PAX South Spotlight: KUNAI
Following up with our PAX West spotlight, I had the chance to play through a demo of KUNAI, a quick and quirky metroidvania game featuring an adorable little murder robot.
The game is in a polished state as it approaches its February release date. Recent improvements since our PAX West spotlight are improved color pallets for each zone, and hats! Cute little hats to put on your cute little robot. I'm told the hats are cosmetic only, but I'm still interested.
If you're unfamiliar with the title, the main draw of the game are your movement options. You'll find two kunai early in the game, allowing you to quickly climb vertical shafts and swing across ceilings. Each kunai is launched and released via dedicated triggers on the controller, allowing for rapid use.
Aside from the titular kunai, your character moves quickly, and falls at a somewhat slower speed, making the character a joy to control. You're given multiple weapons throughout the game, such as a katana that can slash quickly in any direction, or a set of twin machine guns.
Even the weapons provide extra mobility options. Hitting things with the katana pushes your character backwards slightly. While this can kill your momentum on horizontal slashes, you can instead attack enemies from above, which will push your character back into the air. In short, you can pogo off of enemies with a sword. The machine guns can be used in a similar manner, allowing you to effectively fly while firing them downwards.
I'm looking forward to getting my hands on KUNAI once it's released. The main game loop of darting around opponents is a blast. The controls are tight, and it's just a fun game. Speaking of release, KUNAI will be available on February 6th on Steam and Nintendo Switch.