Blasphemous

 Switch
User Score
7.8

Generally favorable reviews- based on 208 Ratings

User score distribution:
  1. Positive: 153 out of 208
  2. Mixed: 28 out of 208
  3. Negative: 27 out of 208
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  1. fanmadeendings
    Jul 23, 2023
    10
    What a game. What a deeply flawed, yet absolutely breathtaking game: From the graphics to the atmosphere to the boss fights, this is absolutely incredible and I'm lucky to have found it so late, as it has a bunch more content, is way more polished and the sequel is right on the way!
  2. fruitbat1015
    May 26, 2023
    10
    This game should be a perfect 10. By far one of the best MV's of all time! The only complaints I had was the lack of a short hop, and it's hard to grab the ladders when jumping from left or right. Amazing game!
    h
  3. Gerdo
    May 6, 2023
    10
    Incredible. It starts slow and gets you frustrated. Once you get the hang of it, it becomes a really awesome game with a gloomy/religious aesthetics. Totally recommended.
  4. Jerg4n
    Apr 8, 2023
    8
    Fun exploration, good bosses and the art style is both gorgeous and disgusting.
  5. EternalAR58
    Jan 2, 2023
    10
    Me encanta, un juego hecho por hispano hablantes, con el lore cristiano a flor de piel, ese acercamiento 2D al souls like, con misterios y muchos lugares por descubrir, pocas experiencias me han gustado tanto, siempre con ganas de volverlo a jugar.
  6. IamSquid
    Jan 2, 2023
    10
    This game is everything I want from a Metroidvania, and the aesthetic is incredible. If there's a downside to it, I'd say that the game developer's should have bitten the bullet and instead of making the game about a made-up religion that resembles medieval Roman Catholicism, they should have actually made it about medieval Roman Catholicism - THAT would be blasphemous.
  7. bonsai
    Nov 17, 2022
    8
    Very fun game, 100% worth his price.
    50% metroidvania 50% soulslike, with a lore that really got me hooked in and searching for YouTube videos to explain it.
    The overall experience is a 8/10 imo, it would've been a 9 but the platforming and backtranking can ruin the pace and fun of the game sometime.
  8. Bravelilengine
    Sep 29, 2022
    8
    Played on Switch Lite.

    This game has the best pixel graphics I have ever seen. It feels like you are playing through a work of art that is grim, dark, and beautiful. Blasphemous instantly got my attention the first time I saw it in the eshop it was the one of the first games I bought after receiving my switch. The atmosphere, and lore was so interesting it looked like a 2d Dark Souls so    Played on Switch Lite.

    This game has the best pixel graphics I have ever seen. It feels like you are playing through a work of art that is grim, dark, and beautiful.

    Blasphemous instantly got my attention the first time I saw it in the eshop it was the one of the first games I bought after receiving my switch. The atmosphere, and lore was so interesting it looked like a 2d Dark Souls so I just had to have it.

    Now while the graphics, and atmosphere is a solid 10/10 some areas have room for improvement. To be honest I stopped playing this game shortly after buying it. Playing it at first was great, but a few hours in I was annoyed by the mechanics it just put a bad taste in my mouth. I recently picked it back up when all the free dlc came out I thought I would finally try again, and very glade I did. While it still has issues it was a fun ride that most people will love.

    Read past Pros, and Cons for detailed thoughts.

    Pros:
    -Breath taking graphic style, and atmosphere.
    -Fluid, and fun combat.
    -Lots of lore.
    -Smooth fps (maybe 5 secs of lag in one area other then that smooth to the end).
    -Great world design, dense map there was so much to do, and unlock.
    -The right amount of difficulty (not to hard, but not easy either).

    Cons:
    -Dodgy platforming
    -Frustrating bugs
    -Lack luster upgrade system for sword.
    -Repetitive back tracking.
    -Slow movement speed for said back tracking (wish there was some kind of movement upgrade when out of combat).
    -Some bosses had annoying mechanics.
    -Button inputs not responding occasionally.

    The platforming in this game isn’t really that great. First of all the automatic ledge grabbing is frustrating I can’t count how many times I simply wanted to just drop down, but would just continuously grab a ledge.

    I learned that you can only jump on a platform if you are above it or on the same level. I have made jumps that looked like they were going to land, but fell right through just because the platform was slightly above the other one.

    I also had issues with some enemies just always seem to hit me even if I dodged the hit boxes feel a bit off. There are no eye frames when being knocked down I have been juggled by enemies, and bosses to death because of no time to recover.

