Chivalware Review

Chivalware combines fast-paced tile matching, real-time combat, and an addictive weapon-building system to create a surprisingly strategic roguelike experience that constantly challenges your reflexes and decision-making.

Over the years, the roguelike has experimented with many gameplay mechanics, blending recognizable genres with systems that promote experimentation, strategic thinking, and replayability. However, Chivalware’s intriguing approach blends tile matching with real-time action combat, and it feels surprisingly similar while still offering enough distinctions to stand out.

From the start, Chivalware’s crew hooked us with its innovative fighting system, colorful pixel-art presentation, and emphasis on building powerful weapon combos each run. At first glance, Chivalware could remind you of the original Mega Man Battle Network series, with its grid-based gameplay and focus on managing different attacks.

You can see the comparison, especially when you think about how both experiences make you think about placement, timing, and choosing the appropriate offensive plays.

But Chivalware takes these ideas down a different path, blending tile-matching mechanisms into a roguelike structure. You're not picking assaults from a menu; you're actively controlling the battlefield and dodging attacks as they come. The result is a fast-paced gameplay experience that's initially intimidating but grows increasingly rewarding as you learn how its systems work together.

Each battle demands that you combine attack options with defensive positioning, while the weapons and upgrades you discover can greatly shape your strategy. You can try a lot of things, and one of the most fun is finding a combo you wouldn’t expect to be powerful. Chivalware opens with a simple fantasy notion. You wake up as a Disk Knight in an unknown region, and sooner or later you'll meet a mystery character that tells you the kingdom has fallen into anarchy.

The monarch has gone crazy, and his lunacy is spreading into the surrounding lands. Dangerous beasts roam the country and harm those who cross their paths. Your mystery advisor knows a Disk Knight has returned and believes you may have the power to end the king's oppression. But your character starts untrained, and you must learn the basics of warfare before you go further into the deadly swamp.

This intro serves as the game's tutorial, teaching you the basic mechanics and setting up the conflict of your adventure. Finally, the monarch makes his presence known with a fairly nasty message, letting you know he plans to stop you before you can reach him. The tale isn’t especially complex to start, but the narrative develops a clear goal that works nicely with the game’s gameplay-oriented framework.

The characters also add some personality to their conversation. In certain encounters, you'll come across bizarre creatures, merchants, and mystery persons ready to trade in odd things. One particularly noteworthy encounter is with a bizarre plant that lets you trade parts of your health for even more valuable rewards. These encounters make the trip less predictable, but the main story is fairly straightforward.

The plot definitely has room to grow, especially given the many knights and locales hinted at during the trip.

But the present idea is enough motivation to keep going across the kingdom. Chivalware's strongest draw is, no doubt, its battle system. Instead of the usual button combos or turn-based fights, the game puts you on a grid where you can use only certain weapons by matching connected tiles. To develop energy, equip matching weapons and create opportunities to attack foes, you must destroy clusters of matching colors.

A chain is destroying three or more connected tiles, filling your energy meter. Bigger combos are especially important if you want to keep your energy up when fighting stronger foes. However, failing to create a successful chain may reduce your available energy, making imprudent choices costly. Each color is a different sort of weapon. For example, matching the right tiles might equip your pistol, broadsword, or Warhammer.

You are equipped with these weapons. When you fight, you consume energy. You can not just fire away without thinking about what resources you have available. This makes for an interesting interaction between matching tiles and hitting adversaries. You may have a powerful weapon ready, but you don’t have the energy to utilize it well. Or you can have lots of energy, but need to manipulate the grid to get the weapon you need for a particular confrontation.

Another fascinating mechanic is removing non-winning combos. You can still take them out, but it will cost electricity. This gives you another choice when the grid is inconvenient, but using it too often can leave you in a bind for tougher fights. The battlefield also requires continual motion. Enemies are in different positions, shoot projectiles, and use attacks that force you to reposition.

So you're actually doing two things at once: you're controlling the tile grid and dodging incoming attacks. This is where Chivalware gets interesting. The fight is nearly rhythmic, a never-ending sequence of movement, matching, weapon choosing, and attacking. Once you time it right, interactions are so much more fun.

Combat is where Chivalware's individual systems really come together.

You start with a handgun, broadsword, Warhammer, and a Scrapper chip that heals you when you install a new disk. These weapons offer numerous attack options, encouraging you to play with them rather than rely on one attack for the entire run. The pistol delivers straightforward ranged damage and is handy against distant enemies. Broadsword deals slash damage in an arc, and every third attack deals additional critical damage in a line.

The Warhammer, in contrast, deals impact damage in a tiny cone, which helps when attackers crowd you. But that's just the beginning of the equipment you can have. As you move forward, you can find weapons like bombs, bazookas, cannons, throwing hammers, plasma cannons, and automatic attacking blades. Each offers a different way to approach situations.

