Severed is developed by DrinkBox Studios, the ones behind the hit Guacamelee! Severed is for the PlayStation Vita, iOS, Wii U and 3DS because the gameplay requires the touchscreen. Exploration is a big aspect of Severed but the map is essentially split into "rooms". The character stands in the middle of each room, while you can freely rotate the camera to check for any hidden items. To move to the next room, you push the analogue stick to the exit. It actually works really well and seamlessly. It is in first-person view though so moving too fast may cause some motion sickness in the beginning.
There are hidden collectables in all the areas and you will need to backtrack as you gain more powers in order to clear previously blocked paths. It's fun though you wish that the developer could have implemented a fast travel system such that you didn't need to trek a long way to another section at the end of the game (but that said, it takes less than a minute to trek across the whole map). To aid in the exploration, there's a handy map which shows off the parts you have already visited and which ones you haven't.
You can zoom in and out of the map while also checking the various levels of the current dungeon to plot your path. It is definitely a joy to explore and find all the hidden secrets. The combat is interesting. It uses the touchscreen and while this may raise red flags, it's implemented well. You slash enemies by dragging your finger across the screen. Understanding your enemy is important because their stance will tell you whether they are blocking your attacks or not. Swiping will allow you to slash your sword, with longer swipes causing more damage but shorter swipes are faster and weaker.
Multiple slashes in succession will fill your Focus meter where once it gets full, you can "sever" your enemies on defeat to gain body parts for upgrades. Upgrades ranges from increased attack to passive effects to special abilities. This creates an addictive cycle of defeating enemies to gain their body parts for upgrading to efficiently kill more enemies. The enemy health is shown at the bottom of the screen and there is also a meter which warns you when they are about to attack. You can block attacks by swiping against their attacking limb. This gets important because you will soon fight against multiple enemies at the same time and need to strategize.
During battles against multiple enemies, you need to think on the spot and determine which enemy to face, block their attacks and also time your defeat properly in order to maximize the amount of body parts that you can gain. Some enemies are great for charging Focus while others are quick to die so you need to leave them for last. It can quickly get hectic when you're facing off three or more stronger enemies at once that each require a gimmick. The number of enemy designs is limited as you'll soon encounter reskinned enemies. The new enemies each have additional quirks which you must be careful of and keeps things fresh and interesting. To increase the difficulty, enemies will appear with buffs and time limits, where if you time out, you die.
Certain fights towards the end of the game are tough. Dying only respawns you to the last checkpoint which isn't a problem since checkpoints/saves are frequent enough that you don't really lose any progress at all. While exploring there can be traps such as being ambushed by eight enemies at once, falling through a hole or encountering poison gas which whittles down your health until you get rid of the source. Environmental hazards may also carry into battle leaving you at a handicap and in a mad rush to defeat the enemies so you don't lose too much health. Enemies do not respawn which is great, since it makes exploring and backtracking much less frustrating without the interruptions.
Severed follows the protagonist Sasha as she travels into another world in search for her family, who were killed by monsters and taken into this world. The story is light and you're mainly just thrown into the game and expected to explore it yourself with limited guidance, which is fine since the game is really easy to pick up. The art style is simple yet charming. It works wonderfully and makes the game extremely pretty to look at. The excellent atmosphere will be downright creepy and eerie at times thanks to the aesthetics and the fact that you know that this is some sort of other world of the dead.
As you'll most likely be holding the Vita with one hand since the other will be using the touchscreen, hand cramps will happen. The game is short with a first playthrough of only around 5-8 hours, this is including getting to 100% completion. However, it is an amazing experience. Overall, Severed is a fantastic game and an immense amount of fun. DrinkBox Studios managed to create an engaging and fun combat system revolving around the touchscreen without feeling too gimmicky. The story has enough to keep you intrigued and the exploration aspect is top notch. Severed is highly recommended.
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