    The game bugged out a few times causing a restart. Enemies would get stuck on screen instead of dieing in segments where you need to kill all enemies to proceed this happened a few time, and a single crash which is the only time I ever dealt with a crash on switch btw. One other bug was my guilt (what drops upon death) was on top one hit kill spikes.

    Upgrading the sword was so lack luster I never used half the stuff I upgraded the only things that felt worth it was the lunge attack, and the combo finishers. I had like 16k points by the end of the game cause I just didn’t need the other upgrades.

    Even with all these problems I still very much enjoyed the game, and would recommend you give it a go. Maybe the 2nd installment will fix most of these issues either way I will be looking forward to more from these developers.


    Even with all these problems I still very much enjoyed the game, and would recommend you give it a go. Maybe the 2nd installment will fix most of these issues either way I will be looking forward to more from these developers.    … Expand
  9. Shajck
    May 22, 2022
    9
    Juego muy completo y entretenido a más no poder. La música, ambientación y las horas de juego son un puntazo para un juego que se disfruta desde el primer momento.
  10. Heimdall64
    Apr 29, 2022
    8
    Artísticamente es una obra maestra, se hubiera agradecido una mejor fluidez en los controles, y personalmente que hubiese sido un poco menos difícil los boss, aunque su dificultad es tolerable.
  11. jorgepc95
    Apr 17, 2022
    9
    One of the best indie games to date, one of the best metroidvanias ever made and one hell of a art-style and soundtrack. Kind of difficult if you don't pay enough attention to the mechanics and secrets of the game. A lot of collectibles, hidden stuff and replay value.

    Very recommended if you have knowledge of Catholicism and don't care a lot about the religion.
  12. Elite_Institute
    Mar 5, 2022
    9
    "Blasphemous is a very meaty game, with a lot of content available for your first playthrough and a lot more available after beating the game (NG+ contains stuff that you won’t encounter during your first completion!). Overall, the game is a visual treat and a delight to play. Its refusal to help you with your quests, the lack of bestiary, and having some areas that could have done with an"Blasphemous is a very meaty game, with a lot of content available for your first playthrough and a lot more available after beating the game (NG+ contains stuff that you won’t encounter during your first completion!). Overall, the game is a visual treat and a delight to play. Its refusal to help you with your quests, the lack of bestiary, and having some areas that could have done with an extra save area or shortcut, all prevent the game from being the masterpiece it deserves to be. However, it is still a great game that deserves to be played. It’s [thankfully] nowhere near as challenging as the likes of Dark Souls or Hollow Knight, but it’ll still provide a tough challenge for those who want to be punished."

    https://theeliteinstitute.net/2021/07/25/blasphemous/    … Expand
  13. Guzidi
    Dec 28, 2021
    9
    Great art style and theme, really interesting deep story! Addicting gameplay and progression with good build customisation available, although controls can be feel clunky and difficult at times but that is just part of the game to overcome.
  14. lailxd
    Dec 22, 2021
    10
    What I like about this game:
    dark ages religious atmosphere.
    challenging game play.
    characters design and dialogs. They are ridiculous and I love them.

    I think most of the early user reviews are lower since the game had a lot of bugs at the start, but most were ironed out at this point.

    I will forever rate this game as 10/10. can't wait for Blasphemous 2!
  15. jcboyer515
    Nov 24, 2021
    10
    I think this game is incredible & brutal. The art & voice work is excellent & the setting is haunting. This is my low effort review for a game that feels like it pulls off exactly what it was trying to do.
  16. JoeyPL5
    Nov 16, 2021
    9
    Really good Metroidvania, but compared to Hollow Knight it's impossible to give this a 10.
  17. doodlerman
    Sep 6, 2021
    8
    A perfectly solid Metroidvania souls-like with some of the best pixel-art you'll find in a game. It's challenging but never really daunting, so you'll likely never feel overcome with frustration. There are a few late-game glitches that were kind of cumbersome, though (like this one where if you call an elevator on a specific platform, you'll fall through to the floor below). Like DarkA perfectly solid Metroidvania souls-like with some of the best pixel-art you'll find in a game. It's challenging but never really daunting, so you'll likely never feel overcome with frustration. There are a few late-game glitches that were kind of cumbersome, though (like this one where if you call an elevator on a specific platform, you'll fall through to the floor below). Like Dark Souls, the story is vague. Unlike Dark Souls, the way everyone talks is so dense and indecipherable it's almost comedic. It's essentially a word where Medieval Christian guilt is presented literally— or at least that's how I saw it. I never did any digging into the lore but enjoyed it all the same, even if I couldn't really understand much of what was going on.… Expand
  18. giannis2001
    Aug 11, 2021
    8
    Outstanding platformer. The setting is astounding, the combat feels polished and smooth and the exploring is great. It's also really challenging but fair. I highly recommend it.
  19. Terrax
    Jun 24, 2021
    10
    This game is a masterwork action RPG/platformer metroid-whateveria. Despite all it's similarities to say Dark Souls or Castlevania it absolutely stands out and up on it's own merit as a deeply stylish, haunting world and narrative. PSA as well: If you have trouble with the controls, switch to the d-pad for movement. It makes all your inputs much more exacting and really helps you finesseThis game is a masterwork action RPG/platformer metroid-whateveria. Despite all it's similarities to say Dark Souls or Castlevania it absolutely stands out and up on it's own merit as a deeply stylish, haunting world and narrative. PSA as well: If you have trouble with the controls, switch to the d-pad for movement. It makes all your inputs much more exacting and really helps you finesse say some of the more difficult trick platforming in the added Bloodstained content.

