★★★★★ Great Game, but I Have Suggestions.
Tue May 26 2020 Lavaman85I can’t say I was surprised that this was a great game. I saw it and thought it would be action packed and fun to play. I was right. The controls are simple and easy to master. They’re even better with a Bluetooth-connected controller, but if you don’t have one, that doesn’t ruin the experience. I played the game through on the Hard difficulty, often stopping to grind for exp. and items. I beat it, then went back through on the Bleak difficulty, in which I’m already a level thirty-something and I’m on world five. It’s not impossible to beat if you don’t grind, though. There are nine worlds, and ten levels in each.
There’s a neat storyline, but that’s where my suggestions come. I was impressed by gameplay and storyline, so I found myself longing for a twist or even more storyline. The beginning was great, but there was never a big twist or even more character development. This could be added in an update, I suppose, so I’m asking for one if it’s possible. I’ve always liked content updates and this game would do well with one. This is especially true because I wanted more levels. I beat the final boss and thought to myself, “Isn’t there more?”
I love this game, and that’s why I want more. I recommend this game to anyone who sees it.
★★★★★ My favorite Apple Arcade Game
Fri Oct 04 2019 N0iSEAThis game shows that Apple Arcade games can be done well. While most AA games I’ve played have been riddled with various problems, this one controls well, has text that is large enough to read on a phone, can be played for a short length of time if thats all you have, and doesn’t crash.
The gameplay is basically a boiled down version of the masterpiece PS3 game Demon’s Souls (the predecessor to the very popular Dark Souls series). Like that game you fight with a weapon using normal and hard attacks and you can roll, block, and parry. You can’t typically heal and your health level carries over from area to area, but in rare instances you can find healing items (Although I have picked up healing items, I have never figured out how to use them... which is frustrating but it didn’t dramatically impact my impressions of the game).
If you die you lose your experience and items but you can get them back if you redo the area and survive the next time. Unlike Dark Souls, the different areas are separate instances like in Demon’s Souls. You are free to go back and replay areas for more experience or item hunting if you like.
★★★★★ The Perfect throwback.
Mon Mar 15 2021 Flynnius1In a gaming world of knock-offs, cash grabs, and sequels that are almost exact replicas of their predecessors, Bleak Sword is finally something new. The mix between 8-Bit, 16-Bit, 32-Bit, and 64-Bit graphics all in the same game was a genius move. However, the graphics are not the only retro-style aspects of the game, but also the story. Multiple 8-Bit games have already used the storyline where you work your way up to the final boss that lives in a castle full of traps, ghosts, and other things (the original Super Mario for example), but this game adds something new. Once you have fought the brainwashed prince in his palace, the story then goes to the Bleak Realm. In the Bleak Realm, you find the Bleak King. This guy is probably the one who brainwashed the prince, since in the final cutscene of the game, the knight (main protagonist) turns red as the camera zooms in on him as he gets closer to the Bleak King’s Sword. It’s cool that there’s something to do beyond the castle, which in most cases is the end of the game. The other thing I like about the game is that in the “Northern Passage” section, you’re actually riding a horse the whole time. I thought this was a cool visual change. The only complaint I have is the controls. For some reason, it’s so darn hard to block. 90% of the times when an enemy attacked and I tried to block, it did not work. In conclusion, I will not be playing this game in harder difficulties, since it would seem a bit repetitive, and I’m a little tired of the annoying controls, but this game was quite fun while it lasted (literally four hours). There is an infinite arena once you finish the story, but it’s not that fun. I looked up the developer of Bleak Sword, but could not find any more of their games. This leads me to believe they don’t have any other games yet, but I’ll definitely be trying their future games.
★★★★★ Phenomenal!
