Castlevania Mixed with Anime Girls & Guns: A Gal Guardians: Demon Purge Review

By Manuel

Players: 1-2 (Local)
Platforms: Nintendo Switch, XBox One, XBox Series XS, PlayStation 4, PlayStation 5, PC (Steam)

Every so often a game pops onto my radar, but I miss playing it for one reason or another. Sometimes those games fall into the past, joining the "what if" pile of games I never find the time to play. Other times, I'll pick them up and wonder why they excited me in the first place. Other times still, I'll play them and kick myself for not having picked them up them sooner. The game we're going to look at today is one that I followed from development to release, but somehow fell off my radar once it was readily available. Gal Guardians: Demon Purge (Which I'm going to refer to as simple "Gal Guardians" from now on.) is an action platformer from developer Inti Creates and publisher PQube that released all the way back in 2023. It's been out so long that it's set to get a sequel in just a few days. It's available on all major platforms, and we're going to be looking at it today on the Nintendo Switch. Which of the aforementioned groups will this game fall into? Let's dive in and find out!

Gal Guardians places you into the role of two sisters who find that their school has been transformed into a castle right out of Dracula's real estate portfolio. Not just transformed mind you, but melded together in a way that must be undone if their lives are ever to return to normal. Their school friends are all currently captured or missing, and demons and monsters occupy the halls that used to be full of anime hijinks. Thankfully the two sisters, who are named Shinobu and Maya by the way, are also skilled demon hunters who are totally up for the job. There's still the mystery regarding how this all happened in the first place, but the Big Bad shows their face early on. It turns out that this series of events is the work of a girl named Kurona, and she apparently has a long history with the sisters. They're going to make their way to her in due time, but they first have to defeat her minions. That's not all though, as they'll also have to save their friends too, and hopefully get the castle back actually being a school. It's not going to be easy, but they have our heroes are no strangers to this sort of thing!

When I first heard of Gal Guardians all those years ago, I thought it was a standalone game. I guess it technically still can be enjoyed as one, but I didn't realize at the time that it was connected to the Gal Gun series of rail shooting games. In particular, it features characters from Gal Gun: Double Peace. I'm not sure what exactly took place in that previous game, but all of the characters here reference relationships established there. Players new to the franchise, like me, can still have a good time, but I imagine that it would be better enjoyed by those who have familiarity with that original game. That said, I don't think that these references don't make the game unplayable. There were tons of lines that flew right over my head, but I never really cared about it all too much. Instead of making me resent the fact that this is a loose sequel of sorts, it made me want to add that first game to my eventual to-do (read: to-play) list. I don't know if that game will eventually take the same path as this one has, but I guess we'll see about that later. All that aside, the plot is still good for what it is, even if it's full of the usual anime nonsense that might put off the more casual crowd. This isn't a fan service-heavy game like Gal Gun, but its focus on cute anime girls is sure to push away those who aren't fans of the aesthetic already. Those who do stick around are sure to enjoy the story, even if it takes a backseat to the action. And that's as good a cue as any to move the discussion towards gameplay.

I've seen Gal Guardians labelled as a Metroidvania online, but it plays far more like the classic Castlevania, especially the early NES titles, more than anything else. Each area in the game is separated into what are essentially levels, and any optional paths found in the levels themselves can potentially be ignored in their entirety. There are learned skills that open up new avenues of exploration, but backtracking is never required to complete the game. There isn't even an easy to way to get back to previously completed areas either, as you can only teleport to other levels at the beginning of another one. Rather than being used in old areas, new skills are typically meant to be used in the same/next level you pick them up in. There also isn't much in the way of character growth or stat progression. Skills can be upgraded over the course of the game, but our pair of heroines pretty much stay the same throughout the entire journey. There's no equipment or inventory to keep track of, and killing monsters won't level them up directly. There's also a lives and Game Over system depending on which difficulty you pick. I didn't want to start this review with a laundry list of what the game isn't, but I felt it was worth just getting it out of the way now.

