Katana ZERO

Katana Zero looks fantastic and has fun fast paced combat, unfortunately the combat is broken up with a confusing and convoluted story. It was all over too quickly, but for people who want more, a dialogue system provides replayability.

As is often the case the Switch version adds nothing to the experience, but the graphical style and lightning pace suit the handheld screen way better than they suit a full-sized TV. The Switch, as a result, feels like the natural home for Katana ZERO, which slots perfectly into the existing catalogue.

Katana ZERO offers a creative art direction, great soundtrack, addictive gameplay and an engaging narrative. However, the adventure is short, about 5 hours, and its conclusion can be frustrating. I'm sure we'll hear about your continuation soon.

The killing is enjoyable, but we'd have happily done much more of it. [Issue#333, p.122]

Katana Zero is a mesmerizing title. The narrative twists and turns in odd ways, and the payoff is both open and satisfying. The action is crisp if you can commit everything to memory well enough to create small, bloody masterpieces. With a familiar yet attractive presentation, Kata Zero feels right at home on the indie-loving machine that is the Nintendo Switch.

If you’re in the market for a fast paced, action packed platformer then Katana Zero should be on your list. The gameplay is awesome, the music is great and I really like the art style! I highly recommend checking it out.

In Katana Zero you will find shallow and flashy gameplay presented nicely. The story and the limited interaction is the main reason for playing this blood-spattered sidescroller. It's too bad it all ends a bit too sudden.

It made me want to break my Switch in half. But even in its most aggressively exasperating moments, Katana Zero remains bleak, beautiful, bloody, and brilliant.

Katana Zero is an incredibly stylish title, from the great looking pixel art to the fantastic soundtrack that accompanies the fast and brutal action. You really get to feel like you're a master swordsman as you overcome the challenges put before you, or die trying.

Do not absolutely miss out on Katana ZERO if you like stylish action games and mature plots. Heck, don't miss out on Katana ZERO in any case: this is one of the best indie titles of the year, and Nintendo Switch seems the perfect home for it.

An elegant blend of 2D action and cyberpunk storytelling, that manages to make a very distinctive experience out of some very familiar indie tropes.

Katana Zero was a pleasant surprise. I did not expect the emotional roller coaster I was about to embark on. It ticks all the boxes; great soundtrack, great gameplay, a well told story. I don't think there are enough words to explain how much I enjoyed this one. It is easily my favorite game of the year so far and I suggest you play it.

Action, drugs and samurai? Katana Zero introduces a strange character who has certain special qualities that will allow us to perform several crazy things that always end with a lot of blood. Perfect for lovers of action and hack and slash.

Katana Zero has been a surprise for everyone since it always kept a low profile and in the midst of the number of high level pitches that we have is able to carve a niche and get up as one of the best games so far this year. Perhaps its biggest problem comes in the sense of the duration that does not end up being exact to obtain the development of the whole plot and that certainly can be exploited more. Otherwise it is an indispensable this month and perhaps this year because without much pretension shows that the heart of a video game is in what is in itself and nothing more.

A satisfying streak of action-platforming madness together with some great world-building; the intentions and executions may not always come across fulfilled or impactful, but Katana Zero at least is a game that will attract on its narrative substance, as much its dynamic pixel-art style.

Katana Zero is super cool where it counts with very little faltering it. The action is practically flawless and begs you to learn from every small mistake you will make by throwing you back into it instantly. The story clearly has ambitions beyond this one title. While it doesn’t fully stick in a cohesive manner, I really hope we will see more of it in the near future. With action and style this good, some misgivings can be accepted. Carve some time out for this one.

Stylish, smooth and fast, Katana Zero is a refined experience with a strong gameplay and a surprisingly interesting story under a somewhat mundane pixelated surface.

Katana Zero is a fast-paced action game which shines thanks to its smooth, brilliant and clever gameplay, while surprisingly good writing gives an unexpected depth to the game. It’s a brand new take on the classic genre mechanics, made even cooler thanks to a lovely art style and a powerful soundtrack.

In no uncertain terms, Katana ZERO is perhaps the first big surprise of 2019: a breathtaking action game.

