Chris InglisDeveloped by Drakkar Dev and published by Blowfish Studios, Blackwind is an isometric sci-fi action game that feels like a natural evolution for the team behind 2018’s War Tech Fighters. Trading space-faring mechs for a prototype battle frame on terra firma, you’re dropped onto the hostile planet Medusa-42 to turn alien monsters into scrap metal.
The game kicks off with a fully voice-acted intro featuring the crash of the starship Pandora. You play as James Hawkins; a young pilot separated from his father and trapped inside the Mark II battle frame. Guiding you is the Blackwind Protocol, an experimental AI that serves as both your tutor and your only lifeline. It’s a classic search for your father setup, but the snappy presentation kept me invested in James’ survival.
Blackwind combat is agile, allowing you to dash, double-jump, and weave through projectiles without a cooldown. While you start with ranged attacks, the game truly unlocks melee combos some brutal executions. When an enemy flashes red, a quick tap of ‘E’ triggers a cinematic takedown where you rip wings off flying machines and stomp others into the ground.
As you collect blue orbs, you can dive into three distinct skill trees: General, Combat, and Special. This customization, paired with unlockable skins found throughout the world, allows you to tailor the suit to your specific playstyle.
The gameplay loop is broken up by environmental puzzles and platforming sections. A standout feature is your drone companion which can be deployed to navigate vents and unlock doors. Blackwind also supports local split screen co-op, allowing a second player to take control of the drone. It’s a great way to include a friend, even if the drone is significantly more fragile than the main suit.
However, the experience isn’t without its flaws. The fixed camera angle is a frequent antagonist. Whether I was dashing blindly into off-screen enemy fire or struggling to line up a double jump onto narrow pipes, I often felt like I was fighting the perspective as much as the aliens. Foreground objects occasionally obscure the path, leading to some “trial and error” platforming that briefly kills the momentum.
Overall, Blackwind is a decent hack-and-slash that blends fast-paced combat with some clever environmental puzzle-solving with your drone. Despite some frustrating camera hiccups and occasional backtracking for keycodes, the satisfying execution animations and the addition of local co-op make it a journey worth taking for sci-fi fans.
This review utilised a Steam key provided by Blowfish Studios. Blackwind is available on Steam, GOG, Xbox, PlayStation and Nintendo Switch.
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