Muramasa: Revenant Blades is the newly announced action RPG from Vanillaware, a highly respected Japanese studio founded in 2002 and terminally aloof to the existence of personal computers. Until now: a revamped version of 2009’s Muramasa: The Demon Blade was announced at today’s Nintendo Direct. Initially a Wii exclusive, it’ll hit Steam in 2027.
If you happened to watch the Nintendo Direct I wouldn’t blame you for tuning out when Vanillaware’s logo appeared on the screen: this studio has never released a game on PC despite almost all of their games being critically acclaimed and beloved by droves. Its most recent game, Unicorn Overlord, was a lavishly illustrated tactical RPG, while the one before that, 13 Sentinels: Aegis Rim, was essentially an RTS. Both would have benefited from mouse and keyboard treatment but, alas, are stuck on PlayStation and Nintendo consoles.
As good (and some say brilliant) as these games are, I think Vanillaware excels in the arena of meaty and nuanced action RPGs like Odin’s Sphere and Dragon’s Crown. Muramasa fits this mould: it’s a side-scrolling action RPG kitted out in Vanillaware’s famously ornate 2D art style. It features sick playable characters, all with their own playstyle and melodrama.
The original was highly regarded: our pals at GamesRadar+ wrote that it “handles like an old-school, no-nonsense title from the Super NES and Genesis days, with clean and clear level structure, challenging yet enjoyable boss encounters and melodic, catchy music that’ll undoubtedly live on for years after we’ve stopped playing.”
Revenant Blades will feature the Genroku Legends expansion built in, “new combat and weapon systems”, support for 4K resolution, as well as some unspecified new “additional modes and gameplay options”. The remake is a collaboration with Marvelous.
Here’s the trailer:
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