    I triple recommend the game if you've ever had a brush with hardcore faith or Catholicism in your life. As an ex-catholic it felt sublimely cathartic to experience themes all too familiar with a new coat of paint, underscoring both the grotesquely but also grace and elegance of faith.

    This game is perma-downloaded on my system and it has so much replayability that even after three runs I can absolutely see myself coming back on a rainy day.    … Expand
  20. Reed618
    May 23, 2021
    8
    Blasphemous is definitely worth your time if you're a fan of 2d metroidvanias and dark souls. It has some issues but overall offers a lot.

    The art is phenomenal. The world is also well designed and the direction is pretty clear. One issue I had with hollow knight is there came a point where I just had no idea how to progress so I had to look up a guide. With blasphemous this wasn't an    Blasphemous is definitely worth your time if you're a fan of 2d metroidvanias and dark souls. It has some issues but overall offers a lot.

    The art is phenomenal. The world is also well designed and the direction is pretty clear. One issue I had with hollow knight is there came a point where I just had no idea how to progress so I had to look up a guide. With blasphemous this wasn't an issue at all. I always had an idea of what direction I needed to go in.

    The combat is solid but a bit limited. One attack button and then you have a simple projectile which doesn't go far and a magic spell e.g shield that damages enemies. It offers enough to keep things interesting but it's not great. Most of the bosses are solid but with a couple it just felt I was getting by on luck. Waiting for the a.i to behave in a certain way on an attempt so i'd have the upper hand. Also, unlike with a 3d game such as dark souls it's a hassle trying to avoid enemies. So if I die and want to get back to the area where I was it can be a bit of a slog at times.

    The story never grabbed me which is a shame but overall I had a good time with blasphemous. I'd be curious to see what the team behind it can come up with next.    … Expand
  21. sinantos
    Mar 31, 2021
    9
    I just finished this game %100. I both loved and hated the game at the same time. Good story, stylish graphics, good music, very good level design, lots of secrets to explore, beautifully designed side quests and amazing boss fights. However game play is sometimes frustrating. The hardest boss in this game is jumping from point A to Point B. I died countless times just by failing to jump,I just finished this game %100. I both loved and hated the game at the same time. Good story, stylish graphics, good music, very good level design, lots of secrets to explore, beautifully designed side quests and amazing boss fights. However game play is sometimes frustrating. The hardest boss in this game is jumping from point A to Point B. I died countless times just by failing to jump, more than dying in boss fights. In the beginning of the game I visited a place I should have visited later. I was so frustrated to the point of giving up the game, yet I am happy that I didn't. If you loved Darks Souls games, I recommend this game. Please be patient with this game and it will award you handsomely.… Expand
  22. alltheveg
    Mar 20, 2021
    8
    Tough, fair, beautiful, intriguing, novel, replayability, and lots of content.
  23. Sijun
    Mar 11, 2021
    9
    Hello sinners! It is finally here and as far as I can say I really can't see any major cons. Let me break it down.

    Pros: - Metroidvania gameplay - beautiful atmospheric pixel art graphics - challenging fights - masterclass atmospheric music - disturbingly gruesome - many customisation options - well writen and atmospheric story line - controls feel good and the port to switch is    Hello sinners! It is finally here and as far as I can say I really can't see any major cons. Let me break it down.

