I was extremely excited for Blades of Fire when it was announced last year, mainly because it was clearly MercurySteam's spiritual successor to ye-olde hack 'n' slash Blade of Darkness.
At least, from my perspective it was clear. I was possibly the only person in the entire world eagerly awaiting a Blades of Darkness successor. This might be why Blades of Fire arrived to all the fanfare of a tax audit.
There were, admittedly, other factors that played into Blades of Fire's muted reception. It was announced only a couple of months before launch, released as an Epic Store exclusive on PC (there was also a PS5 version) and received lukewarm reviews. Not exactly a recipe for topping the sales charts.
But I do think Blades of Fire was better than many reviews believed, a full-throated slice of blockbuster spectacle with grisly combat, a novel weapon-crafting mechanic, and some intriguing set-piece design. And MercurySteam's passion project may yet receive a second chance at glory too, as Blades of Fire is coming to Steam in May accompanied by a major update.
Indeed, MercurySteam has dubbed the (non-Mercury) Steam version "Blades of Fire 2.0" as it will introduce an armoury's worth of new features to the action game. These include a New Game Plus mode that will let players experiment with new weapon parts and skins, a new difficulty level referred to as 'Titanium', and a 'Boss Revival' mode, where players can replay boss fights to earn rewards.
The update will also make some improvements to how Blades of Fire functions. For starters, it introduces elements transmutation so players can change material types on weapons. But it will also smooth out animation transitions for combat and exploration, and fold in "expanded death and mutilation variations".
Blades of Fire slices into Steam on May 16, though there's also a demo you can play right now. PC Gamer landed on the warmer end of the game's reception on its initial release last year, with reviewer Kerry Brunskill being impressed by its combat and crafting system, even if it sometimes felt like a God of War knockoff.
"Blades of Fire may not be polished steel, but there is a shining nugget of something good in here," they wrote in their Blades of Fire review. "It looks beautiful, smashing skeletons to bits with a giant axe feels fantastic, and Aran and Adso are great characters when they're not slipping into some 'God of War via Marvel' routine again."
