Blind Fate Analysis: Edo no Yami

Meet a samurai with a multitude of flaws… which are replaced by cybernetic implants

Ninjas and samurai are born with an innate capacity for combat. It is undeniable, since the history of video games has corroborated this fact and we have been witnessing it for decades. His incredible reflexes, his great ability to anticipate the opponent’s blows, his grace on land, at sea and in the air… a collection of virtues worthy of great exploits. Although for great virtues, those that the protagonist of Blind Destiny: Edo no Yami, where we will control a warrior whose blindness will not prevent him from fulfilling his mission.

Comply, Obey, Kill

Troglobyte Games are responsible for offering us a dystopian world where the shogunate is mixed with a cyberpunk environment. In this futuristic environment is our protagonist, a samurai warrior committed to obey and kill without questioning anything. Unfortunately, one day luck does not smile on our hero, and he is overtaken by an old demi-goddess who does not hesitate to tear out her eyes, arms and legs as punishment for all our ills.

It’s not all bad news, and it’s that in this robotic world there are unexpected allies able to help us in the darkest times. This is what happens with Tengu, an AI that with implants manages to put us back together from our dismemberments, and above all, offer us a vision thanks to the Oni mask. This artifact will be the main foundation on which Blind Fate: Edo no Yami stands, and we’ll explain why below.

cyber ninja vision

The Oni mask allows us to see the world in a virtual way. Thanks to some implants, we will be able to recreate areas that we know from the past, although due to the passage of time the terrain has undergone variations and there will be places that will not continue to be as we imagine. We will have three types of sensors adapted to different registers. We will be able to “see” the sound, smells and heat given off by enemies and objects on stage, and this will condition the fights that we will experience in each phase.

Although the game requires you to measure each fight, monitor your stamina bar and control action times, we are not faced with a so-called like souls. It’s true that if you get hit three times in a row you’re dead, but it does not reach the peaks of difficulty seen in the From Software saga. Blind Fate: Edo no Yami forces us to constantly change recordings to detect enemies that come our way. If it is a heavy robot, we will see waves when it tramples the ground if we activate the sound spectrum. If they smell bad, like killer turtles that don’t want to shower, we will observe how a vapor emanates from their bodies. And for the “hottest” rivals, we have the temperature filter at our disposal.

Like Sam Fisher, but more feudal

At first it is difficult to understand all these changes. We carefully walk through each room, and despite the tutorials, it will be normal for us to eat a shot from the enemy. But with practice and knowing the opponent, we will be able to master all the situations posed by the game. It’s not that there’s a huge variety of “putty” waiting to be conquered, but enough to explore all of our cybernetic virtues. In addition, over time we will unlock a branch of competence have a more complete and varied set of techniques.

Apart from all the Oni Mask issue, at the end of each phase we will face the typical final enemy. Its mechanics, based on a series of patterns, will be very different from ordinary opponents. It’s not that it’s very complex to catch their attack patterns, although some take a little longer than expected. And a distraction at this time can mean we’re running out of life, so be careful. Or without, if you have a mask available at home.

See the world in pink

visually bLind Fate: Edo no Yami is a very varied proposition. Futuristic buildings, lush forests or passing through their ancestral caves. Everything works perfectly to provide a good atmosphere. Perhaps where it fails a little more is in the movements, both ours and those of the enemies. A natural fluidity is not perceived, and some escapes are forced. In the middle of the phase, nothing happens if we “fail” and repeat this section again, because we will reappear with all our life full and without losing any of our inventory or experience. But in fights against a final boss, it hurts more to have to redo the fight because of a failure in the execution of the dodge.

Special mention to the texts of the game, in perfect Spanish (how could it be otherwise, given the nature of the study). It’s not just that they are in our language, but their way of speaking, mixing solemn oaths with more rogue conversations, makes us pay attention to all the dialogue in the game.

Blind Fate: Edo no Yami Conclusion

While the whole theme of ninjas (whether cybernetic or not) is something we’ve seen hundreds of times before, Troglobytes Games managed to give their work something different. And that something different is undoubtedly the Oni Mask. Our blind ninja returns to the path of the warrior thanks to this gadget which allows him to perceive the world around him in a very original way. And even if at first it costs a bit to get our hands on the three “vision filters”, once we have internalized its mechanics, this will no longer be a problem.

The final boss encounters are perhaps the best and worst of the game. They’re good because they completely change the combat pattern against the rest of the minor opponents, but their duration (and the occasional failure in running the game) makes repeating these duels somewhat tedious. For the rest, it is a very complete product, very well located and with just enough duration (about 5-6 hours) not to fall into repetition. Long live the cyberninjas!