Katana Zero offers surprisingly solid narrative, excellent, fast paced gameplay and good level design. it is a short game, and it feels like it didn't reach its true potential, but it has a unique identity.

Katana ZERO may only last for a fist full of hours, but those hours had me rip-roaring into a frenzied dance of crimson in a formidable underworld of conspiracy, confusion, and grime. The cool ways in how the game takes a simple combat system and varies up the formula is something you really would have to see for yourself. If you’re like me and were in awe at watching Colin Firth during that infamous church scene in Kingsman, or that incredible choreography of Oh Dae-Su’s hammer scene in Oldboy, then get ready to go excommunicado and be sure not to leave anyone left standing.

Completing each of the 11 missions only took a few hours but my playtime increased dramatically trying to earn each of the different endings. In so many aspects I was left wanting more. I want to play more as the secondary character, I want to understand the story better, and in so many cases I just want to know what the hell is going on. Katana Zero is such a wild drug-crazed adventure that I just can’t get enough of and I will continue to be getting my fix of it for weeks to come.

After a sort of simple and slow beginning, Katana Zero unleashes its fantastic gameplay and narrative. We wish it had more reasons to replay it, as it is a little bit short, but it is absolutely fantastic while it lasts.

If you haven’t gleaned it already from reading up to this point, Katana Zero is unmistakably a game that you need to add to your Switch collection at earliest opportunity. The tough, hair-raising action sequences, gripping narrative, and impeccable sense of style elevate Katana Zero high above many of its peers, cementing it as a modern classic that sets new standards for what a side scrolling action game can be. This is the kind of game that you’ll blindly play through once and soon find yourself wishing you could have that first-time experience again; there’s nothing else quite like it on the eShop and we can’t recommend it enough.

Katana Zero is an extraordinarily fun experience for the few hours it lasts, but the bad taste it left in my mouth lingered much longer.

Katana Zero’s blade isn’t sharp enough to cut through its self-indulgent idiosyncrasy. Inventive action sequences that neatly divide improvisation and orchestration and a novel time-rewinding mechanic both suffer under an overwrought style miserably impressed with its own posture. Katana Zero works best when it’s not auditioning to change its title to Edge Lords.

Katana Zero feels at once derivative and remarkable. Cool blade-slicing combat is elevated by effortless style and a narrative uncharacteristically strong for its genre. You may have seen it all before, but never quite like this.

Katana ZERO is a beautiful and speedy action game that made interesting choices, both in mechanics and narrative... but it falls short in length and always left the feeling that it could have gone even further, with some mechanics not used to their full potential. The 12 levels left 6-7 gameplay hours as much, but it's relatively replayable thanks to the decisions.

Katana Zero surprises with its mechanics and style of direct game. Perfect for short games while we distribute swords left and right. Very funny.

Katana Zero’s time-bending samurai action is the star of the show here, but its unique presentation and entertaining dialogue go a long way in supporting a plot that suffers from feeling like it’s saving its best ideas for a sequel. As action games go, Katana Zero’s shorter length makes it a quick fix, and I’ll no doubt suffer withdrawal while I wait for the next hit.

Be the ultimate badass and kill your enemies in slow-motion. There are a lot of games that try to be like Hotline Miami, moving from area-to-area murdering with sheer ruthlessness, but few games match the execution and style like Katana Zero. Great pixel art, a wonderful use of color, and fantastic synthwave soundtrack. From start to finish, it's a fever dream worth having.

Katana Zero is a singular piece of art, with an earnest intensity rarely seen in gaming. Moving, exciting, and beautiful, it’s something best left played rather than explained.

If you can ignore gameplay flaws and focus on style, you might fall in love with its VHS trappings. However, if you want something beyond style, if you want an interesting interactive tale or a precise action game, you should look elsewhere.

Katana Zero ties an incredibly dark and thrilling narrative directly into fast and deep gameplay to create one of the best games of the year.

When Katana Zero is in top form, it is a satisfying and stylish action/puzzle hybrid that rewards your patience and persistence. But the longer you play, the more the effect diminishes. The assassination scenarios start blending together, and the cutscenes stop inspiring curiosity. That tipping point is what stops Katana Zero from reaching its full potential, but it doesn’t negate the pride that comes from a well-planned and perfectly executed sword-slashing rampage.