Swordship – a (short) life on the ocean waves (pic: Thunderful)

It might look like WipEout but this indie gem is more than it seems, with an interesting mix of influences and some stylish visuals.

As we attempt to tie up loose ends, by reviewing interesting games that we skipped earlier in the year, we also want to make sure we don’t miss anything from more recently. Swordship only came out at the start of the month and yet it decided that it was a good idea to launch three days after The Callisto Protocol, Need For Speed Unbound, and Marvel’s Midnight Suns. The entire games industry is terrible at scheduling, and this is further proof that indie developers are no better at it than big publishers.

Swordship caught our eye thanks to its bright, minimalist visuals, which are reminiscent of racing classic WipEout. The similarity is almost certainly intentional but in terms of gameplay the two have very little in common. Although you are constantly moving at high speed this isn’t really a racing game, but as developer Digital Kingdom has it a dodge ‘em-up.

More generally it’s an arcade game, of the sort that rarely gets made nowadays even by indie developers, and something that, with visuals adjusted for the time, you could easily imagine appearing in an early ‘90s arcade. And we mean that as a major compliment.

The cockamamie story behind Swordship involves something about smuggling goods for an ostracised group of underwater survivors in a post-apocalypse world. We think. The plot is only mentioned a few times and is clearly not the point of anything.

Although it’s difficult to pigeonhole the game into any one genre, perhaps the most apposite is the endless runner. You’re not running, you’re speeding along the water, but you don’t ever have to worry about accelerating or braking. Instead, you’re only able to move left and right, and up and down, as well as dive underwater for a short time, to avoid enemies and their projectiles.

Simply surviving until the end of a section is an achievement, but what you’re really trying to do is pick up crates of supplies that only appear on screen for a few seconds and which you can collect by running into them with a pleasing thump. You also have to drop the crates off though, which is a more time consuming process that leaves you dangerously exposed, as you sit in the same position long enough for it happen.

We’re not sure what it is you’re smuggling that requires such a violent response, but the screen is constantly filled with enemy turrets, aircraft, submarines, and giant laser weapons. We’re also not sure who’s controlling them, as they’re all incredibly dumb and one of the main focuses of the game is getting them to accidentally shoot each other.

Mines can be purposefully set off to destroy turrets, turrets can be tricked into firing at laser cannons, aircraft can end up bombing their own allies, and all while you wait for the right moment to pick up and deliver your cargo. If you get hit even once then that’s it and all is lost, but each time you make it to the end of a stage you get to bank your money and either sell off your cargo or convert it into extra lives.

At first it seems as if there isn’t any more to the game than that, but as you get better and better you begin to unlock new abilities which can significantly change the game. Lives are a big deal in their own right but you can also gain the ability to stun enemies with an electric field or make it easier to catch and deposit cargo containers.

Swordship – it’s probably a good idea to move (pic: Thunderful)

There is an impressive amount to unlock, which essentially makes the game a roguelite, but oddly, despite having the look and feel of an on-rails shooter, it never goes in that direction. That’s probably wise as the game as it is now, is not only impressively unique but cleverly refined, with one of the best justifications for ‘just one more go’ we’ve seen all year.

The presentation is great too, with the low-polygon models and electronic soundtrack. Being set on the sea means the background graphics never change much, though, which is a shame because given the game’s punishing difficulty it would’ve been nice to have a bit more reward for getting further.

The unlocks are great but the game’s so incredibly difficult that it’s easy to get frustrated by the random placing of enemies. Sometimes it works out in your favour and sometimes not, but it can be especially upsetting when an otherwise good run starts to come apart just because some enemies have appeared in what seems like an unfair or impossible to avoid formation.

In a more expensive game, the random elements would be more of a problem but in this context it only helps to tie it closer to its arcade roots. Swordship isn’t perfect, and can be very frustrating, but achieving a good run is still one of the most satisfying moments from any game this year and that certainly makes it worth diving into.

Formats: PlayStation 5 (reviewed), Xbox One, PlayStation 4, Nintendo Switch, Xbox Series X/S, and PC
Price: £15.99
Publisher: Thunderful
Developer: Digital Kingdom
Release Date: 5th December 2022
Age Rating: 7

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It might look like WipEout but this indie gem is more than it seems, with an interesting mix of influences and some stylish visuals.