Fatal Claw

They gave me Fatal Claw.

Then they gave me sake.

I cannot determine which one has made the evening better.

I can tell you this much, Fatal Claw is beautiful. The character designs are fantastic, the animation has a hand-drawn quality that gives everything real personality, and the music and sound work together wonderfully. I have stopped more than once simply to watch something move across the screen.

This is usually where I would tell you that beauty is only skin deep.

Fortunately, I am drinking sake and a lot of it, so I can be honest.

The game is just bloody fun.

The platforming feels good. Movement is responsive, the claw abilities give traversal and combat their own identity, and exploring the world keeps giving me reasons to wonder what is hiding around the next corner. New abilities change what I can reach and how I approach encounters, while the customization gives me room to find a setup that suits the way I want to play. It is the kind of game where I occasionally forget that I am supposed to be reviewing it.

I should probably stop drinking during work.

The game is not without its familiar Metroidvania bones. Some encounters could offer more challenge, and not every system has the same depth as its strongest ideas. But those are small complaints against a game that consistently understands what it is trying to accomplish. It looks fantastic, sounds fantastic, and—most importantly—feels good in the hands.

That last part matters.

Many games can show me beautiful worlds. Fewer make me want to keep moving through them. Fatal Claw does. There is a confidence to its presentation and a genuine joy in its movement that carried me forward long after I had stopped thinking about the score.

I came expecting to judge a claw.

Instead, the claw judged me.

I have fallen into the same pit six times.

It is a very good pit.