TEVI

I went in expecting a competent genre mash and came out the other side genuinely stunned by how far CreSpirit pushed the formula. TEVI layers bullet-hell boss design on top of a full metroidvania skeleton, and unlike most hybrids that awkwardly bolt two identities together, this one actually commits to both. The studio's spiritual predecessor Rabi-Ribi earned cult status for its boss spectacle, and TEVI inherits that DNA while expanding almost every system around it. The world of Az spans more than 40 interconnected areas, and exploration here earns its keep. Permanent stat boosts and money are tucked around corners often enough that backtracking feels like a reward rather than busywork. Movement abilities unlock at a steady rhythm: the standard double jump and slide arrive early, but the jetpack, Slick Boots, and a cross bomb add texture and open routes in ways that quietly reshape how you read each room. Tevi fights with a close-range dagger and oversized wrench for melee, while companion characters Celia and Sable provide ranged orbital attacks from her side, so the combat split between melee aggression and buddy-ranged coverage is baked into the design from the start. Chaining Backflip Slashes, Air Dashes, and Dagger Throws into stun-locking air combos to trigger the Break state on bosses is the central rhythm, and it clicks with a satisfying precision that most action games take years to refine. The Sigil system is where TEVI earns its replay credibility. You gather and craft hundreds of equippable modifiers, slot them within an Equip Point budget, and build Tevi to suit your playstyle: extended combo windows, near-death health bursts, charged ranged attacks, faster MP regeneration after firing. Some Sigils are situational to the point of feeling fiddly, one reviewer noted a Sigil that only activates within the first twenty seconds of a boss encounter, and that layer of condition-tracking can feel like too much overhead in the middle of a hectic fight. Still, the breadth of the system means two players can run through the same boss fight with entirely different toolkits, which is not something most metroidvanias can claim. Boss fights are the undisputed centrepiece. Each encounter escalates through multiple phases, layering lasers, lock-on attacks, and clustered projectile patterns that grow progressively denser until the final battles fill the screen. The late-game encounters hit a particular register where dodging bullet hell patterns while maintaining melee pressure feels close to a fighting game, your own skill ceiling as the only real ceiling. The soundtrack earns special mention: each area carries its own melodic personality, and the driving riffs that accompany boss fights have that rare quality of music that raises the physical stakes of what is happening on screen. The Japanese voice cast, which includes Rie Kugimiya as Vena, is genuinely impressive for an indie release of this scale. The rough edges are real but survivable. The story opens slowly, with early cutscenes that lean into anime banter a little harder than the pacing can support. The narrative finds its footing once the corrupting force known as the Decay becomes the focus, and the closing hours deliver a bittersweet conclusion that feels earned. The world is also somewhat more linear than the freedom of the combat would suggest, and the inability to drop down through platforms is a minor but consistently noticeable friction. Difficulty, thankfully, is adjustable at any point from Tevi's house, ranging from an auto-heal casual mode all the way up to an Expert setting unlocked post-completion. A post-launch update added a Boss Rush mode at the coliseum and new secret boss fights, and post-game DLC continues the story beyond the ending. For a game that already runs 25 to 35 hours depending on how thoroughly you explore, that is a generous package.

Kai · Scout Team

Indie & narrative

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