While it’s great to see games in the eShop that represent new ideas, there’s also plenty of room for experiences that may be a bit familiar, but still kick some butt. As someone who spent entirely too much time in the arcades in my youth, I’m pretty well always game for titles that celebrate classics from that era. In the case of Blades & Battles, anyone who spent some time with the classic Golden Axe, its sequel, or some of its contemporaries, should be familiar with their more hack n slash take on the beat-em-up genre.

While its style and general play beats are absolutely a throwback to those earlier classics, Blades & Battles does at least do some things its own way that make it novel. Aside from its sort of unusual quasi-3D style in place of classic sprites, I like having the desperate attack available as an option, conveniently knocking back foes and buying yourself a little breathing room as an alternative to just your screen clearing special attack. In general, just like the game’s arcade inspirations, what’s nice is you’ll find that if you can pace yourself and be careful, you’ll tend to be able to keep your health managed, at least adding a little satisfaction of being able to get deeper into the game without feeling like you’re constantly needing to continue.

In terms of issues though, the title unfortunately isn’t without them. Outside of its general style of play being mostly borrowed, another parallel the game has with its old-school brethren is that overall it simply doesn’t last all that long. Just a scant few hours and you’ll likely have made your way through it. While there are at least 2 characters you can play as, honestly they don’t feel different enough to likely make a second playthrough necessary. In part, this is because there’s no character progression or an ability to gain new gear, so unfortunately your core moves will be the same throughout, further harming the overall replayability. For newer gamers I’m not sure there’s enough here to warrant giving it a look, but if you’re thirsting for the familiar taste of nostalgia, it may be a fun way to kill a few hours.