Wan Nyan Slash Review

Wan Nyan Slash is a pretty bizarre arcade game from DotWarrior Games, the creators of Block Legend. In it, players control the titular anthropomorphized characters as they run along the Japanese country-side, slicing and dicing any and all ancient demons in sight. Although it plays pretty well, has a unique play-style, and contains some charm, the game ultimately feels a little too empty to be satisfying.

To play Wan Nyan Slash, players tap and slide their fingers to determine the direction and length of Wan and Nyan's slashes as they automatically run along the screen. Once both have a clear trajectory they'll move on their own, dissecting any enemies that get caught in their path. The goal is to get as far as possible without letting too many enemies pass by Wan and Nyan. Once one too many enemies reach the left side of the screen un-chopped the game session ends, points are totaled, and players can try again.

To keep things interesting between playthroughs, Wan Nyan Slash has variable difficulties and costume unlocks that can make any given session feel a little different from the last. Players can cruise through a longer session on easy to get a feel for the progression and earn some initial costumes, though playing at the lower difficulty decreases all point multipliers, making it difficult to get a particularly high score.

Unfortunately these costumes and difficulty levels, though unique and different, don't seem to do enough to change up the game, making Wan Nyan Slash feel a bit repetitive. Unlocking a costume that makes slashing happen faster doesn't change the fact that it's still essentially an endless runner where players tap and drag to defeat enemies. Similarly, playing on a harder difficulty just makes the game faster and the progression of enemies ramp up more quickly. Occasionally random power-ups will drop during play sessions, but these just change Wan and Nyan's slash patterns rather than make any appreciable difference in the way the game is played.

In the end, Wan Nyan Slash is a tad disappointing. It's unique control scheme is sort of a one-trick pony, and it's somewhat unintuitive. Beyond that, the game is totally functional and playable, but it quickly feels repetitive. This game may be worth picking up if players are looking for something to fire up occasionally. Beyond that, there is little to keep them on the hook for repeated sessions. No matter how much Wan Nyan Slash tries to present different ways to experience the gameplay, they all kind of feel the same.