OK, I know that whenever a new cyberpunky-looking sci-fi game shows up, everybody says it’s “like Blade Runner”. Well, Replaced actually is. Like Ridley Scott’s masterpiece, it’s both exactly what you’d expect from a story-led neo-noir thriller, and also very different in a multitude of ways. Yes, those neon-drenched, screenflicker-lit streets could be the ones that Deckard once ran down, but as for what you actually do in those streets, Replaced utilises a surprising combination of ideas that make for a confident mix of platforming, puzzling, and combat. Across its opening three hours, it takes that well-worn Replicant shell, but augments it with aspects from the likes of Ninja Gaiden, Inside, and even LucasArts classics, to create an exciting new cyberpunk vehicle, all while looking and sounding absolutely gorgeous. It’s safe to say I’m excited.
I won’t say too much about what I’ve seen of the story so far, but you’ll need the basics. Replaced casts you as a “Research Engine for Altering and Composing Humans”, better known as Reach; an artificial intelligence that accidentally finds itself taking control of a human body. Following an explosive escape from the facility it called home, this now-corporeal AI must try to return to the place of its creation to uncover the mystery of how this all happened. The problem is, that research centre sits inside a gargantuan sci-fi city surrounded by a towering perimeter wall that you have since fallen outside of. Think Final Fantasy 7’s Midgar, if what lurked outside of its confines was more akin to Mad Max’s wasteland. That’s because Replaced takes place in an alternative universe America, where the US government, in a somewhat rogue move, decided to turn its nuclear weapons on its own territory, rather than Japan’s.
This dark scenario makes for a world where class and wealth divides have only grown in magnitude, with the affluent population of Phoenix City leeching off the bodies of those surviving outside, deeming them “Disposals” and harvesting their organs at will. It’s an ugly setup, but one that looks absolutely stunning due to developer Sad Cat Studio’s decision to render this world in an eye-catching 2.5D pixelated style that reflects both the retro nature of its inspirations, but also its desire to show us something new as it attempts to “reinvent the cinematic platformer”. The opening escape alone is a showcase for both the driving synthwave soundtrack and the glistening sheen of its visuals. It somehow simultaneously manages to look satisfyingly old-school thanks to its NES-like blocks of colour, but also thoroughly modern, as thick layers of smoke and striking 3D lighting sit atop crunchy pixels to add yet another filmic flourish.
That cinematic presentation also stretches to how each combat encounter is framed. The camera zooms in to create a tense sense of claustrophobia. The depth of field twists shallower so that you and your foes are the sole focus. Slo-mo finishers add yet another dash of cool as bodies are flung to the floor before being dispatched with the blast of a pistol. The fighting starts out simple, translating the Batman: Arkham formula of dodges, parries, and strikes to a 2D plane successfully — complete with flashing red and yellow warning signals above enemy heads — but gradually introduces some welcome complexity over time. Heavy attacks are added to your arsenal and are required to tear armour off of certain enemies so that damage can be dealt to them.
You’re also handed a Blade Runner-like blaster pistol that sits inside Reach’s customary Deckard-like coat. There’s an incredibly satisfying hefty weight to this hand cannon, which sends foes flying off-screen in a manner I perhaps found a little too much delight in. It’s a powerful tool, capable of one-shotting brutes that otherwise take many punches to perish, but one that’s smartly kept limited by a novel ammunition system, which rewards you with rounds for performing well in its melee action. Aggression is encouraged – striking and countering enemies builds up your gun’s charge, whereas dodging and remaining passive noticeably drains it. Want to blow a hole in someone? You’ll have to bruise their flesh first. It’s a rhythm you’ll have to get to grips with if you want to overcome some of Replaced’s beefier foes.
