BlazBlue ClonePhantasma is a downloadable 3DS eShop title based on the characters and settings of the popular one-on-one fighter BlazBlue. It’s a sequel to the DSiWare game BlayzBloo and meant to be a parody of the series.  The characters in the game are depicted in ‘chibi’ style and the game is a simple action brawler as opposed to a hardcore fighter.

In Story Mode, you choose from a selection of BlazBlue characters including Ragna, Jin, Noel, Makoto, Taokaka, and others. You battle in 3-D arenas against hordes of cloned characters and try to knock a certain number off the edge as you can.  When you knock off the required number of clones in each stage, you move onto the next.  After a few rounds, you’ll have to fight one of the other characters to pass.  Whoever knocks the other off the stage three times wins.  At the end, you’ll have to fight a giant version of one of the characters as the final boos.  Good luck with that, I could never beat that part.

Controls are simple to learn. Attack with the A button and jump with B.  X and Y are used for special attacks.  Each character has different ones based on the moves in the fighter series (Jin can freeze enemies, for instance).  But be careful and use your special attacks sparingly.  As you use them in battle, a meter will rise.  When it is full, if you use a special attack, you’ll be stunned for a short while.  You can pick up power-ups in the stages that help you run faster or use special attacks limitlessly for a short while, too.

Aside from Story Mode, there is also a Challenge Mode where you try and knock off as many clones as you can before getting knocked off yourself. In the Story Mode, you get three tries per stage, but in Challenge Mode, you only get one.  There is also a gallery where you can view artwork and awards (think achievements) that you’ve unlocked.

I think most folks would think this game is too simplistic to be worth the download price, but it really has that ‘BlazBlue’ theme and I really liked the cute ‘chibi’ characters and simple arcade gameplay. But what ruined it for me were the final boss battles against the giant characters.  Everything in the game was easy for me up until that point.  The game needs a difficulty setting and multiplayer modes for it to be worth downloading, really.

Kid Factor:

BlazBlue ClonePhantasma is rated E-10 with ESRB descriptors of Fantasy Violence and Suggestive Themes. While you do punch and smack characters around, I really don’t see how the game can be suggestive since everyone is in ‘chibi’ form.  Reading skill is helpful for the text, and younger gamers (and me) may get frustrated at the unbalanced difficulty near the end of the game.

Tags: Game Reviews