From the first frame of the Tenjutsu trailer my curiosity was piqued, the East Asian musical sting pricking my ears up… Japanese? Neon soaked? Old school anime vibes? Sign me up!
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The cinematic style is fantastic, giving strong vibes of iconic Japanese media from the 80s and 90s, like Cowboy Bebop, Akira and Banana Fish. The redheaded renegade, kicking ass and taking names, appears to be your classic quiet-but-deadly type.
There is of course a stark contrast in how the gameplay presents in comparison to the cutscenes. The isometric pixel-art style wasn’t what I was expecting, but after the addictive brilliance of Vampire Survivors, I’ve learned not to judge a game by its art style.
Gameplay looks fast and intense, fighting multiple enemies at once and keeping them off balance, while dodging bullets and incoming attacks. Utilising a wide range of weapons, upgrades and martial art techniques to clean up the city streets, and then investing resources to revitalize neighborhoods with shops and restaurants.
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The martial arts roguelike is being developed by one-man indie studio Deepnight Games. That man, Sébastien Benard, the lead developer and game-designer of indie darling Dead Cells.
Tenjutsu will launch on PC and consoles, but there’s no word on a release window just yet.