    Pros:
    - Metroidvania gameplay
    - beautiful atmospheric pixel art graphics
    - challenging fights
    - masterclass atmospheric music
    - disturbingly gruesome
    - many customisation options
    - well writen and atmospheric story line
    - controls feel good and the port to switch is awesome executed
    - translation into other languages is pretty good, at least for german (only the text got translated tho, voice is still english, which is good)
    - very good voice acting
    - really cool cutscenes
    - 60 fps ins handheld and tv-mode
    - as of March 2021 they seem to release more updates, which is good

    Cons:
    - I personally wished for more fluid gameplay like dodging midair from the get go but that is so minor it doesnt even is needed
    - I bought the game from german Nintendo eShop and it seems to have no option to change the language back to english (also a really minor con)
    - sometimes it feels a bit weird when bosses change their pattern

    Verdict:
    It is a beautiful, challenging, well writen and atmospheric game. The creators of The Last Door did a really good job and the music by Carlos Viola Iborra delivers once more! I highly recommend supporting this developer so we can get more of those awesome atmospheric games. Well done Game Kitchen, well done!    … Expand
  24. AceAscendus
    Dec 12, 2020
    10
    Awesome indie game! Incorporates a lot of good stuff from both Castlevania and Soulsborne games! The artstyle and atmosphere is extremely good, buy it and enjoy it, it is worth the money.
  25. Vovashashunov
    Nov 22, 2020
    8
    Многие жаловались на кривой платформинг, но ничего такого я не заметил. Не очень удобная карта, в которой не всегда удобно ориентироваться. Побочные квесты в основном это сбор предметов для NPC, тоже не особо порадовало. По итогу до финала игры так и не понял как дополз всего с парой апгрейдов HP и меча.
    Затянула боевкой, офигенным лором и визуальным оформлением, залипнуть можно    Многие жаловались на кривой платформинг, но ничего такого я не заметил. Не очень удобная карта, в которой не всегда удобно ориентироваться. Побочные квесты в основном это сбор предметов для NPC, тоже не особо порадовало. По итогу до финала игры так и не понял как дополз всего с парой апгрейдов HP и меча.
    Затянула боевкой, офигенным лором и визуальным оформлением, залипнуть можно рассматривая задники локаций и персонажей. Очень крутые и запоминающиеся боссы, кроме трёх сестёр.    … Expand
  26. Mazokie
    Nov 2, 2020
    10
    A wonderful surprise. I played this year hollow knight and it was a fascinating experience in every way. Blasphemous is different but it has lot in common in its essence. A must play for old school gamers, one of my favourite of all time.
  27. Luxox412
    Sep 25, 2020
    10
    Incredible game, with a good duration, a very immersive environment, the graphics are perfect for you, the music, the bosses, all very good, a challenging difficulty but not so high as to get bored, a variety of languages ​​and the best everything is its free downloadable content.
  28. mbestvina
    Sep 4, 2020
    9
    *Edited from a 7 to an 9 and heavily edited my review after the DLC and a few patches. Really an 8.5 for me but I'll bump it up because they addressed so many of my complaints.

    Blasphemous is a gorgeous pixel-art mix of MetroidVania and Dark Souls, like Hollow Knight, Momodora, or especially Unworthy. It's a large 15-20 hour quest that has some ups and downs but it's strengths now    *Edited from a 7 to an 9 and heavily edited my review after the DLC and a few patches. Really an 8.5 for me but I'll bump it up because they addressed so many of my complaints.

    Blasphemous is a gorgeous pixel-art mix of MetroidVania and Dark Souls, like Hollow Knight, Momodora, or especially Unworthy. It's a large 15-20 hour quest that has some ups and downs but it's strengths now outweigh its weaknesses. It's ultimately a much better Souls-like than a MetroidVania but it works really well as a Souls-like so I'd recommend it to that crowd and not the other.

    PRO
    + Pixel-Art. Some of the best pixel-art you've ever seen. Watch a trailer
    + Art-Style. The game goes for Spanish and religious themes with its design and is fantastic. Seems to have a Catholicism-gone-wrong theme which I ove. They added Spanish dialog, which I feel is the way to play the game, given the theming but the English is great too.
    + World Building. The world actually makes a lot of sense and everything fits together logically. Lots of visual variety in the environments. Even though it's 2D, it still does the Dark Souls thing where you can see other levels in the background.
    + Music. Moody, atmospheric, religious music. Castlevania fans apply
    + Large quest. Minimum 15 hours but could be 20+ if you do everything.
    + NG+ was added, basically a hard mode but you keep all your ability upgrades so you don't have to do any tedious backtracking again. I enjoyed NG+ way more than my initial run a year prior, which hammered home what a weak MetroidVania it is
    + Satisfying, crunchy action combat. i-frame dodging, estus flasks, and parrying. SoulsBourneSekiro fans, check it out
    + Good level of challenge, NG+ especially feels perfectly balanced, where every boss took me a handful of tries but always felt fair.
    + Great Bosses across the board, visually and gameplay
    + Free DLC. A few new rooms and additions but mainly just 5 new bosses that work just like the Valkyries in God of War 4.

