DaRmaZat Blades of Fire enters the arena as something rare: an ambitious AA game swinging above its weight. Crafted by MercurySteam, it marries mythic blacksmith fantasy with soulslike structure and cinematic flair. And for a few fleeting hours, it feels like it might just forge something special. But while its hammer strikes are loud and confident, they often miss the mark.
Flames of Purpose, Smoke of Pacing
You play as Aran de Lira, a lone wanderer guided more by grief and guilt than glory, travelling with a young scholar named Adso. After a vision of light and a fatal encounter with a murdered abbot, Aran receives a sacred relic: the last of the Seventh World’s divine forging hammers. The weapon instantly whisks him away to the dimension of the Forge Gods, and from there, his fate is sealed.
There’s a clear echo of modern God of War here—tough but thoughtful warrior, talkative young companion, rich lore—but Blades of Fire trades pathos for parable. The duo’s bond never fully lands emotionally, and much of their dialogue feels utilitarian. Still, the world they traverse is weirdly endearing, full of talking beetles, ancient anvils, and haunted monarchies. The Queen must die, Aran insists—and you spend the next thirty hours discovering why that’s easier said than done.
Craft, Then Kill
Combat and forging are where Blades of Fire swings hardest—but not always with clarity. Instead of looting new weapons, players must gather materials and craft them using a detailed forging mini-game. While the system has depth, its cluttered UI, layered mechanics, and the shifting hammer efficiency grid make it hard to read and harder to master. There’s an underlying sense of hidden randomness, where feedback feels more obscure than intuitive. It’s thematically rich, sure—but mechanically, it quickly crosses into overkill.
However, the combat is distinct. Four target zones on each enemy force you to aim your strikes carefully using the controller’s face buttons. Direction matters. So does damage type—slash, blunt, pierce—and managing weapon stamina, parries, and enemy stances. You’re encouraged to cycle between up to four weapons mid-fight, exploiting weaknesses and adjusting on the fly.
When it works, it’s decent. When it doesn’t, it’s chaos. Small enemies frequently blindside you during boss fights. The tight camera and limited field of view make reading enemy tells frustrating. And the visual system that’s meant to clarify resistances—glowing outlines around enemies—ends up feeling like a band-aid for under-telegraphed design. Complexity gives way to clunk.
Choked By Its Own Roots
Visually, Blades of Fire looks certainly stronger than I expected. Its environments are lush, detailed, and filled with distinct atmosphere, with forest ruins oozing mystery and wind-swept temples feeling genuinely ancient. But the level design often turns this richness against the player. Critical paths are hidden behind tangled layouts, unclear landmarks, or outright bad objectives.
For example, one section asks you to carry a child on your back through enemy territory. If you drop him, enemies can snatch him and run—forcing you to backtrack multiple screens. It’s an infuriating segment that adds nothing meaningful, one of many where mechanical ideas outpace practical execution. And maybe, that’s the recurring theme: bloat. The game is overlong, overstuffed with filler moments that stretch thin what little narrative momentum exists. Escort segments, maze-like paths, fetch quests—they’re all here, and rarely well executed.
Technically, the game holds up well though, with smooth performance and a wide range of modern options, while load times remain mostly acceptable. While lip-sync can be awkward at times, with characters’ mouths moving too wide or too late, the overall presentation is above average for its AA tier. Blades of Fire its audio design also offers punchy weapon feedback and some charmingly odd ambient music that reinforces the game’s surreal tone — though none of it reaches truly memorable heights.
Final Thoughts
Blades of Fire is a hard game to recommend broadly, and just as hard to write off. Its forging system and enemy-targeting mechanics offer a level of combat personalization that’s rare even in bigger-budget games. But it buries those bright spots under frustrating design, overlong pacing, and a world that’s more disorienting than intriguing. If you’re deeply into action-RPGs and willing to forgive frequent missteps in search of innovation, you may find something compelling buried in its slag. But most players will struggle to stay sharp as the game quickly wears down its edge.
Additional Information
Release Date: May 22, 2025
Reviewed On: PC. Download code provided by the publisher and PR agency.
Developer: MercurySteam
Publisher: 505 Games
Official Website: https://bladesoffire.com/en/
Relevant Links: Blades of Fire on EPIC Games