My playtime ended in a boss battle with “Uncle Ben”. No, not Spider-Man’s deceased family member nor the face of the since-rebranded packs of microwaveable rice, but a cybernetic LeChuck lookalike with a death wish. Ben is the hulking leader of the Termites, a Mad Max Fury Road-like faction who hide in the dark as whispers of Valhalla echo around their sewer lair. The boss fight itself was a challenge, significantly stepping up the complexity compared to the hordes of enemies I’d encountered up until that point due to the large amount of damage Ben could deal, the sheer size of his health bar, and the fact that he’s restored to full HP for a tougher second phase. Reviving an enemy for round two in the very first very boss battle is cruel stuff, but I couldn’t help but chuckle when it happened.
This battle required patience and a close reading of the opponent, and this approach serves as a throughline for each and every one of Replaced’s encounters. Patience is rewarded, and timely button presses are required instead of quickfire spamming. That’s not just the formula behind combat, though; Replaced’s puzzles and platforming are also methodical — this isn’t a game that wants you to zip through its handsome levels, but instead stop to smell the sewage and read through its journal entries on Reach’s gloriously retro tablet device. Its slow pace surprised me at first, with a touch more holding right on the thumb stick and hopping over a few more fallen tree trunks than maybe I would’ve desired, but it’s all in service of setting the scene.
Platforming never got overly complicated, with routes clearly marked in yellow and interactable objects made obvious for the most part, but it can be a little fiddly at times. Frustrations arise due to hit boxes sometimes not appearing as clearly as I’d like, and very occasionally, the gorgeous blending of art styles leading to a little difficulty in distinguishing decoration from obstacle. From what I’ve seen so far, whereas Replaced’s combat impresses greatly, its platforming is merely serviceable.
It’s at this point that you may be asking yourself. “Simon, I thought Replaced was exactly the sort of sci-fi action platformer that you’ve just described. Where is all the unexpected stuff?” Well, that’s where Chapter 2 comes into play, sandwiched between the facility escape intro and the Termite hideout infiltration. It’s in this section that Replaced switches into LucasArts mode, as a surprise helping of those beloved ‘90s point-and-click adventures make their way into this world. Reach is thrown into a bustling town on the outskirts of Phoenix City that echoes the feel and fashion of Full Throttle, complete with seedy bars and unwelcoming characters to stumble into. It’s here that Replaced trades in the platforming and combat cocktail it initially serves up and instead asks you to walk, talk, and, if you so desire, help out its citizens through side missions.
I walked through its back alleys full of dodgy doctors and questionable figures asking for favours, and decided to help out a couple. One led me on a fetch quest to reclaim a pair of binoculars from a girl in a rundown arcade. Once I’d ripped an electrical component from a nearby machine in service of powering up one of the games, binoculars girl let me know that she’d only part with her telescopic goggles once I’d beaten her high score on the newly revived cabinet. So, unexpectedly, I found myself chasing big points on a very rudimentary arcade game that played like Crazy Taxi meets Operation. Then, binoculars finally in hand, I headed back to their original owner and was rewarded with an extra half a heart for my health meter.
I appreciate that while these optional objectives come with traditional bonuses such as improved medstims for use in combat, they also enrich your understanding of the world and the social and political dynamics at play within it. And so it’s the inclusion of these more open world-style hubs that makes for a complete package that feels, unexpectedly, as informed by Disco Elysium as much as it is old-school Ninja Gaiden. And I feel I’ve only just scratched the surface – beyond the playable demo, Sad Cat also showed me later sections of Replaced that offered a glimpse inside of Phoenix City’s walls, home to a hacking puzzle minigame and even social stealth elements involving blending into the crowd at busy road crossings to avoid looming security drones.
But no matter what you’re tasked with doing, it seems as if Replaced never loses sight of its slick style and rich tone grounded in a love for all things Blade Runner, all while letting that reverence permeate into every aspect of its design in interesting ways. I started my playthrough thinking I knew exactly what I was in for. I was wrong, but thankfully still ended it excited, knowing there’s still plenty left to discover when Replaced arrives for PC and Xbox on March 12.
Simon Cardy is a Senior Editor at IGN who can mainly be found skulking around open world games, indulging in Korean cinema, or despairing at the state of Tottenham Hotspur and the New York Jets. Follow him on Bluesky at @cardy.bsky.social.