    MAIN CON - BOTCHED METROIDVANIA ELEMENTS
    - There are only a handful of exploration upgrades and they are entirely missable. Imagine a Metroid game where the morph ball and ice beam are optional... If you like MetroidVanias and not Souls-likes, this game is not for you!
    - Some of the MetroidVania abilities are obtained through really unintuitive side-quests where you'll likely need a guide. I probably wouldn't mind them being optional if you just found them through exploration but the fact that they're gated behind these quests is where it truly fails as a MetroidVania
    - Can only equip 3 exploration upgrades. This gets tedious and adds nothing, as you constantly pause to swap out abilities. They're all passive abilities and should just all just be equipped. Again, imagine a Metroid where you can only equip 3 upgrades, or one where you have to pause and change your suit whenever you go to a water or fire area. Why?

    OTHER CONS
    - Instant-death platforming is rough in a game like this. There's only a few platforming-heavy areas but the 2 main ones are toward the beginning of the game. Stick with it, this element mostly goes away in the second half. Patched coyote jump helps a lot
    - Lackluster RPG elements. There's no leveling system, just a skill-tree. Most of the upgrades you can purchase are very contextual and not helpful in bosses. The dash-stab on the other hand is still broken, allowing you to 1-shot most enemies from afar. No new upgrades for NG+ so they just have you donate souls/exp to the church to get a new costume.
    - Magic isn't great. It's very expensive and there's a lengthy warm-up animation that is usually impractical in boss fights
    - Corpse running is just tedious. You don't lose your souls, just your magic (which is useless) and rate of experience. It's just an inconvenience, and death doesn't have the tension it should

    BUGS
    I encountered a few game-breakers on my first run. My character progression reset after 7 hours and I had to restart and then I was unable to claim my last few estus flasks for some reason toward the end. Also hit a few minor bugs as well. Second run with the patch was totally fine, although one of the DLC rooms glitched and I wasn't able to claim the DLC reward after beating it. Cmon guys, 2 steps forward, 1 back.

    Anyway, I clearly have some mixed feelings about this game but its strengths are so strong that I still recommend it to fans of Souls-likes that also like MetroidVanias. However, again, don't play this if you like MetroidVanias and not Souls-likes.    … Expand
  29. peepeetime
    Aug 27, 2020
    10
    Aug 2020 Edit: With the newest free dlc update "The Stir of Dawn", the devs have pretty much fixed the few issues I had with the game. Therefore I've decided to up my score from 8 to 10. Original thoughts below:

    Despite it being kind of a pain in the ass to backtrack and explore (due to very few warp rooms and having a very limited amount of traversal abilities) this really is a fun    Aug 2020 Edit: With the newest free dlc update "The Stir of Dawn", the devs have pretty much fixed the few issues I had with the game. Therefore I've decided to up my score from 8 to 10. Original thoughts below:

    Despite it being kind of a pain in the ass to backtrack and explore (due to very few warp rooms and having a very limited amount of traversal abilities) this really is a fun game. The environments/characters look spectacular and the boss fights are engaging and feel satisfying to defeat. I was also a fan of the currency flow. I didn't really grind stuff and had enough to purchase upgrades and items when I needed to.    … Expand
  30. BorjAngel88
    Aug 20, 2020
    9
    Un juego excepcional, pone a prueba la pericia del jugador al 100% y tiene un arte y un lore detrás BRUTAL
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Awards & Rankings

27
#27 Most Discussed Switch Game of 2019

Critic Reviews

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Metascore
77

Generally favorable reviews - based on 27 Critic Reviews

Critic score distribution:
  1. Positive: 21 out of 27
  2. Mixed: 6 out of 27
  3. Negative: 0 out of 27
  1. Gamers' Temple
    Apr 1, 2020
    97
    Blasphemous is a gothic horror masterpiece that can't be missed.
    Read full review
  2. FNintendo
    Mar 26, 2020
    90
    Blasphemous is a marvelous work of the Metroidvania genre with an art style based on pixel art and which features exquisite combat mechanics and an eye-filling visual environment marked by gloom and desolation. This is without a doubt one of the richest and most defying Metroidvania adventures to reach the market in recent years and a fundamental game for everyone who enjoys a good gaming experience of this kind.
    Read full review
  3. IGN Japan
    Jan 28, 2020
    78
    Blasphemous is a high-difficulty metroidvania-like side-scroller. Its gory violence is not for everyone, but together with its grim yet beautiful background scenery, it delivers a well-crafted ominous world. Just like a splatter movie, this is the kind of game you might want to dive into if you’re looking for serious thrills.
    Read full review
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