Retro Replay Review

Gameplay

Xyphoes Fantasy delivers a classic side-scrolling action experience that will feel immediately familiar to fans of titles like Shadow of the Beast and Psychic World. You guide your warrior from left to right across monster-infested landscapes, balancing precise timing on jumps, ducks, and attacks to avoid being overwhelmed by Skull minions. The core mechanics focus on maintaining momentum—forward is progress, and hesitation often means getting cornered by enemies or hazards.

Beyond basic movement, your character can unleash energy waves that vary in strength depending on the upgrades you collect. Potions scattered throughout each level offer temporary power boosts, while magic crystals not only enhance your offensive potential but also grant protective shields. These RPG-lite elements introduce a layer of strategy: do you save your potion for the next miniboss, or use it immediately to clear a swarm of weaker foes?

Each level culminates in a showdown against one of Kan’s elite swordsmen, echoing the high-stakes clashes of Death Sword–style boss fights. Defeating these foes requires both skillful platforming and judicious use of your energy waves and shields. In the second stage, mounting a horse changes the pacing entirely—you trample enemies at galloping speed, reminiscent of Shinobi III’s ride sequences—forcing you to anticipate obstacles and adversaries in a fast-paced, thrill-inducing horseback level.

The requirement to collect specific magic items for the old magician before moving on adds a collectible-hunt dynamic that rewards thorough exploration. While the linear progression remains the game’s backbone, secret alcoves and hidden paths encourage replaying levels to achieve full completion. This blend of action, platforming, and light exploration delivers a satisfying sense of mastery as you learn enemy patterns and optimize your route to maximize pickups.

Graphics

Visually, Xyphoes Fantasy embraces a richly detailed pixel-art aesthetic that evokes nostalgia without feeling stale. The environments range from mist-shrouded forests to craggy mountain passes, each rendered with vibrant color palettes and parallax scrolling backgrounds that add depth to the 2D plane. Occasional weather effects—drifting fog, flickering torchlight, and swirling leaves—enhance immersion and underscore the land of Norem’s mystical atmosphere.

Character and enemy sprites are carefully animated, lending fluidity to your warrior’s movements and the Skull minions’ attacks. Boss designs stand out with imposing silhouettes, dynamic idle animations, and clear visual cues before launching major attacks. The horse-riding sequences feature a swifter animation style, with dust trails and motion blur effects that convey speed and urgency as you thunder past obstacles.

Magic wave attacks and potion-triggered shields come with satisfying particle effects: glowing auras, crackling energy arcs, and translucent barriers that visually communicate both impact and duration. Subtle screen shakes and brief flashes on successful hits heighten the sensory feedback, ensuring each swing or spell feels weighty and consequential. While some backgrounds may repeat in later levels, occasional palette shifts and new set pieces—ruined castles, enchanted groves—keep the visuals fresh throughout your journey.

On the technical side, Xyphoes Fantasy runs smoothly at a steady frame rate on both modern and retro-inspired hardware, with minimal loading times between segments. The developers’ attention to pixel-perfect collision detection and responsive controls means that what you see is exactly what you get—no frustrating “ghost hits” or lag-induced mistakes. Overall, the graphics strike an effective balance between nostalgic charm and modern polish.

Story

The narrative of Xyphoes Fantasy is straightforward yet engaging: the malevolent Kan is extending his dark influence across Norem, unleashing hordes of Skull minions to terrorize towns and corrupt the land. An aged magician, one of the last custodians of the realm’s ancient magic, enlists your aid in reclaiming scattered magic crystals that can restore his dwindling power. This setup gives your quest a clear purpose and propels you through diverse environments in search of vital artifacts.

While story beats are mainly conveyed through brief dialogue before and after each level, the game sprinkles in environmental storytelling—decaying shrines, abandoned hamlets, and ominous banners bearing Kan’s sigil—to reinforce the stakes. The magician’s cryptic warnings and occasional hints about the true nature of Kan’s power add a light layer of mystery without bogging down the pace with excessive exposition. Cutscenes are short but well-timed, ensuring that the narrative complements rather than interrupts the action.

Boss encounters double as narrative milestones: defeating each of Kan’s swordsmen symbolizes reclaiming a fragment of the land’s lost virtue. The final confrontation against Kan himself unfolds with dramatic flair, tying together the game’s key mechanics (mounted combat, crystal-powered abilities, and shield defenses) into a climactic battle. Even if the story doesn’t break new ground, it provides a cohesive framework that keeps players motivated to push onward.

For those seeking deeper lore, the game’s manual and in-game codex offer additional background on Norem’s history, the origins of the Skull minions, and the magician’s past exploits. These supplemental texts enrich the world-building for lore enthusiasts, though they’re completely optional for players who prefer to focus on the core action. Overall, the story serves its purpose: it injects enough narrative weight to make your heroic journey feel meaningful.

Overall Experience

Xyphoes Fantasy strikes a gratifying balance between challenge and accessibility. Beginners can adjust difficulty settings to temper enemy aggression, while seasoned players will relish the precise platforming demands and tightly tuned combat. The learning curve ramps up steadily, introducing new enemy types and level hazards at a pace that feels fair but never predictable.

The soundtrack features soaring orchestral themes punctuated by driving percussive rhythms during horseback segments. Each track complements the visual tone of its corresponding level—mystical flutes for forest stages, brooding strings for ancient ruins, and triumphant brass during boss battles. Sound effects are crisp, from the clang of your sword to the whoosh of a magical energy wave, reinforcing the tactile nature of each encounter.

Replay value comes from multiple angles: collecting every magic item, discovering hidden routes, and mastering speedrun techniques for each level. A local co-op mode (available in certain editions) adds another layer of fun, allowing a friend to join your crusade against Kan’s forces. Even after completing the main campaign, challenges and time-trial modes beckon for those craving additional tests of skill.

In sum, Xyphoes Fantasy is a compelling blend of retro-inspired platforming and light RPG progression set against a suitably epic backdrop. Whether you’re drawn by its nostalgic mechanics, rich pixel art, or simple yet effective story, the game offers hours of engaging content that will satisfy both veteran action-platformer fans and newcomers seeking a spirited adventure.