You'd think that picking a difficulty level would only change a handful of elements related to how easy enemies are, but Gal Guardians really plays like two different games depending on what you choose. There are two options available to you from the start, Casual and Veteran, with the latter giving the game an old school feel that I'm not sure that I'm a fan of. Casual difficulty allows you to restart an area from the last checkpoint after dying, and gives you an unlimited number of lives. On the other hand, Veteran gives you a finite number of lives that lead to a Game Over if they hit 0. Game Overs mean you have to go all the way back to the start of a level, and that's not my idea of fun. That's not all either, as Veteran difficulty also introduces knockback. I've personally hated knockback in every game it's included in, and I was glad to see I could enjoy this game with it turned off. Gal Guardians is the type of game that likes to put enemies on the corners of ledges you have to jump on, and it does have bottomless pits as well. Dying because an enemy knocked you back, or even having to redo areas because they knocked you to a lower level, is something I wish would be left in the dark recesses of retro gaming forever. I know that there are some people who live for that sort of thing, and the game does provide for it, but I strongly suggest going Casual and not looking back. There's also a third difficulty option available later, but those are the ones that matter most.

Gal Guardians' dual hero system makes for cool gameplay elements, and even local co-op for those who want to tackle the game with a friend. I was unable to try out the co-op mode in time for this review, but I'm sure it's a blast. It otherwise plays similar to Bloodstained: Curse of the Moon, or even Castlevania III: Dracula's Curse, where you can change between both characters at will. Here they each have their own life bars, as well as their own useful skills and abilities that make them more useful than the other in specific situations. Shinobu has more life, and a gun that allows her to attack long range. Maya is far more powerful in her attacks, but has less life, and can only attack up close. Shinobu's bonus attacks also lean more towards to offensive, while Maya's are often defensive, or used for exploration. Maya is also the only character who can crawl into tight spaces, so switching between them is a must even if you have a favorite. Since they each have their own life bars, you'll want to make sure that both are healed up at all times. Death can come quickly even in the Casual difficulty, and dying means you have to go solo with the other sister who is still alive. You don't pick up right there though, you're sent back to the last checkpoint and have to make your way to your downed partner in order to revive them. Reviving them requires mashing a button until they regain their life, and you're open to attack while you do this. If you're unsuccessful in your life-saving run back, you lose a life and start again from said checkpoint. A bit more work than your standard Castlevania game, but it's a fair system that keeps the game from feeling too easy.

Even though the core gameplay loop revolves around completing levels, there is a bit more to it than that. There is no map for you to see during levels themselves, but you can make your way to where the boss is by simply moving forward, or using the convenient compass. Along the way you'll encounter enemies of all types, as well as lots of platforming challenges. The enemies aren't worth too much discussion, but there are quite a few of them in game. Some also require special abilities to take out, so you can't always kill everything you see. Like early Castlevania games, the platforming will probably be where most gamers meet their end. I for one think that the controls here aren't quite as tight as they should be for the amount of platforming asked of the player, but it isn't a deal breaker by any means. The big annoyances are ones I've already, such as falling into spikes, bottomless pits, or lower levels thanks to knockback, which is something you can turn off. There are other annoyances though, such as graphics that make it hard to see where you can actually stand. Some pits are marked by blank spaces, but others look like they may have platforms, but just send you to your doom. I made heavy use of the Retry feature, which simply takes you back to the last checkpoint, since I hated having to replay already completed sections late in the game.

While standard enemies weren't worth covering in too much depth, the same can't be said about the bosses. Boss encounters are one of the places where the game truly shines, though they can also be a bit on the frustrating side the first time you face them. No matter the boss, defeating them can be challenging if you just run in guns blazing. You can get lucky and take them out this way, but you'll be much better off if you learn their patterns, and attack only when there is a clear opening. These bosses are the one part of the game where I didn't mind losing multiple times, and the sense of accomplishment for beating a tough encounter is a feeling hard to put into words. Getting their life down to 0 isn't the end to the fight though, as each and every boss has some sort of final attack that is more likely to kill you than anything that came before. This last-minute bamboozle is a hallmark of Inti Creates' games, and it's something that I have a love/hate relationship with. I did expect it find here though, and it rarely caused me to fail a boss run.

