A fell curse known as "The Miracle" has befallen the land of Cvstodia - leaving many of its inhabitants in a state of living death. Your journey begins after a mass extermination claims the lives of countless members of the "Silent Sorrow". This leaves you, The Penitent One, as its only surviving member. From that moment on, you are bound to damnation and must pursue atonement by defeating the darkness that plagues your world before you can finally find rest.
Players should be able to immediately pick up on Blasphemous's impenetrable layer of religious symbolism that permeates its narrative. Being someone who was brought up in a faith that demanded strict adherence, albeit not nearly as pervasive, I was able to draw some parallel's between my own experience with misguided, fanatical teachings and the theology integral to the game's lore. However, you almost need to be a religious studies major in order to decipher everything Blasphemous attempts to convey. This lends to my biggest gripe with the game, which ultimately comes down to its neglect to properly explain its own context. Throughout my play through I was often perplexed by why things were happening, and despite wanting more exposition to explain the world I was inhabiting, I was often left with more questions than I had answers.
Blasphemous is, by design, an unflinchingly grueling experience very much in the vein of other metroidvania type games. In addition to being inherently unforgiving (as the genre mandates), it inflicts a Souls-like level of punishment on players who are not up to the challenge. I am admittedly very bad at it - time and time again finding myself on the wrong end of a blade, or claw, or weaponized crucifix. More capable players should feel encouraged knowing that Blasphemous is, at its core, an exceedingly polished action-platformer offering nothing short of total absolution for those with enough mettle to survive its challenges.
Combat is fluid, responsive, and just feels good. Players with more punctual sensibilities are rewarded with devastating combos that, upon successful execution, inflict the most damage to enemies. Speaking of execution, the brutality of Blasphemous really shines when one gets the opportunity to deliver a coup de grace to stunned enemies. There's something particularly gratifying about hacking away at a monster's throat until your blade separates its head from the rest of its body in a most spectacular 16-bit display of gore.
I learned the hard way that parrying and action sliding(?) are vital defensive mechanics that will mean the difference between coming out of an encounter victorious or being cut down with impunity. These are your only means to defend yourself against the onslaught of foes you'll encounter, but fortunately the game provides a generous window to act on them. Even still, when engaging multiple enemies at once you will likely need Jedi-caliber reflexes if you hope to make it out unscathed. For those initiated in the teachings of Soulsborne, this is likely a no brainer.
As you progress, and despite Blasphemous's every attempt at preventing you from doing so, upgrades in the form of relics and stat boosts grant The Penitent One with new abilities and a heightened tolerance for pain. Additionally, Blasphemous does feature a boiled-down skill tree that lets players fine-tune their stats. However, if you were hoping that any of these enhancements would act as conduits to ease your suffering then you are likely already dead, because it does not get any easier.
I think it's safe to assume that Blasphemous was made for fans of the metroidvania genre and that particular brand of side-scrolling gameplay, but also for those that are looking to "enhance" that experience by adding in some Dark Souls level of demoralization. In that regard, Blasphemous most certainly succeeds. Its narrative is steeped in a twisted, uncomfortable, pseudo-religious fantasy that lends itself both aesthetically and tonally to the overall hopelessness often felt through repeated trial and error that Blasphemous seemingly demands from the player as their own form of penance.
