Multiplayer: Y | Year released: 2019

I’m on the fence about Astral Chain from the day the first trailer came out until a good few hours into my playthrough. Everything feels a little generic, almost a paint-by-numbers rendering of an action game. I don’t have to worry too much, because this is one of the more original titles that come from PlatinumGames, the developer behind the Bayonetta series, in recent years.

In the future where the world is under constant attack from beings that are on another plane of existence, you play as an officer of a special force that deals with this threat. The gimmick of the game is that you can tame these creatures to become Legions that you use in combat. Encounters play out with you controlling your character and the Legion simultaneously to face waves of mobs and bigger, more challenging enemies. As well as for combat, you will use your Legion(s) to solve crimes and traverse environments.

Astral Chain stuck closely to a loop of detective work, platforming puzzles and combat — a little too close, if I’m critical — with the game divided into cases that serve as chapters. The story starts off well enough but quickly devolves into a mashup of various anime tropes, including twists and arcs taken from some very popular shows and films. However, the minute-by-minute gameplay is enough to keep you engaged through the 20-hour or so main campaign and the relatively important end-game content.

Did you do? Astral Chain reach the height of Nier: Automata? No, not really, but its combat and environments will always surpass that game, which everyone says is probably my favorite of this generation. Often available for under $50 these days, it’s worth your time.