Having pretty much fully covered gameplay, let's move on to visuals next. Gal Guardians features amazing 2D graphics for the action and visual novel-style CGs for some of its cutscenes. I found both to be particularly impressive, with special attention having to be given to the pixel-based graphics. Not only do all the designs look near perfect, but they're smoothly animated as well. This game also runs perfectly fine on the Nintendo Switch, and that's not always the case with games like these. The enemy and boss designs are spot on, and the same goes for Shinobu and Maya as well. I may be meeting them here for the first time, but I quickly fell in love with them. Even simple things like the map and menu screen look great, and those CGs made me want to see a Gal Gun visual novel one day. Simply put, there's a level of detail here that has to be seen to be believed, and it's hard to find anything negative to say regarding the visuals. Hard, but not impossible. My only true gripe would have to be that there isn't a lot of originality to be found here. Just about everything feels like a trope made popular by Castlevania, or something directly referencing that series or the Bloodstained games. It doesn't make this game bad by any means, but there were plenty of times when Gal Guardians felt like a re-skinned Curse of the Moon.

Similar to graphics, sound is another aspect of Gal Guardians that truly impressed me. Not only is the soundtrack is so good that you're probably going to want to check it out outside of the game itself, and there's solid voice acting here as well. I was disappointed to learn that the voice acting wasn't 100%, as the game's many cutscenes still play in silence, but the characters do have plenty of quips and attack callouts that occur during gameplay. These are set to English by default, but you can switch to the Japanese language track if you so desire. It's a simple touch, but that switch is something I wish every localized game would put in, but is something often left out. Going back to the music, there were plenty of tracks that stuck in my mind even now. They may not rival the most memorable Castlevania tunes, but they could easily be mixed into that series without anyone noticing. Even the sound effects stand out here, and I have to admit that just about everything presentation-wise hits near perfection in my book.

Part of me wants to say that I enjoyed the Curse of the Moon games more than this one, but I found Gal Guardians to be the far more replayable game. It may not lean much towards exploration, but the completionist in me still wants to treat it like a Metroidvania title. Beating the game your first time will probably take the average player about 8-10 hours, and you can give the game more longevity if you choose to tackle it on a higher difficulty. There's also the multiplayer I mentioned before, and that's really something rarely seen in action platformers of this style. There's a lot of game here, and it's also of really high quality. With that in mind, I feel that its current asking price of $24.99 is more than fair, and may even be considered something of a steal. Also, since the game has been out for two years now, it goes on sale quite frequently, and can be picked up on the cheap. This is a great game to pick up just for the solo adventure, but maybe it can be added into a game night rotation too.

It probably comes as no surprise that I give Gal Guardians: Demon Purge the fullest of recommendations. I've waited far too long to play it, and it managed to impress me at near every turn. There are parts of it that keep it from reaching true perfection, but I don't think anyone expected that of a game like this. It also offers experiences that are catered to casual and veteran players, and it even labels them as such. There's something for everyone to enjoy here, and only those who are against the anime aesthetic might want to stay away. Pick it up now on whatever console you can, and thank me later. As for me, I guess it's time to check out its sequel... See you in the next one!

Check Out Gal Guardians: Demon Purge on Nintendo Switch:
https://www.nintendo.com/us/store/products/gal-guardians-demon-purge-switch/

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Story: B
Gameplay: A
Graphics: A
Music/Sound: A
Value: A

Overall: A

Pros:
+ A fun, anime-heavy take on the classic Castlevania formula.
+ There are some light Metroidvania elements, as well as plenty of secrets, that also make this game highly replayable.
+ Both characters have their own pros and cons, and their dual mechanics mean that the game also features local co-op multiplayer.
+ The graphics are amazing, and feature perfectly animated characters and monsters.
+ Features a soundtrack that rivals anything from the games that inspired it.
+ The addition of multiple difficulty settings mean that the game can be tailored to the skills of different players.

Cons:
- I can't help but feel that this game might've been made better if it fully embraced the Metroidvania formula.
- Even though the connections are light, this is a game in the Gal Gun series, and those unfamiliar with it may not enjoy it as much. Its anime girl-heavy cast might also put off those who aren't a fan of such things.
- Can still be on the rather challenging side no matter what, especially due to the many platforming challenges.
- While the game is a blast, it doesn't feel all that original. One would be forgiven for thinking of this game as simply a re-skinned Curse of the Moon.

A copy of this game was provided to us free-of-charge by the publisher for the purpose of this review. This did not affect our review in any way.

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They really do make me want to play Gal Gun: Double Peace!

#GalGuardians