For example, the cannon charges up, then automatically launches a powerful shot. It does significant damage, but the charging time means you really have to think about when to use it. The bazooka is a speedier option, shooting explosive missiles that hit foes in an area. Bombs are another very strong option, but can also damage you if you're in the wrong position when they explode.

Another interesting option is the plasma cannon, whose rounds can explode after missing their target, potentially dealing critical damage to nearby enemies. It fosters experimenting with location, rather than punishing every missed assault as a total failure. Dancing Blades is one of the most fun weapons, attacking enemies automatically when you get close.

These blades, combined with a charged melee attack and a ranged lightning weapon, make for an effective loadout with multiple distinct offensive options.

Enemy shielding also keeps combat from becoming monotonous. Some foes resist damage from certain colors, so you need to switch weapons instead of repeating the same attack. When many foes with different shields appear at the same time, it becomes increasingly necessary to understand their resistances. But the combat system does have a bit of a learning curve.

Things can get hectic when multiple enemies show up at once, with energy management, tile matching, weapon range, and avoiding hits all becoming important. Some weapons also use a lot of energy, so you may not be able to attack when you need to. Still, the range of weaponry and combinations makes experimenting rewarding. Chivalware is all about learning how different gear works together, not just grabbing the strongest strikes available.

Another significant feature of Chivalware's roguelike structure is progression. Each journey features branching pathways with combat, merchants, rest spots, mystery encounters, and chances to find new equipment. Your choices matter because different areas offer different rewards. Maybe you want to find a new weapon, visit a trader for an upgrade, or rest and heal before a tough fight.

You can also upgrade weapons by reforging them. It lets you level them up and choose further adjustments like increased damage or attack range. These enhancements are particularly useful when you find a weapon that works well with your current gear and want to keep using it. You can also collect chips and processor cores to add extra perks to your weapons.

Some increase certain damage types; others improve ammo, attack speed, crit damage, or defensive skills. For example, one processor lets weapons perform a free attack when equipped, giving you extra chances to deal damage when swapping equipment. More specialized effects come from other upgrades. You can get armor at the start of a fight, shields anytime you earn energy, or increase your critical damage through specific placement situations.

The Codex also tracks unlocked equipment, challenges, and achievements, giving you more motivation to experiment with alternative builds.

This makes progression feel more meaningful, since finding new items can affect future runs. But some choices require real sacrifice. In certain situations, you can trade health for coins, extra equipment, or permanent upgrades. These options can be quite beneficial, but giving away too much health can make later battles excessively painful.

The risk-and-reward system works well because you’re always weighing whether the immediate gain is worth the possible ramifications. This adds character to each run and makes route choice more fascinating. Chivalware boasts a cute pixel art presentation that fits its fantasy atmosphere. The environments, characters, monsters, and weapons all have a distinct visual identity, with the colorful presentation helping separate the many elements during combat.

The battlefield is especially critical, as you have to identify tile colors and enemy positions fast. Thankfully, the visual design makes the different weapon categories quite straightforward to distinguish once you get the hang of it. Combat effects also serve to show the impact of different assaults. Explosions, projectiles, physical strikes, and electrical attacks offer enough visual feedback to make confrontations feel lively without losing the underlying grid-based structure.

The swamp setting sets the mood for the quest's first act. Its monsters and mysterious encounters reinforce the idea that you are traveling through a realm blighted by its lord's depravity.

The presentation doesn’t try to compete with visually demanding action games, but the pixel-art style fits the gameplay well.

The game offers plenty of environmental variety as you explore more biomes. The audio presentation suits the game’s frenetic fantasy battle vibe well. Sound effects indicate attacks, weapon use, and other critical interactions, making it easier to follow what’s happening during extremely frantic fights.

Different weapons also have their own attack feedback, helping you distinguish ranged projectiles, explosive attacks, and close-range hits. This is especially true if you have many different weapons loaded and swap between them often. The soundtrack suits the action and doesn't distract from the strategy. The sound design is overall good for the experience; however, the current gameplay footage isn't enough to go into depth on the audio presentation for each facet.

Chivalware is an unusual roguelike, and it works because it builds its identity around a fundamental concept that is plain fun. Real-time fighting combined with matching tiles creates a different feel than typical action roguelikes. The many weapons and upgrade systems allow for much experimentation. But best of all, the mechanics interact compellingly.

Matching tiles provide energy; energy fuels weapons; weapons dictate your offensive options, and adversary resistances push you to rethink your approach. The constant involvement keeps the fighting interesting, even when it gets crazy. Several flaws stand out. The initial learning curve can be daunting, as multiple adversaries attack you at once.

Some weapon descriptions and mechanics could also use clearer explanations. Also, the post-run stats could be more extensive, with info on defeated adversaries and specific weapon damage, so you can see how effective your build actually was. Chivalware isn't perfect, but it has a lot going for it, with its imaginative battle system, fun progression, and gorgeous visuals. The best moments come when you find a combination that dramatically changes how you approach interactions.