Nuclear Blaze Review

thesixthaxis.com:

What do you do next after you’ve helped bring a modern-day classic like Dead Cells into the world? That must have been a consideration for Sébastien Bénard, a leading designer of the aforementioned Metroidvania-influenced mega-hit. Well, if the whole ‘difficult second album fear’ was a concern for Sébastien, it certainly needn’t have been. His latest game, Nuclear Blaze, is red hot.

Nuclear Blaze seeks to fulfil the fantasy of every young kid and young-at-heart grown-up; to be a firefighter. Not just any firefighter, though, as our intrepid and unnamed pixelated hero is an elite firefighter. One who needs to tackle a ferocious blaze burning through a top-secret underground facility. Despite initial appearances, Nuclear Blaze is not a Metroidvania, nor is it a roguelike. No, this is a straight-up action-adventure puzzle game and its old-school simplicity is just one of the many reasons to love it.

Your firefighter is tasked with making their way through a series of 2D environments, each effortlessly evoking 90s action-film nostalgia. The levels might only be a few screens in length, but are cram-packed with flames for you to battle with. These flames can quickly spread throughout the environment, so it’s up to you to use your firehose to extinguish them as quickly as possible.

It’s a furious and intense endeavour. You must keep the flames under control, whilst also navigating the level to activate sprinklers, discover key cards, and refill your water tanks at handy pumps in order to survive. It is, plainly and simply, exquisite fun. The gameplay is fast-paced and thrilling, with sumptuously tight controls that mean when you die – and you will die a lot – it is only ever your fault, not the game’s. It ensuring an addictive