Sun Mar 27 2022 Thdoctor12I was skeptical about mobile gaming, always have been. But this game is honestly my favorite. I’ve played a few mobile games but this by far is the first that I’ve ever written an actual review about. It all starts with Devolver making this game. I’ve been a huge fan of there’s and was pleasantly surprised to see their name on here. The gameplay is amazing and I genuinely think the combat goes so smoothly. It doesn’t hold your hand when you play, you’re just thrown out and told “go get em.” The music is actually fantastic and I listen to it regularly on streaming apps and such. Jim Guthrie did a great job mixing epic orchestras with synthwave. The story, while short, was enough to keep me engaged and really enjoy it. It told me who I was, what was going on, and what I had to do. The replay-ability of this game is wonderful too. I genuinely enjoy this game and will be keeping a lookout of games like it now!
If anyone is looking to play a fun, quick, yet difficult game, this is the one!
★★★★★ The BEST mobile game
Sat Nov 09 2019 koro drogonThis game is everything that should be in a game. It doesn’t have to have amazing graphics, but it does have to have amazing gameplay. Which it does. And a feel of achievement whenever you beat that one level that keeps completely destroying you. Quick tip you keep the hp from your previous fight, keeping this in mind if you have a lot of EXP and little health go kill yourself on the first level, when you die and lose EXP you have a chance to get it back if you beat the level you lost it on on the first try you get all your EXP back keep in mind you lose all your items so be prepared for that. Also master the counter it will help you infinitely. I know these tips are really beginner tips but they will help you forever.
All in all this is the beat mobile game I have ever played and to be honest I wish even one fourth of other mobile games were half as good as this one thanks for reading and keep upgrading the game!
★★★★★ Loved it
Wed Jan 11 2023 Traelin10Great game, I loved the music and the dark style. My favorite area is the burning city in act IV… any Dark Souls, Bloodbourne, or Alden Ring fans will love this game. My only complaint is very small — you can’t skip the credits after the first time beating it, which means it takes a while between tries at beating the final boss without taking damage. It would be great to see a sequel or update with different classes, more than two equipment slots, and of course be longer.
Arena is fun! If you added an endless option you could have upgrades and items drop randomly, and have the monster spawns and bosses also randomized and increase in amount the longer you stay alive. The original arena you could leave for rank and achievements. A++ for the game overall
★★★★★ My favorite Apple Arcade game available
Wed Jun 03 2020 motostan3So this is honestly my favorite game to play from Apple Arcade. I found the storyline interesting and it sucked me in right away. The graphics definitely have a retro, 8-bit look to them, which looks amazing if you’re like me and enjoy that artwork style. The soundtrack is fantastic and matches every battle and event your character goes through while the sound effects are more retro sounding they match the game perfectly. I do have a few minor complaints, although as a whole this game is still amazing regardless.
My first issue is the controls on mobile are somewhat finicky. I’ve gone for blocks or attacks only for the controls not to register correctly. This is likely more of an issue because of my fat fingers, as playing with a wireless controller seemed to work much better.
The next issue I’ve had is some of the maps are harder to play on then others because you can’t see enemies. This is only for a handful where you can’t see enemies or where they spawned due to some environment object obstructing the view. Again this only effects a few and most have an open area you can lead enemies too.
My final issue is with the stamina bar. Using mobile i found myself constantly running out of stamina. A large portion of that was because of the controls misreading my input. But it would be nice if there was an option to level up your stamina as well as your attack and defense stats.
All that said, this is still an awesome game. If you’re a fan of dark souls and other games where failure has consequences, then this game is certainly worth trying out.
★★★★★ Challenging and Fun, a few suggestions
Wed Dec 23 2020 Jwe217This game is really fun to play. Let it be know that this is a challenging action game. It feels really unforgiving at first, but once you get used to the gameplay it’s not too challenging. I love how each level lasts about a minute, making it great for when you’ve got a minute or two to spare.
A few suggestions:
First, I’d love to see landscape support for iPad. Especially for when I want to play with a game controller. It’s landscape on Apple TV, so I know you can do it.
Secondly, it’s kind of weird that some achievements (heavy hitter, scholar, collector, etc) have to be unlocked for each saved game slot (I’m taking about your in-game achievements, not Game Center). I would suggest replacing your achievements system with Game Center achievements entirely, using a Game Center access point.
