Sometimes, a game pops up that you know absolutely nothing about and completely passed you by on release. Axiom Verge is one of those titles, originally coming out in 2015 on Playstation 4, trickling out on a variety of other platforms in 2016, then finally being brought to the Switch in 2017.
Axiom Verge is a 2D platformer, developed by Thomas Happ. It is often given the distinction of belonging to the “metroidvania” genre, borrowing elements from these games, and paying homage to that era of gaming. It is essentially a sci-fi game, that has you navigating maze-like levels to reach a boss and progress to the next area, uncovering upgrades and secrets along the way.
The game was nominated for Best Independent Game at 2015’s Game Awards and has boasted universal acclaim since its release.
Story
Axiom Verge sees you play as a scientist named Trace, who is conducting an experiment that goes terribly wrong, exploding and somehow teleporting him to the alien world of Sudra, a world of ancient caverns and high-tech gizmos.
Trace is guided by a mysterious voice, later revealed to be a giant biomech head called Elsenova. She informs Trace that unless the “power filter” is reactivated, she will meet her demise. This sets you off on a quest to find the power filter, along the way uncovering the weird forces at work in this universe, which is divided into the Worldstream and the Breach. The latter of these is a large storm, and Sudra was built to keep this storm in check. However, the game’s villain, Athetos, released a pathogen, eliminating the organic life in Sudra, leaving nothing but the biomech inhabitants alive.
You navigate the game seeking answers, with each being that you meet giving you information that raises more questions. This keeps you going on, with the hope of clarifying on how you ended up in Sudra and learning what exactly is going on.
Gameplay
Axiom Verge is basically a side-scrolling adventure and if you’ve played any of these kinds of games before, you’ll find yourself at home here. You’ll have to move and dodge enemies and their projectiles whilst constantly firing off rounds into them and jumping from pillar to post to reach the next zone.
Your blaster can be loaded with different, ever more powerful types of ammo and accessories, which won’t just aid in combat, but will help you get past numerous environmental puzzles and locked doors. There are over 60 of these, and they’re all useful and meaningful in their own way. Switching between ammo types for specific enemies and bosses is the key to success, as you run’n’gun your way through the quest.
There’s a rather basic map to refer to if you find yourself lost and you can add markers to the map to remind yourself of something you can backtrack to when you have the right upgrade to proceed. This opens the game up into numerous directions eventually and if you want to discover hidden secrets and other items, you’ll definitely want to put in the time to go back and open up previously blocked paths.
I found the constant movement and pace of the game frantic at times, with enemy attacks and numbers making sure you never stay still for too long. The weapon you have packs a punch, the enemies are nice and balanced, and it can’t be said that they’re straight up bullet sponges.
As with most games of this nature, you find yourself just going along, almost aimlessly, fighting your way through until you reach the room with that next piece of the puzzle you’ve been searching for. There isn’t much else to the gameplay than that. It’s nice and simple, an easy-to-learn but hard-to-master exercise, testing your reactions and coordination. It genuinely thrusts you back into the early ’90s, when what games lacked in complexity they made up for in challenge. The pixel art and 8-bit soundtrack really help to bring you back to that time as well, not to mention how at home this game is on Switch, perfectly suited to handheld gaming.
The visuals are really impressive. Elsenova is intriguing whilst being ever so slightly unsettling, and the world is wrought with well-designed enemies, bosses, and puzzles, to give you many hours of fulfillment. Axiom Verge is also super replayable, giving you ample opportunity to find those hidden items you may have missed in your first playthrough.
Issues
As with any game, Axiom Verge isn’t perfect. The 8-Bit soundtrack can be a little grating at times. However, this is a minor gripe. A lot of the dialogue is super cheesy though and again, there are other games in this genre with better writing. However, it has to be said that Axiom Verge is trying to emulate a very specific era in gaming, so in that sense, the music and the dialogue do fit. It’s just a tad outdated for my tastes.
Plus, with this point in mind, Axiom Verge does not deviate from the formula those titles that influenced it laid out. Those influences are not just prevalent here, but their influence dominates the way Axiom Verge plays. So, in terms of gameplay, Axiom Verge doesn’t really bring anything new to the table.
I did say there are around 60 items and upgrades to pick up, but eventually, a great deal of these upgrades become surplus to requirements and you’ll likely find yourself leaning heavily towards the same set of ammo for a large portion of the game.
This game isn’t that short, unlike some in the genre. Including all of my many deaths, it took me close to 20 hours to get through. In this time, I found the story dragged a bit and the constant running towards another location or NPC to find answers to questions that Elsenova surely knows can become a little tiresome.
Verdict
On the whole, I did thoroughly enjoy Axiom Verge, and knowing that there’s a sequel to play too makes me happy. The setting is interesting, as are the characters, and things are well thought out and designed.
There’s plenty of fun to be had with this game if you put in the time and effort and the retro aesthetic, while sometimes just a pinch irritating, overall, is quite charming and really succeeds in throwing you back to the era of gaming some of us grew up with.
AXIOM VERGE IS RECOMMENDED
If you would like to read about Indie or Retro-Style games, you might be interested in this review of Ion Fury.
Axiom Verge was reviewed with a PC copy owned by the reviewer.
Damien (dkpriory) has grown up gaming, from the humble days of the Atari all the way through to modern PC gaming. Unafraid to let a game steal his life for a few months, he is passionate about playing something immersive but also yearns for something to take him back to his childhood. Sadly no longer a member of the NookGaming team or creating content, but check out his archives on Youtube here.
