Nine Sols from Red Candle Games is a challenging 2D hand-drawn Sekiro-inspired Metroidvania with deflection-based combat on PlayStation 5. Learn more about it in our Nine Sols review!
Nine Sols from Red Candle Games is a challenging 2D hand-drawn Sekiro-inspired Metroidvania with deflection-based combat on PlayStation 5. This new adventure takes place in the Taopunk world of New Kunlun, which fuses Eastern mythology with cyberpunk aesthetics. You’ll be taking on the role of Yi, a mysterious Fangshi. The adventure begins in a cave where you’ll be joined by Shuanshuan, who is looking for a special flower needed for a ritual. While the world around you seems to be a very classic, if primitive, location, there’s more than meets the eye in this one. Your journey will have you work on slaying the 9 Sols that rule the realm.
The studio had a crowdfunding campaign back in 2022, seeking NT$3,000,000 for the game’s development. Once the campaign was over, and thanks to the support of 8,900 backers, the project ended up with more than NT$13,000,000 in funding. Nine Sols was first released on Steam in May, and it’s now time for it to shine on PlayStation 5. It’s thanks to this that some stretch goals were reached, which added an additional easier difficulty setting, an in-game cutscene, as well as an alternate ending.
This is why the game can be played in one of two difficulty settings: Standard Mode and the aforementioned crowdfunding stretch goal Story Mode. Standard Mode brings us the original Nine Sols experience, balanced for those of you who enjoy a good challenge with fun combat and lots of areas to explore. If you go with Story Mode, you’ll be able to focus on enjoying the game’s story without having to worry too much about the combat and your opponents since you can dynamically adjust damage multipliers as needed.
A ceremony takes place in which the chosen ones get to travel elsewhere to live with the Gods, the titular Sols. You witness how an evil contraption starts to grab the chosen ones, ripping away their heads while dropping the bodies down into a hidden facility. Shuanshuan, who you have been friends with for the last couple of years, is one of those chosen for the ritual. As expected, this is definitely bad news. Knowing what is about to happen, you rush to his side and activate your talisman to prevent the machine from ending his life.
You manage to destroy the helmet in the process with the power of your Qi explosion, which sends all the villagers running in fear of the wrath of the Gods. This is, after all, everything they know, and they feel that this will lead to some seriously bad juju. After saying goodbye to Shuanshun, you use your abilities to hack the lift that was bringing the bodies underground and prepare to take on the evil entities that are harvesting humans at this facility…
Once you jump into action, you’ll control Yi with the left analog stick as you explore each area, jumping with the X button, dashing with the R2 button, attacking with the Square button, and eventually shooting arrows from your bow with the Triangle button. Press the Circle button to interact with other characters or any contraptions you need to activate. You can also press the Circle button to launch your hook when jumping so that you can attach it to specific spots. Yi will be able to run up some walls that feature oozy undulating tentacles, so be sure to pay attention to each area!
Because of the game’s deflection-based combat, if you want to survive, then you’ll have to press the L1 button to parry incoming attacks at the right time. If your timing is off, you’ll block the attack, which will still damage Yi. At least you’ll collect some Qi, which you can then use by attaching it to an enemy by pressing the R1 button to dash through them. This will deal a big chunk of damage to your enemy, and will be a must during boss fights. Press up on the D-Pad to use your Pipe so that you can recover a bit of your lost health. Oh, and you’ll soon unlock Mystic Nymph, which you can use by pressing the L2 button to have it fly through small passages to hack hidden contraptions.
Die, and you’ll lose all of your experience and money. Unlike other Soulslikes you might have played before, in Nine Sols, to recover your money after dying, you’ll have to kill the enemy who defeated you. Fail to do this, and it will be lost for good! And given its Souslike nature, when you save your progress and rest, all enemies will respawn. At least you’ll also be able to review your Skill Tree at a save point and see what you should unlock next to try and stay one step ahead of your opponents.
Speaking of which, as you defeat enemies and bosses, you’ll be rewarded with experience points. Obtain enough, and you’ll get a special Skill Point. This can be used at the Skill Tree to unlock nodes that will boost Yi, thus increasing your chances of survival. You can unlock Swift Runner, which allows you to run at a faster pace over flat ground. Another option is Qi Boost, which will increase the maximum Qi charge so that you can use more abilities. A very useful one is Bullet Deflect, which makes it possible to use a precise parry to deflect certain projectiles or arrows back at an enemy,
The money you collect can be spent on the 3D printer to create new items. Get some Jade so that you can improve the skills unlocked on the Skill Tree. An example of this is the Ricochet Jade, which can be used in tandem with the Bullet Deflect skill to deflect back projectiles even if your parry is not as precise. But before you get any Jade, I highly suggest that you purchase the Pipe Vial. This will increase the number of times you can use your Pipe to heal some of your wounds, which will make a big difference in the long run.
Trophy-wise, the game has a full list with a Platinum trophy for you to try and add to your collection. The list is split into 15 Bronze trophies, 17 Silver trophies, and 3 Gold trophies for you to work on. Some of the objectives you’ll be working on for that shiny Platinum include mastering all skills in the skill tree, collecting every jade, defeating each of the many bosses that the game will throw at you – including the secret ones – and completing the game in the Standard Mode difficulty setting. There are also many secret trophies in this game that I won’t be spoiling here! If you need some extra help, you can check out this Nine Sols Trophy Guide.
Nine Sols is a challenging 2D hand-drawn Sekiro-inspired Metroidvania with deflection-based combat on PlayStation 5. This new adventure takes place in the Taopunk world of New Kunlun, which fuses Eastern mythology with cyberpunk aesthetics. You’ll be taking on the role of Yi, a mysterious Fangshi. The adventure begins in a cave where you’ll be joined by Shuanshuan, who is looking for a special flower needed for a ritual. While the world around you seems to be a very classic, if primitive, location, there’s more than meets the eye in this one. Your journey will have you work on slaying the 9 Sols that rule the realm. Are you up to the challenge? Nine Sols is out today on PlayStation 5 with a $29.99 price tag.
Disclaimer
This Nine Sols review is based on a PlayStation 5 copy provided by Red Candle Games.
