If you’ve played those arcade beat ’em ups from the eighties and nineties, like Golden Axe, Cadillacs and Dinosaurs or The Punisher, you’ll know exactly what you’re getting into with Blades & Battles. QUByte Interactive‘s newly releaced title takes that same basic formula and drops it into a medieval fantasy setting. Join us after the trailer as we explore an intriguing world filled with plenty of sword-fighting, magic, skeletons and some rather large bosses.
Grab a Sword and Start Swinging
For our first run, we decided to go with Arthur. From the moment you take control, Blades & Battles doesn’t waste much time explaining itself. You move from left to right, enemies appear, and you proceed to make their day considerably worse. You can jump, dodge and attack both on the ground and in the air, but the sword is obviously the star of the show. The attacks feel satisfying, especially when you start combining them into longer combos or throw some magical abilities into the mix.
Yes, at its heart this is still a button-mashing beat ’em up. That’s part of the appeal. But on higher difficulties, simply standing in one place and swinging away isn’t going to cut it. We found ourselves dodging, using special abilities to clear space, and spinning around to hit enemies closing in from behind. Once a larger group surrounds you, knowing when to move becomes far more important than just spamming attacks like there’s no tomorrow.
When things get really messy, you can unleash a super special attack that sends a destructive wave of magic across the screen. It’s the kind of move that feels super satisfying when a whole group of enemies is closing in on you. There are also this so-called desperate attacks, which come in three forms and are especially useful when things start getting out of hand. They knock enemies back and give you some breathing room. If you have mana available, they consume a mana bar. If you don’t, they take a little bit of your health instead. You can even use them while being attacked. This costs health, but gives you temporary invincibility afterwards, which can save you when you’ve been backed into a corner.
Arthur and Lancelot also have their own fighting styles, so there’s a reason to give both a try rather than simply picking whichever name you like more. And if you’re playing local co-op, each character having three different colour schemes for their skin is a nice little touch. It makes it much easier to tell who is who when both players are running around the screen chopping things up.
A Good Old-Fashioned Boss Fight
The bosses are another part of the game that feels very much like an arcade throwback. They aren’t simply bigger enemies with more health. You’ll need to watch their attack patterns, find an opening and slowly chip away at them rather than running in and swinging wildly.
The game also does a solid job of introducing new enemies as you move through the campaign. This, along with the distinct environments and fitting soundtrack, keeps the experience fresh and thoroughly enjoyable. It’s still a very simple formula, but that’s clearly what Blades & Battles is going for and why we appreciate it so much—especially after a long day when all we want is to wind down. There are no complicated systems getting in the way of the simple pleasure of stepping into a room full of enemies and clearing it with a massive sword.
A Retro World With Modern 3D
The maps are fully 3D-rendered but presented from a 2D perspective, with a pixelation filter that gives everything that old-school arcade look. You can even push the pixelation further if you want a stronger retro appearance. The result is a game that looks modern enough to show off its environments but it still strongly reminded us of the games that inspired it. There is a surprising amount of detail in the backgrounds, too. Leaves move gently in the wind before some fall to the ground. Skeletons are half-buried and reach out helplessly or throw their bones at you. Bats frantically fly in and out of caves. These things didn’t change how the game plays, but they sure made the world feel alive and engaging.
And each new map looks noticeably different from the previous one. That variety helped keep the journey interesting, especially when combined with the soundtrack. Each area has its own musical identity, adding another layer to the atmosphere and helping each part of the adventure feel like its own little chapter.
Straightforward Fun
If you miss the days when the objective was simply to pick a character, grab a sword, and beat the living daylights out of everything on screen, Blades & Battles is a title that you should definitely check out. There’s also a great demo if you want to see how everything works before jumping in.
Score: 8/10
Game: Blades & Battles
Developer: QUByte Interactive
Publisher: QUByte Interactive
Genre: Beat ’em up / Action
Players: Single-player / Local co-op
Platforms: PC, PlayStation 5, Xbox Series X|S, PlayStation 4, Xbox One, Nintendo Switch
Release: September 29, 2026
We recently had the pleasure of reviewing The Walking Dead: Streets of Survival, and if you enjoyed that kind of straightforward arcade action, this is another one to put on your radar. More on Blades & Battles? Read our exclusive interview!
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