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In a market inundated with Metroidvanias, Laika: Aged Through Blood does something remarkable: it actually tries something new. That’s not to say that recent examples haven’t had a good crack at standing out amongst the crowd — Animal Well is certainly testament to that — but many largely stick to the same rulebook. Laika tears it apart and chucks it into the fires of Mount Doom.
So what makes this one so different? Well, it’s all about the traversal: Laika expertly blends motocross gameplay with more traditional Metroidvania mechanics, doing away with segmented rooms and corridors in favour of sprawling, interconnected landscapes. You’re specifically encouraged to travel at high speeds, launch yourself into the air, and pull off badass flips that will have Trials fans giddy.
Unlike other Metroidvanias, where the environment begins to fade into the background as you familiarise yourself with its layout, Laika demands that you continue to pay attention, as one false move can result in your bloodied carcass staining the ground. It’s not just your control of the bike that you’ll need to keep an eye on, however, as a band of ‘Bird’ soldiers will be dotted around the landscape, eager to put a bullet in your head and end your journey.
Taking more than a few aesthetic cues from Mad Max, Laika stars the titular heroine who, as a resident of a rundown settlement called ‘Where We Live’, is the only one with the authority to head out into the Wasteland to find supplies. After tragedy strikes early on, Laika must embark on a deadly quest to vanquish the Bird clan while fulfilling parental duties to her young daughter, Puppy.
To put it bluntly, Laika is a bleak and brutal game: dark, mature themes are tackled head-on, NPCs swear with reckless abandon, and gory scenes occur with such regularity that it frankly makes the likes of RetroRealms: Ash vs Evil Dead look tame by comparison. Don’t let the bright colours and anthropomorphic animals fool you; this is absolutely not for youngsters.
To contrast this, however, Laika is beautiful to behold. The character and environment design is impeccable and there’s always something interesting to look at or interact with on your travels; quite an achievement given the barren, post-apocalyptic setting. Quieter moments where you’re simply tearing down a dirt track are also bolstered significantly by a sublime OST largely made up of vocal tracks from composer Beatriz “Beícoli” Ruiz-Castillo. We’re going to go on record and say that it’s probably one of the strongest video game soundtracks we’ve heard in years; marvellous stuff.
Of course, this would all be rendered moot if the gameplay wasn’t up to scratch, but as we’ve alluded to, the motocross traversal mixed with the deadly encounters with the Bird clan is magnificent. Initially, you’re granted a simple handgun with opportunities to increase its measly two-bullet chamber at stores dotted around the landscape, but for most scenarios, two bullets at a time is all you need.
Getting to grips with the controls can take a few minutes, but the gist is that you accelerate with ‘L’, shoot with ‘R’, balance your bike with the left analogue stick, and aim with the right. You can reverse direction by briefly holding down ‘Y’, and this will also neatly deflect bullets if you manage to time it just right. It’s not what you might be used to in a Metroidvania, so if it feels a bit weird at first, don’t panic; it won’t be long until you’re performing multiple flips and popping the heads off countless Birds in one go.
That said, it’s a bloomin’ difficult game. The gameplay’s very nature means that if you bail or get shot, you die immediately. To offset this, however, checkpoints are provided at a generous rate, meaning you’ll never have to travel very far if you want to get back into the action. In addition, holding down ‘R’ will activate bullet-time, giving you a few moments to line up your shots and pull off some of the most incredible stunts. It’s much appreciated given that the majority of your enemy encounters will likely happen while you’re mid-air.
Acrobatic flips aren’t just for show, either (although it does always look cool): they’re actually necessary to ensure that you’re well equipped for battles. Flipping backwards reloads your gun, while flipping forward recharges your ability to manually deflect bullets. You can also skip a lot of encounters, if you wish, but taking on as many enemies as possible is encouraged in order to gain ‘viscera’, the literal internal Bird guts that act as the game’s currency. Gross.
With this, you can purchase a number of additional weapons, including shotguns, crossbows, machine guns, and more, or you can upgrade your current arsenal, stock up on crafting materials, and even purchase cute little presents for Puppy back home. There’s also a merchant who will fill in your map for a small fee; a vital purchase that will make exploration exponentially easier, even if he does always call Laika a… Well, we won’t say it. Such a potty mouth.
With multiple major areas to uncover, dungeons to explore, and formidable boss characters to vanquish, Laika will likely take you around 15 or so hours to complete; a handful more if you’re looking to gather up all optional collectibles and store purchases. The difficulty might prove a bit much for some, and unfortunately despite its lengthy delay on Switch (in fact, some of you may have grabbed the game off the eShop last year before it was hastily recalled), there are still some minor performance hitches to be ironed out. Nothing that completely derails the experience, but a handful of moments in which the frame rate stutters, or the camera bugs out a bit after transitioning to a new area.
Conclusion
Now that the Switch version Laika: Aged Through Blood has finally arrived, it can finally join Hollow Knight, Animal Well, and Blasphemous II as a true modern classic in the Metroidvania genre. The premise and gameplay are like no other, seamlessly combining motocross gameplay with badass bullet-time shootouts that constantly feels satisfying. Chuck in one of the best soundtracks we’ve heard in years and maybe iron out the remaining performance hiccups, and Laika could well be an early contender for Switch GOTY 2025.