I have complete disdain for something while also heavy admiration for its creators. But here that only serves to heighten my dissatisfaction: astral chain is inadequate because, while not bad*, it has glaring, obvious faults:

    Unintelligible combat - with the acception of some bosses every combat sequence is too busy with enemies acting independently contrasting each other in a cacophony(sic?) of overlapping overlysimple monotony. And the combat mechanics are completely interchangable removing the development or necessity of any skill.

    Horrible dialogue/ voice acting - The characters have no personality or charisma. The lines are often highly illogical with the overal conclusion of each interaction conflicting characters haphazardly built up individualty betraying a sense of vacancy on the writers part. And the voice acting is equally robotic and contrived highlighted by being programmed disjointedly contributing to an overall sense of such flagrant carelessness it’s offensive.

    Bad visuals - the game has an attractive art style, but the environments are extremely repetitive and bland. The only saving grace here is the boss design

    Conclusion: the developers chose a cash grab at the expensive of the customers value. Why play astral chain? Because there’s nothing better to do. But there is

    *(in my opinion for a game to be bad it needs to be nearly empty or extremely sensually abrasive)    … Expand
  29. Nihon
    Aug 30, 2019
    3
    If you want a good action game buy Bayonetta, Nier Automata or MGR. This game has none depth.
  30. Lohenwolf
    Aug 30, 2019
    3
    30 FPS action game. In honesty there shouldn't be anything else to say but I can go the extra mile in telling you why you should stay away from this game, or at the very least dissuade you from paying full price for it. They decided to not let the game speak for itself and will flood you will cinematic shots and anime set pieces that distract away from the actual gameplay (which on it's30 FPS action game. In honesty there shouldn't be anything else to say but I can go the extra mile in telling you why you should stay away from this game, or at the very least dissuade you from paying full price for it. They decided to not let the game speak for itself and will flood you will cinematic shots and anime set pieces that distract away from the actual gameplay (which on it's own is pretty good). If they removed how many times the game decides to interrupt the flow of gameplay it would have been much better. Purchase it on sale if you really have to or try to borrow it from a friend since its only like 15 hours long.… Expand
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Awards & Rankings

9
#9 Best Switch Game of 2019
2
#2 Most Discussed Switch Game of 2019
70
#70 Most Shared Switch Game of 2019

Critic Reviews

All reviews »
Metascore
87

Generally favorable reviews - based on 92 Critic Reviews

Critic score distribution:
  1. Positive: 89 out of 92
  2. Mixed: 3 out of 92
  3. Negative: 0 out of 92
  1. Nintendo Force Magazine
    Apr 28, 2020
    85
    This one is more of a crowd-pleaser than a game-changer. [Issue #42 – October 2019, p. 68]
  2. LEVEL (Czech Republic)
    Feb 28, 2020
    100
    Astral Chain consists of varied genres, but is mostly an action game, which has great ideas and interesting, relaxed humour, that doesn´t spoil its serious plot. [Issue#298]
  3. ZTGD
    Nov 7, 2019
    85
    Despite the hardware limitations and a handful of odd design choices, Astral Chain is one of the best new IPs to hit in recent years and one deserving the attention of every Switch owner.
    Read full review
See all critic reviews »